A Thief in the Night

We joined a short term expedition into Dwa Dwa, where Brandon teaches bible studies every Tuesday, a couple of weeks ago. The trip was going well and we were making headway with the Senior Headman and his council as well as pounding the pavement (or...dirt) with outreach evangelism. One night, while the team was leading a night service with the village, Brandon, Jake, Derek and I were sitting around the fire back at our campsite discussing the day and preparing for the next. We were only 30 feet from the farthest tent, but in the pitch blackness, we could only see the few feet around our fire.

Derek was the closing speaker in the meeting, so when it was about time, he got up from the fire and started walking toward the service. He switched on his headlamp when he reached the furthest tent just in time to see a man reaching inside of it! "THIEF!" he yelled, and ran after him into the tall grass. We saw his light disappear into the night and stared at each other for a moment. We had been talking about the catfish Derek had caught earlier that day and put under the truck, joking that the dogs were going to come steal them. So, we yelled after him, "Man or Dog?" half kidding. When there was no answer, Jake and Brandon took off. They found Derek in a ravine about 40 yards away and 6 feet down. He was running too fast to see the drop and fell while chasing the thief. He was okay, but had scraped his leg pretty badly. As they headed back to camp, they picked up a few scattered bags the man had dropped as he was making his escape. There was no way to know how many he had gotten away with, so we pulled the expedition leader out of the service. Beau checked the tents and most of everyone's belongings looked in tact, but he couldn't find his backpack with his Nikon camera or all of their expedition money. They searched the path hoping to find more scattered items and bags, meanwhile, Jake pulled Senior Dwa Dwa out of the meeting along with Mariel, the co-leader of the expedition. When Mariel heard what had happened, she closed her eyes for a minute and shared with us that before the meeting, she was the last person at the camp. She noticed that there were bags and shoes laying around and tents unzipped, and she felt prompted to pick everything up - including Beau's bag - and put everything inside the tents and zip them closed. We praised God that He had prompted her to tidy the camp and that she was obedient in the 'small' task of picking up after the team.

Senior Dwa Dwa asked us if we saw the man get away, and when we couldn't verify, he and our guys went looking for the thief. When they came to the ravine, they noticed that it was actually a stream with fairly deep water. (That Derek wasn't seriously injured was a miracle.) There was a large backpack floating on top of the water. Jake reached in to grab it, but it was stuck on something. From the camp I heard Derek ask, "Is that a head? Senior, can you see, is that a man?" Senior Dwa Dwa reached in, pulled the man by his hair and lifted him out of the water. The thief had also fallen into the ravine, and was either playing dead, or hiding hoping to escape later. They brought him back to camp and sat him almost in the coals of the fire, doped up and soaking wet. Senior Dwa Dwa questioned him for a moment finding that the man was sent from town to follow the 'big trucks' in, to steal from the 'Makua' (whites) and sell items in the villages on the way back. Senior was distraught and ashamed that this was happening in his village, and assured us that it was not one of his people. He took the thief with the help of some of his council members, and we heard them questioning him for the next few hours. We could only imagine what fate awaited this man, out in the bush, where the civil laws don't always apply. For we were guests of the Chief, and this act of theft wasn't just a crime against us, but also an insult to the Chief and the headman in charge of this village.

We were quiet for the next while, torn between relief that the thief was caught and that no items were permanently stolen, and the thought of our witness to this village as Christian Missionaries. Wasn't the last person to speak to Jesus a thief? Weren't we all thieves and liars, harlots and addicts, before Christ came and erased our shame? Our flesh cried for Justice but our spirits simply cried. Is this man beyond our compassion? Is this man beyond the Grace of God? NO. He is lost, he is deceived, and he is broken - as we all were - and He is in need of Jesus, perhaps more than anyone else we had met in Dwa Dwa so far.

The leaders went and found where the Senior and his men were holding him. Sure they would walk up on a gruesome scene and find a man beaten half to death, they prepared themselves and prayed for strength. But what they found was quite different. The thief was bound, but was sitting close to a fire for warmth, no bruises or blood, and the Senior and his men were guarding close by. They told Jake that they would banish the thief from their village and deport him to the next, where most assuredly the village of Milundu would do the same until he was deported back to Livingstone. Our leaders sat and shared with the man, witnessed by the headman and his guards, the redemptive hope and righteousness that we find in Christ. He wasn't 'the thief' any longer. He was Alfred, and he is now working through his brokenness to find Christ.

