Stephanie Shott

In my mind I'm able to leap tall buildings with a single bound; I can run marathons and still do cartwheels and backbends, but in reality I've become quite the wimp. I wasn't always like this. There was a time when I was known as the neighborhood tomboy. Every afternoon we'd meet in the local field and play softball, football, soccer, dodgeball and kickball. When we played softball, dodgeball and kickball, I gave those boys a run for their money...but football...now that's another story. My football skills left little to be desired and everyone knew it. I wasn't any better at soccer, either. When it was time to pick teams, I was always the last one standing. It was frustrating and humiliating. It left me broken and feeling "less than." No one wanted me and what was worse is that I wouldn't have chosen me either.



Have you ever felt like the odd girl out...the fifth wheel...the forgotten? It's a painfully lonely place to be, but priceless lessons lie deep beneath the surface of each rejection. No one wants to be left out, but it's just part of life.

As I read the story of Joseph and Matthias in Acts 1, I was reminded of the many times I felt left out when someone else was chosen instead of me. The Bible says the disciples cast lots to see who the Lord would choose to take Judas' place as one of the twelve. It fulfilled scripture, but it had to leave Joseph feeling less than fulfilled. What was it that the Lord saw in him that made him "unworthy"? Wasn't he good enough? Was there a secret sin? Did pride plague his heart? Was God protecting him from circumstances he wasn't ready for? What would the others think of him? How could he face them knowing the Lord had chosen someone else for the job instead of him? So many questions, yet we're left with absolutely no answers. We can only assume how he may have felt.

Tradition tells us that Joseph, a/k/a Barsabbas (son of the Sabbath), a/k/a Justus, went on to become Bishop of Eleutheropolis, where he died a martyr. He may have come in second to Matthias, but he came in ahead of the other 100 or so that were in the room. And if tradition holds true, his rejection was just a bump in the road on his way to faithfully following the Lord and serving the church of Christ in Eleutheropolis.

We all face rejection. We all feel left out at some time or another. But rejection is not failure...it's not the end. Perhaps the "no" you face today is a necessary step to the bigger "yes" you will hear tomorrow.

The question is, how can we make the most of those times when we're passed over for someone else?

1. Take an Honest Evaluation of Yourself - Is there an obvious reason you were passed by? Are you qualified to fulfill the position? Are you ready for the consequences (good or bad) that are sure to come if you were chosen? Can you handle the success, the position, the platform? Are there skills you need to hone before you are placed in that coveted position?

2. Analyze Your Motives - Why do you want to be chosen? Are you willing to be humble? To die to self? To put others first? Are you trying to make a name for yourself or trying to make HIS name known?

3. Think of Others - When someone else is chosen instead of you, perhaps it is for their good. Maybe the Lord sees the need of their heart and has blessed them with a heavenly "yes". It's possible that they were chosen to minister to others in their sphere of influence. Be happy for them. Support them. Let others know you esteem them better than you esteem yourself.

4. Trust God & Rest - God is God, and we are not. He knows all; He sees all. There is nothing that escapes His view, no heart that He does not see, no pain that He is unaware of, no promotion that He does not ordain or allow. Therefore, we can rest in the His sovereignty and trust that if we will humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God...in due time, He will lift us up. Maybe not where we think, maybe not where we plan...but He will lift us up. He promises. So in the meantime, trust God and rest in the fact that He filters every event in our lives through His loving hands.

5. Keep Going - Don't give up. Although not every door is ours to walk through, we all have been given doors with our name on it. As we seek to know the Lord more, we will come to know His will more. William Carey once said, "Attempt great things for God, expect great thing from God." In his attempts to reach India for Christ, William Carey lost his son, his wife, and years of Bible translation for the Indian people when his house burned down...twice! His mission board was against him, his fellow pastors thought he was wasting his time. Yet, when he died at 73 (1834), he had seen the Scriptures translated and printed into forty languages, he had been a college professor, and had founded a college at Serampore. He had seen India open its doors to missionaries, he had seen the edict passed prohibiting sati (burning widows on the funeral pyres of their dead husbands), and he had seen converts for Christ. So, keep going! The Lord isn't through with you yet.

How about you? How do you handle rejection? Share your story and what you learned from your "no".

I wanted to use my blog to allow those who have stories from Haiti to share to do so. Haiti's world has been completely turned upside down and they are still a people in desperate need of help and of prayer. May this blog bring attention to their plight as you read Kristi's story.

