"The world is too dangerous to live in- not because of the people who do evil, but because of the people who sit and let it happen".
~ Albert Einstein

This quote is displayed in the lobby of the Dallas Holocaust Museum, and serves as the major theme of the exhibit there. The museum tells 3 stories of bystanders during the Holocaust of World War 2. I recently visited the museum with a friend while she was in Dallas, and I've been thinking a lot about the atrocities that went on during that time, and what injustice is happening in our world today. I wonder what lives could have been saved if more people would have stood up to Hitler, the soldiers and the evil that went on.

So I have been thinking a lot about today too. There is so much going on in the world, so much injustice, so much oppression. I am quite comfortable in the US and sometimes its easy to forget that someone else around the world is suffering. I have been thinking about who I need to stand up for on a personal level, but also on a church level and national level. There are so many that come to mind:
~ The 27.9% of the world who have no access to someone to tell them about Jesus Christ
~ Those who are in war-torn Sudan, Afghanistan, and Iraq who have been forced to leave their homes as refugees
~ The unborn who can't fight for themselves
~ Believers in China, Indonesia and other places who can't worship publicly because they will be imprisoned or killed for their faith
~ Children who are forced into trafficking and slavery

How do we separate the idea of just jumping on a cause for it's own sake, and when do we need to stand up as God's children to say "enough is enough"? People lobby for their causes all the time, and there are many passionate people.

I'm not quite sure yet what my cause is, what injustice I need to take a stand against. But I don't want to be like many of the bystanders during World War 2 who did nothing to save the Jews and others. Sometimes it just takes one person to follow Christ's leading, even if it means risking everything.

The Adventure

I have been a bit absent from the blogging world for a few weeks. First I was wrapping up a busy end of the semester, and then I was home in the lovely state of Nebraska for 2 1/2 weeks. There is nothing like going home. But, here I am, back in Texas and will try to get back into putting out some thoughts from time to time.


While I was home I heard a pretty great sermon in a series on characteristics of a servant leader. The pastor was highlighting a different characteristic each week, and the week I was there the focus was on the Adventurous servant leader. I'm not sure if I would have used "adventurous" to describe a servant leader before, but after hearing the sermon I got excited about the idea. Here are a few points from the sermon and my thoughts.


The first point of the sermon was that the adventurous servant leader has a cause and they are committed to that cause. Acts 20:24 says, "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me- the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace". Paul's cause was the Kingdom of God and sharing the Good News. He was not only committed to this task but he took action and he inspired others along the way.


The life of the adventurous servant leader will involve risk and hardship. But that is where faith in God comes in. We do not walk blindly without a Guide. Corrie ten Boom described faith as the "Fantastic Adventure in Trusting Him".

I think walking by faith makes each day an adventure. Sure, not everything we do each day involves stepping outside of our comfort zone or taking huge risks. But for me, the adventure begins when I ask God to help me see the people around me with His eyes. I don't know when that means I will stop to talk to someone or just offer a helping hand, or when God might ask for another step of obedience. But I've said, "Yes, Lord" and I've taken off any strings or "Yes, buts..". I don't always feel very adventurous, actually most of the time I don't. But what better place to be, then to have to say, "Lord I'm trusting You in this because I'm in way over my head", and then watch how He provides the strength and resources you need. I hope that you will see what adventures God has for you in the small things every day as well as in the grand journeys He may take you on.

Wrapping Things Up

This week is bringing to a close my first year of graduate school and also the 15 week course of Perspectives that I took at my church. I have learned so much from all of these classes and hope that I can apply what I've learned as I continue to grow.

By the end of the semester, I wasn't as faithful in reading for Perspectives (or my classes) as I should have been. I was ready to be done. But I am so thankful I got the chance to take the class and learn from the different authors we read and speakers each week. Here are some key things I will take away from Perspectives:
1. God has a plan from beginning to end. The Bible isn't just a collection of a bunch of different stories but one big, amazing story of God's heart for the peoples of the world.
2. We can learn from the missionaries that have gone before us. Their stories can inspire us, show us what not to do and encourage us to keep going during times of trial.
3. We should focus on building bridges with those from other cultures rather than putting up walls. Instead of going in with an agenda we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and raise up leaders from among the people group.

I'm sure there are more things that stood out to me during the 15 weeks, and I hope to sit down and process more of what I learned this summer.

I also had my last night of Missiology class and the semester is coming to a close. I'm ready for summer but it's been a great semester.

