A Biblical Perspective on Sex Trafficking

It is important to recognize that while sex trafficking is not a new issue, the world at the time of Scripture did not deal with this issue as individuals do now. Therefore, there are no Scriptures that clearly condemn sex trafficking, but there are many Scriptures that condemn the kind of twisted sexual practices seen in trafficking situations and a clear command for God’s people to seek justice for the vulnerable. Deuteronomy 22:22-29, Isaiah 58:6-10, Micah 6:6-8, and James 1:27 are amongst many examples of texts that communicate these messages.

Deuteronomy 22:22-29 is perhaps the most direct yet initially difficult passage, which makes it a good starting place. Still, to grasp what this passage is communicating will take some time so hang in there with me. Here it goes: “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel. If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor's wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. But if in the open country a man meets a young woman who is betrothed, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. But you shall do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no offense punishable by death. For this case is like that of a man attacking and murdering his neighbor, because he met her in the open country, and though the betrothed young woman cried for help there was no one to rescue her. If a man meets a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her and lies with her, and they are found, then the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the young woman fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has violated her. He may not divorce her all his days" (Deuteronomy 22:22-29, ESV).

Deuteronomy 22:22-29 gives the Israelites instructions for what to do when a married woman has sex with another man, an engaged woman and a man have sex, an engaged woman is raped by a man, or a man rapes a woman who is not betrothed. It is important to understand that while the punishments and language surrounding these instructions may seem odd to modern day readers Moses is not writing to modern day readers. If Moses were writing to modern readers, he would give different instructions that better fit the context of today’s society.

The first two potential scenarios when read as they appear in the text may sound like the woman is being condemned unreasonably for her involvement but it seems as though the woman willingly had an affair with the man (Clements, R.E., 1998, 456). Block also said “the specified punishment suggests the act was consensual” (2012, 525). The final two scenarios seem to address when a woman is raped, especially since the situations between scenarios two and three are otherwise nearly the same (Clements, R.E., 1998, 456). The notable difference between scenarios two and three is the part about the woman crying out. In the town the residents would have lived very close to one another and in the second scenario “since no one heard the woman’s cry for help, it is assumed she did not cry out, which suggests the sexual act was consensual” (Block, D.I., 2012, 525). The full and severe punishment against the woman was only to be in effect when the woman did not cry out but easily could have and was acting willingly (Clements, R.E., 1998, 456). This is why the consequences between scenarios two and three are very different.

As Moses writes to the Israelites, he says the penalty for sleeping with a virgin is to marry her (Deuteronomy 22:28-29). This may seem like a horrible fate for the woman to live with as she is forced to live with the man who forced himself upon her but what Moses is focused on here is that the man must right the wrong he has done by paying the bride price and caring for her forever (Kalland, E.S., 1992, 139). While the exact specific procedures involved with such cases may not be relevant to today’s culture, the message remains the same. When someone is sexually abused by another, the abused have not sinned. They have been wronged. In the patriarchal society of Moses’ day this meant part of righting the wrong was by paying her father for her if she was not betrothed, since the sin would have seen as being done against the family. Today it would be understood that the sin was primarily done against her but her community is also affected. Victims deserve justice and to be cared for. This is hinted at here even though the focus seems to be on the family. On the other hand, the abusers should also both act justly and receive justice for their wrongdoing.

Another passage which speaks to the importance of God’s people being a community of justice is Isaiah 58:6-10. “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday" (ESV).

Grogan said the questions the Lord asks in verses 6 and 7 following those of verse 5 where the people ask questions related to religious acts “serve to point out the people’s separation of religious observance and social righteousness, a theme the 8th century prophets never tired of expounding” (1986, 323). Their fasting had become about showing up others rather than about abandoning themselves but “God calls for behavior that is self-forgetful and outward-looking” (Oswalt, J.N., 2003, 625).

Here they are taught that freeing and helping are acceptable forms of worship (Watts, J.D.W., 1987, 272). The Lord specifies three acts which are related to the needs of the time (Watts, J.D.W., 1987, 274). God’s people could not change the whole oppressive system themselves but the Lord does not let them off the hook because they were still called to do justice however they could. Watts said “God’s people were and are intended to promote freedom” because “all forms of bondage are distasteful to God, whether economic, political, or social” (1987, 275). Sex trafficking is clearly a form of bondage thus it must eliminated.

The next few verses communicate the idea that when this kind of active, other-oriented faith is demonstrated the light of God’s people shall “break forth like dawn” (Isaiah 58:8, ESV) and the Lord will answer their calls. Grogan said the final concluding verse of this passage suggests “social concern is not just to be seen in an isolated episode but it is to be a way of life for God’s people. We are to spend not just our money but ourselves” (1986, 323). This need to give up one’s self for the sake of another still exists today while individuals continue to live in oppressive, impoverished systems such as those which promote sex trafficking.

Micah, another prophet active in the same context and some of the same time period as Isaiah, had a similar message for God’s people and shared that clearly in Micah 6:6-8. “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" (ESV)

In the first part of this passage, the people ask the Lord what kind of sacrifices He desires but he responds “what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8, ESV). These three commands God gives are still in effect today. God’s command for justice implies movement because justice is something to be done (Simundson, 1996, 580). Simundson said “this is a dynamic concept that calls on God’s people to work for fairness and equality for all, particularly for the weak and the powerless who are exploited by others” (1996, 580). McComiskey said “‘to love mercy’ is to freely and willingly show kindness to others” (1985, 436). To walk humbly with God means to exhibit both obedience and humility (Deane, 1950, 88). Deane said “to walk with God is to make it our fixed purpose and determination to live to him, to devote ourselves to his service” (1950, 93). Relative to trafficking, these commands suggest believers fight for justice for them and show them mercy and kindness, especially since they are a group which is largely without a voice.

Finally, James 1:27 says “religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (ESV). Burdick said this verse teaches that “genuine religion is a life-changing force” (1981, 176). These actions James advocates for are not to be empty ones though, as the other prophets would also say. They “must spring from an inner spiritual reality that expresses itself in love to others and holiness before God” (Burdick, D.P., 1981, 176). True faith “shows its authenticity by giving gifts to the needy in the same way God gives them to all creatures” because giving gifts to others is a natural reaction when there is a deep understanding of the way God blesses and gives life to all (Johnson, L.T., 1998, 189).

In many ways, James continues the themes of the prophets regarding true religion, justice, and compassion (Nystrom, D.P., 1997, 97). One significant thing James does is that he identifies two particular groups that demanded the immediate attention of the Christian community: widows and orphans. This is because widows and orphans were considered “emblematic of all groups open to exploitation” (Nystrom, D.P., 1997, 97). While widows and orphans are still vulnerable groups, trafficked women could easily be added to the list of the most vulnerable individuals across the globe today. Another element which is relevant to the conversation of sex trafficking is James’ point about not being polluted by the world. Even “Christians” engage in trafficking to some degree or in some form sometimes but this verse and others clearly speak against such evil worldly engagement.

These are just four of many verses that could be chosen that relate to this topic. What these passages teach believers is that God’s people are called to do justice, care for the most vulnerable and oppressed, and pay attention to the broken realities of sexual sin.

Sources

Block, D.I. (2012). Deuteronomy. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Burdick, D.W. (1981). “James.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Volume 12. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Clements, R.E. (1998). “Deuteronomy.” The New Interpreter’s Bible: Volume 2. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Deane, W.J. (1950). “Micah.” The Pulpit Commentary: Volume 14. Grand Rapids, MI: W.M. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Grogan, G.W. (1986). “Isaiah.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Volume 6. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Johnson, L.T. (1998). “James.” The New Interpreter’s Bible: Volume 12. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Kalland, E.S. (1992). “Deuteronomy.” The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Volume 3. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
McComiskey, Thomas. (1985). The Expositor’s Commentary: Volume 7. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Nystrom, D.P. (1997). James. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Oswalt, J.N. (2003). Isaiah. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
Simundson, Daniel J. (1996). “Micah.” The New Interpreter’s Bible. Nahville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Watts, J.D.W. (1987). Isaiah 34-66. Word Biblical Commentary. Waco, TX: Word Books.

