Courage
There are these moments, moments where I feel inspired. It's as if the Holy Spirit has deposited a million dollars into the creative account. Ok, not really. If you can't relate to that, how about a light bulb idea? Where all of a sudden a rush of excitement hits and you have to share. That may be more like what I just felt. Either way I have a thought or two to share and you all are my audience today. Well everyday actually. The Things aren't too interested in the blog unless it is about them.
Here I sit, one month away from leaving for Honduras. For those of you that don't know I am traveling to Central America in September to volunteer with Mission Lazarus. To learn more about the organization and the work they are doing you can visit their website at, www.missionlazarus.org. This is not necessarily a post about them. Yet it is all intricately weaved together. Anyhow, I have been dealing with feelings of doubt, hesitation and FEAR. Really just the enemy at play. The trip has been planned for a few months now. I have attended meetings in preparation, purchased airfare, sent out donation letters and rearranged my family's schedule for the sole purpose of going on this trip. All the while there was this nagging in my gut telling me not to go. A whisper. You can't help these people. Why are you better than them? What about your own family? What do you have to offer these women? You're not equipped, you're not prepared, you don't even know what to share. It was as if those phrases were stuck on the CD that continually played in my head. Day in, day out.
And then this past Sunday something changed. A highschool boy stood in front of us and shared a powerful message. See, he had been involved in a similar trip this past summer. Only instead of being afraid he was empowered. He shared the Message with others in the foreign land and then he returned and shared that same Message with others at home. He is captain of the football team at a public highschool here. And as he spoke he did so with such confidence that I wept. His platform is that team. His responsibility, his teammates. So after each practice he shares an encouraging Word with the guys. Then one day he invited them all to a Bible study at his house. Forty highschool boys showed up. He talked to the security guard at the highschool parking lot. His family picked up a hitch hiker and shared the same Message with him. It wasn't just the words though, it was action. He was living it out.
I sat in my chair stunned. This young man spoke with such courage and fire. What an example. Here I am a mother of four, a married grown woman and I don't posess that same boldness. I can though. I see glimpses of it in the Things. The way Thing 1 shook off her insecurities last week and introduced herself to a group of freshman girls. If you're not aware a group of teenage girls can be more intimidating than a person who doesn't speak the same language as you. Trust me, I was one of them.
All that to say, courage is key. Not listening to the lies the enemy will haunt you with. Standing on the foundation that is truth. The only truth. And then of course sharing it with truck loads of grace. The grace that carries you through the fear. The same grace that empowers us to live freely.
Here I sit, one month away from leaving for Honduras. For those of you that don't know I am traveling to Central America in September to volunteer with Mission Lazarus. To learn more about the organization and the work they are doing you can visit their website at, www.missionlazarus.org. This is not necessarily a post about them. Yet it is all intricately weaved together. Anyhow, I have been dealing with feelings of doubt, hesitation and FEAR. Really just the enemy at play. The trip has been planned for a few months now. I have attended meetings in preparation, purchased airfare, sent out donation letters and rearranged my family's schedule for the sole purpose of going on this trip. All the while there was this nagging in my gut telling me not to go. A whisper. You can't help these people. Why are you better than them? What about your own family? What do you have to offer these women? You're not equipped, you're not prepared, you don't even know what to share. It was as if those phrases were stuck on the CD that continually played in my head. Day in, day out.
And then this past Sunday something changed. A highschool boy stood in front of us and shared a powerful message. See, he had been involved in a similar trip this past summer. Only instead of being afraid he was empowered. He shared the Message with others in the foreign land and then he returned and shared that same Message with others at home. He is captain of the football team at a public highschool here. And as he spoke he did so with such confidence that I wept. His platform is that team. His responsibility, his teammates. So after each practice he shares an encouraging Word with the guys. Then one day he invited them all to a Bible study at his house. Forty highschool boys showed up. He talked to the security guard at the highschool parking lot. His family picked up a hitch hiker and shared the same Message with him. It wasn't just the words though, it was action. He was living it out.
I sat in my chair stunned. This young man spoke with such courage and fire. What an example. Here I am a mother of four, a married grown woman and I don't posess that same boldness. I can though. I see glimpses of it in the Things. The way Thing 1 shook off her insecurities last week and introduced herself to a group of freshman girls. If you're not aware a group of teenage girls can be more intimidating than a person who doesn't speak the same language as you. Trust me, I was one of them.
All that to say, courage is key. Not listening to the lies the enemy will haunt you with. Standing on the foundation that is truth. The only truth. And then of course sharing it with truck loads of grace. The grace that carries you through the fear. The same grace that empowers us to live freely.
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