Sacred Scarred

Darfur

Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?
Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?
Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?
Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?
Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?

There's so much going on in Darfur that I don't even know where to start with this post.  Every day my heart hurts and I run to Jesus.  And so I start with Jesus who echoes Psalm 22:1, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Psalm 22 is the cry of the psalmist to the Lord for deliverance from his dangerous enemies, who have surrounded him and threaten his life. Confident that the Lord will intervene, he vows to thank the Lord publicly for his help and anticipates a time when all people will recognize the Lord’s greatness and worship him.

Jesus echoes this cry as he is delivered up by his enemies who have surrounded him and taken the life that he is giving.  Confident that God will prevail over the powers, he anticipates a time when as a result of the resurrection all people will recognize God's greatness and worship him.

It is a cry heard by the voices of Darfur who are daily surrounded by enemies who threaten their lives.  Many deeply believe that God will intervene on their behalf and show the greatness of the resurrected One who is worthy of worship.

What role do I play?  What role do our faith communities play?

Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?

God intervene.  Show your greatness.  May we respond with worship.

Resources to stimulate thought and discussion:

Two recent current event articles - article 1, article 2
Save Darfur - raising public awareness about the ongoing genocide
Dollars for Darfur - national high school challenge, started by high school students
Darfur is Dying - online video game aimed at raising awareness
Mennonite Central Committee - peacemaking efforts in Sudan

Additional Liberian Notes...

Mike posted on Liberia today as well.  Coincidence?  I think not.

Adopted orphans, women peacekeepers...all good stuff.

I would like to return to Burkina Faso with my wife and daughter sometime in the next year.  Is there anyone out there willing to fund such a trip (you could even come with)?

Crazy Oprah

My wife is convinced that a viable, vibrant Christian group discussion (see cell) can be held with the Oprah Winfrey Show as the backdrop.  Admittedly (and sometimes ashamedly) I think she's right.  At least once a week, I come home to my excited wife proclaiming, "you have got to see what I TiVo-ed from Oprah today!" (we love TiVo). 

And so I sit, and watch, and admittedly (and sometimes ashamedly) am impressed by what she was struck by on this talk show.  Our recent discussions have been on everything from the language of babies to the the (Red) Campaign to organic eating and omega-3 fatty acids to inspiring others to greatness.  I admittedly (and sometimes ashamedly) find these Oprah topics fascinating and inspiring.

This week, she watched and then had me watch a story on Liberian orphans (a topic which we've discussed at length before because of our love for West Africa and children).  A woman in North Carolina felt led by God to adopt 2 teenage orphans from Liberia.  Her husband thought she was crazy, but went along for the ride.  Their friends thought they were crazy for doing such a thing (they had 3 young daughters), but God began to create movement and gravity.  Suddenly their friends found themselves crazily adopting Liberian orphans as well.  All said and done, 14 crazy families from one NC community adopted 31 Liberian children from the same orphanage.

While this is amazing and inspiring and heart-warming (and all that other Oprah-ish stuff), what's behind it is what I'm interested in...

What can God do with one person willing to do the crazy with a sense of purpose and mission? 

History tells us that he can do a lot (see Jesus, Paul, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Wangari Maathai, Bono, insert lesser known "crazy fools" here).

Why don't we get that?  Why is it that we get so caught up in our plans and our money and our time and ourselves that we miss the fact that God uses crazy fool people living with a sense of purpose and mission to accomplish his Kingdom tasks.  These people are the ones who inspire their families, friends, and communities to get on board with what God is doing and where God is moving.  Sometimes our personal preferences our individual dreams our private longings need to be swallowed up by what God is desiring to do with our community of people.  And sometimes we just need to get on board.  We just need to step out and do it.  Because far too often we're more worried about getting ducks in a row than we are about people being reoriented toward Jesus.  If you ask me, that's crazy.

(Red)emption UPDATE!

Be sure to check out the generous offer that the (Red)emption campaign has received.  If you're looking for some place to give this Christmas, give to this Stephen Lewis Foundation fund (and have your contribution matched!).

(Red)emption

If you haven't heard of Mike Todd and the (Red)emption campaign that he is spearheading in support of The Stephen Lewis Foundation as a compassionate and generous response to the pandemic of HIV/AIDS in Africa - you need to hear.  Consider donating $10 Canadian (approximately $8.63) to this great cause.  Time is running out...the campaign ends with the new year.