Camp Agape California 2017 Recap: A Trail of Light has Begun

Camp Agape California 2017 Recap: A Trail of Light has Begun

Isaiah 60:1-3

 Arise, shine, for your light has come,

    and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.

See, darkness covers the earth

    and thick darkness is over the peoples,

but the Lord rises upon you

    and his glory appears over you.

Nations will come to your light,

    and kings to the brightness of your dawn. 

It has been a exactly one week since Paul and I stepped onto the bus heading up to our local mountains for the start of the first Camp Agape here in Southern California.  For those reading this blog that are unaware of what this ministry is, Camp Agape was started in Hawaii in 2005 as an offshoot of Angel Tree, a ministry for the children of incarcerated parents.  A couple at our church, Liz and Jon Vallejo, felt strongly that God was calling them to begin a camp here in Southern California.  It was a process that took five years, much prayer and a huge leap of faith!  How Paul and I came to be on this bus last week is our own interesting story, one of prayer and a leap of faith of our own as well.

A little over a year ago, with divine guidance, Paul and I arrived at a new church, Southlands in Brea, CA.  We were not entirely sure of all the reasons God was leading us to leave our former church and all of our friends, of which we had many, and go to a church in which we did not know anyone at all.  But when God calls we have learned that there is much fruit in just obeying and not asking too many questions. There has been much fruit in our obedience, as well as much opposition at times, but this little blog will be focusing on one of the things that we are now able to see in hindsight that was on the Holy Spirit's list of things He had for us to do at our new church.

We were only at the church for a few months when one Sunday morning a man was chatting with two women sitting in front of us.  I briefly overheard him mentioning a camp he was heading to that coming week and he seemed excited about. During the service my heart was stirred about it and I felt that we needed to offer to pray with him at the end of the service.  He seemed appreciative that we were offering, and we asked a few others to join us.  As we began to pray for this camp, Camp Agape in Hawaii, I felt the most overwhelming sense of the pleasure of God pour over me!  I began to weep as I prayed and I knew that God was certainly going to be doing something there!  Sure enough, a few weeks later I ran into my new friend Manny and he gave us an incredible testimony of how God had moved in power upon the kids.  What I did not know at that time was that the plans of bringing this same camp to Southern California was already well under way.

Several more months passed and I was so pleased to hear that our church was going to be partnering with the start of the first ever Camp Agape in California.  I knew right away, as the Holy Spirit had so clearly highlighted this ministry to us, that we would be partnering as well but I thought perhaps it would only be in a financial sense as we have been hosting international students in our home and being gone for a weekend seemed rather difficult, but I kept the thought open.  When it came time to sign up for the camp though I felt strongly that I needed to go.  Paul was unsure if he could make it, due to work, but all of the obstacles removed themselves by God's grace, and my adult daughter stepped in to take care of our students and keep the household running in our absence.  

In the weeks leading up to the camp I spent some time in prayer.  I specifically asked the Lord about the girls I would be mentoring.  I assumed I would have two girls, as they seemed to pair up one mentor with two "angels" as they are referred to.  However, I could only "see" one girl as I was praying.  From what the Holy Spirit was showing me she would be around 12 or 13 years old, have a little curl in her hair that was brown with golden highlights.  I was unsure what race she was, as she appeared to be mixed.  I even thought she might be European.  I received a list of names that would be in our group a few days before the camp began and one name just popped off the page.  It was like I knew that was the girl I would be with and her name was Sarah.  Sure enough, when I was given my "angel"  I was only given one girl, and it was this same "Sarah" and when she arrived she had soft brown curls with golden highlights and she was 12 years old and her mother was Hungarian and her father Hispanic.  Amazing!  I teared up as I was introducing myself to her.  She didn't know why but later I shared with her that God had a plan and had shown me that I would be her mentor.

As the weekend unfolded, I was surprised that Sarah already had a very strong faith in Christ.  I pondered why the Lord had paired me with her instead of one of the other girls that had a much more obvious "hardness" about her, but God in His sovereignty had good reasons that actually ended up being a blessing to me as well in this.  The first night of camp was actually incredible in that over 50 kids responded to the call for Christ and even more to let go of anger towards their fathers.  The worship, led by the worship leader from my home church Southlands in Brea, did an amazing job as usual but I did notice that there was no background vocals.  There was a mic set up for the keyboardist but he was not singing much at all.  Also, there were no females on the worship team and I thought that perhaps it would be nice if there was a female up there as a role model for the young girls at the camp.  As I have spent most of my life, since my teen years, on a worship team in one aspect or another, I found myself wishing I could be up there again.  It has been over a year and a half since I have been on a worship team and I found myself missing it.  But then I thought about how God, in His kindness, had given me such a clear picture/vision of Sarah and it was all part of His perfect plan for me to be her mentor that weekend.  

