How Does God Feel About You?

In his booklet You Have What It Takes, John Eldredge suggests that many Christians live their lives like someone trying to run a marathon with a broken leg. He points out that knowing our sins are forgiven is not the same thing as having our hurts healed so that we can “run the race set before us.” [Hebrews 12:1] Eldredge goes on to describe how a friend of his avoided spending time with God because he wasn’t sure he wanted to hear what God might say to him if he really listened; this man assumed that God’s attitude toward him would be negative because of his struggles, so he evaded the very encounter that could bring him into a place of healing and victory.

I think a lot of us are like this: we’ve heard so many negative messages about God, even those well-intended to motivate us toward “godly behavior,” that – when we’re hurting, confused, lonely, bored, or in trouble – we pursue all kinds of counterfeit affections, worldly or even sinful pleasures, because we’ve denied ourselves the supreme pleasure and true affection God wants us to experience in our relationship with Him.

Consider the following thoughts from After God's Own Heart by Mike Bickle (Chapter 1):

"...intimacy with God starts with the realization that God likes us and wants to enjoy with us the pleasure of encounters with Him... the infinite God of glory is truly in love with us, even in our weakness and brokenness. He has invited us to drink from the awesome spiritual pleasures of having a divine romance with Him.

"I'm not just talking about knowing in your head that God loves you. Everybody knows that, or says they do. But we've been numbed over the ages to the impact of God's Love. We have reduced it to something namby-pamby and full of condescension and pity. Yet God's love is so full of tumbling energy and strong emotion, I don't know if we would recognize it for what it is... fierce emotions so strong and determined that they even drove Him to the extreme of being incarnated and hung on a cross. In His love for us, He would simply not be denied relationship with us, and so He pursued us to the very end. That is the God we serve.

"Most believers are so disconnected from the reality of God's astonishing, frightfully lavish love for us that they totally miss out on 99 percent of what they could experience in their everyday walk with Christ... [They] spend their days on earth believing that Jesus is harsh instead of tender, mad instead of glad, and distant instead of affectionate. When they finally see Him as He truly is, they will be filled with regret at not spending their time on earth radically pursuing His heart and reaping the amazing pleasures.

"You have to understand: God is not a boring fuddy-duddy who wears slippers and putters around heaven feeling constantly perturbed. He is not geriatric, but ageless. He is the very fountain of timeless youth and passion. He is the source of all pleasure in the universe! Happiness comes from no other source. It is never a sacrifice to hang out in His presence, though many are bored during times of prayer and worship. Most believers put prayer in the "sacrifices-I-make-for-God" category, but that only happens when you live with a total misconception of who God is. When we look into His heart, He reveals to us what He looks like emotionally and what we look like to Him. The result turns our brains and hearts inside out. You can't get over it! It's like falling in love for the first time. He absolutely burns with love for you!

"The present crisis in the Body of Christ, in which many people never experience the love of God, stems from a false view of God. Instead of a God who is full of tenderness, gladness, and desire, believers imagine a God who is filled with animosity toward them. This affects every single aspect of how they approach Him.

"Think of it in practical terms. When you are forced to meet with someone who openly dislikes you, considers you a hypocrite, or is full of blame toward you, your spirit is guarded and closed. You can't relax. You count the minutes and look forward to leaving that person's presence. This is how many of God's people live and worship. They lift hands and voices with guarded spirits and closed hearts. This is an amazing and sad statement, but most believers I know are trying to live a devoted life of holiness while seeing God as harsh and menacing. They are unable to worship Him with open spirits because inside they feel rejected by Him as a hopeless hypocrite. They may use different words to describe this reality, but the pain is the same. Perhaps you have felt it...You come before God as you would come before someone who despises you.”

Bickle ascribes both cause and effect to conditions of compromise and backsliding in the Church. The less we know and experience God’s Love, the more we withdraw or pursue Him half-heartedly; the more we withdraw, the more entangled we become in worldly compromise and other loves which result in feelings of guilt, secret shame, and further withdrawal from the One who holds all the keys to our joy and freedom.

"What is God going to do to correct the backsliding? Beat everyone up? ...No, Jeremiah prophesied that in the End Times, God would cause His people to return wholeheartedly by revealing our relationship to Him as a cherished bride...

