Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep. There's that painful noise again. Beep Beep Beep Beep Beep. The noise I dread hearing every morning. The clock flashes 5:35, I know what that means, I have to get out of my warm and cozy bed and face the day. Another day, same old routine. Get up, get ready, take dog out, go to school, come home, do homework, eat dinner, get unready, go to bed. Repeat.
Just like every other morning, this was the process that I went through on this specific dreadful morning. However this morning I guess you could say "I woke up on the wrong side of the bed." From the very beginning nothing was going right. I left my makeup out in my car so I had to go outside in the freezing cold to retrieve it. My puppy "had an accident" on the floor during the night so I had to clean that up. My hair was still wet from the night before so I had to take time to go downstairs to use my mother's hair dryer because mine is broken. This unfortunate series of events of course caused me to be running behind. To top everything off, when I was finally ready to go, my brother was not. I snapped at him for not being ready on time, and then I snapped at my mother for not having him ready on time. I then continued to storm out of the house and drove to school in complete silence. (I know surprising right, me completely silent??)
I continued to go through the motions of my day and was even approached by several of my friends asking if I felt alright. Apparently my mood was not only affecting my day, but the day of the people around me. I was so absorbed with my own miniscule problems and in my own universe that I forgot about everyone else around me. No matter how hard I tried my mood could not and would not improve.
When I got home later that day I decided to just hole myself up in my room and do the world a favor. I had had the worst day possible and I honestly just didn't care about how anyone else's went. It was then that I decided to open my laptop and just try to escape. I went through my usual social media routine- twitter, Facebook, pinterest. I then on a whim decided to check Katie Davis's blog. And smack, I was brought back out of my own universe into reality. I read about Eight-year-old Angela Amoiti who lives deep in the Ugandan village of Buyizia.She is one of the girls in Amazima's program and the post talked about how thankful she was to get sponsored and to get to go to school. She had just taken her first ever ride on a motorized vehicle and was introducing Katie to her family. Her responsibilities at home include cooking, fetching water, washing clothes, and helping to farm the small plot of land that belongs to their family. Here was an eight year old doing all of this and filled with nothing less than complete and utter joy. And what was I doing? Pouting after a hard day in my nice home, warm car, and eighteen thousand dollar a year private school. I don't think I need to explain just how selfish and shallow I felt.I dropped down to my knees and prayed. I prayed for forgiveness and I asked for his eyes and heart for the world. I asked for him to work on my heart and to help me to be less self absorbed, more absorbed with the people around me, and I asked most of all for humbleness.
With next week being thanksgiving families all around America are going to be gathering around their large spread of turkey and fixings, saying what they are thankful for, and maybe even send up a prayer. Here is the thing though, Thanksgiving isnt just the third Thursday in November. Thanksgiving should be every day.
So today I am praying for God to keep me humble and to constantly remind me to have thankfulness like Angela. I am praying that whenever I am having a bad day this verse will come to mind "This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it." -Psalm 118:24.
Every day is a gift. We have not earned it. We are not promised it. So lets live today for today, and be thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Katie
Friday, November 22, 2013
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Orphan Sunday
Happy Orphan Sunday! I can't decide if that is an appropriate statement or just a complete oxymoron. Happy-Orphan? Doesn't sound right, does it?
Today I got spend my Orphan Sunday in the most perfect way imaginable, okay maybe second best to actually being in Africa, but still in a pretty perfect way. Today I got to love on a baby that was once labeled unloved, rejected, and orphaned. Today I got to hold a miracle in my arms. Today I saw the face of God in an eight month old baby boy. Today I got to see the hands and feet of Jesus Christ through the family who brought him home.Today I celebrated that number of orphans in the world is one less.
When I woke up this morning I couldn't decide what mood to be in. I was excited that today people all over the world would be in prayer for the millions of orphaned children of the world. But at the same time I was heartbroken because there are millions of orphaned children in the world. It is this strange bitter-sweet feeling that I cant put into words. All day my heart has been aching and I have been filled with sense of longing. I couldn't quite put my finger on what for exactly, but the feeling was still there.It was when I was holding that sweet Ethiopian baby in my arms that I realized what my heart was longing for. No not to adopt a baby, at least not yet ha ha, but a longing for hope.
I can't tell you the number of times that I have been faced with negativity or criticism for my love of orphans. Just recently I was hit with a truck load of hostility for my love and passion. I have been asked numerous times why bother, it's not like you can make a difference. One thing that I just cant get people to understand is that THEY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Everyday God is calling us to "speak up for those who can not speak for themselves" and to "look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." God has given us the power to make a difference. God has given us the power of prayer. So friends I ask you to please PRAY PRAY PRAY. Pray for the Orphans of the world, pray for the families that God is calling to adopt, pray for the missionaries all around the world who are caring for these orphans.
Today I longed for hope and God gave it to me. Today I saw that although there are millions of orphans in the world, every day babies are being brought home to their forever homes. Some may say that one less orphan does not make a big difference, but oh let me tell you, it makes the biggest difference.
My heart is still filled with longing, and I still don't know what exactly for. I miss Africa. I miss my many friends I met there. I don't know what God's plan is for me, but I am praying that what ever it may be, it will be glorifying to HIM. I left my heart in Africa that day I boarded the plane and came home, and who knows -- maybe someday soon I'll go back and get it. But until then I am here, praying for the orphans of the world, and loving on the ones who have been brought home.
Happy Orphan Sunday everyone.
XOXO,
Katie
Today I got spend my Orphan Sunday in the most perfect way imaginable, okay maybe second best to actually being in Africa, but still in a pretty perfect way. Today I got to love on a baby that was once labeled unloved, rejected, and orphaned. Today I got to hold a miracle in my arms. Today I saw the face of God in an eight month old baby boy. Today I got to see the hands and feet of Jesus Christ through the family who brought him home.Today I celebrated that number of orphans in the world is one less.
When I woke up this morning I couldn't decide what mood to be in. I was excited that today people all over the world would be in prayer for the millions of orphaned children of the world. But at the same time I was heartbroken because there are millions of orphaned children in the world. It is this strange bitter-sweet feeling that I cant put into words. All day my heart has been aching and I have been filled with sense of longing. I couldn't quite put my finger on what for exactly, but the feeling was still there.It was when I was holding that sweet Ethiopian baby in my arms that I realized what my heart was longing for. No not to adopt a baby, at least not yet ha ha, but a longing for hope.
I can't tell you the number of times that I have been faced with negativity or criticism for my love of orphans. Just recently I was hit with a truck load of hostility for my love and passion. I have been asked numerous times why bother, it's not like you can make a difference. One thing that I just cant get people to understand is that THEY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Everyday God is calling us to "speak up for those who can not speak for themselves" and to "look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." God has given us the power to make a difference. God has given us the power of prayer. So friends I ask you to please PRAY PRAY PRAY. Pray for the Orphans of the world, pray for the families that God is calling to adopt, pray for the missionaries all around the world who are caring for these orphans.
Today I longed for hope and God gave it to me. Today I saw that although there are millions of orphans in the world, every day babies are being brought home to their forever homes. Some may say that one less orphan does not make a big difference, but oh let me tell you, it makes the biggest difference.
My heart is still filled with longing, and I still don't know what exactly for. I miss Africa. I miss my many friends I met there. I don't know what God's plan is for me, but I am praying that what ever it may be, it will be glorifying to HIM. I left my heart in Africa that day I boarded the plane and came home, and who knows -- maybe someday soon I'll go back and get it. But until then I am here, praying for the orphans of the world, and loving on the ones who have been brought home.
Happy Orphan Sunday everyone.
XOXO,
Katie
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