In the Darkest Places

One of the highlights of this past trip to East Asia was praying through a Buddhist temple. I love Asian culture and architecture. I love dragons and lanterns and old buildings. So my reaction to the ancient places and artifacts is not usually sadness. But here in this place, watching people engage in various forms of idol worship, my heart was breaking. I watched as a mother showed her young son how to rub his hands on this golden dragon and transfer it to his eyes and ears and body.

Our host who took us to this particular temple encouraged us to slow down and really observe the people in their worship: the resident monks who chant invitations and the visitors to beg blessings. As I made eye contact with those who would, I asked their Creator to enlighten their hearts and minds with His truth. My strongest memory is standing close to a huge bowl of incense. As the smoke rose in my face and engulfed me, I prayed Revelation 5:8 - our prayers go up before the Lord as golden bowls of incense. What a privilege it was to pray in the moment for the people in EA whom I love.

It was interesting to me that people would place fruit and flowers created by the true God before the images of false gods with no life inside them. Here is a fabulous tree growing in the midst of these vast temple grounds. God's beauty is here. He is watching, loving, calling people who are searching for truth. We prayed that they would have ears to hear.

Just before we left, I borrowed Shala's ipod and listened to Steve Fee's song Who Have I. It is my favorite worship song of late and very fitting lyrically for where we were. I sang, "In the darkest places you are light, in my deadest spaces you're my light..." as those around me carried out their rituals. Just as Suellen and I were talking about the bondage holding people to this form of worship, we looked up to see this dragon on the roof chained to the top of the temple...very telling.

A Girl Named Hope

A little girl sits alone in a restricted area. No one knows her thoughts. No one! I know what awaits her. But I can't tell. It wouldn't be right to tell her a family is filling out papers, paying money, praying to God, all to get her into their family. What if some paper is not filled out correctly and there is another delay? It is not safe to tell her until they are there, in her country, walking through her door, legally her parents.

On this last trip to East Asia we saw alot of kids with little or no hope. The reality is overwhelming. But for one 10 year old girl, there is Hope. That's going to be her new name: HOPE. She doesn't know that. So how does God's compassion play out in the lives of the hopeless? He promises never to put on us more than we can bear. So how exactly does He comfort an orphan whose days are bleak and without hope?

Ahhh...by giving her a new name. Recall how He did that in scripture. When God bestowed a new name on a person, they were changed. They lived up to that name. And so it will be with this child whose very life is unknown to all but a handful of people.

I believe he is comforting this precious girl. She is prayed for by countless people and they speak her name: Hope. How I wish I was allowed to post her picture here for you to see. Her picture is taped to my desk. In this picture, her hands are folded and drawn up to her forehead. She is praying with a teacher in her classroom. I have been told she prays for God to releive her pain.

Please pray for Hope this year? Afterall, isn't it hope that compels us to pray?

Hungry

The house is quiet save the four week old kittens crying in my lap. Their mama is refusing to feed them. I've only been home an hour from a trip to East Asia. So here I sit at 3am filling the bellies of hungry kitties with an eye dropper full of warm milk substitute. I notice that one feels very thin and cool. I am not sure he will make it til morning. Another offers a meager reaction to the food. And two vivacious critters are scampering up my shirt trying to get sustenance. I quickly feed the strong ones. They are so easy to manage. They are cute and alert. Then I move on to the one who is responding a little. He really doesn't want to eat, but I manage to get quite a bit down his throat. Lastly I try to hold the cold one still so I can get some milk into his feeble body in hopes of warming him a bit. He cannot swallow too many times in succession. The others are crying louder and louder. They want to be fed. They want to curl up in my lap. When I cuddle them, they settle into the warm layers of my pajamas.

Suddenly I am struck with a sobering thought. This must be how the orphanage nannies feel trying to feed so many hungry babies with only two hands. Though these are only cats and not children, I am drawn to ponder what I have learned of survival. Feeding the weak ones takes so much more time and effort. They can't all be saved. You do what you can with what you have. The stronger ones will make it.

I sat on the floor and cried for the harried nannies and the hungry children who depend on them. And I cried for these kittens. I want them to live. They represent something so much bigger that most of the world will ever see.

