He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. - Ecclesiastes 3:11, NIV

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Back from Haiti

I’m back from Haiti. When I read that, I struggle to find words to describe everything I saw and experienced in Haiti. Then I question if there are even words to do so. Regardless, I’m going to give it a try.

I’ll start where I left off, as I apologize for not writing the last few nights – I was completely exhausted by the end of the day and needed some sleep. The second day we were there, a team of 10 of us from the US went to the grounds of where a new “tent city” is being built. However, this one, was being built for approximately 500-700 people. Our team built latrines and showers for these folks, as well as laid 100 feet of pipeline for their septic system. The tent city was one of many set up throughout Port-au-Prince, and the new home of thousands who have lost their homes in the devastating earthquake.

These people have been through a horrific nightmare, and the crumpled buildings along the streets are a daily reminder of that nightmare, not to mention the personal tragedies clinging to their lives. After building the tent city, our team took a drive through downtown Port-au-Prince to look around at the devastation. It was heartbreaking. I had heard a quote once, long ago, which said the erection of a building often signifies the dream of one person or many. Looking around Haiti, you see a just a glimpse of thousands of shattered dreams. No, actually, you are in a pit of shattered dreams. On our way driving out of Port-au-Prince, we drove along this port, and on the right hand side was a sea of slums. Now, I’ve been to some pretty poor places in my lifetime (Cambodia, Nepal, etc.), but these slums were by far the worst poverty I have ever seen in my life. “Homes” erected from literal cardboard or rusting sheet metal, as far as the eye could see. Human and animal feces on the ground everywhere, as well as loads of trash and rotting food. Wild pigs running around eating the trash and random compost on the ground. You could see their struggles plain as day. These slums had an unrelenting smell even if you drive by, this was worse than any image you have seen in Slumdog Millionaire. As I said, it was unreal, and it broke my heart for these poor people.

Furthermore, Haiti has only a 20% literacy rate. The earthquake did nothing to help the odds of these people get educated. 90% of schools in Haiti collapsed in the earthquake, and are not projected to be completely rebuilt for 1-3 years. So, many of the kids will not have schooling for 1-3 years, meaning Haiti is absolutely desperate for teachers or any who can bring education to these poor souls.
Many orphanages collapsed leaving thousands of orphans without a place to call home. Considering they’ve already battled the loss or abandonment of parents, they now face the strife of finding a home or somehow getting schooling. Schooling is seen as their way of bettering their situation, and actually making a future for themselves. For me, as I sit here and reflect on the easily hopeless situation of many of these people, orphans, and children, I think of these two verses:

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. – Jeremiah 29:11, NIV

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. – Deuteronomy 31:8, NIV

God is alive in Haiti, and He is the King of these people. He has not left them, but He is with them in the midst of their tragedy; He is with them in the midst of their hopelessness; He is holding them when they cry; He is with them when they don’t know where they are going to live or how they are going to get through tomorrow; He is holding their hand as they walk down the dusty roads looking for a new place to live; He carrying them, every, single, step, of the way. We thankfully serve a God of compassion and love, who loves these people so very much, and He cries with them.

As I settle back in to comfortable, developed world life, I pray I do not become complacent. I pray I do not let Haiti become a mere trip I did once; I pray I do not let it all become a memory; I pray I do not forget the hearts of the orphans and the people of Haiti; I pray I do not forget their suffering; I pray I carry these images with me each day; I pray I remember the hugs of these sweet handicapped orphans every day – how in the midst of their tragedy, they are able to selflessly love ME. Think about that…..these children have nothing to offer but a smile and a hug. Despite all that they are going through, they do not wallow in their victimization, instead they reach out in love with a smile and a hug. These children teach us more than we can ever know or fathom, and I know that is God’s love at work in them.

As you read this, if you feel God is encouraging you to reach out to Haiti, do it. Give or go, or both. God’s word is clear about reaching out to those in need:

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." – Luke 18:22, NIV

I pray we reach out to Haiti, and also not forget the last part – “Then come, follow me.” God is so good, and following Him provides a life which not only honors Him, but also makes us complete. Let us love Haiti, not just for ourselves and because it makes us feel good, but let us love Haiti for God. God uses us to love the least, the last, and the lost; God uses us to love the outcasts; God uses us to love Haiti and each other. Please join me in praying for Haiti. I pray blessings upon you, and thank you, love y’all!

<><
KB

In Haiti

Hey y'all!

So first, I'm writing this on an iPhone, so I apologize if it's a bit jostled. LoL. A huge thank you to at and t wireless for giving free service to all relief workers and customers in Haiti!! :-). Next, my gmail address book didn't download to my phone, so I typed what I had by memory, so if you could please forward this on to the usual folks (or anyone you'd think cares about what God is doing in Haiti, go for it!), I would so appreciate it!

