Wednesday, January 31, 2007

God's pencil

This weekend I saw the movie Mother Teresa with Olivia Hussey. It was really humbling to see someone who truly strove to be the image of Christ. Her passion was in comforting the unwanted and dying people of Calcutta, whom most people would consider a futile cause. She was the epitome of persistent strength and gentle compassion - a tough combination to uphold simultaneously.

I thank God that He continues to bring helpers into this world. I pray that He will help me to be more like Christ and continue to forgive me when I fall short. He knows that my heart desires to be his "pencil" as He "writes". May the hand of God take over my every choice and movement. Praise the Lord!

-------------------Mother Teresa's Own Words----------------------------
I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world. We are all pencils in the hand of God.

Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat. The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. The biggest disease today is not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted.

Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier. Intense love does not measure, it just gives.

Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.

Quotes taken from Brainy Quotes:
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/mothertere114249.html

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Don't Assume When It Comes to Salvation

I just have to share the good news and the blessing of this very Sunday. Today, I was feeling a bit stale and prayed for the Lord to refresh my Spirit. What a refreshment He had in store for me. The Lord granted me the great privilege of leading 3 of my teenage Sunday School students (from the Mission Training Center) to Jesus. It was such a God orchestrated event. I have had these students in my class for nearly a year and assumed that every student had already received Jesus. I was just going to teach them the Bible for life application. The assigned lesson topic was in Acts - when Paul and Barnabas were in Antioch and the Gospel was first spread to Gentiles - the first "Christians". I was explaining some background information - the miracle of God and the Holy Spirit - and connected it to the Christian Body, when one student asked me if she was a Christian. She didn't know. It took me back and I asked her if she had prayed to receive Jesus. She said no, and then 2 other students followed. Wow! I asked them if they would like to receive Jesus in their lives right now. Then, we all prayed to receive Jesus. What an exciting privilege to witness and be a part of! Hallelujah! God is so good! The Lord taught me never to assume someone's salvation or take it for granted . The miracle is that I actually digressed and got offtrack with the lesson, which was really supposed to be about "giving" and tithing to the church - supporting the church. But God steered the lesson miraculously towards being of the Christian Body, thus the question was posed. The students thought that baptism made you a Christian and they hadn't been baptized. The Lord replenished my spirit by reminding me of the overwhelming joy of bringing another saint into the kingdom. Praise the Lord!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

The Call

"I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here I am! Send me''" (Isaiah 6:8, KJV)

From Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for his Highest:
"The call is the expression of the nature of the One who calls, and we can only recognize that call if the same nature is in us...God providentially weaves the threads of His call through our lives, and only we can distinguish them...The call of God is not a reflection of my nature; my personal desires and temperament are of no consideration...when God brings me into the right relationship with Himself, I will be in the same condition Isaiah was. Isaiah was so attuned with God, because of the great crisis he had just endured, that the call of God penetrated his soul...to be brought to the place where we hear the call of God is to be profoundly changed."

Copyright 1992 by Oswald Chambers Publications Association, Ltd. Original edition Copyright 1935 by Dodd, Mead & Company,Inc. All rights reserved.

Monday, January 15, 2007

Compelled to Love

"For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." (2 Corinthians 5:14-15, NIV)

Do not fear, for I am with you

'You are my servant'; I have chosen you and have not rejected you.So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

"All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you." (Isaiah 41:9-13, NIV)

In Christ Alone

Dear Family and Friends,

First, I want to thank you so much from the depths of my heart for all you’ve been to me, especially those who supported my mission trip to Rwanda (Central Africa) last summer. God has been so gracious and everpresent in my life. The battles have been difficult, but the victories have outweighed the struggles. I want you to know that the fruit of your love continues to grow as God has affirmed my call to return to Rwanda for longterm missions. This is the sprouting of a seed that God implanted in me long before I knew my Lord.

I will be leaving at the end of May 2007 to serve in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda, as a voluntary missionary teacher through World Relief for a commitment term of 2 years. I will be teaching American-based curriculum to grades K-12 at the Kigali International Community School (KICS), a startup Christian school that serves the children of the international community of NGO relief workers. In attempts to advance peace and economic growth, the government of Rwanda encourages anglicized education. World Relief has further blessed me by asking me to also teach English to the adult NGO workers using biblical studies. I know that God will also provide many more opportunities to minister, share the Gospel, and disciple the people of Rwanda.

I once heard a wonderful missionary and Bible study teacher say that what is most needed in the world is the ministry of presence. I strongly believe this is where God has called me to serve, to be present in places where few will go. My life is nothing if not used for the great glory of the Lord. God has granted me a gift of relating to children, especially those who are disabled, outcast and unwanted. Africa is anything but lacking in children who are orphaned, outcast, and unwanted. In its continuing recovery from genocide tragedy there is such a great need for teachers in Rwanda to provide for the next generation of leaders.