Fast Friday

Want to join us in fasting this week? We will be fasting until 7 pm Friday, so join us any time this week. We are praying for equipping and preparation for service, awareness of the work of the Spirit and peace in leaving our dear families as we travel. We are praying for the local workers in East Asia with whom we will be serving in April. Praying for their strength and endurance. We are praying they will receive the refreshing of the Spirit, experience the power of the Word of God and recognize the ministry of Jesus in the faces of those they serve. Pray that for us as well!! May these prayers prepare the way for us to walk as one in service with our brothers and sisters in EA.

Equipped to Carry the Burden

Excitement turns to dread. Anticipation turns to fear. What happened? Is this a sign that I am heading in the wrong direction? No! It could be that my commitment to carry a burden is being tested. Throughout our journey with Christ, the Spirit gives us burdens to bear for others. This year six of us are carrying our burden to East Asia. Sometimes our burden bearing turns to a battle and we can second guess our calling. But in reality, we are just getting closer to understanding the depth of the burden.

Listen to what Streams in the Desert says...
"The time of testing that distinguishes and greatly enriches a person's spiritual career is not an ordinary one but a period when it seems as if all hell were set loose. It is a time when we realize our soul is caught in a net, and we know God is allowing us to be gripped by the devil's hand. Yet it is a period that always ends in certain triumph for those who have committed the keeping of their souls to God. And the testing "later on...produces a harvest of righteousness and peace." Hebrews 12:11

Right after Jesus was baptized and the Spirit descended upon him as a dove and God's voice confirmed his identity for all present to hear, Jesus was led out into the desert of testing. I think Mark 1:9-13 is too brief in description of this glorious event. We can read right over it without noticing the majesty of all three persons of the Trinity being present. We are baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So many times we've heard that phrase that maybe we don't hear it. However, if we see with clarity what is happening when we are baptized allow ourselves to feel the Spirit descending upon us, we just might recognize it as equipping.

This quote by George Matheson is referring to that passage in Mark. "Nothing but the Son's vision can equip you to carry the Spirit's burden, and only the glory of the baptism can withstand the hunger of the desert."

What was Jesus' vision for the world he came to save? Can I go out today and love people in my world like that? Am I allowing myself to be equipped to carry His burden?

A Burden to Pray

Prayer can change alot of things. I am particularly intrigued by how it can redirect itself. This is done subtly, over time. So if I am not committed to carry a burden, it may be crowded out by interruptions before I ever see it take new shape.

Tonight Traci and I joined a room full of past team members to hear Matt and Michelle talk about the kids they work with in the orphanage. We had a powerful time of prayer for our E. Asia GlobalX partners, their family, local staff and the children they serve. As people prayed in circles all over the room, a prayer was lifted up that redirected my thinking. Danny prayed for the few to take the message to many. Let me explain. The orphanage classrooms in which our friends work are for children with disabilities. There are many children living in the government run orphanage. But only a select few are allowed to take part in Christian classroom environment. The ones who do get to go, learn to laugh and sing, care for themselves, even walk. So when Danny prayed for the kids tonight, he prayed that these few who are learning about the love of Christ would not only find healing, but would take that light back into the dark, quiet halls of the orphanage. I have spent time with several of these kids. I have received their smiles and joined in their laughter. And I have no doubt God can bring healing to their hearts and they will share the love of Christ with other hurting kids who may never get out. As we prayed, I could envision smiles, laughter, brightness spreading through the gloomy halls filling the rooms full of bedridden children.

Isn't that powerful? These kids can share the love of Christ with other children whom none of us will ever see.

Here is how my thinking was redirected. As we were praying, I was struck with the reality of heaven being our home. All this is temporary and short lived. Most of these kids will never get out. The hope is that a few will be adopted. But there also has to be the hope that healing will take place right where they are. Can you imagine being one of these kids and reading Romans 8:18? Heaven is their hope. Jesus is their future.

