Loving Like Jesus

 My Dear Readers,
    I think it is too easy to feel alone in this world. Do you agree? But if we all agree that this world has too many nooks for people to fall into and be forgotten about- then why do those nooks exist?
  I don't know the answer, and really that is why I'm asking. I have an idea,though. It may be because we are all human, and none of us is perfect. Oh, how I hate my many imperfections. And we all have them. Don't trick yourself into thinking we will have perfect peace on this world. Until Jesus comes, there is no way this can happen. Because we are HUMAN. And humans sin. However, aren't humans also made in God's image? So, what does this mean? It means we strive to be like Jesus. It means every ounce of our energy goes into being like our God. It means we catch people before they walk out the door, unnoticed, and into that dark corner of aloneness. It means we don't put people down. We raise them up. There is a song by Casting Crowns that I really like. It is called "Does anybody hear her", and it is about this woman who is searching for hope. And one of my favorite lines is "Does anybody even  know she's going down today under the shadow of our steeple  with all the lost and lonely people? Searching for the HOPE that's tucked away in YOU and ME."
   We shine with the hope of Jesus. And all I want to do is share it with people. But a problem us humans have is in the next verse-
    "If judgment looms under every steeple, with lofty glances from lofty people who can't see past her scarlet letter, and we haven't even met her."  
   Maybe that is one of the reasons why there are not more Christians in the world today.Because we are choosing whose hearts we break for, and are judging the rest.  Maybe that is why too many people feel unloved and unwanted, lost in a dark corner of the world. But it's not true.
We are ALL loved by the Creator of the world, who created us as His most precious creation. So we should never feel alone. 
   If you want to show people that they ARE TRULY loved by the Wonderful Shepherd, show them your love. Love them unconditionally, and then, God will plant a seed. Then they will realize that they are loved.  And you can show them they're not alone. That is loving like Jesus.
None of us are ever alone, so keep holding on to God!  Love,
  Claire
P.S. this is labeled under 'links for mission oppurtunities'. There are not really any links in here, but I wanted this post to give you all the ministry oppurtunity to love like Jesus. To go love those who feel unloved. So, please go out and do it! I believe God has called us all to this.

The little moments

Dear Readers,
  Lots of little things have happened in this past week that I would like to share with you all. Nothing big or major, this really isn't too profound of a post, I just was feeling thankful for all the moments last week and wanted to share.  So. Let me start with book club and move on from there.
   It was wonderful. Mom and I were in book club when I was in public school, so we found a couple of neat things to do at book club. Since our book was about a girl with Congenital Heart Defect who gets a heart transplant, and her quest to meet her donor's family, I found a video on the author's website of a heart transplant recipient meeting her donor's parents. It was touching and everyone had tears in their eyes.
   Next, I took some facts on transplants off my friend's blog and shared those with the group. (remember my post about "My life as a Chronically Ill Teen"? That's her.)  I thought that was perfect because it really gave the other members an idea of what the real statistics are (this was a fictional book).
    And then we talked about the book! It had a few questions at the back of the book that we based our discussion off of, and everyone had really good things to say and a great perspective. However, since our discussion centered on death, (the book was written from two perspectives- Amelia, the girl who receives the heart transplant, and how she now feels with a new heart in her (she felt athletic and, where she couldn't even climb the stairs before, she now feels like she could run up them.) and Eagan's perspective from a place kind of in between death and life (which was weird). So, everyone opted for a more cheerful option next time. (I tend to gravitate to sad books.) So now we are reading "Love, Ruby Lavender". It takes place in my Mom's birthplace, Mississippi, so of course will be good! I'll share more about it after our next meeting. But, the meeting was a lot of fun, and I loved talking with Mom about the book as we read it.