The Haitian Faces in My Mind's Eye...

Almost 14 years ago, I stepped off of a plane in Port au Prince, Haiti. It was sweltering hot, but more than the heat assaulted my senses- the rank smell of poverty hit me for the first time in my life.

I spent a week in Port au Prince in spring of 1996. I went back again in August of the same year.

Those weeks changed my life forever. In two short weeks my teenage world was turned upside down as I held dying children in my arms, untied abandoned children from beds where they had been left to starve in the general "hospital" and carried them to safety in a Christian orphanage, shared the gospel from shack to shack and door to door, sat in a voodoo temple while we shared Truth with the witchdoctor, bathed children suffering with scabies and assisted in providing medical care, and saw the freedom that only Jesus can give set people free from bondage much greater than the poverty they lived with.

So now as I hear news accounts that estimate a death toll of over 100,000 in Port au Prince, my mind reels.

Those aren't just numbers. Faces roll through my mind.



“There is a blanket of dust rising from the valley south of the capital,” agency officials said Ms. van de Wetering had told them. “We can hear people calling for help from every corner. The aftershocks are ongoing and making people very nervous.” -NY Times



With many poor residents living in tin-roof shacks that sit precariously on steep ravines and with much of the construction in Port-au-Prince and elsewhere in the country of questionable quality, the expectation was that the quake caused major damage to buildings and significant loss of life. -NY Times



Everywhere, you heard cries from beneath the rubble," Auza said. -CNN



"...government officials said the death toll from Tuesday's 7.0-magnitude earthquake may exceed 100,000." -CNN

If you can help, please help.

Harvest International is the mission agency I traveled with - the founder, Dr. John Leininger, was the father of some of my classmates and accompanied us on the trips. They are requesting donations which will go straight to their missionaries in Port au Prince to help with relief efforts on a local level. You can go to their link here.

You might also consider donating through Compassion International, Samaritan's Purse, the Salvation Army, or many other charities.

But please, let's help. Those numbers are more than numbers... I look at these pictures and wonder how many of those children - now in their late teens or early 20's - survived.

Our world is groaning, Lord... show us how to give mercy in Your name, even from far away.
--
Blogging my way through God's Word and stopping along the way to discuss homekeeping, homeschooling, motherhood, and womanhood!

http://www.krististephens.com

In light of the recent circumstances in Haiti, I will postpone my personal blog post to give you the opportunity to read a letter from one of the missionaries in Haiti. She is thankful, broken, tired and ill, yet she still gives the Lord praise. Below is her letter which I have cut and pasted as I received it:

I am in Jacksonville but not feeling very well. I'm exhausted. The concrete dust has taken a toll on my breathing and I am running a fever. I have a cough, total laryngitis and cannot talk at all.

Some structures are OK. Many houses fell down. Many more are standing but were damaged and are unsafe. Thousands of people have died. Many are hurt.

By the grace of God and a miracle, I am alive. I was walking in my room when the earthquake hit. I tried to run but fell down into the hall and couldn't get up. I crawled into the bathroom, put a little plastic table over my head, and watched my room fall off the building. Had I been sitting in my room, I would not have gotten out. The noise was terrible and concrete was falling all around me. I praise the Lord that I got out with just a few little bumps & bruises. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The house is totally destroyed. The back third of the house fell off. It is a miracle anyone got out.

The children all ran outside. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! They are OK except for Peterson who died instantly when the house fell on him.

We had about 150 people sleeping in the yard Tuesday evening. Pastor Cenor came by Tuesday evening and I asked him to sing & pray with the people in the yard. They thanked the Lord that they were alive. 9 people accepted Jesus. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The children have a praise time every evening. They thank the Lord for everything they have.Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!

There were many injured people in the yard Tuesday evening. One little girl had a big gash in her leg and was losing a lot of blood. Karen Bultje was able to take them to the Sisters of Charity who still had a building and medicines & bandages. Then the little girl was brought back because everyone slept outside because there were frequent aftershocks, some pretty strong. Karen gave us some Ibuprophen to give the injured.

The children are eating. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! We found boxes of Feed my Starving Children rice mix. Then someone gave us cases of Poptarts. They like Poptarts. They are sleeping in the yard of the construction site. Tuesday night they slept on the ground, but by Wednesday we had started to find some mattresses. It is cold at night. By Friday we were finding blankets and sheets. It is very cold at night - especially sleeping outside on the ground. The wind blows fine concrete dust all the time. We have worked very hard scavenging whatever we could from the rubble. We are all exhausted.

