By The Numbers

When we think about laying down a life for another we usually think in terms of a singular event. But it is possible for us to lay down our lives over the course of a lifetime, minute by minute and day by day. And it is the work of the Spirit to empower us as we seek to lose ourselves in acts of lovingkindness and sacrificial living.

- Elaine Puckett, professor at Candler School of Theology in Atlanta, Georgia

Haiti: One Month Later, by the Numbers

by Martha St. Jean 02-15-2010

One month later rain pours into the streets of Port-au-Prince. Some call it “fresh misery.” I think, how many more buildings will collapse, how many more people will die? But I also think, how many still have hope? How many will view this rain as a washing away of the things that hurt most?

Stories of survival are continuously recounted. I hear daring feats of escape from collapsing buildings and am saddened by the number of days family members have had to do without food, and I am disturbed over the number of people they have watched die. The story of the devastation in Haiti is at times best chronicled using numerical values.

7.0 — The magnitude of the earthquake.

21:53:10 UTC — The time the earthquake struck.

35 — The number of seconds the earthquake lasted.

230,000 — The official Haitian government death toll.

1 million — The number of my countrymen left homeless.

500,000 — The number of Haitian homeless living in camps.

380,000 — The number of Haitian orphans.

2 — The number of dollars many of the island nation’s residents lived on per day.

2, 000 — The estimated number of amputations that have taken place. (This must be much higher, as some hospitals are performing 30-100 per day.)

5,000 — The estimated number of escaped prisoners.

10 — The number of years experts say it will take to rebuild.

63 million — The tons of rubble that need to be removed before the rebuilding can take place.

3 million — The number of people who need help.

57 million — The number of dollars initially raised by the Hope for Haiti telethon.

Countless — the number of prayers lifted up, the number of tears cried, the number of hearts broken in Haiti and all over the diaspora.

Where Ingratitude Goes To Die

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
Hebrews 13:5

Paul David Tripp, writing in The Journal of Biblical Counseling, recalled a scene he had witnessed more than once on his various travels to India. But this time, for some reason known only to the Holy Spirit, the Lord struck him with the gravity of it all at a deeper level than he'd ever experienced before. Passing through New Delhi, in one of the most horrible slums in the world, he stood transfixed before a three-year-old boy leaning against the cot of his ailing, perhaps dying, mother. The boy's eyes were hollow, his stomach distended, his face fly-infested -- the very picture of massive, helpless, noxious poverty.

The tears that streamed down Paul's cheeks in observing this tragedy were indeed the heartfelt evidence of his compassion. He longed to sweep this boy and his mother into his arms, away from these dreaded depths of sorry and endless need.

But it was more than mere compassion he felt. It was an awareness that neither he nor this little boy had chosen their circumstances in life. The blessings of being raised among plenty, nurtured by godly parents, educated in quality schools, and given over to Christ at a young age began to roll over him in waves, even as he did his best to comfort and console the need pair before him.

"You cannot explain the difference between that little boy and me by anything other than the Lord," he wrote. "Standing there in that slum, I felt all the complaints I had ever spoken as if they were a weight on my shoulders. I was filled with deeper gratitude than I think I have ever felt in my life."

Not long after he arrived back home, Paul was visiting with a church leader from India who had come to the States to study. In the midst of their conversation, he asked the man what he thought of Americans, to which his guest responded -- in polite Asian style -- "Do you want me to be honest?"

"Yes, I do," Paul answered. But who could really be ready for this: "You have no idea how much you have," the man said, "and yet you always complain."

We'd all have to agree, wouldn't we? At many levels, America can be rightly accused of gross ingratitude. But can the church and the Christians in American be accused of the same thing? Can you? Can I?

Now would be a good time to speak to the Lord about it.

Father, grant me a spirit and heart that is always abounding, overflowing in gratitude toward You and others. Forgive me for the many times and ways I reflect negatively on Your character and Your goodness by verbalizing discontent and murmuring to others, for being oblivious to so many expressions of Your grace, and for allowing roots of pride and ingratitude to grow up in my heart. Amen.

