Hammer on Anvil '

There is nothing like spending a couple weeks in a third world country to drastically alter your outlook on life. I wanted for God to stretch me and teach me and rattle my cage spiritually, and He more than delivered.

My husband and I, along with a team of 17 others, returned last Tuesday from South Africa. I thought I would have lots to blog about. But when I sat down to write, words wouldn't come. How can I communicate in mere words what I experienced in those two weeks?

For now, I am going to talk about gratitude. As I read the short epistle of Paul to the Colossians this morning, I was struck by the fact that exhortations to be thankful were mentioned five times (in a book with only four chapters!). I began to weep as the Holy Spirit revealed the ingratitude in my heart. He showed me my tendency to complain rather than be thankful. I have allowed the culture I live in to influence me in negative ways.

For the most part, we Americans have no idea how blessed we are. We consider it a hardship if our internet stops working temporarily. We get aggravated if our iPhone drops a call. We are annoyed if our favorite TV show gets preempted by some sports event or the president's State of the Union address. Other drivers provoke us to use language that would make a sailor blush.

Now come with me to South Africa. The little girl in the picture with me above is six years old and has spent her entire life in an orphanage. She was so brutally raped when she was 18 months old that she couldn't walk for some time. Remarkably, though, she seemed to be the happiest and most personable child in the orphanage. I spent about an hour playing with her on the playground. She was smart as a whip, was very articulate, and spoke English well. I didn't know her tragic story until later.

The part of South Africa where we were reminded me a great deal of the Phoenix area -- very dry and dusty, but mountainous and beautiful. I took old tennis shoes because I was told they would get pretty trashed as we played outside with children, walked with lions, etc. The fabric on the inside back of those shoes was already torn away, and after two weeks walking in the red dirt, the mesh parts of the shoes were saturated. As I packed our suitcases for the return home, I decided to trash the tennis shoes. They weren't worth bringing home.

Later that day Jim Blessman, the founder of the ministry we worked with, fished my shoes out of the trash and offered them to one of his employees. The shoes fit her perfectly and she was so delighted to have them that she almost cried. I didn't even think about offering the shoes to anyone because they were so dirty and beat-up. When I said as much to Jim, he responded, "Your worst shoes were better than anything she had."

I think I'm going to stop writing for now. Please take the time to meditate on these two scenarios I have just described, and allow God to speak to your heart. Perhaps, like me, you will need to repent because you do not "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Maybe you take for granted the abundance of possessions you have, and gripe that you don't have more.

In subsequent blogs, I will continue to write about our journey. Stay tuned.