I realize there are probably other versions of this exact post on this blog already, but it is something that is so heavy on my heart that I have to share it yet again. I am called to fight for the orphan and widow. But why?

Is it because I have seen things on my trips that absolutely break my heart? No. I see things right here in Indiana that break my heart. I see the church as a whole do things that break my heart. Is it because of those “poor little orphans” and the horrible conditions they live in? No. While there are many physical needs that need to be met, and the church absolutely needs to do something about that, I think it is sad that in America we think we “need” so much. Is it because I am better or holier than you? Absolutely not. Going on a trip to Uganda pregnant was scary for me. But it was not heroic or extraordinary. The fact that I was afraid, is an indication of my own sinful nature because He has not given us a spirit fear but of power and love and a sound mind.

I am called to fight for the orphan and widow because that is what we are supposed to do as Christians. Please do not look at me and give me honor. Please do not look at my pictures and feel sorry for the faces you see. I have learned so much from the people I’ve met on my trips. I have seen in those faces what Christ meant when He said, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” I don’t go and feel sorry for the people I meet; I feel sorry for me. I have so much to learn from them.

I have quoted it before on this blog, and I will again because it is so important to understand, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” That’s it. Or read in Matthew about the sheep and the goats and what separate the two; “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” I mess up a lot. Things that I think I know are probably wrong. I am so far from what I want to be in Christ. But I know that if we are going to call ourselves a Christian, then we are called to simply love. That’s it. That’s why I’m called to fight for the orphan and widow. We all are. I was just also called to Uganda.