Perspective

I'm taking a statistics class right now. The last class that I need before I can transfer from my junior college to a four year to earn my BA. Math is not my thing. Apparently statistics isn't either because I'm not doing to well. I was laying in my bed last night stressing out, thinking about how I needed to pass this class and how it would ruin everything if I don't. Ya'll, I wept. As if someone had just died. Laying there, wallowing in self-pity asking God why, WHY did he have to make it so hard for me to comprehend math?? (Pathetic...I know)

And then I get in the car this morning. My climate controlled car. I turned on my radio and I'm listening to Kay Warren speaking on aids and orphans and death. And she's getting chocked up and crying because aids and oprhans and death...they matter. I'm listening to her story of meeting a mother in Africa with aids and she asked the mother what she wanted prayer for. And Kay said she was expecting her to say something like medicine, or money for hospital bills. Do you know what she said? She said pray for my children, because after I die no one will want to take care of them.

ouch.

All of a sudden whether or not I pass this class is not even in the picture. I bawled my eyes out over this stupid class. When's the last time I cried over the fact that all over the world children are alone and dying and hungry and no one cares? When is the last time I wept for the mother who was dying of aids and couldn't provide for her family? When is the last time I bawled my eyes out because of the thousands of children in foster care in the United States who are waiting for a home?

Perspective. It speaks volumes.

Orphan Sunday

This Sunday is Orphan Sunday. Actually, November is National Adoption Awareness Month. I've been thinking about this a lot lately, and especially James 1:27, "religion, pure and undefiled with the God and Father is this, to look after orphans and widows in their tribulation --to keep himself unspotted from the world." (emphasis my own)

Something else that I heard that hit me was the fact that if only one person from every church in Ameria adopted our foster care system would be obsolete. Imagine that, if only we would listen to God and have a heart for those whom He commanded us to care for, there would be no children waiting for homes.

As Christians we are ALL called to help orphans and widows. Does that mean we are all called to adopt? No, I don't think so. But we can each do something, in our own way, no matter how small or big. So what can we do? The Orphan Awareness Foundation suggests some of the following:

-create "love packs" for children living in foster/kinship care, orphanages, or other insitutions

-write a letter to your state representative urging them to fund issuses involving orphaned children

-create/participate in a rally or demonstration promoting children's rights

-create/participate in a forum via internet concerning children's rights

These are just a few ideas. If you want the full list visit www.orphanawareness.org

It's so easy to get wrapped up in our own little world where we worry about ourselves, our loved ones, we brush off the needs of otheres and justify it by thinking that the need isn't all that great, or that someone else will pick up the slack. That's not how Jesus lived. When he saw a need He filled it. He has commanded us to do the same. I challenge you, I challenge myself, to look outside of my little world and start to live like Jesus did.