One people, One Soul: Discovering the DRC

Before I get into my post I just wanted to say that I am itching to do another *GIVEAWAY*  So when my facebook fan page gets to 150 fans I will.  So over to the left you will see a "Like my Page" button.  Just click and like my page to keep up with Divine Moments :-)  Then share with anyone you know that might be interested in adoption, loving orphans, social justice, faith & family, Africa, and the DRC.  But mainly this web page is to encourage you not to miss the divine moments God has for your life. 

Today I want to share more about the Congolese culture.  When I was adopting I immersed myself in learning about the country where my son was from.  Since returning home, I am still learning.  I hope to continue to share different ways to learn about the culture of the DRC.  Congo's Independence day is June 30 and is the most important celebration of the year.  I was on my blog break during that time so I didn't write about what we learned.  I thought I'd share today.  These activities are great to do while you are waiting or when you get your child home.  

This is the current flag of the DRC.  The flag has been through many changes.  If you click this link you can see the other eight designs.  I based my T-shirt design off of this description of the flag that I found:
  "Sky blue field divided diagonally from the lower hoist corner to upper fly corner by a red stripe bordered by two narrow yellow stripes; a yellow, five-pointed star appears in the upper hoist corner; blue represents peace and hope, red the blood of the country's martyrs, and yellow the country's wealth and prosperity; the star symbolizes unity and the brilliant future for the country"
source: CIA factbook website

Activity #1: 
Print out this printable DRC flag.  Color or paint it and talk about the meanings of the colors.

Cookie that we made for our Gotcha Day Celebration

Activity Idea #2:
Make Africa shaped sugar cookies and then decorate the cookies in appropriate DRC flag colors.  Pictured below is the ones we made.  The Krotzer family is selling the Africa shaped cookie cutters as a fundraiser for their adoption.

Get yours at: One Starfish Web Store

Tips from the kitchen:  I found the best tips for making your icing smooth/shiny and professional looking when I made these peppermint cookies for Christmas last year.  I used the same method for these sugar cookies, using a toothpick to make the star, and red tubed piping icing for the stripes.  Check out this link from Bakerella (this blog rocks if you like to bake) if you need icing help.  We are talking lots of pictures so you can get the concept, a must for me and a great sugar cookie recipe to boot  -----> Sugar Cookies

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 The other thing I wondered about was if the DRC had a national anthem.  I thought I would share this video and you can find lyrics in English/French below.

When I first read the lyrics my throat lumped up and when I got to "Let us live our motto:" tears silently slipped down my face. 

 
On this day the sun rises
And our Congo stands resplendent.
A long night is ended,
A great happiness has come.
Let us all, with wild joyfulness, sing
The song of freedom.

CHORUS
Arise, Congolese, proud every man,
Proclaim the unity of our nation.
Let us forget what divides us
And become more united than ever.
Let us live our motto:
Unity, work, progress.
(repeat previous two lines)

From the forest to the bush,
From the bush to the ocean,
One people, one soul,
One heart, ardent and proud.
Let us all fight, every one of us,
For our old black country.

CHORUS

And if we have to die,
What does it really matter? Our children
Everywhere will be able to say how
Triumph comes through battle,
And in the smallest village
Sing beneath our three colours.

CHORUS

Anthem Lyrics in Official Language
Zairois dans la paix retrouvee
Peuple uni, nous sommes Zairois
En avant fier et plein de dignite
Peuple grand, peuple libre a jamais
Tricolore enflamme nous du feu sacre
Pour batir notre pays toujours plus beau
Autour d'un fleuve majeste
Autour d'un fleuve majeste
Tricolore au vent ravive l'ideal
Qui nous relie aux aieux a nos enfants
Paix, justice et travail
Paix, justice et travail
Source: LinkonLearning

Activity #1: Listen to the video and then read the lyrics of the song in English.

