Saturday, August 31, 2013

God Provides.


Over the past couple of weeks, the Lord's provision has been so evident! I've had an abundance of babysitting jobs, and I am now also babysitting for a new family every Tuesday and Wednesdays, which is great because it's a more regular income. 


I also have a possible job opportunity lifeguarding next year (2014) at school, which pays well and should be fun!

This money will fund my second mission trip to Cambodia in December, while still saving for missions projects in the future. The trip will cost about $1,200 total, and I have about $4,000 saved up in my bank account already.

Seeing how much the Lord has provided, it gives me hope and assurance that He will provide in the future. I sometimes find myself thinking about the future, feeling uncertain at times. Where will I go, how will I get my start as a missionary, how will I provide for my family financially? 

I have to stop and tell myself that God will provide. He always has; why should I doubt that He will in the future. I also have to pause and realize that for goodness sakes, I'm only 15 years old. I don't have to worry about the future, because I'm still growing up and growing with the Lord. One of my favorite verses, Matthew 6:26 says...

Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 

As the Lord speaks that truth into my life, I realize that I am so fully provided for and taken care of by a God that love and cares for me more than I'll ever know.

I also realize that no matter how I may try to plan out the life ahead, God is and will always be in control. His will is far better than mine. Saying "yes" to God and surrendering my worries, weakness, and my life to Him is so much better than living a life of uncertainty on my own. God provides, and God empowers. God is Lord over my life, my deliverer!

Verses of assurance:

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

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19


Monday, August 12, 2013

Sponsorship Update: Letter from Gloria!

Today I received a huge blessing, my first official letter from Gloria! She says she is doing very well, studying a lot because school is pretty hard. She had three weeks of vacation in June and enjoyed spending time with her nephew, whom she loves very much. Next vacation, she wants to visit her cousins in a city nearby hers. She says she loves to eat meat with french fries and salad, and she loves eating ice cream with her friends on weekends.
Right now, she asks that I pray for her studies, that they get easier because they are hard for her. Please join me in that prayer! Thank you! 



First time replying to sweet Gloria's letter! So exciting, many more letters, love, and hope to be shared between me and the girls, God willing!

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Change is Possible!

Life isn't fair. At some point in time, we all come to realize this. We don't always get what we want, and things don't always go as planned. It's reality, life just isn't fair sometimes. But, I'm not just talking about how our lives in first world countries and well off families aren't fair, I'm talking about some of the harsher realities of life.

At this very moment I'm on vacation in the woods of Oregon, sitting in an air-conditioned cabin. I'll be going back to school in a few weeks, provided with an education that costs as much as most private colleges. I have a family who loves and supports me. I don't have to worry about finances or where my next meal is coming from...

How is it fair that while I have so much, 1.5 million children die each year of starvation? How is it fair that approximately 115 million children globally are unable to attend school and receive a basic education? How is it fair that 1.5 billion people around the world live below the poverty line? How is any of this fair? I don't understand it. I don't know why the world is the way it is, and that there are people who have too much and people who have nothing at all. I don't know why the rich live in mansions while the poor live in huts, cardboard boxes, or nothing at all. I don't know why people in America can gorge themselves until they can't eat another bite when there are impoverished families that are forced to eat scraps from the trash. I can't understand how some people can have so much and others so little. Why is the world so unequal, so unbalanced, so unfair?

I don't know this answer, but I do know that God wants us come together to help change this inequality.

My passion is to empower a generation, to help those who can't help themselves rise above poverty and live out God's plan for their lives. 

I'm reading a book now about teenagers and the power to come together and create social change in our world. Reading through these amazing stories about how God is using young people to do great things in the lives of the less fortunate is truly inspiring.

A lot of the time I think that what stops us from realizing our full potential is self-doubt. As teenagers, we sometimes think that we're too young to make a difference, that we're only one person, or that someone else will do something to make a change. If there's anything God has shown me the past 3 years is that that is so untrue! Sure, we won't be able to change the world alone, and things will never be perfect, but we all have potential to change the life of one person, help one situation. 

So, no, life will never be 100% fair. It will never be completely equal for all, without poverty, disease, heartache. It won't become perfect, but it can become better. However, the only way the world can get better is when people who care come together to create positive change. Let's get involved, let's do something! There are so many worthy causes; cancer awareness, service to the poor, support for the homeless... the list could go on and on. 

What are you passionate about? How can you make a difference? After all, change starts with us, so let's step up!