A Time...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Last week, it seemed, was a time for death. Lena's brother passed away after 3 months of health complications. One of my college classmates was killed in a motorcycle accident. The president and a large number of top officials of Poland were in a plane crash and lost their lives. 2 kids died in a house fire in my home town. These are just the ones that touched my circle of influence in some way.

I don't always understand the reasons God does the things a certain way. I don't know why Lena's brother lived to be in his 70s, and my classmate Mark only lived to be 23. But I'm thankful that God is in control of all of our lives, and he has our days numbered. These deaths didn't happen outside of his plan for the overall scheme of things. He is going to provide healing and life to those who are mourning right now, because that's how God works. So I don't have to understand, but I do need to trust and praise Him no matter what.

Encountering Other Religions

Actually in both of my classes this week we are looking at the topic of encountering other religions and the Christian response. I think this is an area in which I used to be pretty rigid. No other religions are correct, and Jesus is the only way to salvation. I still believe that Jesus is the only way, but I feel like I have been able to approach other religions with a bit more of an open mind.

I appreciated this quote from my Missiology textbook: "A missionary can be uncompromising without being vindictive or mean-spirited. By focusing energy on positively living and teaching the truth rather than constantly attacking lies, missionaries will be more effective in encouraging people people to change allegiances and follow Christ".

I appreciated this quote because it offered a solid middle ground in between two extremes. As Christians we are to love the people around us and I think this means lots of listening and respect for what they believe. But we must also remain solidly grounded in the Bible and our beliefs. Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life and our job and privilege is to share that with others.

Ode to "The White Car"

My car has had several issues this week, and in order to process it all and relieve a little stress my sister encouraged me to write a memoir of sorts of my car. I don't have a special name for it, but for the longest time my family simply referred to it as "the white car" (as opposed to the red car which belonged to my sister and the gray car belonging to my brother).

I have been driving this car for 8 years, since right before my 16th birthday. I used it to take the driver's test to get my licence, which took place in the thriving metropolis of Pierce, Nebraska. It was a great little car because it had lots of zip and the heat and AC worked great (this seemed particularly impressive at the time I guess to compared to other vehicles we had).

I have put a lot of miles on that car since my 16th birthday. I was the first kid in the family to start driving so I got to shuttle siblings to church activities, baseball practice, and all kinds of things.

I remember packing up my things to head off the day after I graduated from high school to go to staff training at Timberlake Ranch Camp. I drove back and forth every weekend so I could spend that time with my family.

Then I packed up the car again for my freshmen year of college. My car saw a lot of miles through the 4 years driving back and forth to Northwestern. Since I was one of the few of my friends who had a car I got to be the chauffeur on many occasions which was great. Through the years we made trips to Lifelight, Sioux City for bridesmaids dress shopping, wing outings, and countless Walmart runs.

And now my car has served me faithfully (well, up until last fall) in Texas. Even with the various issues over the last 9 months or so I am still grateful for my little white car and being able to get to school and back and all the other places I need to go. I'm not sure how much more the white car can take, but I'm grateful for the past 8 years. Considering the car is almost as old as I am, it has lasted quite well.

The Task Remaining

In the Perspectives course I'm taking at my church we have moved from the history of missions to a look at how the Gospel is communicated in other places and cultures. Last week we looked at how God is moving forward with His passion to see all the people groups of the world have the ability to hear the Gospel in a culturally relevant manner. Our study included the following definition.

Strategic: people pursuing a God-given vision live with strategic intent. The vision virtually captures them. They no longer dream about what could happen. They become convinced that certain things must happen. They make choices as if each day held abiding value. They are not driven by obligation. They live in the dignity and liberty of knowing they give their utmost for God's purposes.

My organization talks a lot about strategy in how we live. It is important to be strategic in the planting of churches for their growth and reproduction. But how am I to be strategic sitting in an office here in Plano, Texas? How does God want me to live each day in dignity and liberty? I am pondering these questions and putting them out there for you to mull over as well.

Image-Bearers of God

Last night Lena and I watched the movie Hotel Rwanda, about the genocide that took place there in 1994. A million people were brutally killed, and the movie tells the story of a man who put his own life on the line over and over to save his family and over one thousand others he kept in his hotel. It was a very intense movie, because of the violence and the emotions the characters went through.

The thing that stuck out to me from whole movie was a statement that a journalist made to the main character, Paul. Paul was asking if he thought the raw footage the journalist had gotten of the killings would mobilize people in the West to help stop the violence. The journalist said that when people saw the footage they would say, "Wow, so that's so sad and horrible". But then they would go back to eating their dinners and go on with life like nothing was happening.

