Being a witness to suffering is suffering itself. Holding your child down on a hospital bed so that medical professionals can help them doesn’t make the pain easier. Helping at the site of a car accident leaves you feeling shaken and helpless. Hearing the wailing of a bereaved spouse, parent, or child echoes through heartsContinue reading “Taking the Pain of the People”
Tag Archives: Missions
Impoverished
There are many kinds of poverty. Several weeks ago, an eleven year old boy told me that when he was younger, there had been no food in the house. He had seen puppies nursing and had realized that they were receiving sustenance. He was so hungry that he had fed alongside those puppies from theContinue reading “Impoverished”
No Recipe Needed
I’ve made copious amounts of chocolate chip cookies during my lifetime. I’m not talking about hundreds, friends. It’s definitely in the thousands. I’ve made chocolate chip cookies so often that I no longer need the recipe. The way I see it, a chocolate chip cookie is appropriate to every possible social scenario. Neighborhood children needingContinue reading “No Recipe Needed”
Glorify God in Your Body
It’s a predictable pattern. A young teen does not feel safe in her home. Alcohol changes people she loves into monsters who cannot be trusted. This week, her little sister came to ask me to pray for her. “Sister cuts her legs and arms,” the little one said. Harm begets harm. When the Apostle PaulContinue reading “Glorify God in Your Body”
Making a Difference
Federal agents swooped in and took my neighbor from his workplace. It was the middle of the day. He wasn’t expecting it. His girlfriend and children weren’t sure what to do or how to contact him. He sat in prison for eight months before his federal trial. It seemed unjust, unconstitutional, unamerican. But I wasContinue reading “Making a Difference”
Searching Before They’re Lost
My church hosted a 3 on 3 basketball tournament at our local recreation center over the weekend. There was a great turnout, and it was fun to see the young folks competing and laughing. Several people shared their testimonies. Jesus, the Good Shepherd who goes looking for lost sheep, was doing just that on SaturdayContinue reading “Searching Before They’re Lost”
The Lost Art of the Missionary Story
When Jesus sent His disciples out two by two, they cast out unclean spirits, and they called for people to repent of their sins. They were excited when they returned to Him with the world’s first Christian missionary stories. Missionary stories aren’t in vogue any more. My favorite one, written by Amy Carmichael, a missionaryContinue reading “The Lost Art of the Missionary Story”
On Praying for Your Pastor
I prayed for my pastor today. He had crawled up into the church’s playground equipment and was scrubbing graffitied profanity with a magic eraser. As I watched him scrub, I thought of the many times people brought him their sins, cloaked as problems to be solved. Instead of offering magic erasers, my pastor gave theContinue reading “On Praying for Your Pastor”
Made Beautiful
“Hello? This is Dakota Baptist Church.” “Sarahcanyoubringmeapop??” One of my responsibilities the summer I was seventeen was to answer the church phone. The caller was a twelve year old girl. She spoke so quickly that all her words ran together, and we had the same conversation everyday. “Well, where are you?” “Atmyhouse.” “Where’s your house?”Continue reading “Made Beautiful”
Carrying the Banner
I love that movie from the nineties called, “Newsies.” Homeless, streetsmart boys find employment selling newspapers, and they often do it by embellishing the headlines. Their theme is that they are “carrying the banner.” I thought of the movie, and its catchy song, this week at backyard Bible club. The kids in my neighborhood wereContinue reading “Carrying the Banner”
Sarah Dixon Young 