I don't want to Tolerate!

"...But that's the point. We see a deadly sin on every street corner, in every home and we tolerate it. We tolerate it because it's common; it's trivial. We tolerate it morning, noon and night. Well not any more, I am setting the example."

Though this excerpt comes from the twisted serial killer movie, Seven, it stuck with me. So much so, that the next day I had to fast forward through the movie until I found it. 

The word tolerate in itself shouldn't be something we do. Especially if it has to do with our relationships. Now I know I am not innocent of this. If I said I was, I would for sure be the kettle calling the pot black. Why do we tolerate sin? Why do we sit by and let others suffer. I have been guilty many times of rolling my eyes and thanking the Lord that's not me. Why? I just tolerated sin. And when we tolerate, we show sin is OK. It's NOT! We weren't created to watch others spiritually and emotionally die. 

Last summer in New Orleans I was driving by myself back to our house. As I sat at a light, my eye caught a man walking down the street. Right then, he fell face first onto the pavement. A woman walking nearby picked up her dog and ran from him. He was in need of help. I had to make a quick choice in my head... pull over and help this stranger, or keep driving. I hesitated and pulled over a little ways down the street. With 9-1-1 yelling at me to calm down, I sprinted to the man, who at this point was laying in a pool of blood choking on it. He couldn't breathe. Shaking from all the Adrenalin, I and another man rolled the victim onto his side where he was able to gasp for a much needed breath. He obviously was seizing. I held onto him tightly as the other man held his head. I prayed and prayed that he would be OK. 

What if I hadn't stopped? What if no one stopped? Would he have died?That is a horrible risk to take. It's funny how a man bleeding to death on a busy sidewalk is more shocking than a best friend who throws their life away because of a bad decision we allowed them to make. Let's not tolerate. Please stand with me and stop letting our friends spiritually and emotionally die. It's all around us. Let's set the example and be little Christ's! After all isn't it far much better to save a life than save a friendship? 

Im Springing up Joy!

Living in North Carolina I get to see the seasons change very distinctly. The leaves changing color in the fall which lead to their shedding in the winter which leads to the very beautiful spring time of new colors and life! Spring has its ups and downs, though. I'll start with the downs, since I am currently suffering from this seasons actions. My front porch has a putrid yellow icing to it that makes my nose want to jump into my sinus cavity. The dogwood, a very captivating tree, triggers the most annoying post-nasal drip. And what I look forward to every spring... (insert sarcastic tone) is the two week funk where my sinus', nose, throat, and lungs get attacked by a monstrous thick, green infection. It's bliss. haha.

But the up side to spring is much bigger and overrides the negative aspects. I love to see the trees grow new, vibrant green leaves, the flowers arise from what I assumed was the end of their lives into colorful blossoms, and the best thing... the birds. Yes, the birds. I feel like a child as I peer into different nests each day to see the progress of the babies. We have this one nest that is right eye level with me in a small bush outside our house. I watched these little ones emerge from eggs and into small birds ready for flight. I know they are about to leave the nest and I was a bit depressed by the thought of not being able to see them every day. But right in the next bush is a new nest with new eggs! Listen, I may sound like a child here, but I never really experienced this growing up. New life is such a miracle! Well, I will leave you with some pictures of the birds as go to blow my nose and get ready for some spring cleaning! Love you all!

 

The new nest!

  

The two babies, one head and one butt.

 

He looks very angry this morning.

Our Work in Action!

While I was in India earlier this year, the team and I created a children's room at an HIV/AIDS clinic. We felt God give us specific details on how the room should look. So with a small budget, some donated toys and blankets from home and brilliant imaginations... we created a sanctuary for children affected by this disease. You may have already seen the pictures. If not, there is a link to the before, during and after pictures on the right side bar entitled, "The Nireekshana Project".

Today, I received a great email! One that made me smile. It was an email containing pictures of the children's room in action! The room is right now being used! Here are the pictures for you to enjoy too! Because of your financial support and mighty prayers you too were able to be apart of this project! Thank you:)

 

 

He is Risen!

This weekend was fabulous! We had an Easter celebration with our Front Porch kids. We saw four of them accept Christ as their savior! Welcome Andre, Patrick, Dante and Jaquera!!! Easter was well spent with friends and lots of delicious food. Church blew my mind and I feel rejuvinated. The pastor knows how to tell a salvation message and convict "christians" of how they are living. He had me trembling in the fear of the Lord. What a beautiful weekend! I hope you all had a great one too. Check out the pics...

Children Preforming song and dance for us.

Chris praying with Matthew

Lunch!

Praying with the kids

Minhee leading children in song and dance

Enjoying a beautiful day, friends and food!

My first Easter Ham!!

Me and Kristen on Easter

Rockin my world...

Elevation Church, where I am currently attending church, has been rocking my world with the sermons. I felt Holy Spirit during the worship two weeks ago during this song. It has rocked my world....

When the waters rise

My hope is sure

When my world falls apart

I stand secure

When my way is dark

Your light breaks through

When i don’t feel you near

Your word is true

Jesus your love surrounds me

You’re holding my life

Holding my life

Chorus: 

The Lord is my rock

And I won’t be afraid

I wont be afraid

You’re with me

Verse 2:

When the waters rise

My hope is sure

When my world falls apart

I stand secure

Bridge: 

Oh God you carry us

You rise above

You lift us up

Help!

This is a special blog for a special person... Lynn Sea! How can I get a hold of you??

Almost to the End

Endings. There's something so bitter sweet about them. I like endings such as the end of a fast, the end to a really boring meeting where I wanted to gouge out my eyes, or the end of a car ride where I was prepping myself for instant death. Then there are the ends I do not particularly like, such as the end of an amazing television series, the end of a seriously delicious bowl of chocolate moose tracks, and the one I am facing now.. the end to my time at YWAM-Charlotte. The thing is, that as my book is coming to an end here, life still goes on! *screeching tires *gasp!

It's a time where I can choose to get this mindset that I am not welcome and/or accepted. Or I can embrace the changes going on here. I've been apart of this mission for 5 years. My finger print is all over this base. As I am finishing this last six months well, I see a lot of new faces, new visions, new relationships, and new beginnings all over. It's tempting to not want to be apart of it. Moving on is hard. It takes a toll on your emotions and challenges you to really hold tight to the voice of God. So here's to the last six months (for now) with a family I love so much.