Inspiration

Things That Inspire Me: the following is a list, in no particular order, of things that inspire me. Maybe they inspire me about the future, maybe about the past, or better yet, the things in my life right now. I hope these pictures, stories, and thoughts will inspire you too.

Kisses From Katie: Katie is a girl from Tennessee who is just about my age. The thing is, she lives in Uganda, has 14 adopted daughters, has started her own non-profit to help the least of these in her community. And I LOVE her blog: www.kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com She inspires me. Her life inspires me. Her faith inspires me. And not because she is some super-saint--not at all--but because she is an ordinary young woman with a call from God, and she is following that to the ends of the earth, whatever the cost. Now obviously, I would love support so that I can buy a plane ticket to come home after two years, but I would also encourage you to support her awesome ministry. So check out her blog, and be inspired.

My Team: The Cusco team is awesome! I know, I might be slightly biased, but you can ask plenty of other people, and they will tell you the same thing. Because this thing that we are doing is hard; we are combining people from all over the United States and Peru, two different cultures, many different backgrounds, families, two languages, and joining together as a family. That is not easy. At all. And we have already lost six members of our team. But look at us. We are coming together. We are forming a family. We are learning a new language. We are bonding. We are being attacked every step of the way, but we are still standing strong on a foundation much firmer than ourselves. This team is amazing: Amy and Tyler our great parents, Alex and Jorge, our guy pair, the music lovers, Emily and Kathy, the other girls, filled with so much fun and love. Then you have Ester, my other half. I always tell her that she is the glue; she is wise, loving, fun, very intelligent, and all-around amazing. That's my partner! And that's my team! And they inspire me!

Lyrics: I love music. And I am a lyrics person. I will listen to almost anything as long as it has good lyrics. So here is a sample of what is inspiring me right now:

Where there is pain
Let us bring grace
Where there is suffering
Bring serenity
For those afraid
Let us be brave
Where there is misery
Let us bring them relief
And surely we can change
Surely we can change
Oh surely we can change
Something

The enemy has been defeated
And death couldn't hold You down
We're gonna lift our voice in victory
We're gonna make Your praises loud

Light up, light up
As if you have a choice
Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be right beside you dear

Family in the orphanage: More ordinary people doing amazing things with great love. They have taken in more than 40 kids who needed parents to love them and show them the unconditional love of God. It is amazing. And their love and faithfulness in the midst of huge difficulties is more than amazing. And it's inspiring. 


Along with this inspiration goes my awe in the way God has prepared the way for us to minister there. Because Ester can use her gift/career to help the kids who need physical therapy like Marco:


God has made the path wide and smooth for Ester to work in Cusco: we had two massage tables donated by the awesome group who came down for the Cusco Finish project. Who in Cusco could use them? Oh yeah, my partner, the physical therapist! And we met a ten year old boy who has the tibia of a two year old, who can't walk and needs help. Who will help him? Oh wait, my partner knows the exercises to help him. And Cusco is a poor but very tourist-y town. The people are hungry for the word of God, but they also need medical care, and learning English would give them a huge jump into the working world. Who could possibly help them? Oh, maybe my partner Ester, the medical professional who studied English for seven years, and her partner the gringa who is a grammar freak!


It is incredible the way God has prepared the land for us in Cusco! And that inspires me to keep pressing on, to get through these last few weeks of school so that we can get there and get to work to expand the kingdom of God!

Most of all, I am inspired by my amazing heavenly Father. Honestly there aren't words to describe his majesty and great love. I want to be overwhelmed and brought to my knees every day when I think about his might and power, when I think about his grace and love, when I think about the 31 billion galaxies HE created, when I think about all the systems of the earth that HE programmed, when I think about the change HE still makes in the lives of many, including me. LET IT BRING ME TO MY KNEES.