When the team left a few days later, they were greeted by Alfred in Livingstone, he apologized to them, seemed to be sober, and had a smile on his face. I am eternally grateful that we have a Father in Heaven who doesn't call us what He could - for we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God - but rather calls us by Name, His Beloved, as we are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ.

We look forward to seeing Alfred more in the future, and continue to pray that he finds his restoration and peace in Jesus.

Heal the wound but leave the scar

It's been an emotional but wonderful last couple of days for me. A random girl's day with my mom and by childhood and longtime best buddy turned out to be a wake up call from the holy spirit.

I know who I am, I know who I've been, and I know I'm ever changing and trying to line my life up with the woman God wants me to be. But it's easy to forget how wretched I was. It's easy to forget how much grace has been gifted to me. It's so easy to forget because I am surrounded by people that love me, and that appreciate me, and that tell me how wonderful I am, which is great! But at the same time, if I lose sight of who I was without Christ, and forget that who I am and who you see me as is not me at all- but Christ himself - then what have I learned from it all?

I believe God allows us to go through things and to do things for a reason, and it became exceedingly clear to me after a wonderful talk with my mom and a few verses she shared with me.

2 Corinthians 12:6-10
"Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, or because of these surpassing great revelations. Therefore in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me, but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

God is sovereign over every aspect of my life. While he did not cause me to do the horrible things I've done, it is for his Glory that He chooses to forgive me for those things, and in such mercy and grace, His power is revealed. I have been forgiven, so I do not carry the guilt, or the pain, or the shame of any of my sins. But if I forget those things, what have I learned? Not only do I forget who I am when I'm acting out the selfish desires of 'my life', but I also forget who He is and the magnitude of what he's done for me.

I have allowed myself to sweep my past mistakes under the rug, and honestly, I haven't done it purposefully or in any way to 'hide' what I've done. But like I said, it's so easy to forget when you're loving and enjoying the life God has given you, that the cost and the path to this happiness gets lost. There is a beautiful song by Point of Grace called "heal the wound but leave the scar". The lyrics have new meaning for me know, because every time I've sung this song I honestly think of other people - which is strange - but for a singer who tries to fill each song with purpose and meaning, it's what I do sometimes to be sure the song has emotion and the message is portrayed. This is probably because I have always thought that my testimony of salvation wasn't 'interesting' enough. That I could bring more emotion to the song when I take the amazing testimony of my mom and think of how much God brought her through and how many people she has been able to touch and council simply because of the 'thorns' God has placed in her life! And how beautifully and majestically God is Glorified when she shares her testimony to people who only see her gifts, her talents and her beautiful family - that God has redeemed her from so much, and that no one is perfect, save Christ.

I haven't allowed myself to have a beautiful testimony, because it has been easier to just accept the forgiveness and forget about the purpose of the thorns and scars. It was easier to put on the missions application and to tell our pastor that, "Well, I've always known Jesus, but haven't always followed Him, but now I'm back on track." But that isn't what my past was intended for. That wasn't the purpose of God allowing me to fall into temptation and wallow in a selfish, pleasure-seeking world for so many years. That wasn't why he has changed my heart and allowed me to experience the amazing feeling of forgiveness, freedom from the bondage of guilt and shame, of unconditional love and restoration - only to keep my mouth shut!

So many of you have seen me or have known me at my worst. You have heard me say things or seen me do things that make it impossible to understand why I am who I am today - or maybe you think I'm being fake. But on the other hand, so many of you have never seen me at my worst, and have only seen my best. You may think I've always been 'good' and never made mistakes, that I've never felt worthless and disgusting, that I've never sold my body to sin, that I've never hated myself and been too ashamed to even look in the mirror; that I've never struggled with temptation, that my family is perfect and untouched from sorrow, that I've never had doubts, or wondered if I was even worth saving - if I could ever be useful to a God I had ignored, slandered, betrayed, made a mockery of, completely abandoned...

