What's on my Fridge

On my last post, my friend Sandy asked if I would post about what's hanging on my fridge. First off, I have to tell about Sandy. She's my friend who I met when I was thirteen and she was sixteen. I was a super-dork, and I thought she was so cool. We met at summer camp in Michigan, where I went every year from age 10 to 16 or 17. Anyway, we lost touch as people do, especially when one's from Illinois and one's from Ohio and your big connection was Miracle Camp (yup, that was its name). But...we found each other on facebook bazillions of years later in our 40s, so another yay for the Internet!

Here's what's weird about her request--this summer I actually wrote a mini-autobiography of myself as part of my class assignment, and it was all about what's on my fridge: how when I first got married it was completely clear, then I put on magnets from various places we travelled, then how I slowly added the photos that are there, then artwork from my eventual children, etc.

Right now there's no artwork on it because school hasn't started yet, but I took pictures of what else is there. This is for you, Sandy!

General overview:
In 2005, I heard the best missions sermon I've ever heard--and I've heard a lot--by a man named Paul Borthwick, entitled "Will You Give Jesus Your Lunch?" It was about how Christ fed the 5,000 with the little kid's lunch and how we think we have nothing to offer to the vast needs in the world when really it doesn't matter that we have next to nothing, what matters is that we place it in Jesus' hands and He does great things with it. So, in His hands you can place: 1) your past experiences, 2) your pain, and 3) your prayers. I had just heard that sermon when I read an article in the paper about AIDS orphans in South Africa and one girl in particular. For about 2 years, I did everything I could to provide her with some help. Unfortunately, it is really difficult to get aid to South Africa; however, I still pray for her regularly (she's on the right).

This is Miss Mango. Her story is here.

Here are our four Compassion daughters--from Ecuador, Bolivia, India, and the Philippines. Can I say too how Compassion International has revolutionized my prayer life? They sent me bookmarks with the girls' pictures that I keep in my Bible. On the back of the bookmarks are 31 things to pray for--one for each day of the month--things such as, "that she will always tell the truth," "that she will find joy in Jesus," "that she will hide God's Word in her heart" etc. Now, in addition to praying each request per day per girl, I pray the same thing for Darren, for Lucy and Elaine, and then for whomever else I'm praying for that day--friends, neighbors, colleagues, my pastor. Today I prayed for each "that they would make wise decisions."

I love these four girls so much. I race to the mailbox each day to see if there's a letter from one of them. Mary from India refers to herself as "your loving child." Dayana from Bolivia told me in her last letter how it is winter there and she has to wear warm clothes. Little Gleramil from the Philippines said, "I hope you will include me in your prayers that I will learn a lot about Jesus." And my dear Lizbet, 17, from Ecuador writes me the most and tells me how sad she is that her sister died but she is happy that she's in heaven, she wants to know if I'll have another baby, she sends me "kisses from the distance," and sends me "love from your best friend."

And lastly, we have our As Our Own girls. Within the last couple of weeks, two sisters--ages 12 & 13--and a 14-year-old were rescued.

I also have this magnet on my fridge, which is a great reminder to me as I pray for all these dear girls. Despite their dire conditions, they have hope and a bright future because nothing is impossible with God.



Here is a song I sing all the time to my little girls (and cry), but I also think of my adopted girls around the world whenever I hear it, too:



So, there you go--that's what's on my fridge!