On Poverty

I highly value education; I really do. I know that I'm one of the privileged few (about 6% of the world's adults, actually) who will ever have a bachelor's degree.

But sometimes I feel it simply distances me from the things I want to know more about.

For instance, I'm taking a class on international war. A friend commented, "Oh, that must be sad." Oddly enough, I was able to answer that it wasn't. I didn't even have to hesitate. We simply discussed theories about war in this political science class. We talked about why countries go to war and what leads to arms races and which alliances are dangerous ones... but no, its never sad. It's all knowledge... all brain knowledge.

And now, I'm taking a break from writing a paper on poverty alleviation. I had to pause before jumping in to the part on poverty statistics. Do we really need more? Is the problem really ignorance anymore? Do we need to tell anyone else that there are others who need that dollar more than we do? Will the numbers trigger a response this time?

It all feels so surreal. Me, sitting here, on my double bed, with my personal laptop, writing a paper on the poor in the world. Me, constructing academic arguments on the validity of poverty alleviation, while I have food in my stomach, clothes in my closet and a roof over my head. It is my privilege that even allows me to research and discuss and write about poverty.

 We don't need more information; we need more obedience. 

We don't need more empathy; we need more generosity. 

We don't need more statistics; we need sacrifice. 

Perfect One For Me

Some days I just know all over again that I'm marrying the right man.

I suppose that's a good thing, right? :)
But in all seriousness, I do. I haven't doubted whether I should be with Lucas or not, but some days, I just get hit by the thought, You are so the right man for me.
Today was one of those days.

Lucas has been in Kenya for the last two weeks and has two more to go. (You can read his blog here). The decrease in communication has been extremely hard; I've struggled to adjust to writing long emails about my day and then waiting for long emails back from him and then only hearing his voice once or twice a week.

But this morning he called me bright and early at 6:30 am. Of course, on the day I don't have class until 11:00 am, but I was still ecstatic to hear from him, it didn't matter. We talked for two and a half hours and I loved catching up and hearing about his time in Kenya.

And hearing about how his heart hurt for the North American church.
And how his heart was burdened.
And how we're missing the mark.
And how the pain around him made his heart hurt too.

I love it that his heart hurts and breaks for the brokenness in this world. I love it that he gets frustrated when our churches spend more money on our new buildings, facilities, carpets and coffee hours than on the least of these. I love it that he's so unwilling to compromise what he reads in Scripture just because our culture has accepted it and said its okay. Yes, even when our Christian culture has said its okay.

I'm so encouraged knowing that this man's heart beats not for the things of this world. 

Yup, I definitely miss him and am counting down days until we can Skype again and not have a seven second delay (true story!), but I'm also so grateful that he's exactly where he should be right at this moment.

Lucas, Lucas in Kenya

Lucas went to Kenya last year. I was so happy that he was going and I was super excited about all the experiences he'd have and all of the great cultural experiences he'd certainly get. I knew that going and working in a rural African hospital wasn't necessarily the safest thing he could do, but I definitely felt that it'd be worth it.

But now...

Now it's about 200 days until our wedding and he's in Kenya. Earlier this week, news headlines read, "Bomb rips through Nairobi minibus, killing six" (Chicago Tribune). I spoke to Lucas later that evening and he said he could hear the sirens outside his window. The excitement I used to have for his huge cultural immersion suddenly wasn't as thick.

And it's true... I'm not elated that he's there. I've been brought to my knees more than once, pleading out to God, that he would be brought back safely. I'm thankful that I'm marrying a man who is determined to love others more than himself and is committed to finding out what loving the marginalized looks like and how he can best prepare himself to do that. I'm thrilled that this is the man that I will be with...

But I still feel fear creep up my neck when I think about the riots, the bombings. Yes, I know that the news isn't always an accurate portrayal. I know, I lived in a country that didn't have the greatest news coverage and I still felt safe. But still...

I've been reminded day in and day out that I need to rely on God and trust him with Lucas. Worrying or fearing isn't going to protect him any more. The best thing I can do with my concerns is fall to my knees and spend time interceding for my fiance and the people he is working with. We prayed that this time would draw us closer to Jesus and I've certainly seen my prayer life enriched through this time.

Would you pray for Lucas and the people he's working with this month?
If you'd like to read his blog you can read it here.