143 million

I stole this from you Lisa, do we owe you $5...?

*******
Before the earthquake there were 143 million orphans. That number has greatly risen in the past two weeks. Most of us, if we look around at our lives have the room and the resources for one more child. We can all fit one more. Even me. I can fit one more. I can feed, clothe, and love one more. And I already have ten.

Did you know that if only 7% of Christians took in one orphan, there would be no more orphans in the world?

Imagine a world without orphans.

People think adoption has become popular, fashionable even. That could not be further from the truth. I believe it is the product of an outcry of prayers from those of us who desire to see every orphan have a home. It is a movement in the body of Christ sparked by a spiritual awakening. It is so much more than saving a child's life. It is evangelism in it's very simplest form. Think about it. A child is taken into your home. He once lived in a place where the gospel was not preached. He lived in darkness and oppression. In your home he comes to understand salvation. Think of all of the lives that will be changed from his testimony. It is so much more than saving a life.

Supporting orphanages is not a solution. While orphanages serve a purpose, they do not solve the problem. God's best for a child is a family. A mother and a father. Not growing up in an orphanage. Most orphanages are over crowded. They turn away children because they cannot meet the need. And don't get me started on the foster care system. That is most certainly not a solution. Children need families. God's best for a child is not foster care or an orphanage. It is a family.

More now than ever before we need to come forward. We need to take action. We cannot stay silent and turn a blind eye. In the coming weeks, more and more Haitian orphans are going to need families. But, they aren't just in Haiti. They are in Russia, Africa, and right here in your city. They are all over the world. You can make room for one more. I am sure of it. If I can, you can too. This isn't about waiting until you have all of your ducks in a row. This is about taking action.

Love is an action word.

Fly Right

A reality check from 1 Peter 1:13-22
Fly right, or you are going to crash, a message from James MacDonald that uses four gauges, found in the cockpit of an airplane, to help our walk with Christ.

A good pilot, a family man, will refer to these indicators frequently.

Hope. Hope is the fuel gauge of the Christian life -- is the the equivalent to the fuel gauge in your air plane. No hope means that your plane is going to crash quickly. Hope is the confident expectation of something better for tomorrow.

5 Things that believers place their hope in, but shouldn't.
1) Health, beauty, physical fitness, nutrition
2) My situation, my setup, finances, houses, home, your lawn, stuff of this world
3) Church, the fellowships and the friendships.
4) Family, or marriage, or children.
5) Abilities, smarts, talents, hard work, being a man of action

These are all worthwhile...but the Bible says:
v.13 -- set your hope completely on the grace that will be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Holiness. Holiness means "set apart." If someone asks you a spiritual question like, "what you are you working on in your life?", Holiness, that's what you are working on. Holiness is the altimeter which tells you "where you are" when you are working within the two parameters essential for flight: 1) outerspace, and 2) the ground.
Written to mean an on-going process, you have to ask yourself what can I do differently so that I'm not conforming to this world? (Romans 12:2)
v.15 -- but, like the Holy One who called you, become holy yourselves in all of your conduct

Fear. This is more than respect for the authority of God. Fear seeks a right relationship, a favorable outcome with the fear source. The attitude display indicator in an airplane similarly tells the pilot his position with respect to the horizon. Are your wings level? Is the nose up? Or, is the nose down?
v.17--If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth;

Love. As the air speed indicator tells the pilot how fast they are traveling, check how you are loving. Peter is prescribing to put some effort into it. This is more that just being a good person, for anyone can be a good person! He says to love earnestly (NET), fervently (KJV), intensely (NLT) and deeply (NIV).

v.22 -- So love one another earnestly from a pure heart.

Leukemia

Matthew 14:
And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.

My friend's wife will spend this Christmas in the hospital. I have tried to imagine redeeming this moment a number of ways, and have even made a suggestion or two, but I guess the truth is that her immune system will be so broken that any kind of community blessing is out of the question.

