My apologies for the delay on this post. I have no good excuse.
I mentioned in my last post that the purpose of my trip to Colorado was to attend the Set-Apart Girl Conference hosted by Eric and Leslie Ludy. It is no exaggeration to say that Eric and Leslie are two of my favorite people. Their passionate love for Christ invoked my own desire to pursue a more intimate relationship with HIM. They do not simply speak truth, they LIVE it. They do not accept complacency. They LOVE.
Per usual, the message spoken was an uncomfortable one. I expected it. I craved it. I was a little afraid of it. Refinement is necessary--it is GOOD. But, it is often painful. And let's be honest, sometimes we'd rather just avoid the process.
The theme of this year’s conference was “A Poured-Out Life.” At first glance, I often think, “I’m doing pretty well on this front.” SO untrue. I’ve learned that I LOVE to compare myself to other people. Perhaps it is because of my personality. I don’t want to fall behind. However, I’ve also learned that it causes me to become complacent. If I look around and see that I am one step above the average Christian, I settle. Why not? Paul compared the Christian life to running a race. From my experience, marathoners never settle. Each race is an opportunity to beat their previous time. Perhaps we should desire the same. Instead of asking if we’ve done enough, ask how much more we can do.
It would be impossible to give justice to all that was shared, but I’ll share a few of the statements that struck me. Some seem rather basic, but truly meditating on them and considering personal application makes them rather challenging. Hopefully the impact is not lost due to lack of context.
When you don’t know Him, you can’t trust Him. If you knew Him, you would delight to give it to Him.
Christianity is a covenant exchange--His body and blood for me, my body and blood for Him...God must have all that He purchased on the cross.
If I could live with the reality of the cross before me at every moment, I would not trifle away life and opportunities.
We are not called to be humanitarians, we are called to be Christians. Christians feet, clothe, and shelter. But we are after more. We are after souls.
Jesus is the answer for every ailment. The issue with modern Christianity is that He is not our all-in-all.
Does anything claim your heart, soul, mind, heart above Christ?
Where we turn to for rest, peace, and pleasure reveals much.
In addition to the Ludys, Danita Estrella, Mike and Christa Hahn and Annie Wesche shared their personal stories.
Danita is someone whom I have admired for quite some time, and I was SO excited for the opportunity to hear her speak about her work. I was not disappointed. Several years ago, God called Danita to Haiti. She didn’t know why. She had no plan. In fact, it was some time after she arrived that He reveled His purpose. Her memory of the moment of revelation is vivid. She saw a young boy, an orphan, being whipped in the middle of the street. Danita intervened. And then she knew. She was to be a mother to those who had none. Danita’s Children is now home to 131 orphans. In addition, there is a feeding program that provides more than 18,000 meals per month and a school with 550 children enrolled. They are also in the process of building a medical clinic that would be open to the community. Danita was obedient, and as a result, God has granted favor and protection. Her message was incredibly challenging, but the basic principle was this: “Would you be willing to walk away from [insert your greatest love/desire/dream] for the sake of the gospel.” Hmm...
It was also such a joy to meet Mike and Christa. Their ministry, His Little Feet, exists “to help, love and train orphaned and vulnerable children worldwide.” I am SO excited to see what God does through this ministry in the next year! In October, Mike and Christa expect to welcome more than twenty orphan children to Windsor, Colorado. The kiddos will travel the country with the HLF International Children’s Choir and participate in the Orphan Training Academy based at Ellerslie. Prior to founding His Little Feet, Mike and Christa invested in the lives of orphan and vulnerable children through World Help, and the Children of the World Choir. They have no biological children (“yet”), but they claim the 59 orphans who know them as “Uncle Mikey” and “Aunt Christa.” Their love and passion for these children was evident as they shared stories and photos--like any proud parent! Christa brought a challenging message on the motivations of our hearts. WHY serve? Are we motivated because of our love for Christ? Or are we trying to prosper and bring glory to ourselves? Or, is it simply for the “cause of humanity?” I loved her statement that, “If your first love is not for God, it is all for nothing.” As well as, “God has called us to be strong in Him so that we can be strong for the weak.”
Annie is the dear friend that I mentioned in my last post. She is a beautiful example of a young Christian woman who is living a poured-out life. She serves as the creative director at Ellerslie, and the founder of GIVEN photography. Her photos of orphans stir the heart and give a face to those who are too often ignored. Her life is a blessing to SO many. In fact, it was Annie who shared her photos for my Ghana mission video. I didn’t actually have the opportunity to hear Annie speak at this event, but am certain that those who did were BLESSED!
There is so much more that I could share, but I’ll stop here. If you want more info, just ask!
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