Giving Blood

Article by Kristin Thomas - Student Missionary in Chad, Africa

She was pregnant with appendicitis. Dr. Bond has done an appendectomy on her, which is very dangerous while pregnant. After surgery she just wasn’t recovering. She was in a lot of pain and looked so tired.

James decided to give her some more blood and take her back into surgery to see if he could figure out what was wrong, which was the reason I was giving blood.

That night, Ansley came into the middle house and said, “Guys, please pray for the little Arab woman. She’s just not doing good.” James couldn’t find what was wrong, and ended up taking her baby out to try to give her a fighting chance at life. We stopped to pray in a group right then, and Ansley went back to work.

As she left, I began praying silently to God; I was upset at the thought that this woman might die. “God please, let her live. I gave my blood for her; please don’t let it be for nothing.”

I stopped, astounded by the depth of what I had just prayed. How must Jesus feel? I can imagine Jesus pleading, praying the same prayer for me, “Father, please, I gave my blood for her. Please don’t let her go.” And then the thought went further. That’s how I feel about each of my children.

Each person that I come into contact with, is someone that Jesus gave His blood for, a gift that He doesn’t want to have been in vain. Whoa. Shouldn’t my prayers for their souls be just as earnest as my prayers for this Arab woman’s life? Shouldn’t I be doing everything I can to make sure that my Jesus didn’t give His blood for nothing?

All these thoughts have opened my eyes to the value of the people that I am working with here. And the value of every person in God’s sight. I thought about how upset, how sad I would be if I had given my blood to this Arab woman, and it made no difference. Then I realized that all I had was a needle in my arm for a few minutes to very cleanly “donate” my blood.

Jesus spilled His blood. It wasn’t a pretty, clean process. Jesus gave His blood to the point of death. How much more precious a gift to be wasted, and how much more deeply He would feel the loss if it made no difference in the life of someone He dearly loves. God help me to treat people’s lives with the value You place on them, let me see with Your eyes.

Article "Jesus Is Dead"

Tonight, I read an article in the Southern Accent (my university's student paper) about the personal opinions of a student. Shane believes Jesus is still dead. While I think he has guts to speak such an unpopular view on a Christian campus, I am deeply sadden that a student who proclaims to follow the teachings of Christ, could be so short-sighted.

I don't dare call him wrong or evil, but I do believe that he is heavily misguided. However, what also saddens me is the apparent reaction to his article on campus. Ridicule and contempt are not characteristics of Christ. As Christians, we are called to a higher purpose. Apparently, Christ was not reflected in the reactions directed back at Shane. It is my prayer that as time continues, Christ will reach him through significant means, through those who represent Christ holistically.

To Shane, while you may never read this blog (and in some way, this is directed at myself), I encourage you to study God's Word further and with a passionate conviction. I do not believe that you can pick and choose from the Bible. Either the Word is rejected or accepted in its entirety. I believe every word contained was and is inspired by the Holy Spirit. I also cannot and will not entertain the idea of a dead Jesus. My faith rests completely on Him because He conquered sin and death--for me! My Savior is risen and in heaven preparing to live with me for eternity. Come soon Lord Jesus!

more of my thoughts on a side note soon

link to the original article:

http://accent.cs.southern.edu/?p=556#more-556

link to some reactions:

http://accent.cs.southern.edu/?cat=10

Awesome God Time

Just had such an awesome im conversation with my best friend Cara that I had to write about it. There is such a huge need to be witnesses (aka missionaries) in the United States. So many people are hurting and in need of Someone to help them. I've come to understand how important service first to God and second to our fellow man is. I am a different person from the person that boarded that plane back in September. Christ is so great in that He is always growing those who desire to be changed. One of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:13.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart[!!]

Not Much of a Blogger

So by now you've realized that I'm not much of a blogger. How long has it been since I last posted?! Well I'll try to change that so I post at least once a week.

Was just reading through Acts and had a questioning moment. The Lord is my King, but I have a hard time understanding why He allows some very faithful followers to die and others to live. In chapter 12, Herod Agrippa I beheads the disciple James and then plans to do the same to Peter. However, the Lord frees Peter but lets James die.

Closely connected to mission aviation, we have been distressed over the news of fellow missionary aviators going down in the jungles of Venezuela. It's been about two weeks without word from them. If the Lord chooses to let them die, I have to ask myself why He would let missionaries on His front lines be killed. These are more rhetorical questions for myself, but still I wonder. It saddens me, but can the Lord use me greater in death than in life? Is my witness to Christ stronger when I die than in my day-to-day life? Only you can answer that for yourself.

This blog posting is dedicated Beau Bockmann. He was killed in a car accident in the summer of 2007 after witnessing to a coworker. The Beau Blessing continues on my friend. I will see you soon!