The Stirring

This week I saw a picture that has rocked my little world and stirred my heart. I wish I could share the photo with you, but because the enemy is on the prowl it has been temporarily removed from my friend Adeye’s blog.

Some of you saw it. Many responded to the urgent plea for help. But this is not a post just about adoption.

So here’s what transpired. Adeye has been advocating for those ‘forgotten.’ And God has been faithful, and He has been glorified! *Please forgive me if I get the dates wrong.* On August 17^th Adeye posted, without details, an urgent need and plea for large items such as iPads, cameras, eReaders, etc, for a fundraiser.

The next day, August 18, folks had responded in such a huge way that she had thousands of dollars in fundraising items, and she posted about a precious little girl who is now 11 years old, weighs less than 20 pounds, and is literally dying in a mental institution because that’s what happens to some children, orphaned, and deemed a burden in short-staffed facilities. A child needing rescued. A ransom required. A family needed.

The mission was to raise the ransom so that when the Lord called a family forward, they could race through the paperwork and not have to worry about the funds. The goal was $22,000. In less than 24 hours there was over $23,000 raised!!! And a few days later Adeye announced that a family had stepped forward to bring this precious Treasure home! ONLY GOD!

It’s one thing to say that God is faithful; it’s another to be in a place of requiring His faithfulness!

So what happened in my heart? I’m ashamed to say. When I saw the urgent post I only had time to skim it and then rush out the door. I couldn’t get this precious one off my mind so I decided I would post the need on my blog the next day. But… the next day the need was met! But what rang in my heart was that I had missed an opportunity! While I sat on my hands waiting for a convenient time to respond, the Lord was not sitting still, waiting for lil ole me.

See, He doesn’t require my response; He doesn’t force my response; and He doesn’t need my response. Does that release me? My heart says NO!

When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” Matthew 27:24

I can’t wash my hands of my responsibility. When I make no decision at all, I’ve really decided “No.” No matter what excuses I make, no matter how reasonable they seem, they are still excuses. We tell the youth this all the time ~ an excuse is a lie disguised as a reason. Ouch!

Even if we don’t say the words, how many times do our actions (or inaction) say, “When I retire, I will…; When my kids are grown, I will…; When I achieve this, I will…; When my life slows down, I will; When I finish this, I will; Tomorrow, I will…”?

Talking to the self here, folks, talking to the self! This little girl’s picture is a reminder that I am not promised tomorrow, and I’m certainly not promised retirement (again, please tell me where that is in the Bible!).

And I’m not just talking about the giant leap of faith to bring a very ill child home from another country; I’m talking about the needs of the person sitting next to me, the widow down the road, the teen in crisis, the sick, the dying, their families…

Serving isn’t always convenient. In fact, it can be downright dirty at times. Am I willing to get my hands dirty? Am I willing to face rejection? Am I willing to be wounded? Am I willing to have my heart broken?

I wanna be there! I don’t want to get so accustomed to ignoring God’s voice that I no longer recognize it! So now what?

James 2:17 says, In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

No matter how much I think about serving, dream about serving, hope to serve or talk about serving, it is just that ~ a thought ~ if not acted upon. My prayer is that the Lord would give me the energy every single day to act.

I love this quote:

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and proclaiming, “Wow, what a ride!” ~ Author unknown

That’s the way I want to live my life. I don’t need to arrive at Heaven’s door well preserved. After all, I get a new body someday! This temporary vessel was made for helping. Not.for.helping.myself.

Some days will be tough, even impossible. But nothing is impossible for my God! When I’m at the end of myself, He is completely able to carry me forward, no matter how rocky the path seems.

Lord, please continue to stir my heart in such a way that I must act! Don’t ever give me a false sense of peace for sitting on my hands. Help me to love as You love, to act as Your ambassador and to use every resource You’ve given me to Your glory!