Well today has been quite amazing. We made a 2 hour drive to a malnutrition clinic in Cubal Angola & I have to say that Cubal is has a very unique place in my heart for lots of different reasons. I love getting to see the babies who are here, but I hate seeing them suffer or go through hardship. I love getting to meet the moms & grandmoms of these babies, but I hate hearing their heartbreaking stories of babies that they’ve lost. I love getting to catch up w key staff members here but I hate watching them struggle to be effective w limited or non-existent resources. Cubal can be beautiful & tender or ugly & abrasive. Cubal is where we thought we rescued Angelina w a life-saving blood donation, only to hear that she died a few short hours after the blood donation. Cubal is where we ran out to buy formula last year when we discovered that they had run out of this essential food for a malnutrition clinic. So coming to Cubal has been a love / hate experience for me.
Today, it is only love & here’s why:
*I met babies who have been consistently receiving malnutrition formula over their 2 week stay & they’ve added more than 2kilos to their weight – super excellent weight gain for a malnourished baby!!!!
*i checked on our therapeutic milk supply & it looks good that we can continue to feed these babies for a few more months
*I interviewed a grandmom today who was nothing less than riveting because of her love – more to follow on her
*I got to say hello to my nun friends & talk about Jesus, prayer & John 15, abiding in the Vine & bearing fruit.
So I have to say that even though Mothers Day was last Sunday, I feel like a fulfilled mom today for Saving Moses. It does my heart well to see, hold, hear & experience success in Cubal 
With God, all things are possible!!
Posts Tagged 'encouragement'
Some great news in Angola!
Published May 21, 2012 Angola , living , saving moses , travel 3 CommentsTags: content, Cubal, encouragement, help!, malnutrition clinic
something to encourage you :)
Published April 27, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 4 CommentsTags: encouragement, hope, strength, struggles
Here are a few thoughts that I really hope will be helpful & encouraging:
If you’re going through:
- a season of lack – be sure to be open to the variety of ways that Jesus provides in our lives (time, wisdom, creative ideas, unexpected supply, etc)
- loneliness – don’t underestimate the continually abiding presence of Jesus with you in every moment & situation
- a time of confusion – listen for the Holy Spirit to lead you into truth & consider reading the verses about Who the Holy Spirit is in John 14
- some heightened insecurity – you are nothing less than wholly & genuinely loved by your Creator, Who finds you to be nothing less than tantalizing & delightful
- failure – celebrate because you’ve crossed off an option that doesn’t lead to success!
- frustration – sometimes the best reward to frustration is the strength that only comes through endurance
I hope you’re well encouraged today!! 
Some antidotes for worry
Published March 22, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 3 CommentsTags: choices, conversations, encouragement, strength, worry
Worry seems to be a common ailment. Lots of people worry about lots of things- the economy, health issues, family challenges, school frustrations & lots more! Some worries seem to be justified & some are almost nonsense. Worry is common, but there are a few things you can do to overcome worry:
*pray the answer (God’s Word) more than the problem
*worship – exalting Jesus always makes my problems look smaller & smaller
*be careful about your conversations – complaining can be fuel for worry
*read a Psalm at breakfast, lunch, dinner & bedtime
Don’t let worry be bigger than Jesus in your life!!
some encouragement for adversity
Published March 14, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 2 CommentsTags: encouragement, perseverance, strength, support, thoughts
Lately, there have been some rather large difficulties that I’m having to face and I find myself having regularly make choices about where my mind will settle. If I’m not careful, my thoughts can go down some very dark alleys and they can become very discouraging. What I’ve found to be really helpful is to give my mind something constructive to chew on. So here are some verses that have been super helpful of late – may they be encouraging to you as well!
- Rom 8:37, “But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us”
- Rom 8:31, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”
- 1 Cor 15:57, “but thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
- 2 Cor 2:14, “But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph is Christ and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.”
- 1 John 5:4, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has over the world – our faith.”
some easy ideas for being a blessing
Published March 11, 2012 Uncategorized 3 CommentsTags: blessing, encouragement, others
I had my really cool small group today & I love watching the creative ways that people come up with to serve others. Here are some easy ways:
- get coffee for someone else
- put furniture back when it’s disordered
- clean off counter / table surfaces
- smile at someone you don’t know for no reason
- bring in a plate of homemade goodies unexpectedly
- hold the door open for someone
- let someone take the parking space first
- give someone an honest compliment
- when driving, give someone space in front of you to change lanes
- be quick to forgive or admit a mistake
- thank the cashier for their help when checking out
Please help me with your ideas as well!
encouraging news!
