What is Love?

When we arrived in Rwanda and then again in Kenya, I was amazed by the instantaneous love I felt for the people.  It was one of the purest loves I have ever known in the fact that it was not driven by a desire to gain anything.  It was like that instant love I felt for my children when they were newborns and needed more from me than they could give, and yet through simply grasping my finger with their tiny hands, they gave me more than I thought possible.

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged." 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 (NLT)

True love has no boundaries and no requirements.  I recently read this article in Charisma magazine. This passage struck me the most:

We often feel we have to earn someone’s love by training ourselves to give them what they want. Unfortunately, this kind of love isn’t “pure” at all, and it doesn’t come close to reflecting God’s true heart. But we’re so used to performing and trying to impress the people we want to love us that we treat God the same way. We go around and around in circles trying to make Him happy without ever stopping to consider that maybe His love is really, truly, pure—without any selfish or deceptive motive. Maybe God doesn't want anything from us except us.

I have struggled for a long time thinking I wasn't good enough.  I constantly want to please others and concern myself with what they think of me.  Last night, as I prayed before bed, I remembered something that I had once known, but had forgotten as life had gone on.  The only One I need to concern myself with is God.  What matters most is that He loves me; and, He does, unconditionally.  His love has no boundaries, no rules, no caveats.  He loves me (and YOU!) so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins!  What wondrous love is this!!

As tears ran down my face, I realized I had to let go of my overwhelming need to seek approval from anyone but my Heavenly Father. Sometimes I feel like the lost son (or daughter in my case).  I feel unworthy of love from anyone.  I repent to the Father and ask him to forgive me; but, I forget to listen and I miss these words...

“But his father said... ‘this son (daughter) of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He (She) was lost, but now he (she) is found.’ Luke 15:22 &24 (NLT)

True love comes from the Father in Heaven.  He is the only One we need to please, and He already loves us just because we are who we are... His children.

Love,
Michelle

Photo courtesy https://www.facebook.com/gigoncrosswalk

We're Back!!

At the Kigali Memorial Centre (Rwanda Genocide Memorial)

It's so hard to believe that Lacey and I have been back from Rwanda and Kenya for almost a week now!  I apologize for the delay in writing.  We had limited internet in Africa and I couldn't get the Blogger app for my Kobo tablet.  So, we'll be writing our experiences here after the fact.

I don't know where to begin.  What an amazing journey!  First of all, I just want to thank our Heavenly Father for His blessing and care and thank all of you for your support and prayers.  We are safe and healthy and our families were kept well while we were away.  Special thanks to my mom for caring for my husband and children while I was away.  Thank you also to Heidi for making a delicious meal for them.  Mike raved about it!!

There is so much to process from this trip.  I'll give a basic explanation of what we did in this post and then I will write in more detail later.  

Our days began with devotionals led by a team member, followed by prayer.  Many days our team of fifteen was broken into a few smaller teams and then we all went in different directions.  We assisted with feeding programs, sometimes for over three hundred children, visited poor families, aided in medical ministries and helped with church services.  Each evening we would all meet for supper and share our "highlights of the day."  We went over the following day's schedule and closed in prayer.  

Rwanda is a beautiful country.  I could not believe how breathtaking the land is!  There are so many mountains and it is so green.

In Rwanda, we were based in Kigali, the capital city.  We journeyed out to rural areas each day.  The first full day was spent in Jabana.  We were met by so many children!  I don't even know how many were there! After spending some time visiting families in the area who were in need, we returned to the Jabana Word of Life church campus and played in the playground with the kids.

Children clung to us.  Sometimes we'd have two or three little ones hanging on each arm.  They loved to stroke our skin and hair.  They practiced their English by saying, 

"Good morning.  How are you?"  

We greeted them with "Muraho.  Amakuru?"  

Hopefully one of us would answer with, "I am fine, thank you," or "Meza."  

I met a twelve-year-old girl who carried her baby brother on her back.  I wish I remembered her name.  I spoke very little Kinyarwanda; and, she spoke very little English.  We connected somehow and visited for a long time. I felt compelled to teach her to say, "I am beautiful, " to which she replied, "God is beautiful!"