But God gave me a little gift the very next day!  As I was passing Josh, our worship leader, I mentioned that they could use a female vocalist up there, and of course I was more than willing if needed!  I was shocked when he actually considered it.  He invited me to join them for practice later that night!  I said I would have to chat with my cabin, and I also spoke with the camp coordinator in charge of the girls, but both the girls in my cabin and the coordinator were excited for me.   It was at this moment I realized that if I had been paired with a student that was struggling and was more needy I would not have felt the freedom to plug into the worship team for that hour or so.  It was such a gift to me in that I felt like God had heard my heart's cry.  Hopefully my motives were pure, but I did sense that the girls were so excited and one of the girls in my cabin mentioned that she liked to sing too and I was able to encourage her, as well as the other girls in using their gifts for Jesus.

As I was spending my time with the girls, Paul had some even more amazing breakthroughs with the young men he had been assigned.  As God ordained it, he ended up leading the "cabin time" with three young men that had never been in church before.  They were a bit overwhelmed by the newness of the services.  Paul took it slow with them and didn't pressure them to respond until they were ready, which was the last night in which Paul was able to lead two of them in giving their hearts to Christ in the cabin!  One of the younger ones had said, as they were discussing how the Bible helps us to have a life of love and a good life, "So if I follow the Bible I won't end up going to jail like my dad?"  Later I commented that the Bible helps all of us not end up in places we shouldn't be.  We all need the Word to be a light unto our paths!

As for the Word being our light, I had a picture of my "angel" Sarah being a light that left a trail everywhere she went.  The light she carried would draw others to Jesus.  I shared this with her and she was just beaming!  What was really incredible for me, and honestly the moment in which I was the most overjoyed the entire weekend, was the last morning before breakfast.  The camp pastor Jeff had invited all the campers that wanted to sign up to become "junior mentors" to arrive at the campfire for a chat that morning.  Most of the girls in our cabin wanted to go, which I was very happy about.  What I was not aware of, however, was that one thing Camp Agape does is when a student signs up to become a "junior mentor" is that they tell them that they are going to keep them accountable to do their daily devotions for the entire year leading up to the next camp.  They send them something called a "SOAP" which is basically an outline for studying the Word (Scripture, Observations, Application, Prayer).  Seeing thirty or so kids lining up to commit to studying the Word everyday overwhelmed me and I cried more over that than anything the entire weekend!  I was like I could "see" the trail of light that was just taking place before me at that moment.  Nothing transforms us more than being in the Word consistently!  As amazing as seeing the kids going forward to give their hearts to Christ, praying for the forgiveness of those that had hurt them, prayers for the breaking of generational curses and strongholds, the daily "bread" of God's Word was going to bring sustaining life to these kids for the entire year ahead. 

So I anticipate much fruit from this now.  I applaud my church, Southlands in Brea for having the "eyes to see" that this ministry is something that pleases the Father's heart.  Churches certainly cannot give to every need or organization out there, they just do not have the resources to do so, but it brings me joy that the Holy Spirit had highlighted this one to me and our church as well.  I can see the "trail of light" ahead and although we may never see how bountiful the harvest from this will be until we reach heaven I am confident that there will be enough visible fruit to give us a small glimpse of what is to come.  As it says in Isaiah 60:3, "Nations will come to your light!."  

Merry Christmas From the Reid Family!

Thanks to Jennifer for designing the card above...

As we reflect back now over our year and if we could summarize 2016 in a single word for our family, it would be the word "changes."  It has certainly been an interesting year on many levels.  The year began as normal but within a couple of months we found Paul was offered a new job, one that has been a blessing in many ways, for a company called loanDepot in Lake Forest. He is still working in C# programming but has been given more of an software architect title.  He is enjoying the work and the company as well.

At this same time we were approached to host a web TV show on the Holy Spirit Broadcasting Network (www.HSBN.tv) and after praying about it, we could sense God's divine hand in these changes.  We have now taped over twenty-five 30 minute shows that can be watched on HSBN.tv by searching for "The Way it Is" or the shows are available on www.thewayitis.tv.

Another change is that after much prayer and divine guidance, we opened our home permanently to two foreign exchange students.  One was only here for a few months and has since had family move here from Vietnam so we currently only have one 14 year old student from China living with us.  We will most likely have another placed with us soon.  It has been a joy to host them and it has been a help as well, in that the private school that we host with pays a stipend to us.  With all the added hospital bills this year, plus the cost of private school tuition and an additional teen driver to pay for, this has been an amazing and unique way to see God's providence in our lives.  I am learning to trust Him even more in this area.  Having so much hit as once really caused me to just throw my hands up in the air and cry for help, which really is something I should have been doing all along.  He says that we shouldn't worry and that we should "consider the lilies of the field, they do not labor or spin."  I was worrying far to much and not really resting in Him.  The Bible also says, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you."  Such an easier way to live, if we really strive to fully rest in pursuing Him.  God is good!