"Return, O backsliding children," says the Lord, "for I am married unto you... I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding." [Jeremiah 3:14-15]

"This is the Lord's highest way of empowering people to walk in wholehearted holiness with Jesus. He doesn't whale on us with a switch from the willow tree, but introduces us to our marriage relationship with the Godhead. He invites us to fill our spirits with the understanding of Him as our Husband, the One who is merciful, glad-hearted, affectionate and beautiful. He beckons us to go on a journey that we might experience the power of this reality in our own being. And then, flowing out of our personal encounter with Him, we will stop our backsliding, proclaim what He is like to others, and lead them into their own experience of this fascinating, intimacy-loving Bridegroom God." I’ll be writing more about this approach to “wholehearted holiness” in the future; for now, i'd like to conclude with one more quote that underscores how important it is that we learn how to answer the title question of this post more accurately:

"In light of the mounting pressures at the end of the age, we can't afford not to drink of the pleasures of His heart...We desperately need hearts anchored and sustained by an outrageous love that comes from another world." -- Mike Bickle, After God's Own Heart


Something you may want to ask God this week: “How do You feel about me?”

How's Your Oxygen Level?

A few weeks ago, i was discussing with a friend what it takes to be a good Christian witness in the workplace - the importance of genuine love, the golden rule, solid work ethics, etc. After that conversation, i kept picturing one of those oxygen masks that flight attendants tell you, during their safety presentation, will drop down from overhead as needed - i felt the "message" in that image was, "make sure you put your own mask on first before trying to help others..."

A series of questions seemed to naturally follow: "are you breathing the pure spiritual air of heaven?" The Greek word for "spirit" (pneuma) means "breath." Are you reading & meditating on the Word, are you feeding on spiritual truth? Are you connected to the Source? (relationship with God) Is the oxygen flowing? (any hindrances in that relationship) The atmosphere of the world can make us weak, unless we are "breathing" spiritual oxygen from a heavenly source. Then we are better able to help others to connect with God and breathe freely also.

When our identity in Christ is strong and healthy, we are free to be who we are in any "atmosphere." Our example, Jesus, ministered as freely in the marketplace as in the synagogue. How did He stay connected with the Father, unhindered and unweakened by the world around Him? First, He was secure in who He was: before He ever did a single act of public ministry, the Father spoke over Him, "This is My Beloved Son, in Whom I am well-pleased." [Mt 3:17; Mk 1:11] Knowing we are loved by God anchors us securely in the Love we need, and keeps us from being unduly swayed by either praise or criticism from others. We are able to love other people to the degree that we have experienced Father's Love for ourselves; and, as we grow in our awareness of each person's unique value in His sight (including our own), we are less inclined to strive or compete for affection and approval.

Jesus stayed connected with the Father by making prayer His priority, and walking in the light of guidance and instructions He received through that relationship. "In the morning, long before sunrise, Jesus went to a place where he could be alone to pray." [Mark 1:35] Based on communication and intimacy with the Father, Jesus only did what He saw the Father doing, and spoke what the Father gave Him to say [John 8:28, 14:10]. He didn't claim to have any goodness apart from the Father, but gave Him all the glory, saying, "only God is good" [Mk 10:18, Lk 18:19]. His knowledge of God's Word from a young age caused others to marvel at His wisdom & authority [Mt 7:28-29, Mk 1:22, Lk 2:47], and enabled Him to overcome the temptations of the enemy [Mt 4:1-11, Lk 4:1-13].

Pursuing an intimate love relationship with God is a lot more effective than trying to "fight sin" or follow a list of rules for good behavior. Most Christians know what it is to struggle with some degree of "worldliness" - should i have watched that movie/TV show, laughed at that joke, expressed frustration in that situation...? Deeper degrees of entanglement or compromise can have serious consequences: Samson was defeated by the Philistines through his relationship with Delilah [Judges 16]; and David lost everything at Ziklag, after he camped too close to the enemy's border - although he was able to "recover all" when he inquired of the Lord and obeyed fully [1 Samuel 30]. Who or what are we in love with? As a friend recently posted on Facebook, "it's not how close we can walk to the world without falling in, it's how close do you want to be with Jesus?"