The Day of College Graduation

It seems so surreal that today I will be driving onto campus one last time as a student. How many hundreds of times have I done it without thinking? This place has been where I came to learn, work, serve, and goof off with friends but it has also been home. As I spent entire summers in New Orleans and Portland, I always took comfort in knowing I was coming back to the beauty of Lake Johanna (except for that one summer you couldn't go swimming because of the bacteria), the trails on the other side of the baseball fields and library that make it feel like you cannot possibly be a few miles away from 5+ Caribous, the Billy's teppanyaki and the ridiculous line that comes with its presence, and the friendly faces of Barbie, Festus, Dale, and Katie in the cafeteria. When life has been beautifully unpredictable and other kinds of unpredictable, the God-loving and Christ-following community of UNW has been one of the constants the past several years - whether that was to celebrate or cry with me.

It hasn't been without struggle. Classes have stretched me (like Chemistry class second semester of freshman year) and piles of papers to write have gotten to me at times (I had 7 to write during the first 3 weeks of December in addition to projects, exams, readings, and other assignments). Yet it gave me strength to work all day and all night again and again knowing that I was doing all this for the glory of God in order to use this information and these skills for Him. However, the thing that has been the most difficult is the pushback I received as a woman pursuing ministry. I am forever indebted to my best friend for the countless times her sweaters soaked up my tears. I am also forever grateful for my parents who wrote me letters, spoke encouraging words over me, and received my late night phone calls with grace. Professor Payne and James Earley have been two of my greatest supporters at UNW but there have been many others too along the way. My pastor Matt and my entire Story family have been an encouragement more times than I can count as they have helped me understand my gifts and discerned my calling. For all that struggle, I am grateful. Those times proved to be some of  the greatest times of growth in my relationship with the Lord and He comforted me beyond measure again and again. So even in the pains of university life as I faced paper after paper after paper and struggled with my place in ministry, I find myself thankful for it all.

The past 4 years and 3 months cannot possibly be described. The reality is I am a very different person than I was when I first stepped onto campus many years ago. I have grown and changed in so many ways through amazing classes, the words of wise and thoughtful professors, chapels that challenged and inspired me, and the experiences of working so much within Local Outreach. Streetlight alone has changed my thinking and my heart in so many ways as I have heard people's heartbreaking stories, shared in their victories, and mourned with them over the loss of one of our beloved sisters. Through UNW's classes, chapels, staff and faculty, and of course my fellow students I have come to know and love Christ more and more everyday.

Even though this is the moment I have been working for, over the last few weeks I have struggled more than I anticipated to leave this all behind me, especially with the large number of lasts that I have experienced. Now, of course, I am a great sentimentalist, so while not all these things are even notable to some, they have been important to me. In the last few weeks, I have had my last praise chapel, last class, last Streetlight, last teppanyaki at the Billy, last Nest ice cream run, last time watching movies in the Stud elevator, last time walking through the Stud to discover you no longer have to go to the store to buy bread, and last time doing a lot of other things.

This afternoon I will be putting on my cap and gown, which has spent most of its time in my possession under the bed because I didn't know what to do with it. These two simple items represent so much. They symbolize a lot of hard work and to me represent the countless ways I have been supported by my parents, other family members, friends, and UNW staff and faculty. They also symbolize a movement from student to alum and represent the end of a significant season of my life and the beginning of a new, unknown one.

In less than 6 hours I will be crossing the main stage in Totino and by the time I will have made it across someone will have put the case which will soon hold my diploma in my hands. The only other time I crossed that stage was two years ago to sing "Jingle Bells" with my Greek class. (That is a story for another time.) I do not know which is a more odd thing to think about.

The whole point of my rambling is this: I will always be grateful for UNW and the impact that it has had on me. Thank you to all who supported me on this journey. Here's to the Lord's faithfulness as we celebrate today and all which it represents. Here's to the promise of the Lord's continued presence in the months and years to come as new experiences and opportunities await.

Belief in the Bywater: A Story Of How God Is At Work In New Orleans, LA

Abuse. Neglect. Drugs. Sex. Jail. Teen pregnancy. Gangs. Violence. Death. All of these things are much too familiar for the kids of the Bywater community. Grace Baptist Church knows this and that is why they lead a Bible club for two full months every summer. At Bible club kids can come eat two good meals, do fun art projects, play outside with the other kids, do cool literacy skill building activities, worship the Lord with upbeat songs, and hear great Bible stories in a safe environment filled with people who care deeply for them. Grace’s Bible club is transforming the lives of those in the community one child at a time. That is why Kaleo has partnered with the church for years and sent many missions teams their way to help lead the Bible club.

I got the opportunity to lead a team of students there in early July and I was shocked at what I found. I met a sweet eight year old who had to find meals for himself and his siblings or risk not getting to eat. That same kid showed up to Bible club with a bash on his eye and he would not tell us how he got it. I met a kid whose mom had committed murder. That same 10 year old had a condom. I met a 13 year old girl who assumed that she wouldn’t get married but instead wind up in jail. I met a young boy who had seen his mother hit and killed by a truck, his cousin gunned down in front of him, and his father leave him. When we asked the kids what Jesus had done for them, he answered “Jesus has helped me not to get shot in the back of the head”. Several years ago that was exactly what happened to a kid in front of the church. Two kids fought at Bible club and the next day one of the kids’ uncle came & shot the other child in the back of the head. These kids have seen and gone through more in their dozen or so years of life than most of us ever have or will in our entire lives.

It is heartbreaking when you sit with this but the thing about the darkness is that the light shines brightest in it. The Lord is indeed the only true light and He is present in the Bywater community & He most definitely acts through the people of Grace Baptist Church. It is in this church that these kids can experience the love of God which flows through all of His followers. The thing about these kids is that for most of them no one is forcing them to come. A lot of them come of their accord. They could do anything with their summer but they come to Bible club week after week, summer after summer because they seek love and they find it at Bible club. And they don’t just find some love, they find a lot of it in us and they find the ultimate author of love at the same time. These kids learn about the God who created them and loves them, and it is so beautiful to see. One day I was sitting with an eight year old girl who had been causing some trouble before Bible Time. I was worried she would make a scene and ruin Bible Time for the other kids. That was the only reason I had the conversation I did with her. As soon as we all sat down for the skit of the day, I asked her if she was ready for the Bible story. She said “this is my favorite part”. I was taken aback a bit (based on her performance earlier in the day). I said “really?” and she said “yes!” I asked her what her favorite Bible story was and she began to tell me the story of David and Goliath. Immediately I thought “oh no, this girl likes this story because of the fighting in it”. But then she surprised me again. She said “the little guy won, and he won because he loved Jesus & Jesus was with him”. I was so impressed. That little girl sat through that entire Bible skit on the edge of her seat. She jumped at the chance to answer a question about the skit and when she did, she explained it all probably even better than I could have. This little girl was truly learning and understanding the Bible and its central message. I am excited for this knowledge reach her heart even more deeply and change her life & the lives of those around her. This message reached the heart of one young man the first day I went to Bible club. He accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior the very day us Kaleo interns visited.

I can’t wait to hear about how Grace’s Bible club continues to impact kids for eternity. I fully anticipate dancing with those kids again in heaven and I am so excited about that. I am changed because of the kids I met and I know our missions team were forever impacted by them too. I am so glad Kaleo Missions partners with existing churches and organizations (such as Grace Baptist Church) that make a difference in their communities year round. Praise the Lord for how He works and how He invites us to be a part of it all!

Declaring The Deliverer in the Darkness

A photo taken in the Bywater area while leading missions teams
in New Orleans with Kaleo Missions in 2016

I have lost count now of how many times I have been asked why I do ministry where I do. "Why do you do ministry in the Phillips neighborhood?" "Why do you evangelize in Dinkytown?" "Why do you go to church in the Powderhorn neighborhood?" "Why would you spend a summer leading missions teams out of the French Quarter?"

