His Hands and His Feet

This week I am going to write about a woman who's life inspires me and I consider her to be a Hero. Amy Carmichael lived between 1867 and 1951. She gave her life to see people come to Christ and rescue children in India.

Amy Carmichael was born in Ireland (oh how I want to go there...). When she was only around 18 years old she founded a church in Belfast and soon started a Sunday school for girls who worked in the mill factories. In fact this ministry was so successful that it grew and grew and grew. Young girls wanted to be taught and learn about God.
After that she applied to go on missions in China, but was in very poor health condition. She did not end up going to China, but to India.
She was recruited to work with girls who were freed out of forced prostitution in Hindu temples. She founded the Donhavur Fellowship which still exists today and built a home for these young women, a haven to find shelter.
What is remarkable and what I love about God is that there is a reason for everything and that he knows our calling and takes care of things. When Amy Carmichael was a little girl she prayed to God to turn her eyes to blue (she had brown eyes) but that did not happen. It was only when she was in India that she found out why it was so important for her to have dark eyes just like the Indian women. As she went into the temples to capture and rescue these enslaved women she was not recognized easily (she also darkened her skin with make up to look Indian.). Had she had blue eyes she would've looked more European and would have had troubles maybe in India.
What we can learn from that is quite simply what Paul writes about in the Bible. Be a Greek to the Greek, a Roman to the Romans. Be transparent, be authentic, be close to the people surrounding you. Don't miss an opportunity because people are distracted by who YOU are as a person and don't see who CHRIST is in you.

Amy Carmichael gave her life to the children in India, serving them. She actually had very poor health and had to be in bed very often. This never stopped her from fulfilling her purpose, her calling. She served in India for 55 years, 20 of which she was bound to bed because of an injury she never healed from Yet, she kept on pressing, rescueing children, bringing them to Christ. Her heart was burning for the lost and broken, the needy. She loved those children she rescued.
Her most famous quote is:

"One can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving."

This is so true. When your heart is burning for something, when you love something with the immense love that only comes from God you cannot stop giving in any way. It's what God did. He loved us so much, that he GAVE, he gave His son, His only son, to rescue us. We were the lost, the broken, the needy, the ones who abandoned God. Yet, he LOVED and GAVE so that we may be whole, rescued, content, fulfilled and have a meaning in life. But not only for ourselves, but blessed with this to be a blessing. To be a river in the desert and love as He loved us first.

Amy Carmichael died in India, she had never gone back to Europe in the 55 years of ministry.
Her life is inspiring and influenced many missionaries after her. I pray that it may inspire you today to try to grasp again the fulness of God's love and His sacrifice so that we might be with him.

Now it's our calling to go out and be His hands and be His feet, to reach out our hand to the lost and broken. This may be in our neighborhood, in the utmost places of the earth. It may be at your work place. But whereever it is, you bring His light to a world of darkness.
So lift your eyes to Jesus, focus on Him, so that you may not miss what He has for your, the plan and calling for your life.
I want to end this blog with another quote by Amy Carmichael which expresses just that.

"Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace. If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you will know what His will is."

With those words and this short video clip, I leave you now but encourage you to ponder about these things and ask yourself where you should reach out your hand.

xoxo Ramona

The Eye of the Tiger

Hello out there!

I am back with my next Hero in my series. It took me awhile to figure out how I was going to write about this person but I think I found a way.

But before I start of, let me repeat a little about the Heroes we already talked about.
We had Joseph whose heart stayed soft through all the hardships and he never stopped loving. Then I talked about Tristan who was willing to make the tough choices no matter what it cost him. And last time I talked about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who were brave people who had influence and feared their God.

The next Hero I am going to introduce you to is someone who you might me surprised about but watching the movie (yes he is a fictional person) just inspired me and I saw something that I have to share with you. I will write about Rocky Balboa. Yes, exactly I will write about a fictional boxer played by Sylvester Stallone. Those of you who read this and were born in the 90s, I'll excuse you for not knowing who Rocky is .

In the third movie of the sequels Rocky is really successful and keeps his title as world champion easily. He and his family have all the comfort to enjoy in life and it has become easy for him - especially after such a long journey from not having anything to having everything.
When he loses the fight and his title against a brutal challenger, Clubber Lang, Rocky is brought back to earth. And on top of this, his long year trainer Mickey dies. It seems like his world is falling apart.