So, this is a straight up warzone. No way around it. US military is here, and US customs isn't even up and running yet, so we literally got off the plane and walked in the country. There are tent cities everywhere, people don't even want to live in structured housing because of fear the roof would collapse over another earthquake. There are tons of thousands of homeless, thousands of orphans as a result of the quake, and too many to count amputees. We rode in a military vehicle around town delivering medical supplies to a tent hospital, and people often seize the vehicle begging for food, water, and money when we go down alley ways.

On another note, we are sleeping in tents. No showers. Yep, so I'm living off snacks (thank you Lance crackers) and we actually got one meal tonight, praise the Lord! There are 120 people on the team. We are set up on the lawn of a Christian children's orphanage and hospital, complete with security guards and high walls. It is steaming hot here, I'm even sunburned from riding around in the military truck half of the day.

I truly believe God is working in the reverse here, on many levels. Too many stories to type at the moment, but there have been numerous challenges for the team, and for myself, personally.

The woman who runs the orphanage here, Miriam, is truly amazing. She is very committed to Christ and letting God's love move mountains. She has held dying orphans, she has given shelter to the rejected, the down trodden, and the out casted. She truly loves the least, the last, and the lost. Her assistant Chris, a Christian woman from Washington state, is just as full of the Holy Spirit. True blessings to His Kingdom, and they need help more than ever. They need doctors, they need teachers, they need counselors and they need Pastors. Desperately. All the schools have collapsed, so the children need education. The government has said it would be 1-3 years before schools would be rebuilt.

Another story that really impacted me today, we decide to walk outside the compound for a bit. We stumbled upon a seminary, or what used to be a seminary. The whole seminary collapsed to the ground, and we were able to walk amongst the ruble. Among the ruble, I found some one's bible note cards, a hymnal book, what seemed to be a bible, study notes, pillows, underwear, and clothes. It was devastating. To think, our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, had once sat there, just a mere month ago to study Gods word, aspiring to be leaders for our church. I met the head pastor, David, a warm man who you can tell is full of Gods love. I was told that there may even be bodies still under the ruble at the seminary, as there are thousands still unaccounted for in Haiti. However, the amazing thing is that the church on the campus, the physical building and cross, were still standing unharmed. Do you see how amazing that is?! The church was still standing, the cross was still raised. That resonated with me, and I know God has so much more to do here through the church. Our church, we are all in the same church, regardless of physical address.

Anyhow, I better get to bed, it's late, and it's finally cooled off here. Good night, and I deeply ask you to not forget Haiti. Please pray for Haiti. Let the Holy Spirit guide you in your prayers, and please please pray for Haiti.

Y'all are awesome and miss you much!

In His Steps,
KB

Sent from my iPhone

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Olympics: Giving God the Glory!

It’s that time again, the Winter Olympics are going on as we speak in Vancouver, Canada! You know, I absolutely LOVE watching the Olympics. I mean, LOVE it. Each athlete going out into an arena, going on course, stepping up to the starting line, just giving it their all and then some, leaving it all out on their performance. No stone unturned, all the preparation leading up to one moment; one race; one performance; one run; one ride; one game; for one chance to take home - the gold. Most of the athletes train all their lives for that one moment, all of the investment; the training; the working out and dieting; the conditioning; the practice runs; the time and money; the focus; it all coming down to that one moment. I mean, wow, that can be a lot of pressure, right?

I’ll share something about my past, that I would fair to say maybe only half of my current friends today actually know about me. And about half of the friends in my life that know about my past, probably don’t even know the whole story.

It’s funny how when time passes, the moments we lived for only become a small memory; a vague recollection of photos and feelings we recall in our minds. When I was 9 years old, I began horseback riding, dancing, and softball. Soon thereafter, my parents encouraged me to choose one sport instead of three, so like any young girl who was horse crazy, I chose the horses. After one year of riding, the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics were all over the TV and since I was only 10 years old, I would spend my mornings watching the Olympics until my Mom could take me to the barn on her lunch hour. I began dreaming about being the best equestrian rider in the world as I watched Michael Matz (famous equestrian rider, who won the Bronze medal that year) and Anne Kurzinski perform on the United States Equestrian Team. I would hold mock “medal ceremonies” in my backyard and sing the USA National Anthem on the top of my lungs for the whole neighborhood to hear (the podium was actually some wooden steps I used to jump into our pool, my bouquet of “roses” were some weeds, and I used a ring pop on a string for a medal). It was my whole life.

Well, fast forward 10 years….7 National Titles later - in the USA and Canada, 1 Equitation rider of the year award, #2 year end ranking by the United Professional Horseman’s Association, and finally I was competing for a spot on team USA to compete at the 2002 World Cup held in Capetown, South Africa. I learned a lot about winning, and I learned a lot about losing. You see, in the world of competition, giving 100% isn’t enough. You have to give 150%, ALL the time. When you aren’t riding, your reviewing past rides on video; when you aren’t reviewing past rides, your conditioning; when you aren’t conditioning, your traveling to competitions; when you aren’t traveling to competitions, you are looking at your equipment for improvements; it never ends, always improving.

