35 days until 35

I'm almost 35. My sweet friend Paige had a great idea to celebrate her 35th birthday (which is just 19 days before mine) and I'm going to follow suit and copy her!

She did a campaign to raise $3,500 in 35 days to buy beds and mattresses for the kids she works with in India. She's halfway to her goal and no doubt, all the kids will be off the floor by her big day! Yay!

So, I am going to do a campaign to raise $3,500 in 35 days for school supplies and
uniforms for $50 per child (includes 2 uniforms, 2 shoes, 3 socks, school bag, pens and pencils). If I reach my goal of $3,500, 70 children will receive the school supplies they need to succeed!

So, if you know me (or don't) and want to celebrate my birthday with a gift, please consider making a donation to Covenant Children's Homes (a ministry of India Christian Ministries)! That will be the best gift I can imagine...

To give a gift of school supplies, click the PayPal link below:
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=YTQTXCQNL7BX6

To learn more about the kids at Covenant Children's Home, visit:
http://www.cch-india.com/
and
http://www.facebook.com/covenantchildrenshomesindia

Merry Christmas!

The Heart of the Matter

Yesterday, I was sitting by my Christmas tree, drinking my pumpkin spice coffee and looking at Pinterest on my phone. Lots of happy holiday pins, yummy recipes. And then this:

My heart drops. Tears sting my eyes. All I can think is "I need to hold this baby." God loves this beautiful baby. He designed this precious one in its mother's womb. I clicked on the link to see what I could do. It lead nowhere. "What can I do, Jesus?" I've always had a hard time with the doing. Feeling - check. Thinking - on it. Doing... not my strong suit. But I am compelled. I can't sit in my comfortable home worrying about bills and baby weight and Christmas lists and not do something. I don't want to live that way anymore.

I'm clinging desperately to the revelation that God gave Heidi Baker - that "there is always enough" of Him. Of his love. But when I see this picture and all that it represents, the darkness seems so big. I know I have to get lost in the heart of God to find the answer to my problem of inactivity. I can get really extreme when I see something so heartbreaking. I'm never going out to eat again. I will not buy anything that I don't need. And, I probably could pull this off, if I was committed enough. But, to miss God's goodness in things is to miss the point. He's good! He had to change Heidi's heart about cheese and warm baths. Those things aren't bad. Enjoying those things aren't bad. Even if her kids in Mozambique don't get to! He's a good Father who loves to give LAVISHLY all things to enjoy. Thankfullness is key to celebrating and receiving his goodness and it doesn't nullify the pain and suffering. I am learning this. Jesus, help me to learn my part in being your love manifest to those who are most in need.

James 1:27

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

James 2: 15-16

Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and well fed, " but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?