In early April I ended up having a strange series of events that led me to the emergency room twice in one week, the final visit culminating in a serious stroke in which I was paralyzed over half my body, and couldn't speak or even understand words.  Also, my vision was crossed.  They ran multiple tests, none were conclusive, although they believe it was related to an allergic reaction to perfume. However, the stroke has had a profound effect on me in that I had a little "vision" or picture of Jesus just calmly holding my hand through it all.  Also, Jennifer and Paul prayed in faith that God would heal me, because God had already confirmed to us through miracles that we were doing the TV show and hosting students, and how could I do any of that with a stroke or crossed vision?  I am 100% recovered, although I'm taking aspirin everyday and trying to hit the gym a bit more, just as a precaution.  I feel so grateful to God for getting through that experience and it helps us all not take things for granted.

At that same time, our family was in the process of transitioning to a new church as well.  We had one foot in our older church and one in the new for a season.  The change in churches was due to some rather interesting things that the Lord was speaking to us.  We felt clearly led to a church called Southlands in Brea, CA (www.southlands.net).  It is a more Charismatic church than the one we were previously attending. As Paul and I both grew up in a Pentecostal church, this has brought us full circle in a way to our roots.

As for the girls, Jennifer is still attending Azusa Pacific University (www.apu.edu) and is currently a Sophomore there.  She is studying graphic design and finds that the workload of her art classes is quite time consuming but she enjoys them.  She lives on campus and got a job printing ID cards for students and faculty.

Jackie is a Junior at Esperanza High School.  She is in her third year of Japanese (and is reasonably fluent) and spent a couple weeks this past Summer in Japan with some of her classmates.  It was a wonderful experience for her and certainly helped broaden her worldview a bit.  Her hobbies still include art and snowboarding.  Each winter she goes up the local mountain with a group called "The Blue Angels ski and snowboard program" and is able to hit the slopes on the weekends for a couple months.

So on that note, Merry Christmas to all of you.  May God bless you this year and provide for you as you put your hand into His.

Love the Reid Family: Paul, Marla, Jennifer & Jackie

It's all About LOVE. Thank You Jesus for the Reminder!

This blog may be stating the obvious, but sometimes the "obvious" things need to be brought back into the forefront.  I had a nice little reminder of this the past week and felt it was worthy of it's own little blog post.  The topic is something we sing about, talk about, live for, basically it is all encompassing.  In a word, it is LOVE.

A couple weeks ago, while I was worshiping at church (Southland's in Brea), I had a vision.  Lately the Holy Spirit has been giving me a steady stream of visions and it has been so incredibly powerful and helpful in really bringing the Word of God to life in so many ways.  Usually the pictures will confirm something He is teaching me or will give me confirmation of what is even being said later in the sermons, which is amazing and affirming for my faith.  But on this particular Sunday morning the vision was of a giant hand simply writing "love" in cursive on a sandy beach.  I then saw all the grains of sand on the beach lifted up and the sand was suspended in a 3D type affect as it was surrounding me.  I could see through the sand and saw how infinite the stars were in the sky beyond the sand.  I knew in essence that God was giving me a picture of how all knowing and all powerful He was and how infinite His love is.  I thought it was a "cool" picture but in all honesty my reaction was not one of awe or wonder.  Instead I thought this, "That is obvious.  Of course God is all knowing and all powerful and He is love. That is just a fact!"  I mean, my heart was warmed a bit, but I have to admit that I was left with a question of what God was really trying to show me in that.  I have had some visions lately that I felt were just a bit more impressive to me.  Visions of revival with the fire of God falling, Jesus preparing a banquet table, the army of God arising, basically awesome and more awe inspiring stuff.  So to see the word "love" seemed a bit anticlimactic to me.  But I just took the picture and put it in the back of my mind for future reference.  Maybe there was something more He was trying to show me?  There usually is, and lately there seems to be a lesson of some sort involved.


Well, as the week continued I had forgotten about the vision.  I was drawn to listen to a few messages online by a man named Dan Mohler.  Dan has such a contagious love of Jesus and I really enjoy his testimonies.  He has countless stories of profound miracles, but the main point he drives home over and over is that all the miraculous gifts are certainly not the focus and they should be just a natural extension of us reaching out and being the love of Christ to the world.  As we go, we just need to BE LOVE. We need to love as He has loved us.  As I have been on a journey to "eagerly desire the greater gifts" and have even had some profound words for others given to me by the Holy Spirit, this was a much needed reminder at this point.  

I then remembered an encounter I had with a good friend a couple months prior.  Paul and I have a friend that is a Biblical scholar that enjoys debating scripture more than anyone else I know.  Although I enjoy a good debate, iron sharpens iron so it says, I often find it rather exhausting and futile at times. One night, after a rather long discussion, I had a vision of him.  I saw Jesus reaching to embrace him.  I shared this and I was surprised when he became very agitated, even angry with me.  He said, "That is so elementary!"  I just told him that it was "what I saw."  I can say I wasn't too surprised at his response, but I guess I was grieved because I thought that with all the striving to know the Word of God did he really KNOW Him and His love?  But as I was remembering this encounter with my friend, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the vision I had in church where I saw the word LOVE on the sand.  In a way Jesus was showing me His embrace by showing me the vastness of His love and what was my response?  It really was almost identical as my friend's!  I responded by thinking, "That is so elementary!"  The Holy Spirit has been so good at showing me all these little areas that need refining as of late.  Not always enjoyable, but part of the process and is rather funny if I can see the humor in it all!