These questions generally aren't asked out of basic curiosity or interest. They are generally asked in confusion because doing ministry in those kinds of places does not line up with the American dream. This is because doing ministry like that is not always the safest and you are not in complete control when you're there and you are not separated from those society often deems as less. So doing ministry in the Philips neighborhood, the Powderhorn neighborhood, college towns, or the French Quarter is not what most would call the American dream but who really cares about that? When it comes down to it, I care much more about following Jesus than I do about following the American dream and I really think you should too.

I think we have watered down Christianity to the point where we think of Jesus as this "safe", quiet man who sat with "good" Godly folks and we try to imitate that Jesus. However, when I read the New Testament I encounter a Jesus who sat with tax collectors and prostitutes and everyone else that society set aside. (If you want some examples, just google it. You will find there are plenty to go around.) But we don't encourage folks to imitate that kind of Jesus much these days. We call them foolish and reckless instead. But isn't sitting with the modern day tax collectors and prostitutes and everyone else exactly what we are also called to do? Before departing the world Jesus said "go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20, ESV). Jesus calls us to do exactly as He did. While Jesus did ministry in many expected places, He didn't stop there. He ministered to people everywhere and so should we. We are called to speak the Gospel to our co-workers and in our neighborhoods and in our schools and also in the slums and the streets downtown.

A photo taken of Puerto Maldonado, Peru while on a mission trip
here in 2016

Many Christians (although still not nearly enough) seem to be okay with being around and even sharing the hope of Christ with their neighbors and co-workers and classmates but few seem to even consider sharing the Gospel with those "very different" than them. Perhaps that is where the tragedy lies - in the belief that the homeless, the prostitutes, the alcoholics, and the addicts are so very different than the rest of us. From my experience, we all have many similarities and people aren't always that different than we think. In fact, I think some of the best conversations I have had were when I was out doing ministry of some kind with people who are homeless or otherwise very different than myself. One of my good friends is a man who is in his mid 50s and essentially homeless. His name is Tom. We are so different yet we can carry on for hours about reading, movies, and even Audrey Hepburn. Most people I encounter, no matter how different our lives may seem, are really not all that different from me. We all have hopes, desires, families, friends, fears, strengths, weaknesses, and a deep need for a loving Savior. So just because people seem so different from us should not stop us from sharing the hope and love of Jesus with them.

And yes, doing ministry in the Philips neighborhood, in Dinkytown, and in the French Quarter is not the easiest. And yes, sometimes it can feel very dark in those places. But those places are where Christ's light can shine even brighter and even when the darkness seems to overcome us we can know that Christ goes before us and that He is with us always until the end of the age. As I sit in the French Quarter, I look around every Saturday night and I see brokenness. I see broken people trying to fill the cracks in their lives with drugs and alcohol. The problem is this: that stuff never fills you up. Not even close. Brokenness and darkness seems to flood these streets just like the hurricane once did, but that doesn't mean there is no light. In fact, the light of Christ seems to shine even brighter here. This place, Vieux Carre Baptist Church, is one of those bright beacons of hope. It is because of people like the ones here that I still have hope. People come here when they are in the middle of their deepest despair and they see hope. They see how Christ can completely change their lives. And it is in this darkness they can clearly see the light.

Now, don't get me wrong. When you start trying to mess with the enemy's plans, he will try to stop you and discourage you. But never forget who you are in Christ. You are a soldier commissioned to fight a battle truly worth fighting in. You have been commissioned by the King to go out and save souls. How could you possibly reject that calling?

A phoro of the Dallas skyline taken on a mission trip here in 2014

It takes a lot of faith to step into the unknown but you are stepping into the unknown every day of your life so in my opinion you might as well step out for the most worthy cause there is. Like I said before, I have been asked a lot why I do what I do and like I have been trying to tell you these past few minutes, I do what I do because I believe the God who loves me has commissioned me to do it. But the beautiful thing is God hasn't just left me in the dust there. He has carried me through all the nights of ministry as well as all the unexpected moments of ministry. And He has revealed more of Himself to me because of it. He has shown me who He is and what He is doing in the lives of others. Here in New Orleans I have met people who have turned over their lives to God and overcome insane addictions. A few weeks ago back in Minnesota, I met a man named Daniel who found Christ when he was homeless. He still is to this day, but rather than being caught up in despair like many homeless folks you meet, he takes comfort in the fact that even the Son of Man had no place to lay his head. God has given us such amazing opportunities to see Him work and He has also given us the ability to be used by Him. We don't always get to see the result of what we do but I believe that what we do makes a difference. Just the other day a man here in New Orleans named Gary surrendered his life to Christ. He said the day before some kids came under the bridge and blessed him. That truly seemed to impact him and I believe that whenever we minister to people, God uses it in some way. I think that what we do plants seeds of hope and God waters those seeds. Who knows what ways God has used us to impact people! A few months back we sat with a man named Joshua for an hour and tried to talk him out of killing himself that night. What if God used us to keep that man from going through with it. I don't want it to appear that we save people ourselves. That is ridiculous. But when it comes down to it, for some reason God likes to work through people. So we try to let Him work through us. As for me, I never regret the days I decide to give God control of my life and let Him work.

So we must declare the Deliverer in the darkness, bring the Bread of Life bravely down Bourbon Street, and continue carrying the cross of Christ into the chaos because when we do that we do as Jesus did and share hope with people different yet so similar to us. And when we do this, we can know that Jesus goes before us. And as always, we are to go as a family because we are stronger when we are united.

The Beautiful Truths God Had to Bring Me to the Amazon Jungle to Remind Me Of

This is the letter I wrote to my supporters upon my return from Peru. It was an experience of a lifetime (as you will soon read). Therefore, I wanted to share my experience with all of you out there. Enjoy!

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

As you have probably heard (or at the very least are now becoming aware), I am back from Puerto Maldonado, Peru. It was the trip of a lifetime to say the very least. It challenged me in ways I didn’t anticipate and I loved it. And I think God knew I needed that. As I was walking back from the informational meeting about Peru back in September, I was met with a poster that had just appeared that day. It said this: a ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for. God really took me out the harbor on this one. Wow! Even on the trip I was contemplating what I was going to say to you all when I returned and even as I type I am not entirely sure everything God is trying to teach me and show me through the trip. There are a few things I am absolutely sure about though. One is that I will never forget Peru, the people I went with, the people I met there, or the lessons God taught me. Another is that none of it would have been possible if God hadn’t provided and I firmly believe you all were a grand part of that. That is obviously evident by your financial support (which provided everything I needed for this trip and more!) and your prayers which are evidenced by the results of our trip. We safely traveled 4,000 miles, drove from the Twin Cities to Chicago, took 9 flights, slept in an airport twice, and spent 8 days in the jungle without getting eaten or bitten by anything deadly. So thank you for your support through financial giving and all your prayer.

There are so many things I wish to tell you about the trip but first – the basics. We left on Thursday March 3rd at 3 a.m. We drove to Chicago then flew to El Salvador. From El Salvador we flew to Lima, Peru. After a nice stay on the airport floor, we flew to Cusco and then to our final destination, Puerto Maldonado. The group was small – it was just 4 of us. We spent 8 days serving with El Arca children’s home on a farm in the Amazon jungle. We spent time with the family (especially the kids – man, will I never forget them) and served them by helping wherever needed (making meals, cleaning, painting, fixing the road, etc.) After our time was up, we started our long journey back home. We had a fun night in Lima during our 12 hour layover which was just what we needed after being in the middle of the jungle with no contact with the outside world for over a week. We arrived back home Sunday, March 13th in the evening.