This struck me because I did the same thing just recently. Lena read me a story from a Voice of the Martyrs magazine about the persecution of Christians taking place in North Korea. I said, "Wow, that's horrible, we have it so good here". But, what did I do then? Nothing. If I really cared about my brothers and sisters in North Korea, couldn't I pray for strength and God's special grace for them? Couldn't I tell others about the persecution going on there, and try to find ways to make a difference?

So, why do we ignore the atrocities going on around the world, and go back to our dinners as though nothing is going on? I admit, sometimes it's hard to empathize or understand when violence or tragedy doesn't touch us directly. But all of us, whether we live in Rwanda, North Korea, Italy, Colombia, or Texas, are created in the image of God and we bear His stamp. I think this gives us the duty of taking care of our fellow image-bearers. I'll be honest, I haven't quite figured out what it all means. Do we in the US step in whenever another country is in conflict? What can we as western Christians do about persecution that takes place? Prayer is an awesome way to start and so important, but is there more that we need to do?

I don't have all the answers, or any really, but watching the movie really challenged me. I'm going to start by praying for the Christians in North Korea and then I am going to trust the Holy Spirit to prompt me when the next move is necessary. If you have any thoughts you would like to share, please let me know!

The Glory of the Impossible

In both my Missiology and Perspectives classes I have been learning about the eras of missions history and the pioneers who saw many come to Christ and who laid the foundation for the movements to Christ we are seeing today. Some of the people I had heard about or studied before, such as William Carey, Adoniram Judson, Hudson Taylor and David Livingstone. Others I am learning about for the first time and their stories have impacted me with the power of God's working in their lives.

One person in the latter category is Samuel Zwemer. He became a part of the Student Volunteer Movement in the late 1800s and served in the Middle East for over 20 years. He went on to be a writer and speaker, opening up the Muslim world and training people to go and serve among Muslim peoples. He challenged people to go to the fields that were unoccupied by other missionaries.

In 1911, he wrote an article in the Student Volunteer Movement publication The Unoccupied Mission Fields of Africa and Asia called "The Glory of the Impossible". Here are some quotes from Zwemer, and from others that he included, that really stuck out to me.

~ The challenge of the unoccupied fields of the world is one to great faith and, therefore, to great sacrifice. Our willingness to sacrifice for an enterprise is always in proportion to our faith in that enterprise. Faith has the genius of transforming the barely possible into actuality.

~Does it really matter how many die or how much money we spend in opening closed doors, and in occupying different fields, if we really believe that missions are warfare and that the King's glory is at stake?

~ When [Adoniram] Judson was lying loaded with chains in a Burmese dungeon, a fellow prisoner asked with a sneer about the prospect for the conversion of the heathen. Judson calmly answered, "The prospects are as bright as are the promises of God".

~ From Bishop Phillips Brooks- "Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be a miracle".

Samuel Zwemer was not an extraordinary Christian (that I know of) but he was a man who was passionate about seeing those who had never heard come to Christ. His dedication and love for God and for God's people is such a great example for all of us today.

Running the Race

With the closing ceremonies this evening the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics are over. It has been an amazing 16 days of medals won, records broken, and memories made.

I remember my first Olympics in the summer of 1996, when they were held in Atlanta. My mom was telling us about the Opening ceremonies and telling us we were going to watch them. I was used to watching golf and Husker football on Saturdays and to this 10-year old watching sports of any kind was the MOST boring way to spend my time. So I know at least I, and maybe my siblings too, put up a big fight with lots of complaining. But, my mom won out and after seeing the parade of athletes representing nations from around the world, I was hooked. I will never forget seeing the USA women's gymnastics team win gold that year.

There are many reasons why I love to watch the Olympics. Each athlete has worked so hard to earn the privilege of competing in the Games, and I love to see them give their very best, even if they don't win gold. I love the emotion of winning, the spirit of the underdog who shocks everyone, the team spirit and the fun of the sports represented in both the winter and the summer games. I appreciate when those who do not win show respect and great sportsmanship.

These winter Olympics have given us many great stories of grace under pressure, heroic triumph under adverse circumstances, and dedication and love for the sport. I am sad to see the Games over for another 2 years (until the summer games) but I'm thankful I got the chance to see so many of the great moments.

The Christian life has often been compared to a race. We are Olympians in a way, striving to win the race to which God has called us, striving to the finish line and aiming to do the very best we can. I have been inspired by the great athletes I saw over the last 2 weeks, and I hope that I can honor God with the talents He has given me and run the race not for earthly medals for the crown in heaven.