I learned valuable lessons about being dedicated, being determined, about how to not fear failure or even success. I learned that the only competitor in any true competition is yourself. The minute you start comparing yourself to others and how they train, or compete, you lose. You can’t control how fast others excel or how they train, but you can control your own training ethic and what you put into it. It’s always you against you out there, no matter how deep and wide the competition field. However, there comes a point in every athlete’s career when you want to give up. It gets hard, really hard. Your body gets sore or injured, you get tired of passing up on “normal life” and you come face to face with the biggest question every athlete faces and that’s this: Why? Why do we do it? Why do I do this sport? What is my reason to keep training? To keep competing? To keep conditioning?

One valuable thing, probably the most valuable thing I learned towards the end of my equestrian career, is that unless Jesus Christ is involved, it’s just another win. It’s just another ribbon, another trophy, another medal, another sum of money that will get used up somehow, and that’s it. Sure, you'll be "the best" for a while, but then what? Your name goes into a record, and the organization may print your name in a book every year at new competitions, and that’s it. People come and go in the sport, and sometimes the new-comers to the sport may hear of your name and how you were a great athlete, you might inspire them to be great too, and then on goes the cycle. However, most of the time, the trophies and ribbons get dusty, the roses wilt then die, the money gets spent, and people slowly start to forget who you are and what you did, or won. Then what?

So, why do it? My point is, as an athlete, at the end of your life, you may say, “Why yes, I did win a gold medal, or National Championship, or MVP….here is the medal or trophy!” But just like any other material possession, you aren’t taking it with you when you die. It stays here, and sure, your legacy of great athleticism may live on, but who is it glorifying? You or our Creator?

God gives us our athletic ability to glorify Him, it’s a gift from Him. Without Him, we wouldn’t have the ability to ride, to run, to ski, to skate, to play, to swim, to compete in anything. So, in the midst of that glorious victory moment, there is a choice to glorify God, our Creator, or glorify yourself.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. – Psalm 139:13-14, NIV

For competitors, it’s a challenge to not let your sport become an idol, or your ability to perform the sport. However, if you don’t make an effort to keep God number one, it becomes all about you and your win, instead of God’s glory and God’s win. It always makes me smile when I see our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ compete and win, for God’s glory, as it is an ambassador of Christ standing on the podium. The sports we love become such a battlefield to fight idolatry, but it is Christ in us, who can emerge to have the glory if we make Him the center of our lives regardless of our chosen field of endeavor.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. – 1 Corinthians 9:24, NIV

In the above verse, I believe God is calling us to go out and be the best at what we do, especially in the sports arena. However, it is not for our selfish glory, for the glory goes to our Creator, our heavenly Father. It is His name, and not our name, that is to hit the media waves; the history books (not to mention our Father is in the best seller of ALL time, the Bible); Twitter; Facebook; and any other social or media outlet out there discussing the victory of athletes. It’s what you do with your spotlight, do you keep it for yourself, or do you use it to further God’s kingdom?

For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. – James 3:16, NIV

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. – Philippians 2:3, NIV

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. – Galatians 5:19-21, NIV

We are called to do NOTHING for our own ambition, but to honor God with everything. Every good gift is from above, the spotlight and the podium belongs to God. When we get that trophy, that medal, the roses, the award, the "best" performance, what do we do with it? Let’s give the glory to our Creator, our heavenly Father, for without Him, we could not even compete.

Present day, I have ridden a horse one time in the last 7 years. I retired at the end of 2002 with God leading me in the direction of academic pursuits and a different career. Today, I’m lucky if a rider remembers seeing me in the arena nearly 10 years ago. I couldn’t even tell you where any of the ribbons are that I earned (and there have been over 500); I dried out some roses from victory ceremonies, and I’m certain they are in the bottom of a box somewhere in the attic; my trophies have either broke from moving or have dust on them in some box somewhere. It’s all just a memory, and I still strive to convey to many that Jesus Christ is the entire reason for my success, both in and out of the competition arena. It is Him that I want people to remember, not me. And to be honest, I could have always done a better job at bringing Him glory at each opportunity I earned. Competing was one of the best times of my life, and I don’t regret one second of it. God is such a good God, and His plan for us is perfect. How are you using your victories? How are you using your passions for God’s glory?

I’m praying for you dear friends! I know God is using you, your abilities, and your passions to glorify Him. I pray that you make Him the center of every training session, every victory ceremony, every acceptance speech, every interview, and I pray for open doors for you to share Him at each corner. He made you for this moment, He made you for this life, and He has it all planned out. Let the spectators remember God’s glory through you, instead of your own which fades away. I love y’all! Many blessings and more victories to you!

<><
K