Our trip was filled with so many new adventures and new things for me. I left the continent for the first time. I went to the jungle for the first time. I flew by myself for the first time (from Chicago to Minneapolis). I slept in an airport for the first time (and the second time we were awoken by a woman who was poking us to get us up so she could wash the floor we were sleeping on!). I rode in a taxi for the first time (with a crazy driver in a traffic jam – seatbelt is highly recommended for that ride). I ate octopus and ceviche for the first time. I spilled human waste on myself for the first (and I hope the last) time. I made eggplant lasagna for the first time (that one was an adventure – it turns out it is even more difficult to make lasagna in the jungle). I saw a rat run across the dining room for the first time. I saw spiders bigger than the palm of my hand for the first time. And I went a week without any contact with my parents for the first time. My trip was filled with a lot of firsts and I hope to continuing make such firsts for the rest of my life (except maybe ones like the whole spilling waste on myself thing).

Not only was it filled with a lot of exciting adventures and firsts but it was also filled with a lot of life lessons. One of the things I think God really wanted to remind me of on this trip is how constant He is. There are times in your life when you realize that in more dramatic ways. That first night in the jungle was one of those times for me. I was sitting there and I finally got it. Nothing is constant or guaranteed. Not the presence of friends or family, not your location, not your abilities, not your health, not your safety. Nothing is constant but the Creator of those things. Thankfully, that constant is all we truly need. Even if everything else were to fall away, we would still have all we needed because He is true, He is good, and He is loving. I realized that as I saw this family suffer. They left everything they knew in pursuit of starting this children’s home only to lose many of the kids years into their ministry as a result of the government trying to shut down orphanages. I can only imagine what it must be like for them right now as they choose which children they can keep and try to adopt and which they have to say goodbye to. I wrestled with this striking blow to the ministry of this family. How could God let this happen? I don’t know. My only prayer is that as a result more souls would be won for the kingdom as these children who are not able to stay are sent back to their families. Still, even as I wrestled with this. I noticed that the family wasn’t. Or at least that is what it seemed like. They went on praising God for His goodness and faithfulness. And suddenly I was struck on the head and reminded. God never promises prosperity. He promises His presence. Just like He never asks for fruitfulness, just faithfulness. And that is exactly what this family is doing. Trusting God and being faithful. I don’t know why some things happen but I do know this: God is good and He never lets anything be wasted. And so I want to be faithful. It is a lot easier to be faithful in the easier times of life but it will get harder. When I start my church someday, I hope the Lenz family and their perseverance will pop up in my head and I will be encouraged to continue to be faithful in the difficult season of church planting. As a result of this trip, I also want to get even closer to the Father. When I realized that He is the only true constant I realized that I need to have an even stronger relationship with Him than I already do. If He is my one and only then I need to spend even more time with Him and I want to because He is so so good.

It is still a little hard to believe. This time last week I was sleeping in the Lima, Peru airport after spending a week in the jungle. Now I am sitting in my dorm alone writing to all of you. This time two weeks ago I was almost to Puerto Maldonado with 3 people I barely knew and I came back with 2 sisters and a big brother (I guess traveling 4,000 miles to the jungle bonds people). So many things are uncertain. I don’t know if I will ever see any of those people I met in Peru again this side of heaven. I don’t know all the reasons God sent me to Peru yet. I don’t know where He will send me next (what is more outside my comfort zone than the Amazon jungle with 3 people I barely know?). But I do know this: God is true. God is good. God is loving. God is constant. And He provides. He provides in beautiful ways. He provides with finances, health, safety, and with marvelous family like you. Praise God.

Love, peace, and grace to you all,

Kallee

Making a Home a Hole: Why it is Critical We Leave the College Bubble to Serve Others

Note: This post is directed at Christian college students (particularly but not exclusively the UNW community, which is not because I think UNW has this problem more than other colleges do; I am just writing from my point of view which is the Northwestern campus)

The "UNW Bubble" is a very real thing. Not only is it real, but it is dangerous. When students choose to spend their college years mainly within the UNW borders, they lose out on so much. When students choose to make their campus their world they miss out on the chance to experience the world and make an impact in it. I never recognized the dangers of the "UNW Bubble" until I moved onto campus this year. In this post, I hope to help you see that the college bubble is truly a problem, college is the perfect time to serve, and serving is a beautiful thing. I hope this post encourages you to break the bubble by serving and will inspire you to encourage others to do the same. Without further ado, I want to share a story with you of how I have seen the college bubble hold people back from experiencing life that is truly life.

The first time I truly noticed it all was Halloween night this year. The other leaders of Seeds of Hope decided to cancel it for the evening because of the number of people who weren't going to be coming. I felt it on my heart to try to get a group together to go out anyhow so my lovely roommate Breeanna and I decided to invite people to it. We knocked on every single door in the building, so between the two of us we knocked on over 200 doors of rooms with 3 people each. There were 600 possibilities plus more we contacted. Guess how many showed up. Three. (Now, we were absolutely grateful for the three we had. It was the most unbelievable night of ministry I have ever had and if not another one comes around that tops it I won't be too surprised.) That means our success rate in getting Christian college students to spend their Saturday night spreading the love of Christ to our brothers and sisters that evening with us was 0.5%. Now, I am not good with percentages but I know that it is not a good percentage. Yes, it was Halloween. Whatever, I get it (actually I don't) but the excuse that it was Halloween and people may have had plans doesn't fly with me. It doesn't because when I looked in most of their eyes I didn't see any sign of regret at not being able to come or any slight interest even. Breeanna and I could tell that many people were waiting for the moment they could close the doors in our faces and continue doing what they were doing. Sure, many people asked questions, congratulated us, and some even said they would pray for us and those people lifted our spirits. But they don't make up for the sheer volume of Christians in our school who looked at us as though spreading the love of Christ to others that night was the last thing they were going to be doing. It honestly broke my heart. Two months before I was excited to move onto campus because I would finally be somewhere where everyone actually cared and I was finally facing the fact that many of them don't. (Don't get me wrong, since moving to Northwestern I have found an incredible bunch of people who are passionate about loving people the way Christ loves them and they inspire me and bless me. I just wish there were even more of them.) On our trek around the building one girl that we talked to shared my thoughts and feelings to a tee. She said that she sometimes cries at the number of people who do not care. Anger, heartbreak, and confusion take turns owning my heart when I think of all the Christians who choose to spend their entire college careers doing Bible studies and attending chapel and talking about God yet never spend a minute stepping out of their comfort zones to bravely serve Him and His people. Because the truth is this: every moment you spend stepping out of your comfort zone for the sake of the Gospel, every minute you spend serving Him will absolutely be worth it. The past semester has been probably the greatest few months of my life and many of my favorite moments were spent serving. I can honestly say that I love the weekends because I get to serve God wholeheartedly with my friends by caring for His people without worrying about getting my homework done for the next day. As second semester begins I see an opportunity for more students to escape that "bubble" and experience a more beautiful and fulfilling life.

College brings a unique opportunity to serve others and make a real impact in the world. The time to do this is now. Once you have a job and family, the opportunities to do these kinds of things are harder to find time for in the schedule so that is why you should take the time for it now. Another great thing is that the cities neighboring college campuses are amazing places for ministry. Especially with big cities filled with hurting people, the opportunities are endless. And most of the time you don't even have to go into the cities to find those opportunities. Many are sitting and waiting for you on college campuses. UNW has many campus ministries including Living Hope (which works with kids), Way in the Wilderness (which works with people of other cultures), Writing in the Sand (which works with women who are victims of sex-trafficking and abuse), Streetlight (which works with homeless and otherwise impoverished people), and Seeds of Hope (which works with all types of people). I hope wherever you are you find a ministry to get plugged into.

There is no greater thing to be doing than serving. If you need proof, here are 3 reasons...
1. Jesus called us to love our neighbors and serving the people of your own college's city is a great way to do that. When you are focused on studying, going out and serving is a great reminder of your true calling.
2. It is refreshing. Doing what God calls you to can be messy but it can also be beautiful. After a week of preparing presentations, studying for exams and quizzes, reading lots of books, and going over Greek flashcards, I can't wait to serve. Even when going in with a mindset of serving, I always seem to be the one blessed in the end.
3. It is a great way to connect and bond with friends. Not only that but is truly a wonderful way to make friends. After just a few weeks at Streetlight I knew I had a family and my ministry friends have been a core part of my life ever since then. When I look around a car full of people I just spent the evening serving with, I know that these are the moments I will treasure the most from my years here at Northwestern.
4. You see the world in a whole new way. You meet people you otherwise never would have and you grow as a result.

