Jesus Loves The Little Children of The World

 

 

July 25

I have been wondering how to sum up my time in Africa and struggled to find the words until I remembered a song I learned in Sunday school. We all remember the lyrics. “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow black and white, they are precious in His sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world.” God had to take me half way around the world for me to truly understand what I memorized when I was three: Jesus loves the little children of the world.

As I stood under a tree in northern Kenya trying to distribute malnutrition supplements and mamas were demanding food for their starving children standing at my feet I asked my Jesus, “why are these children starving? I don’t understand.” When I handed a pencil and paper to a little girl named Ella in Burkina she had no clue how to hold the pencil revealing her lack of education and I asked my Jesus, “why was I born in into a family and country where I am so blessed with education and this girl may never learn to read? I don’t understand.” As I drove by the Kibera slum in Nairobi and saw a toddler digging through a mountain of garbage I fought tears as I asked my Jesus “why was this precious child born into such a broken place? I don’t understand.”

After reflecting on all I have seen and spending much time in prayer I have to be honest and say that I still don’t understand it all. This life will remain a mystery to me until the day I die. But I’m okay with not understanding life because I know and trust the one who created it.

Here in Africa, more than ever before, I have come to know how much my Jesus loves me. He created me and wants me to choose Him so we can be together forever. He took a risk knowing I had the option to say no and that I, someone he loves enough to die for, could be separated from Him forever. But He took the chance because the possibility of the joy we would share outweighed the intense sorrow He would feel if I didn’t choose Him.

God has the same love for every single person on earth. Every person has the choice to accept His love or reject it. My heart really has broken for the people here who have rejected Jesus. Generations of worshiping tribal gods or empty prayers to Allah have resulted in spiritual brokenness that adds to the peril of these people living in poverty. It has brought me to tears more than once. As I’ve said before, my heart is not only saddened by what I’ve seen in Africa but by the brokenness of the entire world.

Returning to my earlier question of “why”, I have still not found an answer. However, realizing God’s great love for me and for everyone on earth has helped me understand. The times that I am overwhelmed and so saddened by the things of this world like while holding Clarisse, a motherless 3 yr old girl constantly riddled with illness, I know that my Jesus is right next to me and it breaks His heart 100x more than mine. He created Clarisse and loves her more than I can fathom. It grieves Him so much when people reject Him.

My Jesus created those children looking up at me with big brown eyes in Kenya because He desires to spend eternity with them. My Jesus created Ella in Burkina with the hope that she will choose to accept His love. My Jesus created the child searching for something to eat in the mountain of garbage in the slum in hopes that he will one day find His truth and love and be truly satisfied. My Jesus is in very nature love and everything He does is based on His love for us. Although I do not understand the pain in this world I trust in my Jesus and His unfailing love. I trust that He designed every person in this world and takes joy in having relationships with each of us. I trust that His plan is perfect even though I can’t understand it.

So to sum up my time in Africa I have only one thing to say: Jesus loves the little children of the world.

 

The Sounds of Africa

 

July 22

Karen and I woke up really early yesterday to watch the sunrise. It was definitely worth it! As we sat outside the gate sipping our tea I loved listening to our little neighborhood come alive. I soaked it all in hoping I will never forget the sounds of Africa: a baby crying, dogs barking, birds chirping, roosters crowing, motos starting, goats yelling, sheep bleeting, cellphone ringtones playing, women singing, and kids giggling.

		Burkina Babes VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Beyond The Gate

July 22

The house I am living in is surrounded by a tall brick wall and the only way in and out is a large blue gate.  The gaurd opens and closes this gate for us as we drive in and out. So often we will get home, the gate closes, and I head into the house and quickly forget what is outside the walls of the compound. I will lay down on my nice bed and read a book, or I will fix myself something to eat, or I will pull a chair into the sun and spend some time with my Jesus. All the while I forget there are people sleeping on the ground next door, people who may have nothing to eat today, and people who do not even know who my Jesus is. When I leave through the gate I love playing with the children and buying bread and mangos from the corner vendor. But the second I come home I feel like I enter my safe little world of the compound and block out what is on the other side of the wall. This truly bothers me. I have prayed that God would remind me of where I am and my surroundings. I pray that He will nudge me to go outside rather than being comfortable and resting inside. How on earth do I forget the people beyond the gate?