St. Paul wrote, "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." [Galatians 5:16 NKJV] "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." [Romans 8:1-2 NKJV] As we focus on God and breathe in the atmosphere of His Spirit, the temptations of the world and the flesh grow weak and pale by comparison. Consider these verses about nourishing our spirits with His Love & beauty: "How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings. You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your rivers of delight. For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see." [Psalm 36:7-9 NLT] "Now, like infants at the breast, drink deep of God's pure kindness. Then you'll grow up mature and whole in God." [I Peter 2:2 The Message] What can we expect as we walk close to Him? "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." [Psalm 16:11 NKJV]

So... how's your oxygen level?

"as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby" I Peter 2:2 NKJV

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Romans 12:2 NKJV

Happy Father's Day!

First of all, it's a great day to celebrate the gospel of Jesus Christ, who lived on earth to "show us the Father" [John 14] and paid the penalty for all of our sins on The Cross, so that all who trust their lives to Him may become sons & daughters of a perfectly loving Father. I am reminded on this day that my heavenly Father opens His arms to all people everywhere, offering through His Son a restored relationship of perfect & eternal Love. In a world full of competition, striving, abandonment, rejection, despair, etc., all of us have the opportunity to come into a place of acceptance, affirmation, security, wisdom, guidance, and all that we need in this life and forever. Thank you, Father, for Your redeeming Love!

I also thank God for my (earthly) Dad, whose generosity and faithfulness to provide for his family have taught me to trust God's provision and be generous to others. His perseverance to show up at the same place of employment for 53 years was a great example of daily faithfulness through all the ups and downs of life and career - i can hardly believe i'm in my 22nd year with my employer, much less imagine another 31 years! And it has always been relatively easy for me to trust God's provision and give freely to others, as i've seen my Dad provide well for 6 children and 10 grandchildren - not spoiling, but helping & rewarding wisely, sometimes in surprisingly inspired ways: when my 3 daughters were in diapers and our income was barely sufficient for basic needs, I used to pray, "Lord, i need laundry soap, diapers..." (with twins born 14 months after my first child, diapers were a major expense for a while!) Without my having said a word to him, Dad showed up on my front porch more than once with the requested items, almost as if God had handed him a list! If Pastor Jack Hayford is right that "prosperity is not measured by what you have, but by what you have given away," then my Dad is a very wealthy man indeed.

I am also thankful for all the pastors, teachers, coaches, brothers, uncles, good neighbors and other men who father people of all ages in this most fatherless generation of all time. Eugene Petersen paraphrases St. Paul: "There are a lot of people around who can't wait to tell you what you've done wrong, but there aren't many fathers willing to take the time and effort to help you grow up. It was as Jesus helped me proclaim God's Message to you that I became your father. I'm not, you know, asking you to do anything that I'm not already doing myself." [I Corinthians 4:15-16 The Message] Thank God for men who give their hearts to Him and express the Father's heart for others through their example, guidance, patient instruction, kindness, stability, wisdom, and consistent love.

Yet all of us - including fathers, at any age - need the Father, our only truly unshakable Source of guidance and Love. We need to know the freedom of living as children of God, not alone in this life, who have favor and access to the One knows everything and provides for all we need. In promising to send the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." [John 14:18] He promised to send us a Teacher, Counselor, Comforter, Standby, who would never leave us alone to fend for ourselves, who would be with us and even live in us, to show us daily all that belongs to us in God and how to live it out on this earth.

As i was praying recently for two male friends whose natural and spiritual fathers "graduated" to heaven this past month - kind, caring men whose fathers were teachers, and who are themselves fathers and teachers - i was touched by these words from the cover of John Eldredge's book, The Way of the Wild Heart: "We live in a time where most men (and boys) are essentially fatherless. Whatever their circumstance, they have no man actually taking them through the many adventures, trials, battles and experiences they need to shape a masculine heart within them. They find themselves on their own to figure life out, and that is a lonely place to be. Their fears, anger, boredom, and their many addictions all come out of this fatherless place within them, a fundamental uncertainty in the core of their being. But there is a way."