Note for Ministry Majors
For you, this part of the college experience might seem obvious. Serving is an essential part in preparing you for ministry. Not only will you get the real-life ministry skills you will need in the future but serving is also critical in the preparation of the heart for full-time ministry. If you think you don't have time to get involved because of the amount of homework you have, then consider your weekday classes as only half of preparing you for ministry and serving as your other half. It will change how you spend your time and perhaps you will find a little more time in your schedule for it.

Prostitution, Parties, & Peru

Like I said in my last post, I feel as though God has been talking to me a lot on the subject of seeing the world. Like most human beings, I avoid discomfort and pain a little too much. When I hear about tragedy and the pain of others around the world I try to distance myself. I was challenged on this in chapel (at Northwestern) last spring. I downloaded a news app this spring to keep up with what is going on the world more. Still, I have been feeling lately like this is not nearly enough. It is not enough to check out the news app every once in a while and see what is going on through the eye's of an author. Lately, I have been feeling like God is calling me to see the world for myself. With this constant nudging came the repetition of a quote by one of my heroes. This hero of mine chose to see the world and face it. That is why William Wilberforce is one of the people I admire the most. The quote that continually repeated itself was this: "you may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know." I feel like God doesn't want me to able to say 'I did not know'. I feel like God is calling me to know - to know the world as it truly is, not just the rose-colored glasses version. He wants me to see the world through His eyes. Now, this requires a great bit of discomfort and pain, which as I mentioned I am not particularly fond of. But God doesn't usually ask us to do easy things now, does He?

God gave me this call and then just like He usually does He plopped several opportunities to live out that call in front of me within a matter of a couple of weeks.

Right when I was feeling like seeing the world was something I needed to do I was asked to be a leader of a weekly ministry team called Seeds of Hope. Seeds is a new Northwestern ministry started by friends of mine and what we do is we go out into the cities and minister to real people with real stories right where they are. The past 3 Saturday nights I have gone out with them have been amazing. God has truly blessed our time and allowed us to impact people. But He has also shown me the world through it. The first week we went to the U of M... during homecoming. That was completely eye-opening for me. I had never seen anything like it in my life. I thought college parties in the movies were completely exaggerated but what I saw that night was just like all those movies. It hurt to see it. It hurt to see all those people ruining their lives when they thought they were truly living them. But at the end of the evening I knew that I was there that night because God wanted me to see it all and dare me to feel something about it rather than try to shut it out. It is easy to make Northwestern a bubble where you stay and get a Christian education with Christian friends and never leave the safety net. But that is not exactly what God wants from us. He calls us to train ourselves to impact the world for His sake, yes. He calls us to be in community with other believers, yes. But He also calls us to be in the world and that is something I think we are called to do now as students. We don't have to wait for God to use us. He wants us to go out now and reach out to people.

Another way I feel like God is helping me to see the world came through a piece of paper. It was almost like God legitimately sent me an invitation (except it was not actually addressed to me - although it might as well have been). Before I tell you about this piece of paper there is some background you need to know. I have been on 4 mission trips now. They have all been within the states and have all impacted me greatly. I had every intention of going on the last Revolution mission trip next summer. But I was trying to figure out how I could do that if I were able to intern somewhere like I intend to. I didn't know if it would be a possibility so I started thinking about other mission trip opportunities. If I were to be unavailable in the summer I would only have one other window of opportunity to go on a trip: spring break. Luckily Northwestern sends teams out to places all over the country during spring break. They often go to New Orleans so I started thinking about how great it would be to go back to the place where God decided I would leave part of my heart. But before they announced where they were going over spring break I ran into this piece of paper. It was announcing an informational meeting about a trip to Peru. And get this - the trip was not over the summer like all but one of the international trips UNW takes are. This trip was happening during spring break. Coincidence? Probably not. For about a year now I have been thinking about how I have seen the world through mission trips but how in America nothing is quite so extreme as it is everywhere else. I was thinking about how going on a mission trip overseas would be so different and I began to think that maybe it was about time I go on an international trip. Well, here God was giving me one. Still, being a human, I tried to make excuses. Like how I am not a person built for the jungle or the mountains or warm weather in general and how I don't exactly speak fluent Spanish along with other excuses. But I realized quickly they were very weak excuses and my prayers for clarity were resulting in answers of "yep, Kallee, Peru" and "yes, I am calling you to go see all kinds of things that will hurt you to see them but it's something I need you to do for me". So long story short I spent my day today renewing my passport and in less than five months I will be in South America.

A third way God is continuing to show me the world is through Streetlight, Northwestern's homeless ministry. Every week we get to meet people with stories very different from ours and it is amazing. It can be eye-opening too. But this year there has been an additional opportunity God has given us through Streetlight to see the world even more. This year we have been able to do street ministry. Now this isn't average street ministry This is Franklin and Chicago in South Minneapolis at 11:00 on a Friday night. It is not family friendly and the Dove foundation would not approve of that picture. In many ways it feels like the devil's playground. Everywhere on those streets he is altering people's minds in order to try to keep them from the Gospel. It can feel like no one on those streets is sober but that doesn't stop us. This last time we went out was especially eye-opening for me. James, a staff member of the Marie Sandvik Center, came with us and as a former walker of the streets he pointed things out to us we might never have seen before. He pointed out a drug dealer to us as well as an actual drug deal going down. While James was explaining some of these things to us we made light conversation with a woman passing by. We then watched her as she continued down the street and a car made a U turn. We watched the car pull into the parking lot of the strip mall and the woman walk over to the car. We saw them talk and then we watched the woman get in. Then James said "yeah, that just happened". So now I can add prostitution to my list of things I have seen but never want to see again.

God has been showing me the world these past few weeks. And I can't always say that I have loved what I have seen. In fact a lot of what I see makes me sick but I know it is what I need to see because in order to change the world we must know the world even if knowing the world breaks our hearts. It is okay that it does because when our hearts are broken that much we are forever changed. And when we are forever changed we are moved to action.

Opening our Eyes to our Brothers and Sisters

In chapel a few weeks ago we took a moment of silence for the victims of 9/11 and we talked about the Syrian refugee crisis. When I got back to my dorm after Greek class that day I listened to a radio clip that was recorded on 9/11/01 and then a video John Green posted explaining the refugee crisis (I know - some heavy topics for a Friday afternoon after class). Anyway, it got me thinking about what our brothers and sisters around the world face. I think we often think of the world as 'us' and 'them' but a better way to view the world is 'we'. We are all in this world together at this same time in history and I believe it is all for a reason. Those thoughts inspired me to write this post. In this post I will write about who are brothers and sisters are, how people have cared for their brothers and sisters in the past, why we need to take note of what they are going through now, and how we can help others (if at all).

Who are our brothers and sisters?

In the Bible other people are often called our brothers/sisters. The Greek word adelphos, which is generally translated as brother or sister, is used over 300 times in the New Testament. Over 250 of those uses almost absolutely do not refer to a family member. (For more on this look no further.) What does this mean? It means Jesus does not want us to just care for our direct family members. He calls us to love people outside of our bloodline. So once again that begs the question: who are our brothers and sisters? Well, I think that question is a different way to ask the question "who is our neighbor?" In Luke 10:25-37 an expert of the law asks Jesus the same question. Jesus answers by telling him the story of the good Samaritan. The story showed us that everyone is our neighbor. It is easy to distance ourselves from the struggles of others on the other side of the globe but that isn't what we are called to do for our neighbors.

Why should I care about other people?

1 John 2:10 says "whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling". John 13:34-35 says "a new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." If that doesn't convince you then maybe this will. As you may know, 1 Corinthians chapter 13 is known as the "love chapter" of the Bible. In it, it say this:

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Why should we love other people? Besides the fact that they are our brothers and sisters, we are nothing without love.

