UPDATED and REVISED 5/30* My heart goes out to all the victims and families affected by the recent storm in Oklahoma on Monday. I was reading an article from CNN that said the 1.3 mile tornado was as big as "22 football fields lined up end to end." It will go down as one of strongest storms in U.S. history. I put myself in the shoes of those parents, spouses, brothers and sisters, children, friends, neighbors, and teachers I see in the news, and I am certain that words, condolences, supplies, and money cannot touch the pain, loss, fear, and uncertainty they are dealing with right now. Thank goodness the power of prayer can. In faith, we know God is wrapping His arms around each and every one of the families in need, hearing and answering every prayer in His name, in His perfect way.
17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
The little love note about faith you see above was inspired by my six year old. Not long after he started talking, he started asking me to do things with him and for him. I love doing things for my son, but sometimes I couldn't honor his requests as immediately as he would have liked. Children can be demanding little things, you know! Instead of telling him a flat "no," I would often say, "We'll see." A typical conversation went like this,
My son: "Mommy can we play hide and seek."
Me: "Honey, I am trying to get dinner cooked. We'll see. Let's finish dinner first, okay?"
The truth behind "We'll see," was really, "I am exhausted and I don't feel like doing that right now, and I won't feel like doing it later either, but I love you with all my heart. " My son eventually figured this out, so he coined the term, "Let's not see, Mommy. Let's just do it." That was a lot harder to turn down! Sometimes kids are wise beyond their years, and they don't even know it!
That brings me back to nurturing an everyday faith. Everyday faith, like my love for my son, is more than what we say. It's what we do. Faith means God calls us to act. We see people with hurts so HUGE we have no idea what to do or where to get started. Our mighty and sovereign God is the only one who can really help, so we pray for them. We pray for the people in Oklahoma who are facing the devastating aftermath of that terrible storm. Be ready, though. When we pray, we set the Holy Spirit, God with us, in motion.
13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love.
And when God moves and goes to work, He just might call on you and me to do something for him and act on our faith. The great and amazing thing about God is that he can take small steps of faith and use them for GIANT miracles. So, in praying for the victims in Oklahoma, "Let's not see. Let's just do it."
A prayer for today-
Dear God,
Today, we come together to pray for all the people who have been affected by the storm in Oklahoma. We pray they will feel the power of our prayers and be comforted and strengthened by Your presence in their lives. Inspire us and guide us to use the gifts You have given us to serve our brothers and sisters in Oklahoma humbly in love. Use our small steps of faith for giant miracles.
In the name of Jesus we pray,
Amen
Updated on 5/30****Let's take some small steps together in faith and keep praying for giant miracles. Since I first published this post using CrowdRise to help with an online fundraiser, it came to my attention that they take 5% of donations made to keep their website running. While I understand their need to make a little money, I have asked them to delete my fundraiser from their site. I apologize for any confusion, and I plan on donating an extra 5% of the $75 already donated to the OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund to make up the difference.
I do not want to stop raising money for the Oklahoma tornado victims, though. I just want to be sure ALL money goes to the source that can help, the OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund. That was my original intention. So, I am revising my original idea and making this a family fundraiser, "Pockets of Hope." Blogging on this as we speak so stay tuned...
My goal is, still, that that through this blog, we can raise $1000 for tornado victims in Oklahoma and the OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund.
Simple Steps YOU can take-Revised
1. Make a personal donation to the United Way of Central Oklahoma by clicking on this link.
2. Share this blog post in as many ways as you can think up and encourage others to make a donation. Here's a specific link to the donation page for the OK Strong Disaster Relief Fund.
3. Dream up your own ways to raise money, enlist your families, children, neighbors, and friends. I would love for you to report your results and totals! Email me, and I am going to attempt to keep a running total each day and see what we are doing together in faith!
In Christ's love,
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