The sad truth is that Africa is not the only place I struggle with this. And I am pretty positive some of you reading my blog struggle with it too right in America. Somehow we find ourselves in a safe, comfortable place in life and we don’t want to leave it. We turn off our hearts and our minds to things that are happening in our world right next door. It could be a neighbor who is so so wealthy but seems so so lonely. It could be that teenage girl with scars on her wrists who is your cashier at McDonalds searching for a life line. It could be someone in your family that you just want to make absolutely sure that they know the Lord but are avoiding that conversation. Or it could be, like me right now, the people right outside my gate who are looking for a little bit of hope and love. Somehow we manage to make excuses of why we don’t need to leave our place of comfort and show the love of Jesus to these people. We don’t need to make a move.

I can understand it actually. I mean, we are human and we like to be comfortable. I understand why we might forget about what is going on around us. After all, most of it is pretty sad and we like being happy so we try to pretend that it doesn’t exist. Also, making a move takes energy so if we ignore things going on around us we have no reason to get up. We say that single mom watching her kids play at the park doesn’t actually look as tired as she is. Even though we can see plain as day she is exhausted in more way than one we just shrug it off.  I’m sure she is fine. That’s what we do right? Make up excuses for why those people in our lives don’t really need us. They are okay.

I understand our human nature tricking us into thinking the reasoning of the previous paragraph is logical even though it is not.

But here is something that I don’t understand. After going outside the gate and putting yourself out there and feeling and seeing the difference it makes in your life and those around you, how can you forget any longer? This is something God is making me so aware of and challenging me with. I am thankful it happens much less now for me here in Burkina, but how at first did I so easily forget?! How do we all taste what the life of living outside the comfort zone is like and then be fine with sitting behind our safe walls knowing what is on the other side? How do we sleep at night if we have ignored the nudge to speak with that one person God laid on our heart? How after having the honor to truly be the hands and feet of Jesus can we be content to kick up our feet and get comfortable? All the while knowing Jesus put Himself in such an uncomfortable place as death in order to reach us.

My prayer for my last two weeks here in Africa is that I will spend every spare minute I have on the other side of that big blue gate. Even when I’m tired and want to rest or hungry and want to eat I pray that He gives me the heart to show His love to the people right outside of my comforts zone. I also pray for those of you reading this that God will not let you forget the people He has placed in your life and will give you the courage and strength to go beyond your gate. 

Top Ten Encounters: Week 9

1)      Karen arrived! One of my best friends from school joined me on Sunday. She will be here for the next three weeks with me. We get to tour Paris together on our way home. I have never been so happy to see her bright smiling face!

2)      Stargazing. As we stood looking at the stars one night the power clicked off and Karen and I were amazed at how many stars appeared in the utter darkness. I have never seen so many stars in my life. There ain’t no night sky like an Africa night sky!

3)      Chasing the sunset. Karen and I were out walking one night and when we turned to return home we faced a gorgeous sunset. We enjoyed watching the colors play over the horizon and once again marveled at the beauty of creation!

4)      Saw my first patients! Two little girls were brought to the compound for us to do follow up on the malnutrition treatment they had been given by the last med team in early June. The first little girl had gained weight and was looking healthy as far as malnutrition goes. However, large open sores covered all over her body besides her head. Karen and I grabbed a medical book I found with the supplies and managed to confidently diagnose the little girl with staph infection. We were able to give her some creams to help until the team gets here next week. It was so crazy that although we have very limited medical knowledge we were the ones who could help her most right now. Few people here would take their children into the hospital for staph infection because it is so prevelant it is just a normal part of life. So dangerous! But just normal.

Our second patient was a little 2 yr old girl who looked so so sick. She had a fever of 105! We also recognized the same sores on her legs and arms meaning she had staph as well. We gave her some tyelnol to help with the fever and sent her to the hospital. We heard word that she was treated for malaria, malnutrition, staph, and several other things I cannot remember. It was so scary because if we hadn’t told her family to bring her to us she may not have been taken to the hospital at all. She had been sick like that for days before we saw her. Those little eyes filled with fever just about made me cry. It puts even fuel in the fire in me to become a physician and one day help these children.