I have carried a burden for one of these kids for a year and a half. We call him Israel. What I want for him is a home, a place where he can heal, love and be loved. The day I met him, I knew God had a reason for it. I have to admit that since God gave me the burden, I thought this boy would have a home by now. When I go back in April, it will be my third visit to his orphanage. And he will still be there. I get frustrated that I haven't found a family who would want him; that God hasn't raised up a family. He's such an awesome kid. I've told everyone I know about him. This past year I have heard stories of how he picks out clothes for some of the less mobile kids. He wants them all to match. When the teachers are on holiday, he marks the days on the calendar so the mentally disabled kids can get a grasp on when they will go back to school. He is a caring boy. And it hurts my hurt that he cannot experience the warmth of a loving home. But over time, as I pray for Israel, God has shown me that healing can take place right where he is because there are local believers who speak his language who teach him every day.

I still hope Israel finds a home. But now I pray God will heal him right where he is; all of his scars of being unwanted and memories of abandonment. I pray he will continue to carry hope to the kids around him. I pray he will receive Christ as his Savior and that the joy of the Lord will be his strength.

This is Why I'm Going

You guys all know how much I love a certain East Asia country and how Danny, Noah and I have served there together the past two summers. My life has not been the same since that first trip. God is teaching me a lot about Himself through missions and I am eager to keep learning. Most of you also know how I dream of taking the whole family to serve in the orphanage. Don’t worry, I’m not about to ask you to fund that trip. That will be another year! ☺

What I want to tell you is that I have been invited back this spring for a different kind of trip. I will go through North Point Ministries’ Globalx Missions with 5 other women to focus on prayer and intercession. Please take a minute to read about the details of this trip and what your involvement would mean.

Our first stop will be the city and orphanage you helped send me to the last two summers. We will connect with the believers who spend their lives loving the forgotten. We will be praying and looking into God’s Word with the staff. We will pray over the children and facilities. We will pray through the streets and community. Why are we doing this? These “underground” believers are our brothers and sisters in Christ. NP/GlobalX supports them financially. We want to encourage them personally and learn how we can serve them as we strive to support them spiritually as well.

Our next stop will be to an area still feeling the effects of a natural disaster. We have partners here who are helping to rebuild lives. We will connect with student and community ministries to help plan prayer and discipleship strategies for the upcoming school year. One great aspect of this portion of the trip is that, upon our return, we will be sharing what we learn with our church and student ministries in the States. The goal is to connect believers on different continents through an ongoing prayer movement.

There are two very important reasons I am asking you to support this trip with your dollars and prayers. Two of the women on our team spent six years serving in missions in other countries. They tell me how vital it was to have people support them by taking time out of their lives to come all the way across the world to serve and encourage them. Can you imagine being tired and lonely and wondering if your work is bearing any fruit? If anyone back home remembers where you are? I know it would make a difference to me if people came to pray for me, listen to me, love me. I want to play a small part in showing believers in EA that people in America love and care about them and their work in that country.

The other reason I am asking for your involvement is because of the power in prayer. There is something very real that takes place in the spiritual realm when we physically step into the country for which we are praying. Prayer is such a mystery. It shakes loose strongholds in dark places like nothing else can. When I have been to E. Asia in the past and seen with my own eyes the work being done, clasped hands in prayer with people whose words I cannot decipher but whose heart I understand, God’s power is alive and active. Prayer is that “thing” that connects us. My eyes are opened, my heart is stirred by what stirs the heart of God. I am moved with passion for people I’ve just met. Together we pray differently and strive to see God’s Kingdom advanced. It’s the coolest thing! Don’t you want to go with me??? Please pray about giving to what God is doing in this part of the world. Your involvement is such an important part of this trip!


Here are some details:
*Travel dates are April 1st through April 11th.
*The trip itinerary covers three cities in EA that I will gladly tell you about in person. As you are probably aware, it is a restricted area so I cannot list those destinations here.
*I need raise $3,200 to cover 10 nights and 7 flights.
*You can mail a check to me written to North Point Ministries and write EA Connection Cindy Stephens in the FOR space.
* You can give here. When giving on-line, please choose the East Asia Connection Trip 4/1 – 4/11. There will be a place for you to type in my name.

I will keep you updated with photos and names of our team members and our prayer needs on the trip. Thank you so much for taking time to read this letter and consider being a part of this mission.