She was very excited for church to begin and guided me into the building.  Something I didn't know was that the children only sat in the back, not in the front.  The other team members wondered where I was and I didn't want to get separated from them, but when I tried to go to the front, I was not able to bring my new young friend.  She found me afterward and I was able to get a photo with her.  She touched my heart so much!  What a beautiful welcome to Rwanda!

Hugging my new friend in Jabana. 

Love,

Michelle

Awesome Responsibility

First, some updates:  The flights have been booked!  We're counting down to April 30th when we will fly out of Calgary with the HOH Team!  Lacey has raised $1680 so far. (Woo Hoo!!)  I have raised $300. I am looking for a job to help me raise funds, though so far it has been difficult to find something that works around church and our family's schedule.  We will be booking our immunizations soon (ouch!) and are continuing to look for businesses to donate to our online auction, which will unfortunately will not be able to take place before Valentine's Day.

Now to the reason I'm writing today.  I recently received an amazing and completely unexpected donation.  I was so touched by it that I started thinking about how much I feel responsible to each of our donors.  Let me explain.  We, of course, are seeking to do what we can for the women and children of Rwanda and Kenya.  We want to be tools in the hands of our Heavenly Father.  We must not, however, forget that you, our donors, have entrusted us with a great responsibility to see through this mission trip.  We must work hard to raise the funds to completely pay for our trip so that we are able to go to Africa and do this work.  When we are there, we promise to remember each of you as we do the work we are assigned to.  When we see the faces of the children, we will remember that it is because of you that we are able to help them.  It is an awesome responsibility and one we do not take lightly.

In closing I would like to share with you a video about one of the ministries we will be involved in.  It is called The Stella Project.

A special thanks to each of you who has donated, read our blog and said a prayer for us.  May you be greatly blessed!

Love,

Michelle

Giving Thanks, Looking Forward

Poster designed by Sydne Maisonville, age 9.

It's been a whole week since we've posted on the blog and what a week it was!  Thursday, January 17th started out with Lacey and I on the morning show with Charles Sciortino on 98.1 CKVN.  Thank you so much to Charles and the staff at CKVN for welcoming us into the studio and helping us to share our story with Lethbridge!

After my family and I left the station, we were en route to Great Falls, Montana, USA, where I am originally from, for a memorial service for one of my old friends.  It was a bittersweet day.  While I know it may seem to have little to do with our mission here for Home of Hope, I wanted to share a little bit of my experience here as it really impacted me.

I had heard about my friend's passing on Friday, January 11th.  It was the birthday of my former Sunday School teacher, who had also passed, and I had been taking the day to remember her.  The news of my friend's death threw me for a loop and I immediately sank into overwhelming grief.  I began looking back at all of the memories I had of him.  The more I thought, the more I cried and at one point, I almost felt as though the part of my life that included him was also gone.  It was very painful and I spent the next several days trying to work through my grief and focus on our planning for our mission trip.

When my husband and I arrived at the chapel for my friend's celebration of life, we did not expect a Christian service.  My friend was an amazingly eclectic person, but not one that I had remembered subscribing to one religion.  We were pleasantly surprised when his cousin, who led the service, began to speak.  He was a Christian and related to the Lord many times in his speech.  It was a comfort to our hearts.

Here is where I began to see the correlation between my friend's passing, or rather his life, and our work with Home of Hope. My friend had a big heart.  He saw no race, no gender, no life circumstances.  He did not seek out the richest, the most beautiful, or the most perfect people.  He loved genuinely and with his whole heart.  He looked not at the outside, but to the soul.

My friend's cousin so gently pointed out that there was once another man on this earth who did the same.  A man who sat with prostitutes, visited the homes of the tax collectors, and beckoned even the smallest of the small to come unto Him.  He is our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.

No, I do not compare Jesus to a mortal man; rather, I see how we as Christians can embody His goodness. How we should strive to take on His character more everyday.

I lost a friend; but, I gained the Godly eye salve to see what I could be...what we all can be.  God has used this experience to change my heart, to open it and to let His love radiate through me.  I do not need to look back with sorrow, but rather look forward with joy in knowing that God can use me and you to share His love with the world.  It doesn't have to be a large production.  It doesn't have to be difficult.  All our Lord is asking is for us to open our hearts to those in need.  They could be our neighbors or they could be worlds away in Africa.  It all begins with a smile, a cup of coffee, or a listening ear.

Thank you again for your support of our journey.  God bless you all!

Love,
Michelle