Eldredge writes for men of all ages and situations: "We aren't meant to figure life out on our own. God wants to father us. The truth is, He has been fathering us for a long time - we just haven't had the eyes to see it. He wants to father us much more intimately, but we have to be in a posture to receive it. What that involves is a new way of seeing, a fundamental reorientation of how we look at life, and our situation in it. First, we allow that we are unfinished men, partial men, mostly boy inside... in many, many ways. Second, we turn from our independence and all the ways we either charge at life or shrink from it; this may be one of the most basic and most crucial ways that a man repents. I say 'repent' because our approach to life is based on the conviction that God, for the most part, doesn't show up much. I understand where the conviction came from, battle it constantly myself, but still - it's faithless, is it not? We must be willing to take an enormous risk, and open our hearts to the possibility that God is initiating us as men - maybe even in the very things in which we thought He'd abandoned us. We open ourselves up to being fathered.

"I'll admit, it doesn't come easily. A sort of fundamental mistrust is something we learn through the course of our days, built on that core mistrust in God we inherited from Adam. Making the switch will feel awkward. As Gerald May says, the more we've become accustomed to seeking life apart from God, the more 'abnormal and stressful' it seems 'to look for God directly.' Especially as a Father, fathering us. But it is worth it. It is worth it. Worth allowing ourselves to be fathered, accepting that this new way of living will take some getting used to, and taking the posture that we'll do whatever it takes to get used to it."

Eldredge encourages his male readers to "reframe the way we look at our lives as men. And the way we look at our relationships with God. I also want to help you reframe the way you relate to other men, and especially you fathers who are wondering how to raise boys. The reframing begins when we see that a man's life is a process of initiation into true masculinity. It is a series of stages we soak in and progress through. And as for God, I believe that what He is primarily up to at any point in a boy's or a man's life is initiating him. So much of what we misinterpret as hassles or trials or screw-ups on our part are in fact God fathering us, taking us through something in order to strengthen us, or heal us, or dismantle some unholy thing in us. In other words, initiate us - a distinctly masculine venture."

This Father's Day - as we honor our earthly fathers, teachers, mentors & friends - i pray that all of us would allow our heavenly Father to draw close and bring us into greater intimacy with Himself. May our appreciation of fatherhood, and our awareness of spiritual sonship, grow and deepen in the days ahead.

"For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height - to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." [Ephesians 3:14-21 NKJV]

"Beautiful Game"

A few weeks ago, after we'd been talking about fundraising for orphans in Africa, a friend pointed out the cover of the May 24 issue of Sports Illustrated, which featured a group of boys playing soccer in the streets of Angola. Inside were photos of children playing soccer in various other nations, and a series of articles previewing the 2010 World Cup soccer tournament, which starts today. I smiled at the happy faces of schoolgirls running on a field in Bhutan, and enjoyed reading about Didier Drogba from Ivory Coast, whose immense popularity has afforded him some positive political influence in Africa as well. My favorite image was a photo of three little boys squatting curbside in the sprawling slums outside Nairobi, Kenya; one looked friendly, one looked fierce, the third appeared to be sizing up the photographer... but what really grabbed my heart was their homemade soccer ball: just a bunch of colored rags tied up with string.

It reminded me of hearing a report by our church's first mission team to Peru: one of the men on the team mentioned seeing two boys kicking an empty plastic coke bottle around a hillside, because they were so poor they didn't own a soccer ball. Something in my comfortable North American heart wasn't so comfortable with that idea, and i made sure to send a couple of soccer balls and a pump back to that village the next time we sent a team down to Peru.

I remembered another story i heard on my second mission trip to Guatemala in 2007: Tom, a tax attorney whose clients' net worth starts at a million dollars, told us he spent a few hours kicking a soccer ball around with some schoolboys in the Guatemalan village of Cruz Blanca, while the medical team was packing up to leave one afternoon in 2006. When our team arrived in Cruz Blanca to set up the clinic in 2007, one of those boys came running toward our bus, yelling as loud as he could, "Tomas! Tomas!" Tom had us all in tears as he pointed out that a relatively short amount of time spent playing a simple game made such a difference to that boy that he remembered Tom's name a whole year later.

