Isaiah 1:17 says "Learn to do right! Seek justice, Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of the orphans. Fight for the rights of widows."

God is speaking to His people in this verse, plainly telling us what our lives should be about. As God-lovers, no matter what place we are at in our life, we are to be about these things. I believe the reason we remain on this earth even after receiving Christ, is so that we can be the literal hands and feet of Jesus Christ, sharing His love to the people He loves. And those are often the unloved people of our world; the widows, orphans, oppressed and unjust. 

As modern day Christians, the word "worship" is often misinterpreted or misused. The Apostle Paul clearly describes true worship in Romans 12:1-2... 

      

         “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God to present 

          your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God which is 

          your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this 

          world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you 

          may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable, 

          or well pleasing and perfect.”

We often view worship as the time allotted during a church service to sing praise songs. But worship is not a specific time during the week, rather a way of living. True worship is finding ways to incorporate loving people unconditionally into our everyday life. It is following and obeying the commands that the Lord has revealed in His Word. It is meditating on the Word throughout the day, so that our minds will be renewed. Because this is what is good, pleasing and acceptable in the eyes of the Lord. 

Because we believe these things so plainly seen in the Bible, on June 6th a group of ten individuals will set out on a missions trip to Burayu Ethiopia. We are working through Grace Giving International with the purpose of bringing glory to God. Eight of us will be working at the GGI Academy in Burayu to put on a Vacation Bible School for over 400 children. Our theme for the week is "God has a plan for you". We want Jeremiah 29:11 to become a reality for each child there, and for each one to embrace it personally through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Although planning, teaching and communicating a VBS for 400 children who do not speak our language seems like a daunting task, it is nothing compared to our mighty God. We will have five different translators helping us teach the Bible lessons that week which is such a blessing. We are so excited for this opportunity, and we are honored to be able to tell these precious children there is a God that loves them more in a moment than any other lovers could in a lifetime. 

If you would like to pray for our team, it would be greatly appreciated. This trip will not be successful unless it is soaked in prayer. Some things to be praying for are...

- For God to be preparing the hearts of everyone we come in contact with so that they are ready to receive His truth. 

- Safety! We are traveling to a third world country and there are obvious safety issues that we could come in contact with. 

- A spirit of flexibility for everyone on the team. Although we are planning how we would like the trip to go, a lot of the time God has something different in mind. We want to take everything in stride and realize it's part of God's sovereign plan. 

- That we would not miss any opportunity to share the gospel. Whether it's on our flight, in the airport, hotel, village, marketplace, restaurant or someone's home, we want to take advantage of every opportunity that the Lord places in front of us. Carpe Diem. 

- Most importantly, that this trip would bring God glory and win hearts for His kingdom. 

Thank you for your prayers and support, we are so excited to see how God is working in Ethiopia! If you would like to read about what God is doing during our trip, we will be putting up posts and pictures while we are there, when we able. 

Under the protection of a Mighty God,

~ Audrey and the GGI team