Activity #2: Go to this link and read the speech written for their Independence Day – first celebrated in 1960 - source: www.helpchildrenwithaids.org

Want to read more about Congolese culture?  Click this link:  #Tag: Congolese Culture

Tune in next Friday for a feature on one of my favorite non-for-profits doing amazing things in the DRC!! 

Happy Parents Day

Fun fact: In Congo, there is no Mothers Day or Fathers Day, but they do celebrate Parents Day! On the 1st of August every year children choose to honor their parents through hand-crafted gifts, songs and special events and activities.

 

I will never forget the day I met you for the first time

how your lanky body caved into mine

a bit unsure, but some how you knew

we were there for you

now it is quite different when you waller, er, um snuggle me

you grew so much that first year

and just keep growing, growing, growing

we've been going through some "stuff"

and you seem to keep testing me

I am not going anywhere

except maybe down to my knees

I won't give up on you

so please don't give up on me

we will just keep growing together
through you I'm learning to love

in a way I have not yet experienced

and maybe the depths of that love

compared to how I loved before

reflected back something savagely shallow

for you, my son

I want to go deeper 

Controlling the Currents

I feel I am unsuccessfully trying to get back into the groove of blogging.  Summer is flying by at an alarming pace.  We have been enjoying a lot of family time and spent last weekend camping and floating the river.

When you float a river, there are stretches where the current slows.  When you move into these areas you have a couple of choices.  Choice one, you can continue to move forward at your previous pace, but it will require some rowing.  Choice two, you can draw up the oars, accept the slow draw of the waters, and enjoy the scenery.  It is in these stretches where you have the ripe opportunity to observe the fish and hellbenders swimming in the clear river water or spot the hidden ducks along the bank.  If you dare to relinquish control to the river, allowing it to set your pace, you'll be rewarded to views of massive limestone bluffs, hidden caves, and immense beauty.  These stretches are also a great time to just stop, find a good swimming hole, and jump in the water.  Choice one, is all about the final destination and glosses over the journey to get there.  Yes, you are given a few different pick up times from your rental outfitter but overall you choose the pace of your adventure.

You see, I am here.  In the slow stretch of the river.  At times I feel I am moving so slowly that my mind is tricked that there is no current at all.  That is not the truth.  The current is always moving forward, but I have no control over it.  I know some of you are here... feeling hot, tired, and just stuck in the same place in your adoption journey.  The wait is hard.  The uncertainty compels you to stick in the oar and row with all your might until you find the next small rapid that will propel you forward.  You have your destination in mind, to get your child home, and that is all that matters.  In my case, I am tempted to row with all my might to generate some sort of movement in God opening that door in my future.  I also feel the urge to grab an oar and row away as I parent a child with needs that I feel incapable of handling at times.  I want to move him quicker through the process and get frustrated when he seems to not be moving forward despite my dedicated efforts.  This past week in my Bible reading, God has made it evident that this part of the river has a purpose.  It is part of my journey.  I can either fight it, exhausting my efforts to control the moving of the current - or submit to the ebb and flow of the journey.  If I submit, will God show me some hidden gems along the way?

Submitting is not easy.  Part of the process of letting go is giving God the fear of what lies ahead.  Many times you can't see where the river is going due to the way it snakes along with twists and turns.  The fear of those unknowns can unravel every pray prayed, leaving us crippled with no sleep and no joy, as it taunts our trust in God's plan.  For Zalen, it was jumping off a rock into unknown waters below.  It took lots of encouragement to get him to jump in.  Once he did, he wanted to do it over and over again.  Maybe some of you need to move past the fear and make that first jump into the river.

Our float down the river finally came to a end.  We made it just a few minutes before the bus left.  The moments and memories that were talked about mainly happened in those slow stretches.  In fact, one of our favorite moments is when we took a break on our journey, left the raft, and explored a nearby spring.  If we would of never taken that detour we might of missed the best part of the entire journey.  Though it may seem hard to understand right now, when you are so close to it, but even detours can serve a purpose.  