We got our medicines out. Sometimes there were aftershocks and the building was shaking as we were working. A doctor with the Restavek Assoc. came by and asked for medicines. She went off Thursday and Friday with a laundry basket full of medicines and bandages to help people.

We have taken in more children. I don't know how many because we had no paper to make a list. Some school children are staying there while the family stays with relatives in the countryside. I expect to get multitudes of children. Please pray that we can help the children who lost parents in the earthquake.

It is very important that we try to keep going. We need to continue the feeding program and medical program. The children in 4th - 7th grades still have classrooms. They need to continue. They need some sort of a normal life. Please pray that we can continue feeding and caring for children.

We got some stuff out of the house. Most of the clothing is ripped & covered with concrete. The children need shoes.

Please help us. The wall around the construction site fell down and needs to be rebuilt. We need to finish the 2nd floor of the construction site to make space. Right now, we are very crowded. We will have about 20 boys in 1 bedroom. We need to build a school kitchen and an orphanage. We need clothing, shoes, and everything for daily living. For right now, cash will be better than people collecting things. You can donate on line at http://www.christianlightfoundation.com (Please be sure to designate your contribution "Sherrie Fausey-Haiti")

Thank you for your prayers. The Lord took care of us.

God bless you,

Sherrie Fausey
Christian Light Foundation
PO Box 23881
Jacksonville, FL 32241-3881

A Follow-up letter on some efforts that are taking place through Christian Light Foundation to help minister the love of Jesus in this time of crisis. Again, I have cut and pasted it below:

Today we leave with a small medical and construction team for Port au Prince, Haiti. We will be taking a flight with MAF (missionary flight). The guest house we usually stay in was destroyed so we will be sleeping outside in the courtyard of Sherrie Fausey's orphanage. We will set up a base medical camp at Karen Bultje's compound as the walls are partially up there.We will also be doing a mobile medical cllinic to the refugee area. The construction team will be replacing the walls as this is needed for security. Please pray for our team, for emotional, spiritual and physical strength and that we can bring comfort to as many Haitians and missionaries as the Lord sends our way.
In His Grace
Dr. Karen

I've been out of the blogging loop for a couple of weeks while taking care of my mom during her battle with cancer, but yesterday's tragedy in Haiti has called this missionary girl into action.

What are we to do when our world is literally shaken? How do we respond to tragedy when it is impossible for us to be there to lend a helping hand? The answer is...we can give. We can help relief efforts by financially supporting their work. But when we give, it's important that we know we are giving to those agencies that will sow spiritual seeds as they minister to meet the physical needs of those whose lives have been forever altered.

There's a saying among among missionaries that says, "We must be careful not to make them comfortable on their way to hell." It's a reminder that while we are reaching out to minister the love of Jesus in their time of need that we don't forget their most important need is Jesus.

It is to that end that I am giving a few links and suggestions as to how to give to those who are making a huge difference in Jesus name. I'm having trouble posting them as links, but you can copy and paste them to access their sites.

To those who are on the field now:
1. Missionaries Currently Serving There - You may know of a missionary that currently serves there or perhaps your church does. Those missionaries already have established relationships with people and organizations who can help them in the process of disaster relief. Many agencies depend on those missionaries to direct them to the greatest places of need. You can help them personally as their ministry has just been expanded far beyond their ability to financially meet the needs.

If you don't know a missionary personally or if your church doesn't, our mission board has several missionaries in Haiti. They run orphanages, feed homeless children and adults, and minister to their communities for the sake of the Gospel. You can give to help them minister in this time of crisis by going to the website and choosing to donate online. The site address is: http://www.christianlightfoundation.com (Be sure to type "Haiti" in the box labeled 'Country').

