I must admit. I wasn't ready for the new year. I'm not happy my husband is without work after being laid off again. I'm not happy the state of our finances. I'm not happy the federal government supposedly has all this "help" available for struggling home owners but it apparently does not apply to us or to anyone we know personally for that matter. So, I'm just not happy that 2011 is here. Ugh.
But at our staff meeting yesterday, our teaching pastor shared about his recent trip to Ethiopia and India. Outside Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa there is a centuries old Orthodox church. When our pastor visited, they could not enter the church as the church was in the midst of a 45 day fast-here we complain if our sermon's go over by 10 minutes because we want to eat lunch! There were men standing around reading their bibles. When asked how long one man had been standing there - our pastor learned he had stood for 36 hours reading his bible without moving!
At the church as a fountain of healing waters. As sceptical Americans, we automatically question that this fountain actually has healing waters. When asked, our pastor was told "of course the waters heal!" What faith. There was no doubt that the children who entered the fountain with aids would come out completely healed!
The most profound was a Jewish Doctor who works in Ethiopia with children who have severe physical abnormalities and has actually adopted 8 children so they can be on his health insurance. When our pastor asked him if he ever questions God amidst seeing all the suffering amongst these children the answer was "Why would I question God? He is Sovereign". But of course!
Oh ye of little faith! We are soo completely spoiled and forget how thankful we really should be!! I absolutely love the Christmas Carol "I heard the Bells on Christmas Day" with words by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. A recent blog posting entitled "The Bells of Hope"convicted me even more!
"God is not dead nor doth He sleep"- He IS Sovereign! Why would we ever question Him??
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