So as "elementary" as it is, I am now seeing, learning, feeling, experiencing and all the other ways He loves to engage me, that love must be the driving force behind everything I do.  I was thinking back to all the times that I was guided by love and those were certainly the most powerful moments.  The moment the Holy Spirit brought to the forefront was the time when I was in college working at a preschool.  There was a little girl there that was getting in trouble for "inappropriate touching" of another little boy.  The preschool director was agitated at this little girl and even reprimanding her with talk of even kicking her out, but I knew that it was due to abuse she encountered (Not sure if that was just from the Holy Spirit or gossip in the office.)  Well later that day I felt this overwhelming desire to go to the hallway.  Sure enough there was that little girl.  She had just left the restroom and it was just the two of us in the hallway at this point.  I wrapped my arms around her and told her that she was so loved by Jesus.  That she wasn't a "bad girl" at all and that I was so sad that she had been hurt by someone.  In fact, as I looked into her eyes I told her I understood her because I was abused when I was her age too.  I shed a few tears as did she.  She didn't say anything back.  I am sure at age 4 that would be hard to do anyway.  I have had other "moments" too. They have not been that exciting in regards to the miraculous, but that is where He is the one reaching through us to touch others for sure.

And so it may be completely "elementary" but may I never lose the awe and wonder of my "first love!"  Just recently I have started attending a small group (which isn't at all that small because there are 50 young adults in this group.)  I am so humbled by the purity of the hearts of many of these young men and women.  I was chatting with one last Sunday.  He has only been a Christian for a year and already he is so passionate about just being LOVE to a world that needs the love of Christ.  I wonder at why sometimes those of us that have been Christians for decades do not have even a portion of the passion and love that these do?  I think I used to make a few excuses, to justify my lack of zeal, that "those who have been saved of much love much."  Maybe because I was saved at such a young age was the cause of my complacency?  But perhaps it is simply because in my mind I had, in pride, decided that I was beyond living in that place of unashamed passionate love for Jesus.  I knew, with my head knowledge, that Jesus loved me and the world but I guess I thought it was time to move on to "bigger and better" things.  But what is "bigger and better" than His love?  There is nothing more important to offer and I need to allow Him to purge all things that get in the way of that, so I can truly BE love.  And as I work this out, what would living in His love actually look like?  Well the Bible lays it out pretty clearly.  It says that love is patient and kind, it doesn't envy or boast, it isn't self-seeking, it isn't easily angered and doesn't keep record of wrongs, it doesn't delight in evil but rejoices in truth, always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres, love never fails.  And the most profound thing of all is that this list is how Jesus actually loves us!  If I can really grasp how patient, kind, trustworthy, selfless, protecting my Savior is than it should just flow naturally to BE that to others.  And so, may we all grow to know the love of Christ so we can just fully live in it, and be the LOVE that He wants to be to this world.

Jesus is Cleaning My House Today

Jesus is cleaning my house today.

At first glance most people would think this article would be about a figurative "house cleaning"  but as I am writing this I am actually being blessed by having a house cleaner at my house today.  Her name is "Angelica" and she is more "Angelic" than even I could have ever known, but this story starts several days ago.

On Monday night I had a very hard time falling asleep. Our basset hound, Cookie, was whimpering around midnight.  I wasn't sure what she needed.  I made sure she had water and even put a few treats in her bowl (a really bad habit to get into I know) but I wasn't sure what she was upset about.  Finally she calmed down but by then I was exhausted and ready to sleep.  I had almost fallen asleep when I heard what distinctly sounded like a doorbell ringing.  It is midnight!  Who could be ringing the doorbell this at this hour?  But then my logical part of my brain informed me that it didn't sound like our doorbell.  Strange.  Maybe God was trying to tell me something then?  Lately I have been having some visions that have been very encouraging, some seem more real than others, and most are almost like dreams.  I like to joke that some people God can speak directly to but I need a "picture book!"  So after hearing the doorbell I thought, I guess I should answer it!  In my mind I walked to the door and opened it to see who was there.  When I opened it, there He was!  Jesus was standing on the other side of the door with a broom and a bucket and he had a huge smile on His face!  Now that is strange, and certainly the last thing I expected to see!  What could it mean?  I drifted off to sleep as I was pondering that thought.

