Hi friends, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! If you read my previous blog post, or follow my family on Instagram, you'll know that some of us were doing a challenge called Dressember--wearing dresses every day for the month of December to raise awareness of human trafficking and funds to support the work of International Justice Mission and other organizations. We were part of a team called Beautiful Rescue, and together, our team raised over $1800, surpassing our goal of $1,000! Dressember is over now, but the fight to stop human trafficking is not.
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Hi friends! This year will be the fifth year I have done a challenge called Dressember. I’m wearing a dress every day for the month of December. Why? Well, because there are millions of people in the world today trapped in horrible forms of modern day slavery, and this little challenge called Dressember is a small way I can be involved in bringing freedom to them.
Happy December! Or should I say, Dressember... you see, this month my younger sisters and I are doing a challenge called Dressember. We are wearing dresses every day. Why? Well, it’s a simple way we can stand up for the millions of people trapped in human trafficking around the world and even here in the U.S.
The idea behind Dressember is simple: you wear a dress every day for the month of December and if someone compliments you, you explain why you’re doing it. You can also ask people to sponsor you by giving to an organization that fights human trafficking. If you’d like to sponsor us, you can make a donation of any amount to Restore Innocence, a ministry that aids victims of human trafficking in the rescue, restoration, and reintegration process, providing for their physical needs and also sharing with them the hope of a Christ. Go to restoreinnocence.org for more information. Well, always remember, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.” 1 Th. 5:24 All for Him, Savannah There are opportunities to serve all around us, right in front of us. We just don’t always see them. Too often, we are distracted by our own wants and dreams or some lofty idea of how we would like to serve God, that we miss the opportunities to serve Him right in front of us.
In our lives, every day, there are little siblings to love, our families to serve, and people in need of prayer and encouragement. And, human trafficking, abortion, orphans, it’s not just “over there”, it’s in this very country, maybe even your own neighborhood. Then, there’s the elderly in nursing homes, there’s the prisons, there’s the sick… the “least of these” are truly right in front of us. Every day is an opportunity to serve and point others to Christ. We just need to ask for His eyes to see them and His grace to serve those He’s called us to serve. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 God often asks us to do hard things. In fact, as true followers of Jesus, we'll be doing hard things all the time. In Luke 9:23, Jesus says, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me."
It's hard to deny yourself. It's hard to take up a cross. It's hard to live like Jesus did. It's hard to keep a passion for justice ablaze permanently and not just for a short time. It's hard to love someone who shows you no love in return. It's hard to stand for what is right when no one else is. It's hard to keep praying when it seems like your prayer is going unanswered. It's hard to be kind and polite to that person who's rude to you. It's hard to let go of what you want to do so that you can serve someone else. It's hard to speak the truth that no one wants to hear. It's hard to forgive someone who hurt you. It;s hard to be joyful when things don't go the way you wanted them to. It's hard to be unselfish and serve when no one sees and no one says thank you. It's just hard. Actually, it's impossible. But God is calling us to live this impossible life. It's not about obeying a list of rules. It's that we love Jesus and He says, "If you love Me, keep My commandments," John 14:15. But we can't. No matter how hard we try, we'll never be able to. In our own strength, we can't. But God is not asking us to do these things in our own strength. He never gives us commands without also enabling us to obey them. He wants to give us His strength. He wants to fill us with His power and do through us what we could never do on our own. "Without Me, you can do nothing," Jesus says in John 15:5. And as Corrie ten Boom once said, "When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds." When we have Jesus Christ living inside us, we have the power to live a life that would otherwise be impossible. We will become people who love and serve our families, pray and keep praying because we know God will answer, do justly, love mercy, walk humbly, rescue the oppressed, stand for what is right, no matter the cost, share the gospel... to put it simply we reflect Jesus Christ in every area of our lives and we will do it all, as C.T. Studd says, "with His joy unspeakable singing aloud in our hearts." No, these things will not save us; what we do will not get us to heaven, as some people believe. We are saved by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ. It is His atoning work on the cross that rescues us from sin and death. But when we give our lives to Jesus Christ, we can't go on living the same way anymore. Our lives now belong to Him and the way we live should reflect that. No, we won't do it perfectly. We'll make mistakes. And when we do, we'll seek His grace and start again. So, let us go and live this impossible life, not in our own strength, but in His. "'Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of hosts." Zechariah 4:6 I’ve got a passion for justice, to see slaves set free, unborn babies given life, orphans placed in families. But there’s something I want to make clear. I’m not a humanitarian. I’m a Christian. A follower of Jesus Christ. That’s why I want to see justice done—because I want to see Jesus Christ proclaimed.
So what’s the difference between humanitarianism and Christian rescue work? The dictionary defines humanitarianism as:
Someone can be supporting a good cause, such as freeing slaves or caring for orphans, yet be completely opposed to God and His Word. That is not what we are to be. We are Christians. We work for justice, because the Bible tells us to, because we want to see Jesus Christ proclaimed. Too often, the work to free slaves, care for orphans, and help the poor has been led by humanitarians, when it should be led by us Christians. But we shouldn’t just support the causes that happen to be popular at the time. We Christians also have some very, ahem, unpopular beliefs. We believe everyone is a sinner. We believe Jesus Christ is the only way to Heaven. We believe every word in the Bible is true. We believe human life is valuable because God created humans in His image. We believe abortion is wrong. We believe homosexuality is wrong. We’re willing to do what’s right, whether it’s popular or not. Sometimes it will be, sometimes it won’t. In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, William Wilberforce was willing to stand up and say slavery was wrong, even when it seemed like the whole world was against him. Today, the majority of people will agree with you if you say slavery is wrong. But say abortion is wrong, or homosexuality is wrong, and you’re going to become very unpopular. Now, don’t get me wrong, we should work to free slaves. It should be us Christians leading the charge. But we must also be willing to stand for the causes that are unpopular, for Jesus Christ and for His glory. I may sound like I’m repeating myself, but I want to make sure you get this. Now, we can’t do this in our own strength. Jesus says, “…without Me, you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). So, dear friends, let us ask God for His grace to do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with our God, and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to this lost and dying world. |
Hi! I'm Savannah Jane...I'm the author of several books for children and young adults with a passion to encourage young people to live for Jesus. The third born in an amazing family of seven children, I was homeschooled all the way through. This is where I share encouragement for Christian girls, updates about my books, writing tips, book and movie reviews, and assorted other tidbits. Archives
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Quote"When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds."
-Corrie ten Boom I'm on GoodReadsFollow my family's writing, illustrating, and publishing business/ministry.Follow my blog on Bloglovin' |