I'm not sure where you are at... but I am tired of fighting the current.  My strength is not going to change the course.  The river will ebb and flow as it pleases.  In this time of uncertainty and transitioning I must submit to God's pace.  I must trust Him for the unknowns that lay along the next bend. I must be faithful to "slow" and see what He is trying to teach me.  But mainly, I must submit to the current and understand that His purpose will prevail. 

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21.

I'm back

I'm back...

Media challenge was a challenge.  I tried to stay off facebook but there were many times when I needed to get on to communicate with various people.

It was still good.  To give it a break.  We had a lot of things to pray about.  With those prayers came answers which led to h.a.r.d decisions.  One of those hard decisions is that Craig resigned from his youth pastor job at our church.  We have been at our church for 8 years, but have been struggling with letting go and following God's leading for awhile.  During this time God made it very clear that it was time to move on.  I still insist that this is not good-bye just see you later.  We are leaving with so many fond memories that only a family can share, and indeed this church has embraced us as family since we first entered the doors of the church.  If any of my Macon Nazarene family is reading this, you better stay in touch.  Thank you so much to those of you who stopped by to visit, sent cards, wrote us notes of encouragement, and shared favorite memories.  It is good to know that the church family continues past the walls of the building.  :-)  I made this slideshow which gives you a bit of glimpse into some of those great memories I will cherish as we move forward. 

So, what are we doing now?  Well, we have entered into a sabbatical time, though it is slightly untypical.  Craig has been doing youth ministry for 12 years and never really had an extended break and it was time.  We will probably visit various churches for the time being and continue to pray and seek God's leading.

There is a lot I don't know.  I don't know why God closed this door without clearly opening another.  I do know this time has a purpose.  It is a lot about trusting Him, no matter what.  For me, it is trusting Him when there is no clear plan. 

This transition is so weird to me, because I like plans.  Like, really, really, like them.  I am a goal setter, write it down, kinda gal.  So to just wing it, well it is against my grain.  This may be one of those hard knock lessons.

What else happened in June?  We entered into our sabbatical time with our vacation to Wisconsin.  We had such a great time, besides Miss Mae getting sick.  Thankfully, we were able to get an antibiotic called in and she was feeling better after the weekend.  We were able to tour the cranberry marsh where my uncle works and that was really cool.  Then we headed to the Dells where we spent the week at a resort.  We had a lot of fun and ate a lot of CHEESE.  I love cheese.  Thursday before we came home we went to a water park. 

 
Good times.  Upon returning home we finished up our last few games of T-ball, picked our first mess of fresh green beans from the garden, and went swimming at the lake.  The kids have been staying the night here and there with various family members and spending lots of time at Pom-Po's & Grandma's house.  They live right by the park so the kids love going over there. 

 

Well that is a peek into what we have been up to.  I appreciate your prayers as we go through this sabbatical time.  We want to go where God wants us to go. 

Zalen turned 5 and BLOG BREAK

Just thought I'd better write one last blog post and let you know that I'm taking my media break through the month of June once again.

I will miss reading your blogs and I do require any exciting news (like traveling or such) be e-mailed.  I will still be checking my e-mail.  If you look above there is this little contact me button.... so yeah don't be afraid to jot me a few lines here and there.

So I thought to tide you over I'd leave you with a few pictures of Zalen from May.  He turned 5 in the month of May and we celebrated with a camping them birthday.

 

All the cousins.  The kids got hiking sticks and tied up in the bandanas was trail mix to snack on.

My kids camped out in the tent that night with their older cousin Trey.

Roasting hotdogs and later that night we had S'mores of course!  Zalen loves S'mores.

 

New fishing pole from mom and dad.  He loves fishing.

He also graduated from Pre-K

 

 

Love that smile :-)  Next fall he will be off to Kindergarten. 

When I get back I will have to do another blog giveaway!  As my facebook read today - See you in July home fries.  

Book review: "Orphan Justice"

Every since I returned from Africa I have been struggling to find my place after all I saw and experienced.  "Orphan Justice: How to Care for Orphans Beyond Adopting" by Johnny Carr was a great book to read.  It chronicles so many of my thoughts.

