Woman of Faith

One of the joys I have being over here is meeting so many men and women of great faith who have answered a call and laid their lives down for others. One of those amazing people is Tutu...the director of Asia's Hope orphanages in Thailand. Those of you at Vista got a chance to hear her speak a couple of months ago.

After we got done working at the farm on Monday, we had a little worship service and Tutu shared part of her life story. She has such a burden in her heart for orphans and widows in the Hill Tribe villages, which goes back to her own family history. Her grandmother was widowed when her father was very young. The other people in the village believed that she would then bring bad luck to them so they banished her from the village and she had to move across the river. She had no means to care for her young son or herself.

Through tears, Tutu told the story about the first missionary that came to their village. She will tell you that traditionally the Hill Tribe people worship evil spirits with animal sacrifices. They had never heard about God before. So, this missionary came with his wife and small child and lived among them. And people began to believe in God, including her grandmother and father.

One day, the little boy got into a bottle of vitamins, ate half of the bottle, and became very sick. These villages are very far from roads or hospitals. The missionary picked up his son and ran with him toward the city. It would have taken several days to get there. But, sadly, he died along the way.

At this point in her story, we were all crying. She expressed how thankful she was that foreigners would love her people enough to come to her country. She had been praying for help in starting an orphanage for the Hill Tribe children. She believed that God would provide, and she has given up everything for these kids. James 1:27 says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress..." I truly believe that her faith has saved the lives of these children.

Today, I got to hold a brand new orphan baby that just got to Asia's Hope. One of the staff couples drove 7 hours to the village to get him...over rough terrain, in the mud, up the mountain. He was carried 2 hours from his village to meet them. This precious baby was born about a month ago. His mother had complications after his birth. They carried her out of the village to try to get her help, but she died before she could get to a hospital. I can't even comprehend life in these remote places where they feel like they have no hope.

As we were sitting there listening to Tutu tell her story and that of this missionary, I was thinking about my own life. I have had to count the cost throughout this process of moving over here. I left family and friends. I gave up my job, my security, my car, my apartment, many of my belongings, my independence. Daily I am reminded of the little things I have forgone...a western toilet, fountain Diet Coke (sadly, my addiction), my comfortable bed, and on and on. Some days the cost seems higher than others.

But then I think about what God gave up for me. And I also remember that I cannot outgive Him. Whatever I pour out, He will give back. Though maybe not in the way that I expect it. And as I spend time with these orphans, I am realizing that those things are really not all that important in the scheme of things. I would rather live in the middle of God's blessings than in the middle of all my "stuff".

Here's a picture of the new little baby. He was named Joshua on Thursday. Please pray for his health and transition to the orphanage.