The next day I was still thinking about the strange picture of Jesus I had the night before and trying to come up with an interpretation.  Maybe there were things Jesus needed to "clean up" in my life?  I am sure we all have things so I needed to pray about them and see.  I do struggle with cleanliness.  My Mom used to always say, "Cleanliness is next to Godliness."  I was shocked, but actually very relieved, to later learn that wasn't even a Bible verse!  What a relief because I would never be "godly" if outward cleanliness was a requirement.  But I could certainly use help in organizing.  But maybe it was deeper than just outward cleanliness?  Worry perhaps?  I do worry, especially now that I have a daughter at a private Christian university.  The cost is enough to keep me up at night..  Granted, God has been so faithful so far to provide in unexpected ways.  He gives us "our daily bread" as His Word says.  I am learning to rest in that, but it isn't something that comes easy to me.  What other things could be cleaned out?  Envy perhaps?  Maybe some anger, pride, impatience?  The list goes on.  Perhaps Jesus shouldn't have been smiling then if there were such things to clean out of my heart.  But He does discipline those He loves.  Sigh.  I read the Bible and then prayed for God to clean out whatever He willed.  Thank you Jesus for loving me enough to correct whatever it is that needs correction and to continuously help weed out things in my life.

I figured that was all He was trying to show me, until the doorbell actually rang!  I was about to leave the house to go work out at the gym. My friend had asked me to go meet her there and I really wanted to say no to the gym, but I figured it might be another way that the Holy Spirit was trying to help me "clean up" a bit with some self discipline in the area of exercise.  I went to the door thinking it was an Amazon package perhaps, my husband's favorite way to shop now, or perhaps some Jehovah's Witnesses?  When I go to the door I was surprised to see someone I hadn't seen in over 5 years!  It was my old housekeeper.  Her name is "Angelica."  We had to let her go when our youngest daughter was involved in gymnastics.   With her success in the sport the cost per month had put a huge dent in our budget and we needed to cut anything that was considered a "luxury."  As the years went on, it was hard to justify the cost of a housekeeper and expenses just kept growing as it does.

I asked Angelica how she was doing.  She said she was fine but she was looking for more work.  Many of her clients had left because they couldn't pay for her services as they had children in college.  I was about to tell her we couldn't afford her either for the same reason but I remembered my strange dream/vision I had a couple nights earlier.  I told her I would talk to my husband and let her know.  I took her card.  I watched her drive away in a car that looked like it had seen better days. Was Jesus trying to tell me to get a housekeeper? 

That night over dinner I told my family the strange story and coincidence.  Both my husband and daughter agreed that Jesus was totally right.  I was in desperate need of help!  They were halfway joking, but my husband agreed it wasn't something to ignore.  I told him that I thought at first the vision was just Jesus telling me to "clean out" some issues in my life but then the coincidence of my old house cleaner showing up was just too strange.  If Jesus wanted to provide a house cleaner than who am I to stop Him! I called Angelica that night.  She sounded so excited to work for me again.  Although I am not sure that spending the extra amount per month makes any sense right now, I just have to trust that God will provide as He always does and He always has. With the vision in my mind, it really feels like I am giving Jesus the job, as strange as that may sound, since He was the one at my door and she is the Angel that was provided.

My friend called me shortly after I got off the phone with Angelica.  I told her about the strange vision and that I had hired a housekeeper because of it. She then asked if I wanted to go to the gym the next day.  I said jokingly, "Only if I have a vision of Jesus showing up at my door with a treadmill!" 

Joy to India, the World, and God Willing America Too!

A month ago today I got back from an amazing and life changing two week trip to India.  India was one of the places in the world I said I "never" wanted to go to and I meant it with all sincerity.  The pictures I had seen of crowded streets, bustling cities and trains overflowing with people was enough to make me declare my intentions of never going, but I have learned that anytime I say the word "never" God takes that as a challenge with me.  I suppose He wants to keep me humble?  I am not sure, but much to my surprise my heart changed about going to India.  Perhaps it was in having some wonderful friends that I have made from there.  I also heard amazing stories from some of the ladies that went there from my church a couple years ago and I had heard the leader Suresh Kumar of Harvest India speak at a church and could feel his passion and heart for the people there and entertaining stories (which can be read in his book Compelled available on Amazon for a shameless plug).  When a lady at my church, who started a ministry called Daughters of the King, asked me if I was interested in going I had no excuse to give.  I knew instantly I was going!  God had changed me.  I will need to be more careful in my use of the word "never" from now on.

I had been on some mission trips before.  A few weekend trips to Mexico and a month long trip to Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea.  Those trips were instrumental in giving me a wider world view and understanding of how fortunate we are in the United States.  I came home with more gratitude and I would like to think more compassion for others.  So this time I was positive that I would have no trouble with two weeks in India.  It would be an adventure and I would go with many prayers behind me.  I must say that I did feel prayers sustaining me, and it was certainly an adventure!  But to say that I had "no trouble" isn't entirely true.  I found after two days of Indian food I was literally crying.  I am used to spicy Mexican food here in Southern California, but for some reason the spices were so unusual and I really was losing any taste for them and I felt like it would be too rude not to eat the food being presented to us and I actually cried hard.  Then to top it off, I could see how amazingly generous they were being to us in giving us such generous portions.  As we went to villages and handed out such simple things, such as an piece of bread, one hardboiled egg and a banana to have these children so overjoyed by this and I was crying over spicy food because I just didn't like it?  Not being able to throw toilet paper into the toilet was another issue I struggled with as well as a lack of hot showers.  I really suffered from some "first world problems" which was a bit eye opening.