The book was not afraid to ask the hard questions.  It covered topics from adoption ethics to HIV to human trafficking to abortion.  My favorite part of this was the section called "What you can do" at the end of the chapters.  After asking the hard questions, the chapter ends with practical ideas on how to get involved.  It gives feasible ideas in many different capacities from things anyone can do to things MANY can do, to things on a bit bigger scale that a FEW could do.  This was really great, because it leaves the reader an outlet to move into action.  Often times we are moved to compassion when we need to be moved to action.  I love that this book not only addresses the issues but introduces the reader to doorways of opportunity to be involved.

This book also uses scripture as an authority and a mandate to care for the orphan.  I love this quote from the book:

"Scripture doesn't spell out a detailed strategy for oprhan care, but God does speak directly to the role of His people.  In fact, God promises judgement on those who do not take care of the weak and needy: "Cursed is anyone who denies justice to foreigners, orphans, or widows" (Duet. 27:19 NLT) 

To our God, taking care of orphans isn't just a "great idea."  It's critical.  Why?  Because every man, woman boy, and girl-- including orphaned and vulnerable children--has been created in God's image and is precious to Him.  In Scripture, God describes Himself time and again as the helper of orphans."

This book stands well with the familiar quote in adoption circles:

"Adoption in not for everyone, but caring for orphans is for everyone." 

If you are looking for feasible ways to care for orphans this book is for you.  If you are wanting to fight the injustice, this book gives you several ideas in several different areas on how to get started.  If you are curious about adoption and foster care, pick this book up and spend some time in prayer asking God where your role lies.  If your a church leader, pick this book up and let it help open your eyes to the mandate scripture outlines concerning being a voice for the voiceless.

This is not just a book just for those who have adopted or are interested in adopting.  This book is for everyone who believes in the gospel message.  This book makes it clear that all Christians are called to care for orphans.  It is so important for each of us to search our hearts and find out in what capacity God wants to use us.

Make sure you put this one on your summer reading list and I pray you emerge from its pages ready to fight the American noise.

"No matter who you are you’ve got a voice
Why don’t you use it?"

Stains of the World

Last night I was overwhelmed with grief.  My soul already downcast from the earlier reports of renewed fighting near Goma (where I sponsor a child for school) and more innocent lives taken.  Then I read this status from Jeremy Willet lead singer of the band Willet who is adopting from Ghana.  I quickly became a fan of Willet after seeing them in concert awhile back. 

"During my last trip to Ghana just a few weeks ago, my wife, Kat and I traveled to the community where our son, Evans, was born. It is a community called Bolgatanga. While there, we saw the extreme poverty that our son was born into. We witnessed the generational poverty that has plagued his family, and many other families in the area for years. We heard countless stories of children suffering from malnutrition, malaria, HIV/AIDS, and special needs. We learned about the aggressive movement of Hinduism throughout the community, and met Christian missionaries from the U.S. that are working daily to advance the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Prior to traveling to this community, we learned of a young girl that was extremely sick. While in the village for several days, we were able to go and meet her. She was so frail and underweight due to malnutrition that we carefully held her in our laps and tried to comfort her as she looked up at us with her big, beautiful eyes. I know it sounds weird, and potentially cliche, but you could see the face of God when you looked at her.

When we left Bolgatanga, we were filled with joy because we passed court for our adoption…but we left with mixed emotions knowing the many children that would still struggle to survive in this area... boys and girls just like the one we held.

Today we learned that this little girl died.

God, please give me grace. I really don't want to offend anyone, but this hurts.

Do you know why she died?

She died because of starvation…from not having enough food for her little body to operate.

She died because we closed our eyes. She died because the "system" of orphan care is broken. She died because her story was never told. She died because while you and I went for "seconds", she had none. She died because somewhere along the line, we made "missions" a line item in our Church budgets, and felt it only deserved a small % of our income. She died because we blamed our complacency on the false-truth that, "we have starvation here in America…we should help our own first". She died because we forgot why we exist. 