My Beloved Friends and Family, I hope you will keep me, my volunteer team, and the children of Africa in your PRAYERS as I leave my family and life here in America to journey with my Lord in Africa. God has so wonderfully placed me with a strong Christian organization with a great 60 year history of aid and relief throughout the world (http://www.wr.org/). While in Africa, I will be reachable through my email address lhsatori@yahoo.com. Please email me if you have any questions or wish to be included in my emailing list for updates of my journey with God in Rwanda or to be included as a Prayer Warrior.

Thank you so very much and God bless you truly!
With Love in Christ,
Linda Huang
Email me at: lhsatori@yahoo.com

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As a volunteer missionary I will be raising my own financial support through World Relief. The minimal cost of supporting a volunteer serving in Rwanda is approximately $24,000 annually (which includes living expenses, work supplies, airline transportation, work Visa fees, etc.). Any gift amount towards the Volunteer Program is a great treasure! No amount is too small. If you wish to contribute to supporting World Relief’s Volunteer Program*, you may do so in one of the following ways:
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1) TO MAIL IN PAYMENT, Please make checks payable to World Relief and note in the memo line “Volunteer Program - Linda Huang”. Include your name, address, phone number and email address. World Relief will send you a tax deductable receipt. Mail to:

World Relief, Attn: LORELEI - Donor Services/Volunteer Resources
7 East Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21202

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2) FOR ONLINE DONATION, visit www.wr.org. Go to “Donate”. Click on “Area of Greatest Need”. Type in the Comments box: “Linda Huang - Volunteer Program Rwanda”
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3) TO PLEDGE AUTOMATIC MONTHLY SUPPORT, please email Lorelei at LMah@wr.org and ask her to send email you a WORLD RELIEF-ON-TIME FORM (please specify payment as “‘RWA Partnership - Huang - in support of Linda Huang”)
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*PLEASE NOTE: Gifts to or for specific individuals are not tax-deductible. However, gifts to support the ministry of workers of World Relief are deductible charitable gifts if the organization fully controls the funds. Your gift to support the ministry of World Relief’s Volunteer Program is not a gift to the individual but to World Relief, however please note "Volunteer Program - Rwanda Linda Huang" for tracking purposes. World Relief will provide tax deduction receipts to all its donors. Thank you!
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GENOCIDE TRAGEDY – In April 1994, a horrible evil divided the people of Rwanda and drove two tribes to hate, torture, and annihilate each other. During this genocide war, superpower nations neglected to respond to their cries for help. The genocide brutally took over a million lives in only 3 months (the Jewish holocaust took 6 million people in 6 years), including women and children who were targeted and savagely murdered with machetes. Many were purposefully infected with HIV/AIDs. In the aftermath, there are a devastating amount of orphaned children and alot of physical and spiritual healing to be done.

The Bridge to Rwanda

By Linda Huang, Copyright Linda Huang 2006. All rights reserved.

There are stars in Rwanda, clear across the sky
And they shine upon the people, who’ve come to Jesus Christ.
In the waters of Lake Kivu, they were baptized by the hands,
of the strangers who came to share the Gospel.

In the streets of Rwanda, all the children run to hear
The news of grace, that God has sent, His One and Only Son
And they sing Hallelujah, for the life that He has brought
To the people of a country, that will teach the world to shine.

God is good, God is love
All His glory will reign
And the healing shall sustain
God is good, God is love
His merciful forgiveness
For our sins. Its is paid.

There are hearts in Rwanda, clear across the land
And they hunger for the Word of God. They thirst for Jesus Christ.
When the light of our Saviour, reaches in their hearts
He pulls them from the darkness, and wraps them in His light.

Yes, the day of revival will spread throughout the land.
The Peace of Christ. The Hope of Glory. The Promise of a King.
And the poor shall be blessed, inheriting the earth.
The perfect love of God, shall wash away their fears.

I’ve been blessed by God
I’ve been blessed by His people
I’ve been blessed to share the Gospel
I’ve been blessed to love Rwanda

God is good, God is love
All His power prevails
In His plan there is a Way.
God is good, God is love
His suffering and pain.
For our salvation. Its is done.

There’s a bridge to Rwanda, built upon the cross.
Held together by the nails, that pierced through Jesus’ hands.
By His blood we are washed, all our sins have been forgotten
Follow Jesus ‘cross the bridge, into the arms of God

In His arms there is Love
In His arms there is safety
In His arms there is Heaven
And eternity with God.

There’ll be no more religion
There’ll be no more war
There’ll be no more hypocrisy
There will be no more fear
God is good…

God is good, God is love
God is all that we need
Hallelujah in Rwanda