When friends go crazy for Jesus

In my earlier post this week I mentioned that being crazy for Jesus, can lead to ....well ... crazy things... like hearing God call you to Africa ... and then actually moving to Africa. 

 

 Let's be specific, Sierra Leone.  These are our friends, the Orrange Family.  

Brent, Courtney, Brooklyn and Sam

 

Last Wednesday, while my girls were stressing out about the first day of school, Courtney, Brooklyn and Sam were boarding a plane and MOVING to Freetown, Sierra Leone.  (Brent went ahead of them a few weeks before).  For the last fifteen (or more) years Courtney has been very open about her and Brent's calling to work with women and children affected by human trafficking.  Courtney was the first person I knew who had a clear calling on her life.  While most of my friends over the past 15 years have flowed from wanting to save endangered monkeys, to working with the homeless, to selling beads of a co-op in South America, to concerns over melting icebergs, Courtney has not.  Together with Brent, the two of them have plodded along in laying the foundation they needed to make last Wednesday happen. 

So what exactly are they doing in Freetown?  They are going to work with a newly opened aftercare center for women and children survivors of human trafficking.  They're hard core.  This is not easy, or pretty, or light.  They are going to love and restore and redeem those that the world has injured and abused in the most grievous of ways.

   Their website elaborates on their plans:

     "We have been asked to join an anti-trafficking group in the capital, Freetown, and serve as          mentors to the leadership team as they start this new program. We will be supporting Sierra Leonean leaders as they create solutions to human trafficking in their country. We are projecting that this will take about 3-4 years, and that is the amount of time we are initially signing up for. At the end of that time we are expecting national leadership will have the skills and confidence to lead without our support."

They are following the example of the Good Shepard.  They are going to find those lost sheep and save them from the wolves, to restore them to the flock, and show them their great and beautiful worth in the eyes of their Heavenly Father. 

While that all sounds awesome, and inspiring, and worthy of an emotional symphony soundtrack, the truth is they are also leaving a whole lot behind and planning on getting their hands dirty to get this done.

They are leaving running clean water, a nice suburban neighborhood,  grandparents, air conditioning, schools, Target, safety, friends, their church.... their life.   There's a whole lot of it that must be flat out hard and terrifying when you are 8 and 7 or thirty-something. 

So friends, I am sharing the Orrange family with you all in hopes that you will share in Momma Anderson's zeal and Grandpa Anderson's faithfulness, and join my family in praying for them.  They are taking on a mighty work - please take some time to read about human trafficking on their website.  The numbers are hard to imagine.  The need is astronomical. 

In talking about ministry work the other day my friend Tara said, "there are kings in the land."  God has blessed some of us as kings and queens on this earth so that we can bless others.  (Not feeling like a king or queen these days?  The average American family earns $46,326 a year, which puts them in the top 3% of earners in the world.  I'll let you do the math and figure out if you think you are a king or queen on this earth.)

In addition to prayer coverage, please prayerfully consider supporting the Orrange family's ministry.  When Pete and I first read their support  materials we saw that they were asking contributors to commit to $30 a month.  Pete said it perfectly when he said, "That's nothing. That is one lunch at Panera."  Even looking at the annual amount of $360 - it's just a big trip to Costco. 

It's our crumbs, but through the grace of God the Orranges are going to accomplish great things with them. 

 

What type of Christian am I trying to raise?

I have been wondering lately, with all my preaching and rantings about Christian faith building, "what type of Christians am I really trying to raise?"  Do I want to raise my girls to be radical Christians who lay it all on the line for Jesus, or am I just trying to raise polite church-goers?

Sometimes it scares me to think of raising radical Christians.  They do freakish things - like hear the voice of God ...and respond... and leave their mothers behind and move to Africa (yes you know who you are - I'll be talking about you later this week!).  Do I actually want that?  I'm sad to admit that I am not sure I do.  Maybe I just want nice girls who marry nice boys and volunteer to teach Sunday school and drive to my house for Sunday dinner with the grandkids.   That sounds good to me.  Radical Christians can have lives lived very far away, like in China.

Being an ancestry addict, I know in our family that moving to China is not far fetched.  This is my great x3 Aunt Arabella. 

She moved to Siam and then China.  She never came back. 

See, it's in the blood.  I have reason to fear!

Arabella Anderson, the daughter of Irish immigrants, was born in 1848 in New York State.  Hearing a missionary speak of the need for a school teacher to start the first Christian school in Siam, she felt the call of God to be that person.  She left the United States two months later and served in Siam and China for the next 50 years. 

When I first heard the basic facts of this story I did some quick math and realized her mother was dead when Arabella came back.  (I am so morbid!)  My momma's heart broke for Arabella's mother.  Here she had immigrated from Ireland, she didn't have her own mother around, and now her daughter up and moves to Siam!  The story gets worse for Mama Anderson, as her youngest daughter Sarah moves to China to be a missionary two years after Arabella.  Two radical Christians in one family ...ah this poor woman!   I was sure her momma life was bitter, and sad, and lonely and well.... sad.  But then my grandmother gave me a book which wrote about the work and life of Arabella.

These are the lines that caught my breath:

       "Her desire to become a foreign missionary was largely the fruit of home influence. Both parents were devoted to the cause of missions. Her father never forgot to intercede for the work at family prayers. Her mother had been quickened in the zeal for the work in youth by hearing a missionary to Russia; and it was her hope that her first born son might become a missionary..."

