Sacrifice

"So the Lord said to him, "Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon." Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other; the birds, however, he did not cut in half. Then the birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away." - Gen. 15: 9-11

As I meditated on this portion of scripture this morning, the following questions came into my mind:

How often does our sacrifice come under attack as we lay it on the altar?
Do we respond as Abram did by driving the birds of prey away or do we allow these vultures to take what we are giving to the Lord?

If we would fight to keep our sacrifice on the altar as Abram did we would see God's hand move on our behalf and experience what it truly means to see God's covenant fulfilled in our lives.

My final question to myself and anyone whose eyes have glanced across this page...
How far are we willing to go to keep our sacrifice on the altar?

© 2011 by Elaine Glover

Haiti, Peru, and God only knows what's next

So it's been quite a long time since I've posted anything to my blog and it's not that I haven't had the desire to do so, but more like there weren't enough hours in the day.

So much has changed in my life within the last six months. I went from working in a renowned engineering firm in the city to becoming the administrator for my church, Harvest Fields Community Church.

All this started with a a 7.0 earthquake that rocked the people of Haiti. A month later as my heart broke for the people devastated by this disaster I responded to the call that the Lord impressed upon me to go and make a difference for the people. So scared but determined, I took a step a faith. Not knowing how I would raise $2,000 needed to go with the organization AIM (Adventures In Missions) for their first month-long Missions Relief Trip. I prayed and I set my goals and sent my letters asking for support. I asked for His divine favor to gain support not only in monetary form but in prayer...I certainly needed more than ever.

In addition to going out to this grief stricken nation it also meant for me leaving behind my family (two children, Jay & Marc), my job security (I'd only been at the company for a few months)and certainly my comfort. I'd never considered myself to be the "missionary" type.

I know that God has called us to go and make disciples of all nations, but I much like David Platt's "Radical" notes was satisfied to send someone else. I've since learned that Jesus meant what He said when He told us to go...and now I'm determined to do just that. No, I haven't picked up and moved off to a foreign country but I believe now that if (or when) the Lord calls me to do so my answer will be "Here I am Lord send me." I've been to Haiti now twice (most recently a week ago) and plan to return and continue investing in all the Lord is doing there. But now I'm off to Peru...leading a group of growing disciples, 15 of us in all. I'm super excited and kinda nervous about what the Lord has in store for us. We'll be going from July 9th-July 15th and I hope that we all come back with a renewed perspective of all that is important to the Lord and should be important to us.

So here's where you come in...

I need to raise $1300.00 in the next three (3) months.

This amount will cover all of my travel, lodging and food expenses during this week.

More importantly it will allow us as a group to leave behind support for the ministry we partner with in Peru.We can expect to move as God directs us, this can be within a school, orphanage, hospital or in a building effort.

It is my desire to bring the people of PERU: "HELP, HOPE & HEALING."

Below is a link where you can partner with me in this effort.Money is welcomed support but prayers are necessary support.

SmartyPig Widget: "Check out my SmartyPig goals."

As always I thank you for your support and love.

Sincerely,

Elaine Glover

Untitled

You've turned my heart of stone
into a heart of flesh
that it might love gain
that it might dare to believe it does exist
beyond the brokenness

Beyond the darkness
is the day,
beyond the rain, thunder and lightning
is a promise in the sky
arched and brightly arrayed

my heart receives it
and responds with hope

Heartbreak in Haiti!

Tears flood my eyes as I consider the sight
One child naked clings to her leg with not as much as a diaper or shoes
the other she cradles - a little girl, no more 6 months old
wearing only a onesie.
The little girls legs covered with the scars from old burns,
the result of living in a tent.

Now they have no tent.
Shoeless, homeless, hungry and naked
they sleep in the streets of Port Au Prince.
And their mother - is 19 years old.

My heart breaks as I hear her story.
How she covers her children and self with
a plastic bag as torrential rains pour down.
How she hopes to find food from a kind neighbor
(who also lives in the streets under a tarp or tent)
to feed her son and maybe if there is enough herself.
How at times she has no milk in her breasts to nurse her newborn daughter.

And all at once I feel helpless and ashamed.
I want to changed her situation and give her all I own, but I cannot.
I'm ashamed because I too have been 19 with two small children
and have never known the desperation in her eyes.
I have never slept in a street or begged for food.

I have only two things which separate me from this woman.
The fact that I, myself am no longer 19 and my children no longer small.
And the fact that I was born in America.

Seasons Change...

September is here and summer draws to a close with every passing day. Labor Day brought with it a few clouds and the necessity of a sweater. Leaves have begun to lose their color and the weaker of trees have already began to shed.

As the summer pinks, whites and bright greens transform into autumn's yellows, auburns and browns I look back over my year. January brought with it a new year and hope for new beginnings.

As I celebrated Valentine's Day in the arms of a loved one, I couldn't imagine that March and April would bring with it confusion and compromise. Stability or at least the perception of it lost and intimacy with the saviour found. Found in the still of the night, in the solitary walks in the rain.

As summer blossoms began to bloom June brought with it death...death of love, hopes and dreams...perhaps due to overwatering of attention and time. A death that has taken the months of July, August and yes September to fully see...

A flowered plucked before it's time, a plant uprooted before it's fruit is harvested. And so what is left you ask? Soil, the gardener and the rain...oh yes and the few seeds that fell to the ground. The soil is the land that He has given. The seed is what I have to sow. The gardener...well that's me, and the rain...that's the Lord. His blessings, his perfect will and time.

I pray that as I tend to your garden and sow the seeds you have given me that you release blessing on the land like rain and produce for your kingdom everlasting fruit!

The Harvest

Storms are brewing overhead
and beneath our feet the earth is quaking.

The time is near,
the seeds are sown,
our fruit is ripe for the taking.

And while His spirit produces gems
like patience, peace and joy,
there is a snake in our garden
who seeks to destroy,
all that the Lord has built
within His house, home and our hearts.

Lord open up our eyes to see
the devil's fiery darts
that aim to cause confusion,
pain and division.

Lord open our ears
so that we might listen,
to the promises given to your people long ago.
For now and & forever
we'll reap what we sow.

So we uproot bitterness, anger and pride.
You have no place in this house,
no place in our lives.

We open up our mouths to speak,
though we sow in tears,
in joy we'll reap.

People and Trees

People are like trees. Some grow straight up and branch in all directions. Still there are others whose branches are knotted within themselves like a Bonzai tree but well manicured on the surface. And then there are those whose branches move with the wind while their leaves blow with the breeze drooping to the ground.



I wonder, what kind of tree am I?