But the thing that really changed me the most from this trip was joy.  I think in my mind I always knew that joy can be elusive.  As I look around me here in America it is rare to see true joy.  Sure there are some selfies posted with a smile and there is a sense in which people are happy when something good happens in their lives, but joy is something so much deeper and lasting than fleeting happiness.  While in India we served hot meals at the new church to 250 people that suffer from leprosy.  This is a disease that is preventable and totally curable with the right medical care.  Instead of being resentful and upset I saw something different in their eyes, pure joy and even contentment with their situation in life and gratitude for the simple things.  As I spoke at the conference we held for 500 women, mostly pastor's wives in small village churches, some of which had never even sat in a real chair or even had a meal that I was told would be one of the finest that they had ever been served (a meal with a selection of three different curries was what Harvest India provided) I saw pure joy in their eyes and they even danced for joy that we were there with them.  They gladly slept on the hard concrete floors during the three nights there.  I could not help but think that I would not be so content.  In fact, I already knew that I wasn't content with the meal of three different curries and even my soft mat in an air conditioned room (a true luxury in India) was not the comfort I was used to.    

The Bible speaks in 1 Timothy 6:6 of how "Godliness with contentment is great gain."  This is a verse I have contemplated many times in my life.   It is something I try to ponder when I am feeling discontent, which can be a common occurrence, I think more so in a hedonistic society that bombards us with messages of how we need to dress a certain way, drive a new car and entertain ourselves constantly.  But in India I saw what true contentment can bring.  They had very little but were content with that. Christmas is only a week away as I write this and it makes me think of the people in "Whoville" that were so content, even when the Grinch tried to steal Christmas from them.  In a way the Christians I met in India who have been "stolen" from by the neglect of their government or even the world at large, are joyful.  They sing praises to God and God is blessing them for that.  They are far richer in His presence than we are here.  They have learned the truth that His presence is better than any presents!   It is my prayer that we can have even a taste of the kind of joy I experienced there.

   

I knew that I might come back from India with a different perspective and I have.  As I walk the malls and the grocery stores and I see the luxury and abundance all around me but the faces of people seem stressed and unhappy it is a jarring observation that we need joy here.  We might have wealth, fleeting happiness on occasion but what we need is the joy that knowing Jesus can bring.  There are so many different messages.  We have been taught "the power is within" but really all that is within us is sin, pain and suffering.  The power is not in us at all.  The true "power" to change our hearts comes from a small baby that was born in a little town called Bethlehem.  He was God come to earth.  He came to walk with us, feel our pain and sorrow and then take our sin, the sin that keeps us from experiencing true joy, upon himself.  He paid the ultimate price for those sins on a cross for us.  Because of Jesus we have the only reason to sing, in America, in India, and everywhere,  Joy to the World the Lord has come!  

Jesus, the Ultimate Jewish Repairman

 

My washing machine broke this weekend.  It has been one of those seasons where it seems like things are constantly breaking.   My microwave stopped working a couple of months ago, my dryer needed a new belt a few weeks ago and this time it was my washing machine.  If only all of my appliances could break on the same day it would make life easier.  Or better yet, if they never broke at all!  But unfortunately it seems like it is just one of the annoyances we have to deal with in life.  

The repair man arrived, a friendly looking man in his late 50's with fly away blond hair and an earring on one ear.  He looked more like a rock star than a washer repair man but I was just happy someone had arrived to fix my machine.  He loved my dogs which was great because one of my dogs came from a shelter.  The shelter said that he was a Italian Greyhound mix.  The part the shelter left out was that it was mixed with Pit Bull.  He can be very aggressive and it makes me nervous any time I introduce him to people.  But both of my dogs really liked the washing machine repairman. If my dogs like him that is proof he must be a good fellow.  He was also very chatty and he had a noticeable accent that sounded Russian to me.  I asked where he was from and he said he was from the Ukraine.  I mentioned I had taken a Russian class once after my husband returned from a month long mission trip to Russia.  This of course intrigued him. 

After showing him my washing machine he quickly jumped in to work on it.  He seemed very happy to chat while he was working and it appeared he could multitask so I obliged and chatted with him while he was working.  He wanted to know more about my husband's trip to Russia.  I said that it was in 1991.   He responded, "Oh, the early 90's.  That was a good time to go.  Russia was pretty democratic at that point."   I said that my husband spent a month there and was handing out Bibles and starting churches.  I mentioned that people were even having fist fights over Bibles when they were being handed out.  This didn't surprise him at all. I learned that he had to leave Russia before the 90's because of religious persecution.  He was Jewish and he said I would not believe some of the things he had seen.  He did not appear to want to go into details, but from what I learned he had family members that had suffered through the Holocaust, and because of Stalin many of the their freedoms were taken from them and many family members were killed for their Jewish faith.  I agreed and said that there was no way I could ever really understand.  Unless you have gone through that kind of thing personally there is no way to really understand.  I said I could try to sympathize but that was really all I could do. 