 

Momma Anderson's life was not sad, or bitter.  Momma Anderson was the radical!! She had been praying that God would use her children for His purposes. She knew exactly what it meant to move a continent away from family, yet her hope was that her child would become a missionary.  She prayed that her children's lives would advance God's kingdom, despite that it would take them away from her.  Her prayers were answered in her daughters.  It was the fruit she had prayed for. 

I am afraid if Momma Anderson was alive and came over for tea, she wouldn't like me.  She would probably find me shallow and selfish when it comes to the hopes of my children's lives. I wonder if she would see right through my talk of college-prep education and cultivating a love of Jesus and ask, "what fruits are you trying to grow here?"

Just as Arabella's missionary activities were credited to being the fruit of home influence, so too will it be with Sarah and Emily's lives.  I really do have to ask,  "what type of Christians am I trying to raise?"  Is it more important to me to have children who just live ordinary lives so they can be close to me, or do I want God's kingdom to advance through their lives?  Am I brave enough to pray like Mama Anderson that God will use my girls?  In the face of immeasurable poverty, an exploding spread of Islam, and gross injustices across the globe, can I really be so cold as to pray only that their lives will serve me?  If my heart is legitimately broken for the brokenness of this world, I have to start praying that my girls will indeed be radical.  I have to start praying that I can be radical. 

Momma Anderson did not live to see the full picture of Arabella's influence.  The fruit of her prayers.  But I own a small picture of the beginning of that harvest.

 

 

Arabella dared to radically live for Jesus.  She taught the first class of girls educated to read, write, sew and know God in Bangkok. This little picture was sent to me by the curator at the school's museum.  One hundred and thirty-eight years later Wittana Wittaya Academy is still a Christian school for girls in Bangkok.  I am sure Momma Anderson is looking down quite happy with the fruit of her radical prayers.  

Make-Ahead Breakfast Ideas

I promised last week to post some ideas for make-ahead breakfasts to save you a few precious morning minutes in order to participate in Our Salvation and Song this school year.  I am four days late in posting this due to the fact that I have come to realize I am horrible at taking food pictures.  Sarah actually laughed out loud at one of my shots - then realizing it wasn't a joke, patted me gently on the arm while biting her lip.  I went to Pinterest to get some photo taking ideas, but frankly that just made me feel worse about myself. (Am I the only one that feels very inadequate after spending some time on Pinterest?)  But without further ado, here are five breakfast ideas and some correlating poorly taken photos.  Enjoy! 

1.  Yogurt Parfaits: Layer berries and yogurt in jelly jars and keep in the fridge up to five days.  Add banana slices and granola right before eating. 























2. Overnight Oats:  Are you eating overnight oats?  If not, you must not be as addicted to Pinterest as I am.  There are thousands of combinations and options, but we eat them pretty simple.  The general premise is that you soak raw oats instead of cooking them.  My base recipe is 1/2 cup oats to 2/3 cup almond milk (or dairy, or soy).  You can then add a variety of "flavorings," Here is my "Pin" with the options.  You can make up a big batch for the week as they hold in the fridge for 4-5 days. I have these Martha Stewart tags that work well as labels so picky members of my family don't end up with the wrong flavor.

3. Breakfast Burritos: (thank you mom for reminding me of this!)  Have you seen the cookbook Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer?  If not, check it out, it is great!  This is a recipe from it for burritos that you make up in bulk and freeze individually.  Take out as many as you need and microwave for 2-3 minutes.  This recipe will make 20-24 burritos.

 

Breakfast Burritos

1 1/2 lb ground turkey or firm Tofu
1 1/2 lb frozen cubed Ore Ida potatoes
18 eggs or 36 whites, beaten
3 T milk
1 1/2 t salt

3/4 t pepper

3 T butter
3 10z cans green chili sauce
20-24 burrito size tortillas
3 cups cheddar cheese

 

Brown meat/Tofu, drain and set aside.  Cook potatoes according to package, set aside.  Scramble eggs with salt and pepper in buttered pan, set aside.  Layer each tortilla with 1/3 cup eggs, 2-3 T meat, 1/3 cup potatoes and cheese and chili sauce to taste.  Roll up burrito style.  Wrap in plastic wrap individually and place together in freezer bags.  Freeze. 

 

 

 

4. Smoothie Freezer Bags: Cut up combinations of 2 cups of berries, bananas, and/or peaches and freeze in a quart size bag. Label the bag with the amount of milk (almond, soy, dairy) and ice that is needed to make a smoothie. Kids can grab a bag and make up smoothies for breakfast (or a snack). I think this is a great way to take advantage of fruit when it goes on sale!

5.  Apple Oatmeal:  Nothing beats coming downstairs to warm oatmeal and an appley smelling kitchen on a cool morning.  (I am keeping my fingers crossed that cool mornings are in our near future!)  This recipe comes from Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook. It makes 4-5 serves (that's what the book says, I think 3-4)

 

Apple Oatmeal

2 cups milk
2 T honey
1 T butter
1/4 t salt
1 cup old fashion oats
1 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 T brown sugar
1/2 cup raisins

Mix all ingredients together in greased crock pot and cook on low for 6 hours.  Serve with milk if desired.  ( I prefer to the add the walnuts at the end and not cook them!) 


Happy Breakfast eating everyone.  I hope these ideas help your family as you shift into the school year.  What works for your family in the morning?  I would love to hear your ideas for fast and healthy school morning breakfasts.