But I have. You may or may not see me either of these ways. But if you do, know this. I am NOT perfect. I am NOT faking. I have NOT ever been 'good'. I have NOT forgotten that I may have gossiped about you, that I may have ignored you or hurt your feelings, that you have seen me drunk, that I was a 'tease' and 'boy crazy', that I used to cuss like a sailor while going to church on Sundays and Wednesdays. I have NOT forgotten who I was, and who I still am without Christ in my life. But I have been forgiven for those things. I have been freed from the guilt and shame when I look backward, which has allowed me to love and to serve and to live in a way that I can move forward without chains to weigh me down.  I still don't know all the answers, I still mess up, but God has changed my heart. I don't want to just 'Go through the motions', and I don't want to forget where God pulled me from - because if I do, than he is so much less glorified through my life, and the last 25 years have all been for naught.

I am free. I am loved. I am forgiven, but these thorns are here on purpose - to remind me of who I am when I take the reigns from Jesus and how much I need him to lead me. To show you how MUCH God can forgive you and how BEAUTIFUL he can make your heart if you allow him to. How incredible it feels to look at a horrendous act of sin and not feel one ounce of shame because that is NOT who I am anymore. That no matter what you've done and who you've been - God can restore you and you will be useful (trust me.. if he can use me, he can definitely use you!). Your life and your past cannot go wasted, either forgotten by forgiveness or tormented by guilt and shame, because if you stay in either of those places, you do not allow God to change you OR the people around you.

My testimony has a lot of embarrassing parts, and I will have to get used to saying them out loud. But I won't have to think about anyone else when I sing this incredible song. Because my life is beautiful, and it's only because of Christ. And when I show you how weak I am - I pray that you will see how strong our God truly is.

I love you all - and if I have ever wronged you or mislead you by my broken witness, shortcomings and failures, please forgive me. I am a work in progress, continually learning and being molded by our creator. Remember, it isn't what we do or don't do that saves us --- It is only Jesus.

"heal the wound" written and originally recorded by Point of Grace, recorded and sung live on this recording by Sally Lewis.

What Amazing Grace

I wanted to thank you all for the outpouring of love for our family over the last week. It has ministered to my Uncle, Aunt and cousins more than you could know. I can't imagine how difficult it is to lose a child under any circumstance.

Tommy Painted this a few years ago with his paint, his hands and a stick. He was a man of many talents!

Tommy was very special. If you were at the service last night, you couldn't have left without knowing just how special he was. I kicked myself and wish that I hadn't been so absent and far away the past 8 years- as I missed great opportunities to know him more. He was plagued and tormented by much, but as his parents said, he never blamed anyone but himself. He never complained and he always tried to make sure he wasn't causing anyone else pain by his actions- and it hurt him worst when he knew he had. He loved unconditionally and without judgement. He was incredibly smart and always well intentioned. But sometimes life holds on to you. Sometimes there are things that seem almost inescapable. The enemy rules these things purposefully, and uses them to keep us from living the life we are capable of in Christ.

But Tommy never stopped searching. He never stopped wanting to be better. And that is how I know that God had not abandoned this beautiful young man. For we do not love on our own account. We do not pursue goodness on our own. It is the call of God that compells us to search for righteousness. Pastor Randy spoke of countless times, good and bad, he had encountered Tommy at his church. To my great joy I learned of 2 mission trips he took to Louisianna after the hurricane. Randy said that Tommy poured his love and charisma on the people they were helping, and that it was a rare gift. But there were times when Randy had to be stern with Tommy, even asking him to leave the church if he was not 'well'. But Tommy, over the next few years, would come back and ask - "Can I be here?" and he would talk, and hug, and come back the next time he was free.

We do not search for God, for goodness, without the knowledge of Grace. I prayed that in all his searching, Tommy found Jesus. While speaking with Randy later, he was convinced at one point during Tommy's visits to Grace fellowship church that Tommy had sincerely made a decision to walk with Jesus. 2 weeks before the accident Randy had seen Tommy again, and noticed how well he looked, how healthy and that he noticed something he hadn't seen before. A light.

