"..In as much as you have done to the least of these, you have done to Me"

On Sunday night I attended a missions service at my church to talk about the various missions trips people from our church have been a part of. I was asked to speak about my trip to India, and also got to hear about trips to Caranza Mexico, Africa, Alaska, and Ukraine. It was very encouraging to hear stories of how people have gone and stewarded the story of the Gospel in different states and countries all around the world.

We were then blessed to hear the "Children of the World Choir" perform. They represent children from Africa, India, the Islands, and the Philippines. They are sponsored by World Help, which also allows people to sponsor children in need so that orphans in other countries can receive food, clothes, education, medicine, and a chance to hear the Gospel message. I have heard this choir a few times in my college, but am always so moved when hearing them. Just to hear young children who have gone through so much hardship praising their Savior is such a blessing!

Many of the children that are sponsored through World Help have lost their parents due to the AIDS pandemic, mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa. It's amazing to see how many have been affected by this disease. After the service was over, World Help handed out a free book called "Children of Hope" which talks about the devastation of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Every 14 seconds a child in Africa is orphaned from AIDS. So in the time it's taken you to read this post, at least 13 children have become orphans. To date, 15 million children have been orphaned by AIDS, that number is expected to increase to 40 million by 2010. It all seems so hopeless... What could I do?? Well, there is something I can do and it's not that hard... I learned that if just 80 people in each church that World Help visited sponsored a child for just $30 a month, millions of kids could be saved from living a life of poverty and despair. Part of their education would be dedication to AIDS prevention through teaching abstinence. How can Christians sit back in apathy? If I were in their place, and it's only by the grace of God that I'm not, I would hope and pray that someone would come to my aid.... I have been incredibly moved and I hope anyone reading this is too.

If you want more information about World Help and sponsoring a child, go to: www.worldhelp.net

modified from last post....

ok so taking a look back at the last blog posted ("me in a nutshell") I realized that I was forgetting something VERY important to me.... Without this I would be a sad, sad little toy (sorry had to throw a movie reference in somewhere!!)

My life would not be complete without the love of my life! (enter sappy music)

No I don't mean this guy:

I mean someone that I have gotten to know for the past year and who treats me like a princess. He is my one and only and I don't care who knows it :)

Me in a nutshell....

This is me in a nutshell...

                         ok it's a figure of speech but here are some pictures to describe who I am:           

First and foremost, I am a Christian. I believe Christ is the only way to be 

right before God. We are seen as righteous not because of anything we have done, but only through the grace and mercy of Christ who died for our sins. (see John 14:6)    

I am so thankful for my wonderful family who are always there for me when I need them :)

This picture represents my wonderful friends that make me laugh and are there when I cry. They are crazy and cooky but I gotta love em. This also represents my not so secret addiction to the show :)

 My list wouldn't be complete without my addiction to Starbucks coffee. I have come to love upside down carmel macchiatos or vanilla soy lattes for cold weather, and shaken black tea lemonade or blended strawberry lemonade when it's hot. 

Of course, you can never have too many books! I love reading. Favorite authors are Mary Higgins Clark, John Grisham, C.S. Lewis, CJ Mahaney, to name a few. There are many more but to name them all would be pointless since I doubt anyone would want to read a blog that is 20 pages long. 

I am of course so blessed to live in a country where I am free to worship as I choose and live as I choose. I have the freedom to go out on the town by myself or with a group of girls. I can go to church and worship God without wondering if at any moment someone might burst through the doors with a gun. It is the land of opportunity, of making a better life for yourself and your family. 

Music is also a huge part of my life. I love singing to it, listening to it, maybe every once in a while even trying to dance to it :) music makes life interesting. Just think how boring movies would be without the suspenseful music. Or

 how often you would fall asleep while studying if it weren't for that music in your ears. 

I am sure I could go on and on, but I did say a nutshell right? so there you go. And THAT

  is "it" in a nutshell :)