Can I even make an impact?

Short answer: yes. You can make an impact. You may not be able to completely change the world yourself but we all have an impact and we get to choose the kind of impact we make. The song "The World You Want" by Switchfoot asks "is this the world you want?" Then goes on to say "you are making it (the world) every day you are alive". So according to them we make an impact no matter what so it might as well be a positive one, right? History proves one person can make a huge difference. Need an example? Well, here is one: Adolf Hitler. He changed the world - no one can argue that. It was in a terrible way that he changed the world but he did indeed change it. Examples of people who changed the world positively include Jesus (of course), William Wilberforce, Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther, the apostle Paul, and many others. One person can make a difference. I promise you that. My life has been deeply affected by the actions of single people. I would not be sitting here at Northwestern if it weren't for Dr. William Bell Riley, who started Northwestern, along with all the donors and presidents and staff and faculty who have kept it going since then. Or for that matter the many people who encouraged me to check out UNW. Come to think of it I would not have started looking at Christian colleges at all if it weren't for me putting my faith in Christ. That was a result of going to Eagle Brook Church, which I wouldn't have done if it weren't for a friend of mine from North Lakes Academy. I wouldn't have gone there if it weren't for the founder Jackie or if it weren't for my mom's encouragement. This is just one simple line of connections to show that how other's lives and choices affect us. Whether we like it or not our lives are all connected and the choices we make affect other people. We are affected by the choices of many before us, and others around us and those to come will live differently (for better or worse) because of our choices. So now here comes the question: What will your impact be? Will you be remembered as a person who reached down and reached out to others in need? Will you be remembered as a person who encouraged others to change the world? What do you want to be written about you in your eulogy?

How can we best make an impact?
In order for us to make the greatest impact possible we must be educated. I don't mean we have to know trigonometry or chemistry. I mean we have to know the world as it is. (This is something I feel like God has been trying to teach me lately and I want to share a bit more of my journey with this lately in another blog.) In order for us to change the world, we must know what needs to be changed. Makes sense, right? The only thing is that this particular type of education will not always be pleasant. In fact, it may very well break your heart. Still, we must force ourselves to walk away from comfort for the sake of knowledge. If we don't truly know what is going on in the world we can never have true motivation to change it.

Warning: Getting educated about the condition of the world may very well change you and wreck you in the greatest way possible because before we can make a change we ourselves must change.

What is your next step?
Maybe you need to simply gain more knowledge of the world or maybe you are at the point where you need to experience it. Below are a few suggestions for next steps. I encourage you to think or pray about what God might be calling you to do to better understand the world...

1. Start reading the stories of persecuted Christians from The Voice of the Martyrs  and pray for them
2. Read the heartbreaking facts about sex trafficking
3. Hear the facts and stories of women who had abortions
4. Read about how people who are homeless are just like you and me from Invisible People and then join a homeless ministry
5. Find out more about extreme global poverty and then dedicate one day's wages to help end it
6. Read about world hunger and then go pack food at Feed My Starving Children
7. Sponsor a child with Compassion
8. Go on a mission trip and see the world as it is

"Be the change you wish to see in the world"

- Gandhi

The Powerful Connections Between Faith, Hope, and Love

1 Corinthians 13:13 says "three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love" (NLT translation). Paul's emphasis on faith, hope, and love interests me quite a bit. Recently when thinking over the ideas of faith, hope, and love I realized how interconnected they truly are. Let me explain...

One cannot really love without having hope that their love will be received and one cannot love without having faith that their love will not be abused. Similarly one cannot really have faith without loving the one they have faith in and one cannot have faith without hoping that their faith will not be wasted. Also one cannot have hope without having faith in something and the result of hope is love.

The connections between those three fascinate me beyond end. In fact, if you don't mind I would like to keep going with this.

Faith
When we place our faith in something or someone we usually love that person or that thing to some degree. We trust them (or it). When we are young we place our faith (our trust) in our parents because we love them and they love us. Our pets have faith in us because we show love and affection for them. As a result they generally show care and love back to us. One of the examples that comes to mind of this is Hagrid (from Harry Potter). He has faith in his half-brother Grawp to become civilized because Hagrid loves him. He won't give up on him because he loves him and has faith in him.We know we can put our faith in God because He loves us. That love assures us that we can trust Him. Faith and hope are also connected. When we put our faith in something or someone we hope that our faith will not be wasted. When we sit on a chair we have some amount of faith in it and we hope it will not break. Now for a major step in analogies. When we put our faith in God we have ultimate hope because we have been promised some incredible things from Him like protection, unconditional love, and of course eternity with Him. As Christians we can live with a wonderful sense of hope because of the faith that we have in God.

Hope
Now to turn that around. Similarly one cannot have hope without putting their faith in something. No matter whether someone is an atheist or a Christian everyone has faith in something. Some people have faith because of their faith in themselves. Some people have faith because of their faith in science. Some people have faith because they believe God will redeem them. No matter who you are everyone has faith of some kind. Even in the little things we have hope due to our faith. We have hope that cute boy who sits kitty corner to you in second hour likes you because your friend told you that he did. Your hope comes from your faith in your friend. You have hope that dinner will be good because your nose is telling you it will be good and you trust your sense of smell. Hope and faith are forever linked and it is amazing to think about! Hope and love are also connected. One connection that can be made is this: when we have hope we react in love. When we have hope that God has redeemed us because of His love for us we react with love too. We love our neighbors. We love God. When we are hopeful about our future it allows us to be joyful and therefore more loving towards others.

Love
When we show love to another human being or an animal or even to God we love hoping that our love will be received. We hope the other person will express love back to us. We hope our kids will appreciate the care we show them. We hope that special someone will love us back. Even with pets we hope for their returned affection. Whenever we love we also have this unspoken hope inside of us. At the same time faith also works with love. When we love we have faith that our love will not be abused. When we marry someone we have faith that they we will be faithful to us. When we love God we have faith that He will accept our love. Sometimes people even love wild animals hoping they will love them back. Those people are usually misplacing their faith. However, when we choose to love God we can know our faith will never be misplaced.

I hope you enjoyed reading about the deep rooted connections between faith, hope, and love. Which of these three are you best at? Which one would you like to become better at?

My Compassion Story

My family started sponsoring a little girl in Mozambique in 2010 through World Vision, a company very similar to Compassion. That was the first time I had ever really had any knowledge or experience of the fact that people could sponsor children in other countries. During the next several years I heard many "Compassion talks". I even heard a few by the lead singer (Mike Donehey) of my favorite band Tenth Avenue North. His talks were compelling and got me excited for the time when I could sponsor a child someday on my own. Then in June 2013 while I was at Joyful Noise I heard Mike give yet another "Compassion talk". This time, however, was different.

As Mike finished his talk volunteers came around with packets which had pictures of children from all around the world that needed sponsors. I raised my hand and a volunteer handed me a picture of Jose Aldair, a little boy from Honduras. I filled out the paperwork and went to the Compassion table. That is where my journey with Compassion International began.

Over the course of the next two years I wrote letters to and received letters from Jose Aldair and his family. Through those letters I was able to learn a lot about Aldair and he was able  to learn a lot about me. I even got letters from his pastor Carlos, tutor Carmen, and project director Becky. I got an updated photo of him and many wonderful drawings from him (seriously that little boy draws better than me). Each note I would receive would bring me such joy. I will share just a few quotes from his letters and you will quickly be able to see why I loved them so much. One of the notes that his sister wrote out for him said this: "He says that when he grows up he wants to be a person like you to help other people." His mom wrote me and said "I'm very happy because you chose my son and he has learned a lot in the project." Another from his mom said "he thanks God because he can count on you". Those simply notes showed me something important. They showed me that one person can make a difference and if you ever doubt that you can change someone's life then I challenge you to sponsor a child because you will find out the truth. I've never missed the $38 a month I send to Aldair because I know what the money is doing is much better than anything I could ever spend it on here. His letters said some of the most touching things I have ever heard. Just about every letter ended similarly to this one: "God bless your life and that of your family. Aldair says that he always prays for you and asks for your prayer. Aldair says goodbye with much love and care, hoping that you will write to him soon."

