James 1: 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Isaiah 58:6-12 Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruin and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
I'm afraid I may have returned from Haiti with more questions than answers, but thankfully I believe our God welcomes questions. Haiti has created an opportunity for a dialog that wasn't present before, but is having a list of questions comforting? Not really.
I feel a bit lost.
I've consistently struggled in my adult life with the "what do I want to do with my life" question. What career would fulfill me? What success will make me feel important or worthwhile? Should I pursue this or that? After Haiti, I wonder if this constant desire for "more" or something bigger was less about a job that would somehow satisfy me and more about living life that truly reflects Christ. Has the void that I assumed needed to be filled with work, success or a career actually been about finding a way to serve my God all along?
I've consistently struggled in my adult life with the "what do I want to do with my life" question. What career would fulfill me? What success will make me feel important or worthwhile? Should I pursue this or that? After Haiti, I wonder if this constant desire for "more" or something bigger was less about a job that would somehow satisfy me and more about living life that truly reflects Christ. Has the void that I assumed needed to be filled with work, success or a career actually been about finding a way to serve my God all along?
I've returned to "normal life" and I'm terrified that I'm going to slip back into the routine and Haiti won't have truly changed me. Will it all be for naught? Will God be able to use me in the States in a way that really makes an impact or will I only be fulfilled if serving in a third-world country? Will I be able to hear God's calling?
How do I offer my body as a living sacrifice, not just one week out of the year, but every single day? How do I watch after the orphans and the widows? How do I help clothe the naked, feed the hungry and shelter the wanderer? Am I capable of truly making a difference for God's kingdom?
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I would argue that we met the nicest man on the planet while in Haiti. Schera works with G.O. Ministries and helps get all the teams back and forth across the DR/Haiti border. He speaks Creole, English and Spanish and is a smooth-talker in all three. Unfortunately, Haiti is a very corrupt country so although you may have all you need to get across the border, it is common to have to give small bribes to officials along the way. Luckily, Schera is an instant friend to everyone he meets making the team feel secure and travel easy.
As you could imagine, constantly traveling from the Dominican Republic and Haiti with G.O. Ministries is not only time consuming, but tiring. During our trip, Schera traveled with us to Haiti then left a day or so later to go take a test back in the D.R. He then returned to Haiti for the last portion of our trip and led us back over the boarder just to get onto another team's bus and led them straight back into Haiti. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like fun to me. Schera, however, does it with a huge, joyful smile on his face.
Jeff, our G.O. Ministries team leader, told us about a conversation he had with Schera regarding his constant travel all the while attending school. Jeff basically asked, "how do you do it?" Schera's response to the question was beautiful and inspiring. He simply said, "It's my worship."
Do you limit your worship to singing songs on Sunday mornings? Or a prayer at the end of your day? I'm afraid I do. But why?
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As you could imagine, constantly traveling from the Dominican Republic and Haiti with G.O. Ministries is not only time consuming, but tiring. During our trip, Schera traveled with us to Haiti then left a day or so later to go take a test back in the D.R. He then returned to Haiti for the last portion of our trip and led us back over the boarder just to get onto another team's bus and led them straight back into Haiti. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like fun to me. Schera, however, does it with a huge, joyful smile on his face.
Jeff, our G.O. Ministries team leader, told us about a conversation he had with Schera regarding his constant travel all the while attending school. Jeff basically asked, "how do you do it?" Schera's response to the question was beautiful and inspiring. He simply said, "It's my worship."
Do you limit your worship to singing songs on Sunday mornings? Or a prayer at the end of your day? I'm afraid I do. But why?
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I returned to Nashville overwhelmed with lots of questions, but I think they can all be summed up with this one simple question:
What is my worship?
Until next time...
Hear about our trip from someone else's viewpoint. Check out Taelor's blog here. Learn about our G.O. Ministries hosts here.
What is my worship?
Until next time...
Hear about our trip from someone else's viewpoint. Check out Taelor's blog here. Learn about our G.O. Ministries hosts here.
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