Joy and I returned from Nepal three days ago after spending 22 hours traveling on three planes and racking up almost 40 hours of travel time with layovers in three airports. The 14-hour plane trip from Abu Dhabi to New York was LONG. God answered my prayers: We didn't get sick, we lost none of the books entrusted to us, and we were able to meet with many Nepali children from sponsored homes and more at church on Saturday.
The kids loved receiving the books and the bookmarks, which made the trip all the more worthwhile. I shared with Shanti (Silas's niece and youth leader at the church) the Kindles, and showed her how to use them. I look forward to hearing how God uses the hundreds of ebooks on the Kindles in the future.
Please pray for healing for one young girl we met at Ram's house (Silas' brother). God promised me I would see amazing things. The young girl, around twelve, didn't make an appearance until the day before we left. Ram explained to me that she had been with them for almost four months. Her mouth was grossly disfigured as well as her ears and fingers. However, the worst disfigurement was emotional scarring. Her birthmother had died and her father had left her with a distant relative who gave her minimal care. She had quit school because the other kids shunned her, and no one had bothered to take her to the doctor to find out what was the cause of her horribly disfiguring malady.
Ram asked her family if she could live with them for a while, and he and his wife, who have adopted nine children as well as have two biological children, took her to the doctor for diagnosis and treatment. The treatment has only helped partially. The doctor diagnosed her skin disease as a fungal infection. I am praying for healing. Please pray with me. I am claiming God's promise of seeing amazing things in Nepal. An amazing promise would be to see God heal her completely.
Her condition reminds me of leprosy-I found it difficult to look at her, not because of the disfigurement, but because of her embarrassment, her humiliation, her hurt at being so ugly and different. Ram and his family love her as one of their own, but healing from God will also heal her heart and make it a fertile ground for receiving His unconditional love. I don't want a healing that will take many more months. I want a miraculous healing that can only come from the power of God. James 5:16 states, "The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." I believe we can pray this young girl to complete health in Jesus' name.
I have asked myself since returning, how has the trip impacted my life? What do I think God showed me or wanted to teach me? This requires some introspection, but I will share a few thoughts that have struck me.
1. God's kingdom is expanding. Despite the evil in the world, God is greater. Give God fertile ground to grow-in my heart, in my mind, in my emotions, in my words, in my deeds, and in my soul. Why do I doubt? Why do I give so much credit to the enemy? God is exceedingly capable of doing all that I want or ask if I ask with right motives and a pure heart. Quit making God too small-He is big enough for every task and every problem that comes before me. Let Him be God and quit trying to do it all on my own. His ways are better anyway.
2. Love more. Take time. Slow down. Listen. Be kinder. Be gentler. Be more patient. The only thing I can take with me from this world into the next is relationships. Give God the most. Don't sweat the rest. Life is too short. Keep it simple. Live each moment to the fullest. Don't hurry.
3. Be thankful. Give thanks in everything. All that I have is on loan to me. I don't own it. Be content with less and remember my brothers and sisters on the other side of the world who have so little. Look for opportunities to thank God, even for the hard things.
4. Enjoy life more and work less. I have God's permission to swim, read, go for walks, and enjoy the ordinary. I don't have to live in the fast lane. In fact, I shouldn't.
5. Make time to write. God gave me that desire. Don't let anyone or anything take it away. Keep smiling. Good is everywhere if I look for it and make sure that "good" starts in my own home. Love my daughters unconditionally. Spend more time with friends. God is God of all-put Him first and expect His blessings. God is not stingy. He desires to give me His best. Give God my best. Spend quality quiet time with Him each day. Make it the best part of each day. God deserves it and I do, too.
6. Don't waste time feeling guilty about all of my failures. God doesn't hold them against me and I shouldn't either. Instead, look ahead, start each day anew, and be content in all situations. Quit complaining. Set an example for others. Live with a spirit of forgiveness and a short memory of wrongs suffered. Have a gentle response-and see the difference. With God helping me, I know I can do it!
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