There is a chapter in Austin Gutwein's book Take Your Best Shot called "One Pink Soccer Ball," in which Austin tells how he almost didn't pack the old soccer ball - back home in the U.S., he might have thrown it away - but after playing for a while with a group of boys in Zambia, he decided to give the ball to one of them at the end of the day. The next day, George's mother walked 12 miles in the African heat to give Austin a handwritten Thank You note from her son for that soccer ball. Austin writes, "George truly taught me what I thought I already knew...when we trust God to do something bigger than ourselves, it really does matter... You don't have to change the world; you change it for one person. Somewhere in the process, it changes you too."

This week's (June 14) issue of Time magazine features another set of soccer articles, calling the World Cup "a celebration of soccer as the great equalizer." The caption over a photo of children playing in the streets of Cameroon explains "why soccer is so well loved around the world: anyone can play - anywhere, anytime." It's a game that crosses cultural barriers, is not restricted to any one body type or social status, and requires almost no equipment except a "ball" (which, apparently, can be made out of just about anything). As i read my own "soccer stories," it seems like the common theme is really how little effort it takes to do something that makes a difference in the world. Anyone can do it... and what seems like a little thing to us may mean a lot to someone else.

"in this life we cannot do great things. we can only do small things with great love." -- mother teresa

Loving My Neighbor (Part 1)

"And who is my neighbor?" (Opening Our Eyes)

One of my favorite Bible stories is the Good Samaritan [Luke 10:25-37], which teaches (in the words of missionary Heidi Baker) "stopping for the one, loving the one in front of you." Let’s not be so religious or caught up in our own ideas of "goodness" that we don’t see the needs of others around us and offer real help to hurting people. And hurting people may be wearing nice clothes, or have plenty of money – we need to "see" the person in front of us who needs a smile, a hug, or an encouraging word.

However, most North Americans have a very limited understanding of how the rest of the world really lives. The majority of the world’s population does not automatically expect water (certainly not hot or potable water) to be available from an indoor tap, or that electricity will flow when a switch is turned on. Approximately 134 million children worldwide have no access to school of any kind. The rural poor in Mozambique have never seen money. In the "city" of Pemba, the one "grocery store" carries only one type of coffee, rice, beans, etc. Think of the variety of food & entertainment we have available to us in the U.S. practically 24/7! My point is not that we shouldn’t enjoy what we have – the more I travel to poor nations, the more I appreciate a hot shower, a cappuccino, and toilets that flush! My hope is that we would see the world in more balanced perspective, how easy it is to make a real difference in the lives of others, and experience the increased blessings of generosity and gratitude in our own lives as well.

My first overseas mission trip was to Guatemala in Oct 2004. Our church has had a relationship with Mi Refugio, a mission school reaching out to poor children who live near the Guatemala City dump for over 20 years, also providing medical and dental clinics, clothing distribution, and other support for residents of poor Mayan villages surrounding the church property. The first time I went, I had a flare-up of rheumatoid arthritis (diagnosed in 2001) and could barely walk – I was with a small team doing construction on the school buildings, and they let me paint from a chair. I painted a whole building from the ground up to about 5 feet, while another team member did the ladder work on the tops of the walls. On my 2nd trip in 2007, I was assigned as a "translator" for the medical team – I thought it must be a mistake, since my Spanish language skills were pretty minimal at the time, but we only had one native Spanish-speaker for a team of 5 nurses who diagnosed and treated about 1000 poverty-stricken patients that week at makeshift clinics in mountain villages and one day near the city dump. It seemed miraculous to me how my little bit of skill, offered in good faith, was multiplied during that week. On my 3rd trip in 2009, it was almost overwhelming to see hundreds of villagers lined up when we arrived at the schools where we set up clinics in hot, dusty classrooms. A videographer who was documenting the mission work told us he was moved to tears by the way the team loved all those people in such primitive surroundings all day long, treating each patient as precious, unique and deserving of attentive kindness.