Sponsoring Jose Aldair was a huge blessing and privilege but that fall after I started sponsoring him I suddenly wasn't having any tutoring business. So from September 2013 to February 2014 I watched my savings dwindle and I began to wonder what to do. I knew I wouldn't give up on him - that much I was sure of. And I didn't want to put the burden of paying for him on my parents. So I began to talk about getting a job but my parents didn't want me to because I was going to start PSEO the following fall. I felt completely stuck and one Sunday I was just felt so helpless I cried about it. Three days after that God totally stepped in. I got a call from a girl I knew from school asking if I would be interested in  being a personal care assistant for her sister. I met with the family and did some research on what being a personal care assistant actually meant & I started with her a few weeks later. God stepped in at a time I was desperate to continue His work and He blessed me even more by providing me with a job that was flexible, paid well, and was one that I loved. I could talk forever about how being a PCA has blessed me but I will save that for another blog post. Anyway because of that job I was able to continue sponsoring Aldair.

I sponsored Aldair for two years. This past May, however, I got a letter saying that his family pulled him from the program. I don't know the reason. Most likely they simply needed him to work at home. Whatever the circumstances I pray his two years in the program will benefit him in life. I continue to pray for him and will do so for a long time to come. Just because I don't monetarily sponsor him anymore doesn't mean I can't spiritually sponsor him.

However, this did mean that I could monetarily sponsor another child. And I have started doing so. When Aldair left the program I got word they were sending me information about another child. About three weeks after Aldair left the program I was at Joyful Noise yet again. They had the Compassion Experience there and so I decided to go through it with my friends. It was amazing. At the end of it they had a room filled with pictures of children that needed sponsors all around the world. I had never really gotten the opportunity to look at all the Compassion kids so I decided to look around. When I was looking I came across a little girl in a red and white dress named Esther. She stuck out to me. Probably because the girl that we sponsor as a family is named Esther. I picked up her packet and looked it over for a while. I set it down after a few moments and continued looking at the rest of the children but I ended up coming back to her. It was as if God was saying "pick her". I didn't know whether the information about the other child was coming or not but I decided to start sponsoring her. Of course, when I came home that evening the packet with the other child's information was there. I hated having to say I couldn't sponsor him too but I hoped someone would sponsor him. I recently looked online to see if he was still waiting to be sponsored and thankfully he is not. Someone has started sponsoring him!

My journey with sweet little Esther has just begun but I am looking forward to sponsoring this little one for a long time to come. I hope to sponsor her until she graduates the program. In fact, someday I would love to visit her in Haiti.

If you have never heard of Compassion before now I would encourage you to look it up. In fact I will help you out, you can find out more here. There are currently over 1.5 million children sponsored through Compassion but there could be more. So what about you? Do you have your own Compassion story? Or is this the story of your own story?

Chicago: Because We Don't Want to Say "Tomorrow" Today

I left the Blaine campus of Eagle Brook Church at 8 a.m. on  the morning of June 22, 2015 for Chicago, IL. I didn't know what God had planned but I was excited to see what it was. Life with God is like a good book - there are always grand adventures. Life with God is much like life with Ferris Bueller - not all at what you expected it to be. The next few days were a whirlwind of an adventure and I want to share with you some of the observations I made, things I experienced, and things I saw. The way I will do this is take you on the trip by telling you a little about each day.

Monday: Keep a Mission Trip Mindset
When we arrived at North Park University late in the afternoon we knew the drill: get your room key and bring your luggage to your room. So we did. It just wasn't quite as easy as we expected it to be. For one thing, it was dreadfully hot outside and surprisingly, nearly as hot inside. We were all banking on the expensive private school in Illinois to have A/C. Apparently not. Secondly, the line to check in and get our room keys was quite long. So not only did we have to wait in line but we had to do it with all our luggage piled on us while we were dripping with sweat. Then when my roommate and I got our keys we discovered that the elevator we assumed was down the hall didn't exist. And our room was on the fourth floor. Most people would complain to the management after an experience like that but we didn't because we were on a mission trip. So we got a better hold on our luggage and said "mission trip" and lugged our things up to the fourth floor. Throughout the week we used that phrase "mission trip" as a way of saying "okay, let's do this". And it got me thinking - what if we did that all our lives? Instead of complaining and wishing things were different what if we just pulled up our boot straps and did what needed to be done? We would be lights to the world and we be happier at the same time.

Tuesday: We Need Fun As Much As We Need Work
I did not plan to enjoy the sightseeing part of this trip at all. When I am on a mission trip I want to work. But I truly enjoyed seeing the sights. Not just because it was fun to splash through the fountain although it was. Not just because it was cool to take pictures of ourselves in the Bean. Not just because it was awesome to buy Ferris Bueller merchandise in Chicago. And not just because it was epic to take a picture of myself staring down at the ground from the top of Willis Tower like Ferris and his friends do in the movie. It was because it was with people that I love dearly and I often forget I need fun even more than I need to work. Working is vital to our vitality but so is play. We remember this when it comes to animals and kids but forget that even when you grow older you still need time to relax and have fun too.

Wednesday: Listen to God's Promptings
That evening we went to Navy Pier. Now that was a very interesting experience but one thing that stuck out to me was the prayer walk. I am a big fan of prayer walks and my favorite parts of the past two trips were (you guessed it) the prayer walks. So at first I was pretty discouraged by our results. We had talked to several families but we only got to pray with one but even then it wasn’t a very long or touching conversation. We were getting to the end of the half hour the pastors had asked us to pray with people and the others in my group seemed to be getting antsy to do the “fun things at Navy Pier”. But I didn’t feel like God was done with us yet. So I asked for one more group hoping that God would intervene. We went to pray with another group – rejection. Still, I was unsatisfied but I had made a promise to my group members that I would finally shut up about praying for people for the evening. About twenty minutes later a couple asked me to take a few pictures of them so I did and as I did a light bulb went off – pray for them! So after I took some pretty awesome shots of them with the city in the background I jumped into the Zone of the Unknown. I started talking to them and found out they had just moved to Chicago from Egypt and were getting married in the fall. They said they needed all the help they could get and let us pray with them. That encounter with them stuck out to me. In fact a week after I returned from Chicago I started reading “Just Walk Across the Room” by Bill Hybels (you should definitely read it – I mean, I haven’t finished reading it yet but so far it is great and Bill is great so just trust me on this) and this one line stuck out to me as well. I think that encounter at Navy Pier and this line from the book go quite well together actually. (Are you mad I haven’t told you the line yet? Are you dying of suspense yet?) Either way, the line is “life’s greatest moments evolve from simple acts of cooperation with God’s mysterious promptings”. That is so profound to me because that moment was not one I will ever regret and it was led by a prompting from God. Come to think out nothing God has called me to do has ever been anything I regret in life. It’s only when I don’t listen to Him that I fail. I think Bill is right. Life is best when we let God in the driver’s seat. Now once you know the circumstances of this encounter it gets better. This moment would have never happened if we hadn’t lost my friend. She disappeared and the only reason we were there when that couple was is because we were making phone calls looking for her. It just goes to show that sometimes the greatest moments of your life can happen in the middle of mess and just when you are asking God where He is He is waiting to show you His presence.