5)      Cleaned glasses. Lions club donated a couple of suitcases of eyeglasses to shattering darkness a few years ago and Karen and I have spent hours cleaning them and getting them ready to hand out next week when the team comes. There are hundreds of them! Please pray we find people with matching percriptions so everyone who needs a pair will get one!

6)      Sunrise. Very early Tuesday morning I woke up and felt God nudging me to go outside. I peeked out the window and saw the beginnings of a gorgeous sunrise. I grabbed my Bible and had  a wonderful time reading and watching the sunrise it seems God created especially for me that morning.

 

7)      Sleeping in. Karen and I slept in until 9am on Wednesday! It is offically the latest I have slept in the entire summer. I must say I’m looking foward to a few lazy mornings at home before school starts again.

8)      Demon possesion. During a prayer meeting we watched as a woman exited the back of the church. She lifted her palms face up to the sky like she was praying. Suddenly it looked as though somone pushed her straight down and she fell to her butt. Immediately she layed down and began thrashing around. Several church members held her down so she wouldn’t hurt herself. I was sitting near the back of the church where she was and at one point she looked right in my direction and let out the most eerie shriek I have ever heard. Her eyes no longer looked like a humans and her face was completely contorted. I have always believed that people can become demon possed but after seeing it today I have zero doubt. Science can’t explain what I saw today. But the Bible does.

9)      Largest tree ever! This week we visited a church leader who was in the hospital and prayed for her. Right outside of the hospital is the LARGEST tree I have ever seen! I wish I knew what kind. I will upload pictures of it later. Once again I marvel at God’s awesome creation.

10)    The love of Jesus. This week in so many ways God has revealed His love for me and for everyone on earth. It is odd for me to say this was one of my top ten encounters because I have known it since I was three and reminded of it every day. But my Jesus has practically been shouting it at me this week and being reminded of His great love and how it defines who I am truly changes me.  I hope that you encounter His love this week too!

Good Old Gymnastics

Today as we were taking a walk we ran into a group of kids who were doing flips and cartwheels in a dirt field. Naturally I decided to join in on the fun. Forgetting about the whole skirt issue I turned a few cartwheels and even won the applause of the kids after doing a back-hand-spring. Immediately the kids started jumping backwards trying to imitate me. I tried to explain in french for them not to break their necks! After a few more laughs we continued on our way. Some of the kids followed us up the road and grabbed more friends and pointed at me and started doing motions for a back flip. I love the feeling of being connected to these kids in some way. I haven't been able to communicate with them or connect with them with words. But God used my rusty gymnastics moves to interact with these kids more than any words ever could.

As I pondered the whole episode later on I thought of how language and words are not a concern of God's when it comes to relationships. I have been struggling with not knowing the language here and feeling incapable to start relationships. It's funny how God uses something like a back-hand-spring to remind me that if He wants to use me to touch a child with His love some little thing like french will not stop Him. I forget that in this life I live I do not take one step by my own strength. I am completely sustained by my Jesus. I too often let things that seem to big for me stop me. But nothing is to big for God  to overcome and He uses the unexpected to accomplish His will--even gymnastics!

Moments To Live For

July 12

Last night we went to a prayer meeting at a church in the village of Kpakpara which sits on the top of a hill. Through the open window I watched lightning dance across the sky as a distant storm slowly approached. A single small light served as illumination for the whole church and cast a dim glow on the face of my little friend, Dieudonne, who joined the adults in singing “Hallelujah” in the most beautiful voice I’ve heard come from a child’s lungs. As I listened to the soft beat of the drum of the worship I felt the heartbeat of the precious little girl named Asaria who had fallen asleep in my arms. I stood in awe wishing our time there would never end. I could feel God so near and felt more alive than ever. These are the moments I live for. 

Top Ten Encounters: Weeks 7&8

July 1-14

1) Woke up to a cockroach crawling on me in the middle of the night.