As I consider it again and again, my heart winces at the mere idea of not being at home with my family to celebrate the birth of my Jesus. I pray that her bone marrow transplant is successful, that her body does not reject it, and that her family will continue to be broken before a mighty God and awesome Healer.

Lord Jesus, let this be the gift of not just life -- but Life.

Your Children

I can remember this moment vividly. A turning point in my life. Come with me into the recent past where Jennifer and I had been attending the 10 week course of foster-to-adopt training. Every Friday night was like a date-night where we’d race from our work life, quickly drop the children off to a babysitter, and with coffee and sandwich already in hand, we would eat AND drive to the class. This was necessary to get there on time. And attending class meant we’d be qualified foster parents. And man did we WANT more children! Our driving and eating and drinking reflected a certain enthusiasm – you can imagine.

So the tenth week of class: There’s some teaching, some cake and some celebration for making it to the finish line. We’d be certifiable tonight.

Let me describe for you one of the most awesome teachers you may ever meet. She was there that night, and when she spoke about children, foster children, you’d laugh with her. Big laughs and you’d cry with her. Big tears. You’d get angry with her as she described what people do with their children and to their children. She was GOOD and her stories of children were compelling and heart-breaking. The work she did and still does -- very good, by ANY definition.

Around this point, children in need, this is where she caught me off-guard. I can’t remember how we got to this point in the conversation, but I remember distinctly that she said “I don’t understand so much the needs of children in other countries because I think you should take care of your own children first.”

I think she meant well, but it bothered me. She was certain, maybe even smug. She was advocating foster care for children, which IS a great ministry. But that night…that night during her talk, I knew what I HAD to do. I HAD to bite my tongue. Either that, or bite HER. It was a tough choice. You see, Jennifer and I were already committed to adopting from Ethiopia -- not fostering to adopt through the state.

How do you tell someone living in the United States, that children in those other countries are dying? And that “yours” are living?

Scripture has a word to describe what we do, people. Pure. Faultless. Loving these children -- These are the greater works that Jesus speaks of when He goes to the Father. Greater works shall you do when I go to the Father.

That teacher DOES greater works, but when we screw them up, whether in our words or actions – Scripture has a word to describe that too. Grace. Perfect, everlasting, forgiving grace. I’m thrilled to have it, and excited to extend it. What a great lesson, Father, thank you. Thank you.

Long time, no see

Yes, I do know that it has been nearly a month since I have posted a blog. I have absolutely NO excuse and I never lack for something to say, so I'll work on stepping it up a bit. As for an update on the adoption front, our court date in Ethiopia was November 20th, but unfortunately, we did not pass on the first round. Apparently, there was a missing document, a recommendation letter from the Ministry of Women's Affairs in Ethiopia (MOWA). Our court date has now been rescheduled for December 18th. We are praying that we pass the next time. If we do, travel will likely be at the end of January, beginning of February timeframe. Please pray that MOWA gets our recommendation letter to the Powers That Be and that the judge doesn't find anything else that would stop our case from passing. We really want to get the kids home!

Since I posted last time, we had a book sale fundraiser. A wonderful family donated 10,000 books to us! That is still such an incredible number to me! Unfortunately, I missed the whole thing because I was in Texas for a conference. Thankfully, we made a little over $1400. We split the proceeds with some very good friends of ours who are also adopting two children from Ethiopia. God's blessings are so good!

We are now about to embark on our 3rd fundraiser - t-shirts!! My nephew is a very talented and well-respected graphic designer in Baltimore. He created a very cool design for us. I ordered a bunch of shirts and now we're just waiting for them to printed. We will be "hocking our wares" anywhere we can over the next few weeks, trying to raise some travel money. I will upload images of the t-shirts, and possibly add a utility allowing readers to order one if they would like - as soon as I figure out how to do that. :)

I would just like to leave you with a scripture (on Korbet's suggestion): So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16

Hope everyone has a wonderful, joyful Thanksgiving.