thoughts out loud
Weeks are starting to go by really fast. On one side I really wish they'd slow down because I'm so absolutely in love with this city, the people, and the experience that I don't want it to end; however I am very excited about Thailand! It's so cool to look at the teams for outreach and to look back and see, "Wow God, You really did handpick these teams!" It's cool as!
Looking back I can really see how God has made me more "confident" (for lack of a better word) about being a woman in ministry and in leadership in particular. Past confrontations with differing opinions about women in leadership made me uncomfortably cautious with being who God has made me to be. He's made me to be a leader, He's put that in me. So being here and getting a healthy perspective, encouragement, and opportunities to be in leader roles has really helped give me back the level of affirmation (if that's even the word I'm looking for) that I think I've been and will be in need of. If there's one word that I could use to describe what God's been doing in me this DTS it would be "fulfillment". I'll hash that all out when it gets closer to the end of lecture phase; so you'll just have to suffer with anticipation.
I've made a break through in communication with an "unapproachable" of K'Rd. Most times if you see her she's stumbling down the street screaming and shouting profanities at all who look at her. But God opened a door for me to talk and sit with her. She totally opened up and told me her whole life story. I didn't ask any questions I just listened and gave her a pair of eyes to look into that didn't judge or look down on her but eyes that had compassion on her. I invited her to community lunch but she didn't show, even though she said she would come...but we'll keep trying. Her name is Diana if you want to pray for her. I've got 4 weeks left and I really hope that, since God's given me an open door, I'll be able to just get her plugged into community lunch so that this "break through" wouldn't be in vain.
She told me how she hates it when people pass her by and look down on her like she's ugly and like she's a freak. She said that she used to be beautiful when she was a child and that her dad started abusing her and then she no longer felt beautiful. That she's been a glue sniffer, a paint huffer and now an alcoholic all in attempts to somehow cope with the pain. And to think that all we see are drunkards......Lord forgive us! I encourage you all to read "God In The Alley" by Greg Paul. It really taught me to look for the image of God in people on the streets, because they are, in fact, made in His image; their situations don't change that. And thank God that they don't! I don't even want to begin to think about what my life would look like without that truth reigning over me.
Also feel free to post comments or email me anytime at passionate247@live.com. It's always extremely encouraging to get emails and such just to know that people are there :-).
Until next time this has been "thoughts out loud" by Stephanie Haha goodnight
Looking back I can really see how God has made me more "confident" (for lack of a better word) about being a woman in ministry and in leadership in particular. Past confrontations with differing opinions about women in leadership made me uncomfortably cautious with being who God has made me to be. He's made me to be a leader, He's put that in me. So being here and getting a healthy perspective, encouragement, and opportunities to be in leader roles has really helped give me back the level of affirmation (if that's even the word I'm looking for) that I think I've been and will be in need of. If there's one word that I could use to describe what God's been doing in me this DTS it would be "fulfillment". I'll hash that all out when it gets closer to the end of lecture phase; so you'll just have to suffer with anticipation.
I've made a break through in communication with an "unapproachable" of K'Rd. Most times if you see her she's stumbling down the street screaming and shouting profanities at all who look at her. But God opened a door for me to talk and sit with her. She totally opened up and told me her whole life story. I didn't ask any questions I just listened and gave her a pair of eyes to look into that didn't judge or look down on her but eyes that had compassion on her. I invited her to community lunch but she didn't show, even though she said she would come...but we'll keep trying. Her name is Diana if you want to pray for her. I've got 4 weeks left and I really hope that, since God's given me an open door, I'll be able to just get her plugged into community lunch so that this "break through" wouldn't be in vain.
She told me how she hates it when people pass her by and look down on her like she's ugly and like she's a freak. She said that she used to be beautiful when she was a child and that her dad started abusing her and then she no longer felt beautiful. That she's been a glue sniffer, a paint huffer and now an alcoholic all in attempts to somehow cope with the pain. And to think that all we see are drunkards......Lord forgive us! I encourage you all to read "God In The Alley" by Greg Paul. It really taught me to look for the image of God in people on the streets, because they are, in fact, made in His image; their situations don't change that. And thank God that they don't! I don't even want to begin to think about what my life would look like without that truth reigning over me.
Also feel free to post comments or email me anytime at passionate247@live.com. It's always extremely encouraging to get emails and such just to know that people are there :-).
Until next time this has been "thoughts out loud" by Stephanie Haha goodnight