He said that he was thankful to be in America now but that he was not a fan of Obama though.  He greatly lamented that he had some Jewish friends that voted for him.  He quoted Winston Churchill and said, “Show me a young Conservative and I'll show you someone with no heart. Show me an old Liberal and I'll show you someone with no brains.”  I laughed out loud at this and said that there was much truth in that!  I mentioned that he seemed very intelligent and he said that he had two college degrees. I said he should be teaching classes instead of repairing washing machines but he said that he had four grandchildren at home he spent time teaching.  I was still curious why someone with the life experience and depth of knowledge he appeared to have would be content with the mundane job of just fixing broken washing machines but the conversation moved on to other things. 

At this point he was fully aware of my Christian beliefs.  It isn't something I hide of course.  So he offered several interesting points to me.  One was that he believed in God and that he believed it really didn't matter what God you believed in or prayed to and that most religions have the basis of the Old Testament, specifically the 10 commandments, as the moral foundation for their beliefs.  I said there was definitely similarities in many religions. 

He did not give me any more time to talk and then jumped in with a story about how some Jehovah's Witnesses came to his door a while back.  I said, "They have some strange ideas."  He said, "Yeah right!?"  Then he said that the first time they came he pretended that he only spoke Russian.  A few weeks later some Jehovah's Witnesses that spoke Russian showed up at his door.  I laughed out loud at that!  He then said it was frustrating because they said that the Jews were God's chosen people.  So he said, "Then if we are chosen why do we need to become Jehovah's Witnesses?"  Of course I laughed at this.  His logic made sense to me.  I said that as Christians we do believe that the Jews are God's chosen people and that because of that I believe much of the persecution that the Jews have had to endure is in part because Satan hates them because of that and there is a giant target on their back, so to speak.  The repairman heartily agreed with me on this one. 

At this point I took the opportunity to mention that I had friends that are Jewish.  Although I anticipated what his response would be, I said "I have a very good friend that is a Messianic Jew!"  Just as I expected his response was a heated and frustrated, "Oh. Messianic Jews!"  Then he had to tell me the story when he was growing up his family was extremely angry at him over buying a "Jesus Christ Superstar" record.  He went on to explain how you can't really be Jewish and accept Jesus.

Then I said I had a question, a question I have had for a while.  Why is it that someone who is Jewish can accept basically anything?  They can dabble in Kabbalah, the occult, there are even atheist Jews, basically they can believe anything at all but accept Jesus.  Is it because of the experience that Jews have had with Christians?  He said that was it.  He said that during the Holocaust the Christians, primarily Catholics, did not help. I said that there were some Christians that did help though.  He agreed but said that 95% did not.  I said that just because the "church" did not help does not mean that Jesus still is not the Messiah.  Even the Old Testament prophesied that the promised Messiah had to have been born and lived at the time that Jesus Christ was on earth.  Even Jesus suffered at the hands of the church and was crucified. 

He thought for a brief moment.  He said, well if I accepted Jesus my father would probably kill me.  Then he thought for a moment and said, "It isn't like I do everything just because my father wants me to though."  Ah.  The wheels were turning.  I smiled and said, just something to think about.  He finished my washing machine.  I gladly paid him. He said, "Merry Christmas."  I said, "Happy Hanukkah."  I said I really enjoyed chatting with him.  I really did.  What a wonderfully intelligent and interesting man.  I do know God has a special place in his heart for the Jews.  Many have had to endure so much.  I would love to think that they could come "full circle" as I see it and understand who the promised Messiah is here on earth before they get to the other side, but I do feel like he was not rejecting Jesus.  He was just not sure yet.  He loved God, that I could see and I am so thankful that God does look at our hearts.  I will indeed pray that my Jewish repairman will at some point meet Jesus, the ultimate Jewish repairman!   There is plenty of things in this world that need to be fixed and we have the God given ability to do so, but we cannot fix our own souls.  Thankfully we can call on Jesus anytime :  the repairman for our souls and lost and broken world!

Seeing with Spiritual Eyes

Having spent many hours in debates on message boards, specifically with many atheists, I have come to the conclusion that much of what I have said and debated has fallen on deaf ears or "blind eyes."  There are some things that can only be seen with spiritual eyes.  The Bible even tells us that we were "once blind but now we see."  It should come as no surprise that when I am sharing truth from the Bible I have found that it will be perceived as foolishness to those that are not open to the things of God.  The question then leads me to ponder if these discussions are completely pointless or not.