Thursday: Love People
Thursday was the first of two days we did VBS. It was much different this year than previous years though because we were serving on the south side of Chicago. We consistently had to break up fights. We heard a kid (who shouldn't have even known what rape was) say that another boy was trying to rape him. We also heard a little girl tell us how her daddy threw her sister against a wall. We didn't have to be told about the gang wars and violence and poverty and constant shootings that happen in that neighborhood to understand what these kids were coming from. The kids told us and showed us what they were growing up in. Things like that break your heart. One of the girls from my small group told me going into the week that she was terrible with kids but by the end of our second day she was crying because she didn't want to leave them. She was experiencing the mission trip pain of not being able to stay. I know it because I've gone through it before. I hate trying to answer questions like "are you staying?" and "when are you coming back?" because there is no good answers to those questions. You can't lie to them and you can't tell them what they want to hear. Still, you want to say "yes, I'll always be here for you". You want to save them. But instead you are reminded how powerless you truly are. You can choose to do one of two things - you can either wallow in grief or you can just choose to love people as much as you can for as long as you can. There is a quote that is so accurate it's scary and it says you can't save people, just love them. No matter what we cannot truly save anyone, only Jesus can. We do, however, have the ability to love people and that is powerful all by itself. I think we should choose to love all our lives. Everyone we encounter will have their own struggles and they need to be loved. As much as we want to save them we can't. But no one can take away our ability to love people.

Friday: Choose To Thank God For the Good Rather Then Be Angry About the Bad
We left the Willis Tower around 4:45 in the afternoon. It was raining - not sprinkling, raining. And I had taken my poncho out of my purse that morning before we left. The bus did not pick us up for an hour. At first I had nothing but my purse which I over my head to shield myself from the rain. Thankfully, I have got connections. Just kidding, thankfully I have friends and one gave me his poncho. There are two ways to look at this situation - just as there are two ways to look at any situation. I could look at the bad and be upset. After a full week of work we were all tired and we wanted to get back to campus to relax. We didn't want to wait around especially in the rain when many of us did not have ponchos. Even those that did were still cold. One girl was visibly shivering. We could have said that was a terrible experience but I want to choose to see it differently. For one, when I looked at the weather before we left it said there was at least a 20% chance of rain. Two of the days were 50% or over. Yet not once did it rain when we were serving. That is incredible. And I was lucky enough to have a friend that offered me a poncho. And we could have been homeless people who just had to deal with it. Instead we were waiting for a Coach bus to take us to a private college where we were staying. You could look at everything in life through different lenses, You could look and see the bad or you could look and focus on the good. It is your choice but you will always be happier if you chose to see the good.

Saturday: Remember to Invest in People Because They Bring More Meaning to Life
Looking back it is interesting to think that people who I didn't know on Monday could became my friends by Saturday. People who you swear you have never even seen at your campus are now someone you've shared dance parties and unforgettable moments with on mission trips. That's just the way a mission trip is. It's a beautiful thing to see - it really is. This is the 4th time I have seen it happen - strangers become inseparable friends on a mission trip. When I think back to the early part of the week I am struck by the fact that people I didn't know made my days so much better simply by being there. Two girls in particular I spent a lot of time with. Before Monday I knew neither but now I consider them to be friends of mine. I also met a lot of other girls from my campus who I want to get to know better next year. In fact, it has inspired me to really try to meet new people at Revolution next year. As much as I love my friends from small group I want to invest in others - others who are new or just need a friend. Not only that but people I already knew become even more important to me. I experienced a lot of that this year. In fact, on Friday night during our debrief session we spent time breaking down our week into definable themes. Out of the six choices the category 'people' stuck out to me the most. It's not that people haven't been important in previous trips but for some reason they stuck out this year. I grew a lot closer to my small group leader and the three girls from my small group who accompanied me. I'd known two of the girls for nearly three years and the other for a year but this trip really bonded me to them even more. We have so many more adventures and memories we now share. We know more things about one another than we did before. We are simply closer and I am extremely thankful for that. I trust those three very much and am blessed to go through life with them.

My Ministry Plans

What I Wanted To Be When I Grew Up
Growing up I wanted to be a teacher. From the first few times Mom or Dad would ask me until 6th grade that was always my answer. Then during 6th and 7th grade I decided I wanted to be a writer. I also always thought it would be really amazing to be a doctor so I could help people but I knew I could never stomach a lot of things doctors must do (so I decided I'd settle for being a doctor in the game of Life).

Ministry and Me
When I started 8th grade I led the Christian Club at my middle school. During that year I fell in love with ministry. I loved teaching, writing sermons, and listening to people who would come to me with problems. Interestingly enough, I realized all the careers I had been interested in previously fit in with ministry. Ministry involves teaching, writing sermons, and helping people. It seemed as though things had just fallen into place. Two years before I had found a great church and for the first time in my life I felt like the messages applied to me and made sense. I went from being distant and unwilling to know more about God to being eager to learn more. That is the difference a good pastor can make. I wanted to be a good pastor who would do for others what my new pastors were doing for me.

New Orleans
The summer between my freshman and sophomore year of high school I went on my second mission trip, which was to New Orleans. Going into it I had no idea what to expect or what an impact the trip would have on the course of my life. One morning in late June of 2013 I hopped onto a 15 passenger van and took off on the adventure of a lifetime. During my twelve day trip I interacted with homeless people whose stories affected me, kids whose smiles melted me, and pastors whose visions inspired me. We got to meet a homeless man whose prized possession was his Bible and a group of bikers who go around sharing the Gospel. We saw a church at work changing people's lives and we saw the result of many people's generosity when we saw all the homes that had been built for people who lost theirs in Hurricane Katrina. But I was also met with gift shops which made me want to run out as soon as I walked in and I had to walk down streets knowing that one block over were countless bars and clubs which to people flock to fill up their lives. We had to walk by people on "harmless" voodoo tours which are popular in the city. Our first night in New Orleans we were told by Pastor Byron that New Orleans was a wonderful city but that it became something completely different at night. When I came home I was greatly conflicted by the things I saw. On one hand there was lots of drug dealing, gang activity, crime, drunkenness, and lust. The Devil was at work there - that was for sure. But God was too - there was no doubt about that either. For six months a day would not pass when I wouldn't think of the incredible people I met there and worked with there. Those daily run-ins with the trip in my mind was God planting an idea in my head. I just didn't know it then.

Questioning to Confidence and a New Plan
In January of 2014 I went on the Revolution winter retreat through Eagle Brook. During that time I was struggling with whether God was calling me to be a pastor or if I was calling myself to be a pastor. I loved running Christian Club, leading a small group of middle school girls, and going on mission trips. I loved serving God but the thing is anyone can serve God in their jobs. Was vocational ministry really my calling or did God want me to use a different job to serve Him? I didn't know anymore. But on that retreat I found my answer to that question and the answer to another question I hadn't really thought to ask... For my morning break out session I chose "Leadership/Calling". With the questioning I had been doing lately it seemed like the right place to go. I went and I am so glad I did. Nate, the Student Ministries pastor at the Lino Lakes campus at the time, taught me so many things. Nate said that your calling is to make a difference in the world using the gifts and passions God put inside you. It was then I realized that the God had put in me a passion for ministry and gifts that could help me in ministry like patience, good listening skills, compassion, determination, and wisdom. Nate also said something that gave me peace. He said that there isn't just one career that is right for you. I walked out of that session confident once again that ministry would be an incredible career for me. Later that evening we had a large group session led by the high school teaching pastor Alex. The big question at the end of it was "where is God leading you?" Right then I knew where God was calling me. New Orleans.

The Coming Years
I just completed my Freshman year at UNW a few weeks ago. It will be several more years until I finish my program, a five year program where I will get my bachelor's in Pastoral Ministry and my master's in Divinity, but I am excited for what lies ahead of me. This coming year I will finish up all my remaining general courses and get to start taking ministry courses. Then, with any amount of luck, I will get to do my first internship next summer.

Update (7/23/16): I always assumed that when told me 'New Orleans' that winter night two and a half years ago that He meant I would be there forever. As I sit back here in New Orleans, I wonder whether maybe God meant that I needed to come back here to learn. Being here for the summer has taught me so much and I will never be the same because of it. However, I can't shake the desire to be back home doing ministry in the Twin Cities again. I wonder if maybe God wanted me back in New Orleans for this - to teach me new things about urban ministry and to help me realize my love & passion for the Twin Cities. I don't know this for sure. Maybe I will end up back here long-term. But maybe I will spend a lot more time in the Twin Cities than I ever thought I would. All I know is God has been showing me just how deep my love for home is. No matter what my future holds, I know God goes before me and yet is still with me.