Posted on in 2012 Posts

Perhaps Your Home’s Walls Really Do Talk!

Have you heard the old saying, “If walls could talk”?  If you listen closely and pay enough attention, I think they do!  OK, yes, I do have a pretty vivid imagination, I know.  Most would look at me and say, “Yeah, right…” as they’re clutching their cell phone prepared to call 911 for when I totally lose it.  My first experience in how I know this was an observation that I made with my own kids.  I can remember when they were in high school.  I could pretty much gauge how their lives were going by opening the door to their rooms.  If they were total chaos, I knew I needed to step up the prayers for them.  If it looked like they had tried to put things away a little and you could see a piece of carpet on the floor, I was hopeful that life was getting back to normal for them.

When we sold our home and were looking for a new one, it was important for me to have a home that welcomed people.  I love to entertain and so we looked for a home with entertainment space.  It’s kind of a fancy house in structure, but when I am done with it, I hope to emit warmth and peace within the walls–approachability so to speak.  Have you ever been to someone’s home where they watched every move you made and you were suddenly aware that if you touched something, you might get your hands smacked?  Did you feel welcome?  I doubt it.  I go into homes often where people are losing their home to foreclosure and immediately their home shouts at me, “depression…out of control…brokenness.”  When visiting a chronically ill patient and their family often the home will scream, “I’m so tired, where do we go from here, does anything matter anymore?”  I remember when I was a single mom and had been ill for some time. My house was definitely out of control.  My friends listened to my house and realized I was in crisis mode. This chaos was not normal for me and they knew it.  They scheduled a time and came in to help me put it back together knowing this would help my emotional state to see it clean again as I was recovering from my illness.  It was a daunting task for even them working together.  All of  these homes tell the story even when pride may not have allowed the words to be expressed.  Now that we’re settling into our new home and we are putting our mark on it, I hope that it will someday say to others, “This is a safe place, it’s OK let’s talk about it, let’s get our friends together and have some fun!”

I believe that there is a strong relationship between what is going on in our physical world as it relates to our emotional and spiritual side.  When one component of our being is struggling, they all struggle.   As Christians, we need to be aware that when one part of our being is under attack, we need to guard against it pulling our entire house down so to speak.  I don’t mean in a physical pulling down of your house; rather, a spiritual or emotional pulling down of your being. Maybe you can relate to a time when you were emotionally and spiritually down and your home showed it.  To me, it is a lift in my spirit to simply get a few things in order in my home.  It seems to pick me up emotionally and even spiritually to organize my little piece of the world for some reason. Have you visited a friend lately whose house is out of control?  Perhaps you’ve known them for years and this is just their normal way of housekeeping.  However, if you’re noticing other changes, look deeper.  What is their home saying to you?  Do you need to roll your sleeves up and lend a hand?  Is something dramatically different that tells you they need to talk?  Perhaps their home is saying, “Pray for this family.”

If you take this all literally, you may come visit me today and think wow, she really needs prayer!  My home is basically a construction zone everywhere you look.  But that’s not where I’m going with this.  The whole point of this today is to say, “Look around.  I know you hear what their words are saying, but have you taken the time to listen to what their world is trying to tell you?”  We live in a busy, chaotic time in today’s world.  Often we wouldn’t even know if our friends’ homes were different because we haven’t taken the time to visit with them to begin with.  If that’s the case, now is the time to invite a friend over for coffee or even dinner.  We need to stop living in a superficial world of Christianity.  It’s time we get involved in each others’ lives so that we will be able to recognize a friend in need or a life in crisis.

I am so excited about our new home for a number of reasons.  One reason is for the story behind it.  It was once owned by a local politician who is now facing a jail term for some bad decisions he made during his time in office.  The home sat empty for more than two years and the neighborhood has been abuzz about all of the drama surrounding this home for years.  For this reason, all of the neighbors are curious about what is inside.  You would have thought it was the president that lived here or something!  They’ve heard the stories of how they trashed the house and took most of the fixtures, knobs, and even the kitchen island and countertops!  Since our move, we are making it a point to use this home for God.  Every time a neighbor comes to talk to me or walks by, I invite them in.  I know they want to see what’s going on in here.  I don’t care if it is still a construction zone.  I have relaxed in my fifty years of life and I know that by allowing people to see my home in this way, I am approachable.  I’m just a normal person living within these walls with horrifically ugly wallpaper!  Seriously though, there is something intimate about having someone in your home.  By taking a tour or coming in for tea, they feel like they’re getting to know me better.  They see my surroundings and what makes me happy.  There is so much greater of a connection that happens inside these walls than anything that goes on in small talk out front.  I love the fact my home has drama surrounding it prior to me moving in.  It is the catalyst for us to get to know the neighbors and see what God’s plan for us here might be.  Construction zone or not, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord! (Joshua 24:15)

What does your house say about you?  When was the last time a friend came to visit?  Do you have a friend that needs your help with their situation?  Take the time to look around and listen to what God is telling you through your surroundings.  Don’t be so busy you pass by a friend without recognizing their pain or suffering.  Seriously, don’t be afraid…invite someone in.  You’ll be glad you did!  Most importantly, go make a difference in your world!  Have a great week!

Luke 10:38 (NKJV)  Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.

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Posted on in 2012 Posts

Waiting!

Well, even though we can’t see them from our vantage point, it appears Lucy has laid some eggs!  Quite often she is seen wiggling her belly deep into her nest, making sure she is doing her job perfectly for the little ones to come.  Eggs hatch 14 days from when they are laid from what I’ve learned, so we should soon have some updates on that I suppose!  Hopefully the babies will be more visible than the eggs. Until then…we are just waiting and watching along with Lucy!  I’ve appreciated hearing from some of you who are enjoying hearing about Lucy’s adventures as well.   I’ll keep you posted!