Take some excerpts from my last discussion for example: 

Atheist: You seem to have blind faith in the bible and there is absolutely no way to know the accuracy of what was written in it.  Every religion has their own holy book, what makes your Bible valid and theirs invalid?

Me:  I have blind faith?  You may see it that way.  What is strange, and even supernatural, is that the Bible says that God will "Open the eyes of the blind."  In reality a person cannot see things spiritually until this happens.  Many people have said that the Bible did not make sense to them until they accepted Jesus and then it was like they could "see" things that they never saw before.  Although these experiences are not that common in my life, there have been some times in my life where I have "seen" sins that a person is struggling with the sole purpose of praying for that person.  I have seen visions.  I have also seen some people that I recognized were demon possessed just by feeling their presence in the room and then looked that direction and it was obvious that they "saw" me too!  A bit creepy but at the same time it just proved to me that I can see things in a spiritual way that many cannot.  The Bible is even said to be "foolish" to those that do not have the eyes to see. Instead of judging others for not seeing I really should not expect them to be able to.

I guess the thing that I would mention, in regards to your inference that the Bible is not true or it is just our "truth" is the question of why are so many people hostile to it?  If it wasn't so revolutionary why is it still banned in some places of the world?  Why has the Bible changed people's lives so much?  Why have people been willing to give up their lives for the truth in it, especially if it was not important?  Sure there are other religions that people give their lives for willingly, however, the one thing that separates Christianity from all other religions is that Christianity is the only religion that is not about earning our way to God.  In fact, it is all about realizing that there is no possible way to earn salvation at all.  It is about realizing that we are in need of help.  It takes humility and an open heart that prays and ask God to forgive us and "open our eyes" if you will to see things from God's perspective.  Then God, out of His great love, comes in and helps us to see not only ourselves, but others in a different way.  He helps us to love ourselves and others. He helps us to forgive, have joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control.  He then gives us the gift of His Spirit in our hearts and then we are able to do good things because of His love, not because we are trying to earn our salvation but because we are so thankful for what He has done for us.  

Atheist: The placebo effect can be a very powerful thing.  A good example is those balance wristbands that say their holograms will make you have better posture, better at sports,  and so on.   But they actually are nothing but a piece of foil and some rubber, but the people wearing them believe in it so much that their brains make it true to them.  I'm not sure what you mean by saying that the possessed people "saw" you too, but 2 people looking at each other proves nothing supernatural.

People are hostile to any religion other than theirs in a lot of cases, or a specific religion because of the one they believe in, culture, etc.  In some places any religion except for the one of the state is banned, so does that mean every religion is valid?  The bible has changed people because they read it and thought they could be changed, coming back to the placebo effect.

Me:  I am not able to comment on everything right now but I do have a quick story to share regarding "seeing" people that are possessed.

What is strange is that I can feel their presence without seeing them first.  Then when I look the direction that the person is in they are often glaring at me with a sinister look.   My husband has a story that is more compelling though.  When he was in college he had a part-time job at an auto-parts store.  There was a strange guy that would come in on occasion and talk about Nostradamus and my husband noticed that he was possessed.  There was a very weird and dark spirit about him.  One day he was at work and he felt this guy's presence even though the guy was not in the store at the time.  My husband then commented to his co-workers "That Nostradamus guy is back."  The guy wasn't there so they said, "Where?"  My husband then sensed him near the 7-11 store next door and then pointed.  He sensed the guy walking and as his finger moved to where the guy was he was directly pointing at him when his figure appeared in the window walking by the store front.  His co-workers started freaking out and asking him how he knew that.  My husband just said it was easy.  He could "see" him or "sense" his evil or dark presence.  Having had this same experience I totally get it and understand it.  But it is something we can only "see" with our spiritual eyes.

And so the discussion has ended for now.  The atheist did not have a comment after I shared my husband's story (yet anyways.)  I figure the most important thing to do really is just pray.  Pray that the person reading the words will have a small desire, or even a curiosity in seeking more.  Really it takes God's Spirit to draw us to Him.  There is nothing brilliant enough that I could say to convince anyone otherwise.  So often these discussions lean towards "evolution and intelligent design" where I am treated as completely ignorant for even thinking that intelligent design was a possibility.  It seems to steer towards the question of if there was a God, why would He allow suffering and that is not the kind of God they would want to serve anyways.  Of course I explain that Christ suffered greatly too for us and that we have the free will to choose to love or harm others. But all of these discussions seem quite empty and most often end with no resolution.   Maybe a seed has been sown.  Maybe somewhere down the road a simple thing stated will cause them to ponder who God is in their lives.  I often try to intertwine personal stories because it is hard to argue with something that really happened to me, but even then I have to be a little thick skinned and not take an attack personally.  I suppose I need to consider it a compliment if I am hated for anything I say in defense of God's word.  I am in good company as I study the Bible for being laughed at and ridiculed.  So I continue to pray that I will see things through "spiritual eyes" and have the words to say that can open the eyes of the blind and lead them from darkness into light and that God's light will continue to shine brightly in and through me.