Yet he chooses to fight back and gain victory over Clubber Lang. This indeed is easier said than done because, as his new trainer Apollo tells him, he has lost the eye of the tiger. But what does that mean? We’ll come to it shortly.
Things don’t seem to get better until a very crucial scene in the movie where Rocky and his wife Adrian talk at the beach. He confesses that he is afraid, afraid to lose, afraid to not be able to provide for his family, afraid to not being able of keeping up the life they have.
It is in that very scene that we see his heart and see the struggle.

So first thing to learn here is that fear will always hinder us to win. The bible clearly tells us that we should not be afraid. Because when we are afraid we cannot believe and hence not be victorious. It holds back faith!
After this conversation with Rocky’s wife he stays a little longer at the beach. He knows he has to make a decision. But the good thing also is that he knows that no matter what will happen, his wife is with him (just a little side note for you ladies out there ). That empowers him and sets him free.
He chooses to win and not be afraid.

So you can fight, but without the -what they call the eye of the tiger -, you will not win either. The eye of the tiger here basically means that you stick through things, that you are determined to win, to make it happen. In our walk with Christ we might not be afraid, and chose to win, but when we do not have a full commitment, a determination to win, we will not gain the same victories.
Therefore the second thing to learn here is to fight with commitment. In our daily life we have to fight for our faith. We are in this world and there will be struggles and fights, sometimes smaller, sometimes bigger, but when we are single minded on the Lord, not losing sight of Him and fear him (remember the 3 men in the furnace) we will not only gain victory, but gain strong victory. We will defeat our fears, our struggles and grow in the Lord. And people will be drawn to us, because they see our single mindedness.

Rocky did gain back the eye of the tiger. He starts training for real again. But not in the old ways. He challenges his way of doing things and redefines himself.

Hence the third thing to learn from Rocky is that it is important for us, that we allow change in our life. Challenge yourself. Make things different. If gaining victory and really growing in our walk with Christ means that we have to completely turn things upside down and redefine the way we do things, then hey, let’s do it, go for it! Let’s not stick to the same old stuff. If it means that we have to let go of things in our life then we should definitely do it. If we really want to live this overflowing amazing God driven life, we have to allow God to put His finger on things in our life that need change or need to be let go. The outcome of being obedient is amazing - trust me on this one!

After Rocky makes this decision at the beach you see how it is affecting his life and how change is happening. He regains strength. He fights with the Eye of the Tiger and changes himself.

What happens then? You can already guess it. When he fights Clubber Lang again, he wins, he gains victory and not only a little bit or merely. No, full earned, better than ever victory!

That is what makes him a Hero in my eyes.

So before I leave you with those thoughts, I want to encourage you to look at your own life, where do you have fears? Where do you need change? Where do you need to start fighting for real again?

I also posted the Trailer to the Rocky III movie, which gives you a nice overview of the movie.

I hope you fill encouraged and empowered.

As always I would love to hear your thoughts about it.

xoxo Ramona

The Journey

Hello,

I'm sorry I haven't updated my blog in a while. I was out of town, adventouring Colorado and visiting friends in Santa Barbara.
But I'll be back soon with some new and amazing Heros. I'm inspired, so keep tuned in and find out more soon.
Until then enjoy some snapshots from my newest adventures!

xoxo

Ramona

PS: I graduated University yesterday!!!!

Run your Race

This week I decided instead of introducing you to a Hero I will post a video that I find very impacting. As you watch it, ask yourself what you run your race for.
We are Heros in God's eyes, so let us run the race that He laid before us.

"I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us." (Philippians 3:13-14)

Brave People of Influece

Recently I have been talked about some great Heros. I started off with Joseph and how he kept a soft heart all through his circumstances and how we have to make sure that our heart stays soft no matter what happens. The last Hero I talked about was Tristan. He was willing to make the tough choices even if it meant sacrifice. Are we willing to make the hard choices and be men and women of character?

Today I want to write to you about three remarkable men in the Bible: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.

Have you ever heard of them? Well, I guess you have. We can find their story in Daniel Chapter 3 and it is quite a remarkable story I was reminded of it again this Wednesday during you(th).
So what's the story behind these men. Well, King Nebuchadnezzar was one of the most evil kings during the Babylonian times. He erected a huge statue everybody was supposed to be praying to. Anyone refusing to do so would be thrown into the fire. Of course, everybody bowed down and praised the statue. EXCEPT the three guys mentioned earlier. They were Jews and believed in the one God.
Later the King lets them come to him and asks them about it. Their answers is remarkable. We read it in Daniel 3:17

"If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty."

