Missions Minded Monday

About two months ago we sold our imac b/c we knew we were moving out and there was no way we could take that thing to Romania.  We also sold my old laptop.  I have randomly been using Steve's work computer every now and then.  Well, my heart sure is happy because two days ago Steve came home and brought me a brand spankin' new macbook!  We waited two months so we could get it tax free. Needless to say, I am excited...not only about a new laptop, but that now I can blog more regularly and share more of what the Lord is doing in my heart and in our lives!  I am a yucky mess inside, but He never lets go and He just keeps cleaning me out and filling me back up with His Spirit!

One thing that is near and dear to my heart is missions. I thought it would fun and interesting if I had a missions minded Monday and on each Monday I would blog about missions. This could look very different. Some Monday's I may just share Scripture, some Monday's I may share about a current or former missionary or I may just share some of our own journey, though we know so little.  I do believe missions can be right in your very own town and also global.  So if I write about missions, it really does apply to everyone, no matter your location.

Yesterday was celebration Sunday at our church.  It was incredible to see all that the Lord is doing in Mexico, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and in Africa. My heart was excited and broke all at the same time.  Our church has been in relationship with churches/ministries in these areas for about 7 years (some more, some less) and now they are beginning to see the fruit of that!  Which makes everyone elated!  Seeing children who would have spent their entire lives on the street with a dark future now in a Christian home where they are loved and getting an education or just now about to start college.....what a gift that the church is actually getting to see the fruit of their labor!  What grace!!

So yesterday at church, it really did seem like a celebration because all GOOD things were being said.  I loved what Rick shared towards the end.  He was sharing that all of this looks and sounds so good, but that this life style of a missionary and for the natives of these countries is SO hard. We have no idea the costly sacrifice that is being made by so many and the hurt that is going on in the hearts of so many.

I do not remember all that Rick had written down and shared yesterday. I really don't want to botch it.  But he did share that we are going in to spiritual war! That is what we are preparing for.  We are coming up against darkness, poverty, abuse, oppression.  So much of this is what I saw in Romania and it is all over the world! It is all over our nation, but it is masked so well in some places and goes unnoticed by so many.

So we can go out into the world and cloth people and feed them, help them find jobs and a home.  All of that needs to be done and is great, but they need the LORD.   Sharing Christ in a dark, destitute oppressed land has spiritual war written all over it.

For my birthday Steve got me a book by David Platt titled Radical. So far, good read. It is about "taking back your faith from the American Dream."  Early in the book he compares what today's American churches look like and then what we read about in the book of Acts.  I love this....

"I see a small band of timid disciples huddled together in an upper room. They know they need God's power. They are Galileans, disrespected by the higher classes in Jerusalem as lower class, rural, uneducated commoners.  This is the group that the spread of Christianity depends on.  So what are they doing?  They are not plotting strategies. They are joined together constantly in prayer.  They are not busy putting their faith in themselves or relying on themselves. They are pleading for the power of God, and they are confident that they are not going to accomplish anything without HIS provision."

If you have read any of my blog then you know that the last sentence is highlighted for a reason.  This is something GOD has been hammering into my brain for the last 7 months.  I am very confident that I can accomplish NOTHING without HIM!  He is my faithful Provider and I need Him and His power moment by moment.  I need Him to have victory over any spiritual war!