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Jambo!
It is now day 8 of our Kenyan adventure and we are celebrating thanksgiving in Kenya today! The more I travel overseas, the more I am truly thankful in just how blessed we are in America when compared to the rest of the world…especially the third world. We are blessed to live in a strong democracy, economy, and to have the opportunity for education and employment.
We are blessed in so many material ways, but what about spiritually? I once asked a very good Kenyan friend of mine his opinion of the American church. He told me, “I have been to America many times and have seen and been on the receiving end of the many blessings that God has given you. But one thing I see lacking in the American Church is faith. Because you are so blessed, you have so many safety nets that you can fall back on.” Then he asked me, “When have you ever had to rely solely on God for your daily provision? Has your faith been exercised to the point where daily you have no other alternative than to trust God to live?” When I thought about this, I had to say no. I cannot remember a time here in America where my provision relied solely on God. As a 36 year old…sure, there have been some valleys, but for the most part, I’ve never gone hungry and I’ve always had a place to live.
Today’s scripture says: “But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” What an incredible promise that God gives us! If we put our faith and trust in the Lord, He will take care of us. Period.
I then begin to wonder…what if the American church could live with the faith of the third world and combine it with the material blessings we have here in America? Could we accomplish even more amazing things for God?
Jeanne,
Many thanks and blessings to you all in Kenya right now. In Atlanta is a bright, clear, crisp fall day. That alone is cause for thanks, just to be able to go outside and breathe the cool air. I am sure Brian is wistfully thankful for his Hello Kitty collection.
Certainly we are blessed materially. I think we miss the source of them. They still pour down upon us today not because of industry and creativity, but as part of the harvest of Faith that America’s Founding Fathers acted upon. They were not Deists as the revisionist say, but believers in Christ and J* GOD. They sacrificed lives and fortune. Certainly they understood only years later the miraculous creation of our country.
Your friend is correct, Christians in America many times don’t have circumstances forced upon us to challenge our faith. The challenge for us then is to seek Jesus and the will of God. Then we have to voluntarily submit to His will, and put ourselves in places where our faith is challenged, where we walk the wire without a net, where we won’t know the outcome until years later, or perhaps only on the Last Day.
That’s is what you guys are doing in Kenya right now.
Happy Thanksgiving!