What Are You Doing to Create Change?

I once read a book that perfectly described the way I have been feeling as I have been on this journey, and I will attempt to relay it along with my own ideas. As I look around at the poverty and injustice in the world, I cannot help but to occasionally question whether the Lord is good. But every time I ask God why he allows so much suffering and injustice, he asks me the same thing. What am I doing to fix the broken, to heal the hurt, to call the self-seeking to a greater good, to educate those unable to afford the precious cost of schooling?

God is sovereign (Proverbs 16:1-4), but he has equipped you and I with gifts and talents that only WE can use to glorify him. We are all given a specific role to play in the advancement of God’s kingdom, but it is our decision whether we listen and/or follow that individual call.

As we walked home along the scarlet dirt roads from Pastor Caleb’s house this morning, my team member Justin made the comment,  

“God won’t do what you can, he will do what you can’t.”

  I love this because it begins to capture a small bit of understanding behind the truth of God’s gift of free will and his sovereignty. As said before, I believe God has created each and every one of us with our own unique abilities. He is the ultimate provider and sustainer, and I truly believe that the Lord provides for his will to be done. But if he has allowed sin to be in the world then he has allowed us the free will to choose between what will please the Lord and what will please ourselves. We can choose to turn away from our God, to trust our own judgment, which will inevitably build a wall up between our personal relationships with the Lord. This does not mean you can mess up God’s will, as he can take anything we give to him and make it beautiful. He makes all things beautiful in their own time (Ecclesiastes 3:11) and he works all things for good and his glory (Romans 8:28).

            So to all of those who are so easily angered by those who constantly claim that the Lord will provide but refuse to take steps to personally invest in the process, I understand. I understand that if there is something that the Lord wants spoken, he will make the rocks cry out (Luke 19:40), but I have come to believe that God’s heart may be bigger and more loving than to do that all the time. He has called his creation and his beloved children to a higher standard. God desires to see us love each and serve each other, just as a Father desires to see his sons and daughters share in loving one another. As God sent his son to prove, God desires for us to take hold of the freedom he has so bountifully given us and take ownership of the Holy Spirit who lives inside of us. Let us admit we are broken, admit we have failed, and believe that Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only way to pay for all the ways we daily trust in our own judgment and turn away from our Father in heaven. Once we recognize our need for the spirit, then we can depend on its power. We can choose to claim the divine gift we have been given and use it for God’s glory!

Trip update:

-         - Amidst the chaos of traveling (we actually had a woman who screamed for the plane to stop in Ethiopia after running down the aisle claiming someone stole her cell phone)

-          I have officially become a part of my team’s family! Their names are Kathryn, Justin, Paige, Andrea, Joe, and Jonathan.

-          We are in Nygatare which is about three hours away from the rest of the World Race squad in the capital Kigali

-          Although we are away from the bustling capital city, we are in a smaller town which has some cars, shops, and a few other signs of industrialization. But it also has a beautiful view of the beautiful nature and agriculture surrounding the town, complete with stunning trails to run along as the sun rises:)

-          This town’s host is Pastor Caleb, who I believe is from Uganda but moved here sometime after the genocide in 1994.  He is very excited to have us preach in his church service (which is held EVERY day), but as many of you know, I am scared to death of speaking in front of people. So prayers for confidence and for my words to not be my own, but the breath of the Holy Spirit, would be really great.

-          I absolutely love my team, and already have been able to have so many real conversations with them. The organization (Adventures In Missions) has a model set up called “feedback” which is just a healthy way to communicate encouragement as well as to deal with conflict. It has allowed me to openly trust and quickly build relationships with my brothers and sisters on this team, which is a million prayers answered already!