Posted on in 2012 Posts

Can You Help My Friends in Need?

Today, I need to talk about a serious need of a dear friend on the other side of the globe from me and most of you.  If you read my book, you will know that twelve years ago, my daughter Jamie, along with three others and me, traveled to India to visit a ministry called, Peace Mission in southern India.  We weren’t there long when we had literally fallen in love with the administrator of the ministry, Pastor Roy Jacob.  As we were getting to know him, Pastor Roy told us of his life before he accepted the Lord.  In his testimony, he shared that he was much older when he did finally accept the Lord into his heart and began to follow his calling to ministry. He has devoted his new life in Christ to serving wherever he sees a need.  Since meeting him those twelve years ago, we have been able to visit with him yearly as he comes to Ohio.  He attended Jamie’s high school graduation and even said the opening prayer at Jim and my wedding.  He is a dear man to my entire family.

Over the years, Pastor Roy has planted ten churches in two states which he continues to oversee.  He also began and oversees an orphanage that has seen over 200 kids since 1993—mostly all girls–pass through.  By pass through, I mean be well taken care of, taught about Jesus and most of them put through some form of higher education so that when they leave the home, they are not on the streets as with some children homes.  In fact, they don’t leave the home until they have a career or a husband that will support them.  Many who have come through the home are now nurses, teachers and even engineers.  Currently, Peace Mission India rents two buildings that house thirty-eight girls.  Most of the girls in the home are rescued from the tribal areas where they either abandon or kill their girl babies.

In addition, when the tsunamis hit several years back, Pastor Roy was there to help clean up and founded a new ministry supporting the Hindu and Muslim widows as a result of them losing their husbands to the storm.  There, he raised funds to buy each one of them their own sewing machine and held classes to teach them to sew so they could make a living even without their husbands.  As a result, many of the widows have accepted Christ along the way.  He also helped provide them a place to live as well.

Pastor Roy travels throughout southern India to the various ministries overseeing them on a weekly basis.  Often, he will be gone from his family for long periods of time as he comes to America to tell others about what he is doing while asking for financial support.  He is a man on a mission.  In fact, he is probably the most Godly man I can say I have ever known.  I don’t care how he spent his first forty years in life as a rebel-rouser.  What I see is the new man God created him to be, serving others and living selflessly for those in need.  Although there are plans to pass the ministry on to his son when he is gone, Pastor Roy is still going strong at over eighty years of age doing the Lord’s work.  He is quite an inspiration to many who know him.  The children call him, Appa, which means, Daddy.

We are so fortunate to live in America where we can serve God freely on most accounts.  Many times, in this one ministry alone, they have had to rebuild their churches they built due to others burning them down in protest.  They have often been fearful for the retribution upon each individual that turns from their family religion to follow Christ.  It is a huge risk to live as a true Christian in India.  Now, it appears that not only is the government and society making church ministry hard in India, but now have begun to attack the orphanage ministry as well.

By the end of this year or beginning of next, Pastor Roy will no longer be able to rent the buildings he currently rents for the use of the orphanage.  Apparently, they have laid down new laws for orphanages, and renting the properties where the children are housed is no longer in compliance with the new regulations.  Pastor Roy has donated some land he personally owns to house the new orphanage, but now is faced with raising $40-50,000 to build a new home for his children.  If it is not rectified, they will most certainly be evicted from the rentals at some future date which is currently unknown at this time.

My heart grieves for him and the children. These children he and the other caretakers love as their own family will be faced to figure out where they will live and if a new building isn’t found or built, I don’t know what will happen.  In this month’s newsletter, Pastor Roy put out the plea to help him raise the necessary funds in order to keep a roof over the heads of those currently there as well as for future children who will be coming to Peace Mission in the years ahead.

The thing I love about Pastor Roy’s ministries is that he doesn’t just take care of these children and widows no one wants to be bothered with; but he also teaches them to be self-sufficient and make a way in society.  He is doing so much in an area of the world that might otherwise only have prostitution and the like as a means for these unwanted women to make a way.  It’s unbelievable to me that their government wouldn’t welcome this kind of help in their communities.  Peace Mission is not just a business…it is a family that takes care of its own until they no longer need help.

In the days ahead, please pray for Pastor Roy, Peace Mission India, and for those whose hearts need to be moved to help them find a way to overcome yet another hurdle for the mission.  Perhaps you might be led to have a love offering at church on their behalf, hold a garage sale or do another fundraiser to help out.  This is a big challenge in the life of Peace Mission India and will take all of us working together to overcome the obstacles ahead.  Please also help by posting this story on every Facebook page and even forwarding it to your email contacts.   You never know who might want to help.  There is so much good happening in this ministry that I have personally witnessed first-hand.  I trust that God will have yet another victory through faithful people like you and I who are praying and acting on that which God asks us to do.

Checks can be written to “Peace Mission India” and mailed to Kim Vanskee, 253 Parkway Ave, Cincinnati, OH  45216.  She will make sure you are mailed a receipt for your donation and will get the money into Pastor Roy’s account.  Please mark on the check “Building Fund, Lori’s Blog” so that we know where the funds should be appointed.  Thank you for listening to something that personally makes my heart very heavy.  I just wish I had the money and could write them the check for what they need.  It’s hard to see my friends going through tough times, especially when it seems so senseless.  If you decide to have a fund raiser for the cause, please share so that perhaps those of us nearby can jump in and help!  In the meantime, thanks for your prayers, efforts to spread the word, and perhaps even your donations.  God bless you all!

James 1:27(NKJV)  Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

James 1:12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

2Corinthians 4:8-9  We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—