  Well, the rest of the week was also  good. Thankfully, Uncle Len finally came home, and the end of the year party for sign language was wonderful. I love having that group as friends. We also got to see a few new movies this weekend, which was good. It's always fun just to 'be'  as a family.
  And today Mason left for CIY! It will be in Durango, Colorado. We'll miss him.
Cate has Vacation Bible School all week. She is very excited about that! I have such fond memories of Rochester VBS, I'm sure she'll have wonderful Phoenix ones! 
   And, that's about it! I did want to share with you all a picture of the shorts I made in sewing class. It was an adventure! I'll give you a few details--I was the last one done, had to get the seam ripper out twice, and even after it was all over was not brave enough to try them on. They do, however, fit, and are not as bad as I thought! 
  Well, I hope I haven't  bored you with the little doings going on around here! I hope y'all are all enjoying the little moments summer has to offer. It's the book club meetings, friends, and family movie nights that makes summer so special, I think. All those blessings wrapped up in little packages. I'm praying God sends some your way this summer! Your Blogger,
 Claire                                                   



"From the fullness of His Grace we have all  received one blessing after another"
John 1:16

  Remember to praise God for the blessings that come your way, dear ones! They're all from Him.

Mi Madre y yo in Mexico- Time to serve

Dear Readers,

We are home from Mexico. from Mexico... It was such a spur of the moment blessing, I'm still shocked by it! So, if I am, y'all surely will have a hard time grasping it. So let me set the stage for you-

Mom and I hopped on board the week before they left for Ensenada. They needed a photographer, and that is Mom's hobby. (She is AMAZING- just check out her blog, The Blessing Counter, and you'll see what I mean! )

So, we prayed the whole time we were at Disneyland, and the next weekend were on our way! Mom and I. Driving to Ensenada, Mexico. With hours of Scrabble ahead of us. Ahh....It was really, truly a breath of fresh air for my soul.

So, once we crossed the border, we stopped at a little taco place for lunch. Yum. We also drank Mexican Frescas! The lady who served us was so sweet- she helped us order in espanol! I was hooked since then and still haven't stopped speaking in spanish!

 So, we stayed at Rancho De Refugio, which was breathtaking. And the owners of the ranch, who entered their mission field age 60+, were so sweet! Mom and I thought it was a beautiful example of how, just because the present time is not your season to go into the mission field, God may have one planned for you when you expect to be lounging in an RV! Retirement shouldn't exist for us Christians. We should serve the Lord until the day we die!
     We also got to listen to a couple who were missionaries to Papua New Guinea. They took a tribe who just two years before had practiced cannibalism, and was currently allowing girls ages 8 and up to be "community property", and taught them about the Lord. They were there for six years, however, before they could begin preaching. Talk about patience! They were such a beautiful example to us in so many ways, and their stories were uplifting and made all of us want to head out to the barrios!

  Well, the next day we did get to go to the barrios. That was ALL I had wanted to do. All weekend. I just wanted to be with the kids. And when we woke up, it was frigid, the wind was howling, and the fog felt like rain. NO!!!  I threatened to walk to the barrios if no one would drive. My head almost combusted when someone said we might just be 'hanging out' all day. I was not in Mexico to 'hang out'!!! Thankfully, God knew why were there, and the men said as soon as they pulled the hammer out (they were fixing the roof of the police department) the sun came out. Praise the Lord! God is so good.

We brought bookmarks, and this little boy wanted his picture with every one!

This bebe was precious!

We painted their faces, and after a while the kids wanted to paint our faces!

This is mi amiga Lorena. She is learning english, and I'm learning spanish! What a perfect pair.
She painted a big and beautiful flower on my cheek!

This man pulled his son to him and asked me to take their picture.
My heart breaks.

The children would call out "Hermana-un foto!" to my mom, asking their 'sister' for a picture. They called me 'nina', for girl, and we would take turns- I would take their picture, show it to them, and tell them they were bonita. (beautiful) Then, I let some little girls borrow my camera. They took a picture of me and, showing it to me, said "bonita!" Oh.     I truly love these children!  It was so hard to leave them. But God is doing amazing things in Mexico! At Rancho De Refugio, they are building a school for the children in these pictures. Many have never been to school before.   But this school is huge, beautiful, and will be a wonderful environment for them to grow in Jesus.

Well- thank you for reading all of this! Mexico is one of my loves, and I'm SO passionate about these missions that of course they deserve a couple hundred pages of words!! I encourage all of you to be ready- you never know when God will open up a season in your life! Whether it is for a short hop over the border or 3 weeks in Africa, or 21 years in Papua New Guinea's unreached tribes- you can make a difference for the Lord! But meanwhile, continue to serve Him in every aspect of your life- from the grocery store to the church pew! Your Blogger,

 Claire