As followers of Jesus, we were created to worship.

We love to boil "worship" down to our Sunday-morning-U2-sounding-praise-teams jamming out to 3 songs and a offertory…but God says "away with the noise of your worship!" In Amos Chapter 5, He continues by saying "what I want is JUSTICE to roll down like a river, RIGHTEOUSNESS like a never failing stream".

I'm angry.

God, please give me grace.

There is no justice in the death of a child due to something we could have prevented. "

I was already at a breaking point...and then read of an orphanage where the babies are wrapped up in potato sacks because they have no clothing.

Then you start scrolling down and read about first world problems and you feel sick.  You want to rant and rave and say "Really?!  This is your biggest problem?  Get over it.  Get over yourself!"  I am seriously losing compassion for people because I find their problems plain ignorant compared to the daily struggle for survival that so many are living.  It is probably good that I will be taking a month break from facebook because I want to shout "When was the last time you were truly starving?  Or fighting for your life?" 

Once again here I am trying to figure out how to live here in this abundance with the knowledge of the injustice.  Struggling to know how to be enough, and knowing I can never do enough. 

And my thoughts return to the story above and flashes of the girl in the green and yellow dress return.  I remembered touching her feverish skin and coaxing a smile from her malnourished body that was poking bone.  I cried more and lamented Psalms.  I prayed Psalms 58 over the wicked who are slaying the innocent.

 "Let them vanish like water that flows away; when they draw the bow, let their arrows fall short." 

I prayed for protection of the many faces I am growing in my heart. 

Then my thoughts returned to worship. 

I am so sick of boiled down worship.  When will justice roll down like a river?

Maybe you can eat your excuses of complaceny over and over.  Maybe you can remain deaf and mute to the cry of the orphans but I can not.  Sometimes at night I weep because their cries are so loud.  If anyone notices I blame it on PMS, when it is really LTO - Loving the orphan.  I am tired of explaining to people why I can't get over it.

I am tired of trying to defend the church when she herself has a budget that focuses on first world problems.  I can't justify a paved parking lot when we turn a blind eye to those dying of preventable problems.  I just can't.  Throw your stones if you must.  

I just really wonder what great excuses you're going to give Jesus when you are asked what you did to help?  You go read these 54 verses and get back to me.  Then see if your % was enough.

Mine was not.  So I return to my wandering like a lost child in the woods.  I grieve under His wings in the only place I don't feel alone.  I leave feeling humbled, smothered in grace, because He bears the stains I was grieving over.  I know He knows.

He alone gives me strength to keep fighting.  So I will keep writing through the struggles even if I am misunderstood.  I will rally and pray for the healing of the heart of the child He chose for our family, even on the hard days.  I will pick myself back up, though weary and march on.  Those beautiful eyes stare at me from the translated documents, begging for a chance to dream.  I will not leave them faceless.  I will tell their story.

I ask those, here with me, that maybe lost and wandering.... in your wait, or in your journey...What do you do when you get in this place?  Will we ever find the balance?  Or will it always be a continual process of ashes to beauty?!  Will it always be so lonely?

I ask those, searching and praying.  What is the status of your worship?  Are you simply filling a pew?  Are you content with a %?

I ask the church if it is tired of being a stain of the world?  Or will you keep justifying the injustice?  When will you let the scriptures transform your mission?  My Bible reads:

James 1:27 

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

You talk about holiness and purity, but this verse rarely makes a sermon.  If we are talking % -- how many have visited the orphans in their affliction?

Because this verse says - "You go and visit the orphans and I am going to wreck your religion and your first world agenda.  You want to see my heart, YOU GO VISIT (not look at pictures on some slideshow) and I will show you.  You go and I will search your heart and bring you home a changed person."

That is exactly what happened to me.

Almost a year and half later I am still wrecked.  However, I'd rather be wrecked and struggling vs. not living it out.

Where are you?