Our God Saves

I find it funny how much God uses music to communicate to me in my life. Today was one of those days. But before I tell about this, I am excited to give an update on something we will be doing this summer.

Over the last week, Traci and Danny have discovered a way in which we might be able to fill a need of some very dear friends of Traci. I struggle to find the ability to describe this situation in brief. A woman Traci has been working with has gone through unimaginable hardship in the past few years due to the evils of ethnic discrimination. She is from a people group that is one of the most hated in Eastern Africa. After going through some awful things in war, this woman and her children were taken to the refugee camp where awful things happened to them and those around them. During all of these events her and her three children were separated from her husband. After they received care for gunshot and shrapnel wounds, her and her children were able to come to America as refugees. Unfortunately through this process, she was separated from her husband and her 14-year-old brother.

The husband has spent the last year getting his paperwork together to come over and join his family. According to international law, he has every right to be considered a refugee. However, due to the fact the he is part of this hated ethnic group, he is encountering great difficulty with some of the officials. On top of this, some recent political developments in the country he is in his very life is now in danger. He has been given two options, both of which are death sentences because of the harsh ethnic discrimination This is where we come in.

God has some amazing timing. Danny and I are going to be arriving in Nairobi, Kenya on the 27^th. The very next day, we are going to go into the Nairobi office of the United Nation High Commission for Refugees and plead this man’s case and try to get him transported over to Kenya so he can be taken out of the ethnically volatile area. We are going to try our hardest to push his situation and hopefully even get him sent over to be reunited with his family. We have the chance to be his voice and speak loudly on his behalf. This is an incredible opportunity to quite literally save this man’s life and reunite him with his family. What are the chances that we would get this connection the week before we leave to Africa? We serve a savior God.

This is where the music ties in. This morning at my church the worship team played a series of songs declaring how our God saves. The chorus of one of those songs was simply that: “Our God Saves.” As these words echoed in my head, and as I thought of the developments of the last week, I was struck by how true this statement is – and how true I need it to be this summer. We are getting ready to enter some situations that are really quite impossible. We are going to be trying to fight for our refugee friends in Lusaka and Nairobi. We are trying to make a difference in the lives of the poor and fatherless. We are trying to bring some light and love to some souls that may have not felt either for a long time. We are getting ready to enter some situations that could be potentially harmful to us. I am in such a need of a savior God. And there He is.

I ask now for your prayer. We are going up against some forces and quite frankly need a miracle for some of this to work out. I ask you to fight for us and on our behalf. Pray for us as we go to the UN. Pray for this man and his family as his life is at risk right now. Pray for us as we are starting to have our eyes opened to all that God wants to do this summer. It’s amazing to be a part of this man’s salvation. I look forward to learning about this core characteristic of our God as He works this summer. Blessings.

P.S. We will be hoping on a plane in about 12 hours.... I look forward to writing to y'all in Africa!