In Aug-Sept 2008, I traveled to Mozambique for 12 days with a team assembled by Global Celebrations, a Christian organization that brings support, encouragement and practical help to mission bases in some of the poorest places on earth. The Africa trip was daunting because it was the farthest I’d ever traveled – literally "the other side of the world," and the least like my own culture ; since that trip, I’ve pretty much felt I could go "anywhere." Iris Ministries has been enormously successful in Mozambique, where they have raised up some of the best schools in the nation and planted thousands of village churches. Like many African nations, Mozambique has been ravaged by war, poverty & AIDS, so each pastor cares for 8 to 10 orphans in his own home (it’s taught as "normal" for pastors in Iris Ministries’ Bible schools). Two things I remember most (other than the beautiful faces of the children) are the shortage of water, and an unusual experience in a "hostile" village. On the Pemba base, the water was shut off most of the time due to unpredictable government rationing – whenever it came on, we would fill buckets as fast as we could for "showers" and manually flushing 4 toilets we shared among 40 people in the visitors’ compound. We spent one night in tents under the stars in the "bush bush" where villagers walked 20 minutes each way for water of questionable quality – our team donated money so that Iris could drill a well in that village the month after we left. (Iris’ drilling equipment, rare in northern Mozambique, has opened a lot of doors for them to provide other help to the poor: food, schools, churches, orphan care, etc.) The other experience I will probably never forget was escaping safely after a village outreach on church property met with hostility from 100 angry local men with sticks and rocks in their hands. Our team was on an open flatbed truck, protected mainly by prayers. After filing a report so local police could restore order, Heidi prayed with her staff who’d been struck with sticks to forgive their attackers (their message is Love, so they refuse to harbor bitterness). In the U.S., we think "persecution" is having someone talk behind our backs or treat us rudely. Mozambique is beautiful and heart-rending, and I hope to return in 2012.

I traveled with another Global Celebrations team in June 2009, this time to gypsy neighborhoods in Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey. As we criss-crossed Bulgaria by bus to visit some of the poorest slums I’ve ever seen, the thing that touched me most was the power of JOY to lift spirits and encourage people of all ages and cultures - including ourselves! Gypsies are generally outcasts who have very little in terms of material possessions or what we think of as stability, yet their hearts were as open as little children to the love and joy we shared along with food, clothing, toothbrushes, music, dancing and prayers. As hot and dirty and tired as we were at times, what i remember most about that trip is how much fun it was.

In January 2009 & 2010 (& 2011), I’ve been privileged to spend a week at House of Hope Nicaragua, a Christian vocational rehabilitation center for women and children escaping prostitution. Nicaragua is the poorest Latin American country, 2nd only to Haiti in our hemisphere. I was told by the director of House of Hope that there are 11 child brothels "that we know of" in the Managua area. The poor are especially vulnerable to sex traders, and several of the women I’ve met were sold into prostitution by their own families when they were as young as 6 years old. Of approximately 40 full-time residents at House of Hope (which also hosts a day program on Tuesdays for over 300 women who come to make greeting cards and jewelry), the dominant age group are young teen girls 10 to 16 years of age. House of Hope provides uniforms, fees & supplies so these girls and children of women in the program (kids who might otherwise end up at brothels) can attend school. I teach Bible studies focused on emotional healing and faith for recovery/a new way of life to these women, and they open their hearts to me in a way that is both humbling and deeply rewarding. Last year, a friend and I were able to bring Christmas gifts for each of the residents, as well as extra suitcases with clothing and school supplies. I find I am as happy in a small, hot, buggy room at House of Hope as at any 5-star hotel I’ve ever enjoyed.

I hope that my story helps even one person to believe that anyone can make a difference, and you can do more than you think you can. Start by giving where you are. Go through your closets and find the clothes you don’t wear, household items you never use, and give them to a local charity that benefits the homeless in your community. Start by showing love to the person who is right in front of you. As you open your eyes to the needs around you, "in front of you" may be bigger than you think. And it’s a wonderful way to "see the world" - a friend recently joked, "Why can’t you just go to Disney World like the rest of us?" I told her I’ve been: "Fun place," I laughed. "Does it surprise you that my favorite part is at Epcot, where they have all the different countries around the lake?" :)

http://www.mirefugio.org/ for Mi Refugio in Guatemala
http://www.irismin.org/ Iris Ministries work in Mozambique, Africa
http://www.riverlution.net/ Global Celebrations (Africa & gypsy trip "scrapbooks")
http://www.houseofhopenicaragua.com/ (help for ex-prostitutes & their children in Nicaragua)

May our eyes be open to see as God sees, and to love ourselves & others with His Love.