2. You can give to reputable agencies who specialize in disaster relief in the name of Jesus. One of the best ones I know of is Samaritans Purse. I once went through a disaster relief training course with them and found out they are the first ones in and the last ones out. Their response teams are top-notch and well trained. You can give online at http://www.samaritanspurse.com

The Southern Baptist Convention- Through the IMB, they have a great reputation for ministering in time of need. You can give on their site at http://www.sbc.net/redirect.asp?url=http://www.imb.org

World Vision - Although I'm not as familiar with them, World Vision is known for their ministry to those in need, as well. You can help them help those in need by giving online at http://www.worldvision.org/home.nsf/pages/home.htm

The Red Cross - Although not overtly Christian, the American Red Cross is one of the best in disaster relief and many Christians serve others through the American Red Cross. You can give to them online at http://www.redcross.org/

These are just a few opportunities to help those whose lives have been devastated in a moment of time. You may not feel led to give to any of these organizations, but let this be a time that you give to those who will never have the funds to help themselves.

Perhaps you can go with one of these groups to help in the disaster relief. My only advice is...be like Nike and "Just Do It"

If you know of a missionary on the field there or a trustworthy organization that you would like to mention, please do so. We're trying to form a list and we welcome your input.

My heart is a scrambled mix of emotions and my words, a jumbled mess. I have no idea how I'm going to get through this blog, but I feel as though I must write. Memories don't fade easily when they're inscribed in ink, as well as on the heart. And I definitely don't want to forget the lessons learned from life, death and all things in between.

I thought my research for Ecclesiastes: Understanding What Matters Most had taught me a lot about the brevity of life and the need to live life on purpose, but sitting beside my mom's hospital bed has magnified the message Solomon uttered millenniums ago. Life truly is but a vapor.

Defined by the dash between the year of our birth and the year of our death, we have just a short time to live a life of purpose...to make a difference in this life we all live under the sun. Our birth certificate may inadvertently come with a life expectancy, but it isn't guaranteed. Tomorrow may never come. So what should we be doing with the days the Lord has given us? Which dreams should we be pursuing? How then should we live?

Jesus told us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Paul told us to set our affections on things above, not on the things of this earth. Living for Christ...that is to be the motivating factor for our lives. Nothing else matters when they're calling in Hospice.

But how can we really begin doing more than just talking about making a difference in the lives of others...fulfilling God's call on our lives and reaching this world for Christ?

1. Analyze Take a good hard look at your life. What is it you are called to do? What steps are needed to get there? What are you doing (or not doing) that's preventing you from fulfilling that which you were born to do? How many irons do you have in the fire? Write down your dreams and goals. Think about what you want to accomplish and begin charting a course for your destination. If you have no target, you have no aim. Living life on purpose requires honest self-evaluation, but be ready to implement some difficult changes.

2. Simplify Eliminate the excess baggage. Cut the pork. Get rid of that which consumes your time and prevents you from being what God has called and gifted you to be. We are much more effective when we narrow our focus to that which we know we need to do, rather than trying to do a little bit of everything. For me, it means taking a social media break and fasting from television. For some it may mean shopping much less and spending more time on honing the skills or stirring up the gifts God has given them, for others, it means getting rid of the stuff that takes too much time to take care of. What ever it is, just simplify. Just remember...not every door is ours to walk through.

3. Organize I blogged about it earlier this year, but it's a good idea to make a "life list." Have a clue about where you are going and what it takes to get there. De-clutter. Get your finances in order. Believe it or not, being organized is a time saver. It doesn't mean you're stuck with your plan til death do you part, it just means you have one and you have chartered your course from point "A" to point "B."

4. Get Busy Good intentions are just that...intentions. We have to do more than talk about what we want to do; we have to put some feet to our prayers and begin to pursue our plans. Actions do speak louder than words. If you want to work with the homeless, go to the local shelter and see if you can help. If you're called to women's ministry, begin seeking opportunities to minister to women. Go to the local hospital and see if they could use a volunteer. Pour your life into young mothers at the women's shelter. Do some research in your area. You'll be surprised what opportunities are available for those who are willing to serve. Get busy.

It doesn't seem that long ago that my mom was cheering me on while I played softball...tucking me in when I was afraid...always challenging me to buck up and be strong. It feels like yesterday when she and her best friend took a wild ride across country. Oh, how time truly flies. What a lesson to learn as I tearfully watch my mom transition from this life to the next.

We only have one shot to do this thing called life. It's not a dress rehearsal for the real thing...it is the real thing. Oh, how short this life really is! We can't allow our resolutions to become just good intentions. After all, living a life of purpose means we have to live life on purpose. Seeking God, living for Him, fulfilling our call, running the race, finishing the course He has set before us.

What is it that you do to live this life on purpose? Share your resolutions. Make them public and hold yourself accountable to follow through.