I find this absolutely amazing. Just read it again. They were brave enough to say to the most evil king of Babylonia that they will not bow before him and that their God will save them. Amazing! I love that about them.
These three men knew their God. They feared their God and therefore did not have to fear anything. They knew who He was and that He would always protect them if they fear them. When God is for us, who can be against us?
Read with me Psalm 34:9-10

"Fear the Lord, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need. Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing."

Therefore when we fear the Lord, he will provide for everything else! Amazing. Those tree young men they knew their God. They knew they just needed to trust in the Lord.
And indeed God saved them from death. In the remainder of the story Nebuchadnezzar throws them into the fire, but they did not die. Their God was with them and protected them. He showed Himself powerfully that day. But not only were those three men heroically brave and affronted the king, but they also had a powerful influence on him and the coming generations.
Let us go back to Daniel and read chapter 4:1-3 (chapter 3:31-33 in the German Bible)

"King Nebuchadnezzar sent this message to the people of every race and nation and language throughout the world: Peace and prosperity to you! “I want you all to know about the miraculous signs and wonders the Most High God has performed for me. How great are his signs, how powerful his wonders! His kingdom will last forever, his rule through all generations."

The most evil king ever wishes peace to everyone! He praises God! This is just amazing and it happened because three brave men who knew and feared their God stood up and made their stand. They had an impact on many other peoples, nations and generations. This is what makes them Heros in my eyes.

Hence in closing let me ask you a few questions:
Do you take God seriously?
Do you truly love and fear him?
Where are areas in your life where you should stand up and proclaim your God?

Remember, people who trust in their God, not only have everything provided, but also have big influence on others. Be that Hero, have this influence. Trust in your God, love Him wholeheartedly and honestly and fear him.

In this sense... let's live like Heros.

xoxo Ramona

Hen or egg?

There is this poster in the building where I work that says: "hen or egg?" and I've started thinking about this. What are we?

Are we the hen or are we the egg? In order to know that we need to know the characteristics of both of them.

As we know the hen is the female chicken. It lays eggs. It breeds the eggs until they're ready to crack and become another life.

An egg is the "hard-shelled reproductive body produced by a bird" (Merriam Webster online dictionary). The egg itself is not active. It sits there until it is ready bred. Once out of the egg the bird inside is life itself, yet very fragile still.

Now you might wonder where I am heading to, but we are getting there.
The question beforementioned asked you whether you were a hen or an egg. Accordingly I could also ask you if you are the one being active, producing ideas, breeding new life (meant as ideas, visions etc.)? Or are you the egg, waiting to crack and begin a life. Or are you waiting for the idea to be bred until you actually become active?

Think about your everyday life. Think about your ministry in church, the things where you are serving. Think about your relationships, your friendships, people in your small group.

Are you getting yourself out there, following a certain goal, breeding ideas, following your vision? Are you active?

To wrap this up, let me quote from Philippians 3:

12 I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

Again I ask you: Are you the hen or the egg?

xoxo

Ramona

Love is greater than either

As I watched Tristan & Isolde this weekend I came to decide that my next Hero was going to be Tristan, although I had planned on introducing you to another Hero first.

I know Tristan would not be considered the classic Hero, making everything right and work out. No... he has flaws and he even betrays the person he owes his life to, Lord Marke. He is in love with Lord Markes's wife, Isolde, who rescued and fell in love with him long before she was Lord Markes wife.
Tristan suffers from this love. He is torn between his duty and the life he owes to Lord Marke and the love he finds in Isolde. And with this love he finds a life beyond duty and death.
Throughout the story you might think that Tristan is no hero. He commits adultery and is unfaithful, a liar and a betrayer.
But... oh and that's good... but Lord Marke - after finding out and talking with Tristan and Isolde - gives Isolde free and lets Tristan be with her. Isn't the grace and mercy Lord Marke shows just remarkable?
This grace gives Tristan a choice: Take the easy way, run away with Isolde, whom he loves; or fight for his honor, being a man of character, seeking forgiveness and righteousness.
But Tristan is not a man of compromise or mediocrity. He chooses honor. He chooses the stony path.
It costs him his life in the end, but also washes him free of guilt and he gains Lord Markes forgiveness. That is why he is a hero in my eyes. He is a man of character who in the end understands that grace and honor are to be followed because of the fatherly love and forgiveness which is shown to him through grace by Lord Marke.

Before Tristan dies he says some remarkable words which sum this up perfectly:

"I don't know if life is greater than death, but love was greater than either"

Below you'll find the music video by Gavin deGraw about this movie. I think it gives you a nice impression of the plot.

Before I leave you with the video, let me say one last thing. Do not choose the road of compromise, but choose life. Choose honor and love and grace and forgiveness and righteousness.

xoxo Ramona