Published December 14, 2011 Christmas , enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual Leave a CommentTags: encouragement, football, strength, support
This morning I was reading the 2nd half of Romans 8 & it was SUPER encouraging! I am continually astounded at how God gives us exactly what we need when we need it – so I figure that you also may need some encouragement as well. With that in mind, here are some things to think about:
- if God is for you, who can be against you?
- there is nothing that can separate you from God’s love – not the present, future, people, situations, etc. God’s love for you is permanently sticky
- the Holy Spirit & Jesus intercede / pray for you (and they know exactly what & how to pray for you)
- you are fearfully & wonderfully made
- God has plans, hope & a good future for you
- you are highly valuable & super important to God
With these thoughts in mind & many more, keep your head up, your eyes on Jesus, revel in & spread God’s intense & immense love for you today!
Here’s an amazing video that is totally unrelated football
The Help
Published October 24, 2011 family , Holy Spirit , living , spiritual 1 CommentTags: affirmation, encouragement, growing, help!, kind words, support
Ok, I just saw the movie, The Help & I read the book a few weeks ago & I’m a convert – loved it!!! There are so many great take-aways from both the book & the movie with such great life lessons
One thing that keeps getting repeated in my brain is the quote to a little two year old girl in the movie, “you is kind, you is smart, you is important.” These are such powerful words & have such positive imagery, not only for a 2 year old but for all of us. With this in mind, I think it’s super important to consider what we say to each other. Words that affirm, encourage, support, compliment, refresh, strengthen & even give affection are so necessary in our lives. I genuinely believe that the people who are in our lives in all of the many different contexts need such encouragement. And who knows, words like, “you is kind, you is smart, you is important” just might change the world, one person at a time
what should I say???
Published September 20, 2011 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 1 CommentTags: affirmation, conflict, difficult conversations, discussions, encouragement, forgiveness, hard situations, peace maker
We all have had the experience where something has happened or someone has said something & we were left speechless. Sometimes, we’ve had people say things that have been really hurtful. Sometimes, we are in a situation that is very difficult to know how to respond. Sometimes, a conversation goes in a direction that can be uncomfortable. These are just a few examples of when we might be left “speechless”. Thankfully, I’m starting to learn to say less than what I think – whew! But what should we say in difficult situations, conversations etc?
Here are some thoughts:
- be encouraging – look for something positive if you’re expected to make a reply
- wisdom, the leading of the Holy Spirit, helps us to know when we should speak & when we should remain silent; there are appropriate times to be vocal & there are times when silence is golden
- listen to what God would want to achieve through the interchange – getting on God’s page is more helpful than pushing my personal agenda
- speak life – acknowledge shortcomings, be forgiving & affirming
- Jesus said that people who are peace makers are a blessing because they’re called the sons of God – making peace isn’t the same thing as rolling over & playing dead, but it also isn’t about escalating a conflict.
- trying to resolve conflict through email, facebook, text messaging, voicemail, linked in, etc is really difficult & sometimes impossible. Be mindful of what you’re trying to accomplish if you bring up difficult conversations in these settings because there is HUGE AMOUNTS of room for misunderstanding
faith fuel
Published July 19, 2011 Holy Spirit , living , prayer , spiritual 1 CommentTags: encouragement, faith, help!, strength
Honestly, I’ve been thinking about this blog for a few days because I’m wanting to encourage you & your faith in God. I think we all need encouragement to our faith at various times. For example, today I was running some errands & talking with God about some struggles that I’m wrestling with & I was just expressing some honest discouragement to Him. You, as well, might be able to find an area in your life that has some discouragement – maybe even more than 1 ,)
Anyways, I felt like God encouraged me that walking with and obeying Him require faith. In my “better moments”, my faith is solid & I’m confident in God. But I don’t always have, “better moments.” So for those “non-better moments”, here are a few verses to consider praying each day for the next month to strengthen your faith & fuel those “better moments”:
- 2 Chron 16:9 ”For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.
- Matt 19:26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, ” With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- 2 Cor 3:5-6 Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, 6 who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant,
- 2 Chron 20:12, For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”
- Rom 8:28, And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose
Be encouraged my friend – God is working in you, as well as on your behalf
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