2) Found rat poop in my room and hear them run back and forth in the ceiling above me all day and night!

3) Gabe, Amy, and I started language lessons with Georgette, a woman from the church. We are slowly but surely learning some french.

4) Soccer! I got to play soccer with some church members who are very good at the game. I had a blast trying to keep up with them. At one point during the game I just stopped and watched in awe as they played and a gorgeous sunset painted the sky behind them. I had to pinch myself to make sure what I was experiencing was real!

5) Elephantitis. While walking through town one day I saw a man sitting on a step with both feet extremely swollen. I have seen this disease on TV and in magazines and couldn't believe I was seeing it right before my eyes. The man had wrapped several clothes tightly around different parts of his legs to stop the swelling. I could tell it was extremely difficult and painful to walk. I doubt he will ever be able to be treated or receive any healthcare at the level he needs. So so sad.

6) Burkina colors! We visited a couple villages last week and I couldn’t get over the rich colors here. I tried to take pictures but it is impossible to capture the beauty of the green crops and trees growing out of the deep brown/red soil and meeting the blue sky on the horizon.

7) Market of Diebougou. I had quite a time trying to guess what half of the vegetables and leaves were that were for sale and even a more fun time trying to guess what on earthe they use some the objects for that they were selling. It was fun to take a few laps around the market and see what is valued here compared to back home. 

8) Day poolside. Somehow I managed to be dropped off at what is called the American Rec Center for a day in Ouga. It was my first day alone and away from everything this summer and I thoroughly enjoyed the break. I treated myself to a mango shake, a cappucino, many phone calls back home, and managed to get a pretty nasty sunburn that was more than worth it!  

9) Meeting the fam. Patrice, Celine, and their youngest two kids returned from Togo where they had been at seminary and have finished moving back into their house right next door in our compound. It is fun waking up to the sound of their kids laughing and things are quite a bit busier and louder around here now. I can already see what a man of God Patrice is and woman of God Celine is. I look forward to getting to know them better!

10) Lots of downtime with not much excitement. I really didn’t encounter many new things these last two weeks. Things have really settled down and I find myself with several  hours each day of quiet time. Although the days do get long I have truly heard Jesus speak through the silence louder than ever. Psalm 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God."

A Broken Pot

July 13

So far during my time here I have been under the impression that when I go home I will somehow leave everything I have experienced in Africa. In my head the world I have lived in for 20 years at home is entirely separate from this foreign land. It has been great to come and see what is here, learn about the culture, and grow closer to my Jesus but on August 3^rd I will leave and go back to my normal life. Sure I hope to take some things with me like the amazing stories of people I met and the many pictures I took. But subconsciously I had decided that I would leave everything else here. No need to bring the hard things back.

But I now know I do not have a choice. Every part of Africa that has touched me is coming back with me—including the red dirt that has sticking to the bottom of my sandals.

 I made this discovery as we drove through the capital city of Burkina Faso, Ougadougou. Along side of every road are tiny shops with various items for sale. As we drove I noticed for the first time the large amount of clay pots available. Rows and rows of them and shop after shop. Along the way a particular large pot cought my eye. It had been pulled to the side away from the others. This pot was broken. A large crack ran down the middle and a big chunk out of it’s side was missing. All of a sudden I was overwhelmed with the similarity this pot had with Africa. How both of them shared brokenness.

Images of the Kibera slum and malnourished children came to mind and I didn’t fight the tears that came to my eyes. I was hit once again by how very broken everything is from governement systems, hospital systems, educational systems, countries, tribes, villages, families, relationships, spirituality, to people. My heart hurt so much today for Africa.

I am still here and waking up to the poverty and brokeness every morning. So it is all still so real to me. But the pot made me realize that I will not leave any of the memories behind. There will be things in America that will remind me of the of Africa as well. I cannot just separate my time here from my life in America. I honestly don’t want to. I want the changes that have been made in me and my world view and perspective on life to follow me home. I don’t ever want to forget this summer. I don’t ever want to forget Africa. And now I know I never will.

Africa

		Africa: My New Backyard VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL