(An old blog) Africa Trip -2008

This blog means a lot to me... probably one of the most meaningful moments in my life...

I hope it will challenge us all to live different.

Our last day of ministry ended with time at Manpo Hospital.  I'm not gonna lie, I'm not a big fan of hospitals.  But faced with the chance of sharing God's purpose and hope to a hurting generation, I knew I had to be a part of this.  We walked into the children's ward not sure what we would see.  On the walls were posted Disney characters, the once white plastic now turned yellow.  Each wall was lined with old metal cribs, the white paint, now chipping away.  It seemed like I was stepping into a hospital in the 1940's. 

Children's arms were wrapped in makeshift slings. Some baby's crying, while mothers sat close to them, while some laid thee on their own -no one to hold them, no one to comfort them.  One baby, laid there in solitude, not able to open her mouth, but whimpering from the pain of the soars that covered her body.  I looked into her deep brown eyes, wondering if anyone would tell her that she mattered, she had a purpose?  Later holding her in my arms, I hummed a simple song to her, a song that by fifth grade made me roll my eyes, because it made me feel like a little kid.  Now, this day, I realized that within this song was a message that I wished her tiny ears could understand and remember.  Jesus Loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so...  Will someone be there to read her the Bible and tell her how great God's love is for her? Were the soars on her body from burns that she suffered from neglect, were they from AIDs ravaging her body, slowly tearing away at her skin?  As the questions filled my head, I wanted to weep for her.  Who would be there for her? How much time would she have to live her life on this earth? God why would such an innocent life be suffering so much?

I was not there to feel sorry for her though. We were here in this ward to deliver hope, purpose, God's love to her.  For the short time we were there, minutes, I  had to believe that God had a purpose for her.  Even at her young age, I prayed that she would know that purpose and find that great love that God has for her.  I prayed that she would continually feel God's love wrapping her close.

The Burgeon!

What in the world does burgeon mean?

It sounds like a medieval torture device...

I was at a conference on Saturday that meant so much to me and today, I was going back through my journal from that and letting God speak to my heart. Showing me his heart, his word to me today.

I found a verse from my notes that is my verse for the day: 2 Cor 5:17

Therefore if anyone is Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (NIV)

I looked it up in the message version, and it says the new is BURGEONing...I'm not gonna lie, I had to look it up... My computer was dead and I don't think I've seen a real dictionary in years, so I busted out my phone and googled it! It means to flourish, like a plant... in google terms: t0 grow or expand; To swell to the point of bursting; Of plants, to bloom, bud... don't take that to your school book report though (thanks wikipedia) =0)

Have you ever had things in your life feel like, nothing is changing? You push and try and try, but you just can't make it grow. Maybe you're in school and feel like you'll never get done and out into the real world, running after your purpose and plans. Maybe you feel like your job isn't going the direction you dreamed it would, or you're searching for that perfect job. Or even still, there's that sin, that attitude, that lust, that appathy that you just can't get over...

Wherever you are today, God's word says if you are IN CHRIST, the old is gone, the new has come!

Take another look at the word burgeon... it means to bud... like a flower, those buds can take a while to form and it might look like nothing is changing, but then one day it blooms, that smell fills the air and you can finally see that change... God is working a NEW thing in you and whether it takes ages or happens in a flash, He is doing a new thing.

So next time you fall. Even if no one else stands by you (and I hope they do help you up) God says, "Get up, I am doing a new thing. I love you and see the GREAT hope and plans I have for you.