Early on Tuesday July 3rd, at the age of 21, Tommy and his friend were hit from behind in their car, run off the road, and hit trees. The car burst into flames and the 2 were killed instantly. Tommy had been through so much in his short life. While there were ups, there had been so many downs. My uncle, while he spoke at the service, was thankful that Tommy was taken at the height of an UP. That Tommy had been well, he had reconciled relationships with his siblings, and was not tormented by so many of the demons he had been fighting for so long.


I learned so much after hearing of Tommy's death. But mostly, I remebered Jesus' words in Luke 14:7 "In the same way, there will be more rejoiceing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."
and Pauls words in Romans 5:18-21
"Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of teh one man the many will be made righteous. The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin icreased, Grace increased all the more. so grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."


I will remember, forever, that Grace is a gift. And there is NO limit to God's Grace, forgiveness, mercy or love. That as the sheep of the Shepherd, our Lord will search out for any of us that strays, and will rejoice abundantly when His lost sheep is found and returned home. That the majesty and the miracle of Grace is so apparent when a life shows how much His Grace is needed. Tommy received Grace, and I am confident that he knew this beautiful gift was offered to him, freely. Praise God.


We sang Amazing Grace yesterday, and while I don't have a recording from the service, this is a recording of us singing it a couple of years ago. Facebook Video of "Grace"

White suit and a Puddle of Mud

Ok, I read the coolest thing in one of our books today and I thought I'd share it with everyone! As most of you know, we have some 'textbook' reading we have to do in order to prepare for our classes with AMT in Zambia. Every book we've read has been better than the next, and I honestly can't wait until our next shipment arrives!

The book I wanted to share with you tonight is called, Such a Great Salvation by Mike Petzer. It's only about 130 pages, and while he get's a little wordy sometimes, there are golden little nuggets of insight in each chapter!

The chapter in reference is titled 'Without Spot or Blemish, Blameless?' and the synopsis of the chapter is that once we accept Christ in our lives, that we are forever changed into sinless beings. But that begs the question as we clearly still have sin and temptation in our lives. While there are MANY different discussions and blog posts out of this one idea, what I want to share with you tonight is the illustration he used to help make his point. He talks about an issue we have with our self perception, even after we are saved from our sins and made spotless. We often use the excuse that 'everyone messes up' and eveyone has sin in their lives; but this doesn't mean we should not strive to be spotless, how God made us, especially after Jesus cleansed us! And here is his illustration:

"Imagine you walk out your front door and you are faced with a giant mud puddle in your way. If you are wearing dirty coveralls you will think nothing of just walking right through the puddle. Your response is 'I am already in such a mess, why bother to stop some extra dirt?' This is the attitude of all who do not see themselves as clean. They have very little resistance to sin because they see themselves as unclean already. But imagine you walk out of your front door and you are wearing the most expensive, top of the line, tailor made, white suit with appropriately expensive shiny shoes. Even the smallest spot of mud will make you look a mess, you reason, and so you take great care navigating the edge of the mud; you give the mud pool the widest berth you possibly can. This is the attitude of the one that sees himself as totally clean." - pg 125, Such a Great Salvation, Mike Petzer

I love this. When we accept Christ's sacrifice to atone for our sin, we accept that His work was perfect, and that it is finished. If that is true, then we are totally cleansed when we accept the redemption He provides. 1 John 1:9 says that when we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive them and also cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Who hasn't heard that 'God doesn't just forgive, He also forgets'? That means we have a totally blank slate. A completely, spot free, beautiful, expensive (one that cost Him His Son) white suit -or dress- that all we had to do was accept.

What a beautiful gift. Can you see it? What Love, what Mercy, what Grace. He sees us as spotless, beautiful children. Often times, the problem is how we see ourselves. While God forgets our past mistakes, it's not always as easy for us. We do not see the worth in ourselves, we do not understand the forgiveness and complete restoration of our righteousness. How on earth could we, how on earth could I, ever deserve such a gift? Knowing everything I've done, knowing every thought I've had, knowing every word that has come out of my mouth. How? How can I deserve such a gift? Because I am a child of God, and you are too. Because His ways and His thoughts are higher than mine,  and because while I can't understand how God can forget everything I've done and love me unconditionally, He can, He does, and He chooses to do so. From the very beginning He has known what we would do, how many times we would forsake Him, yet He still made a way to forgive us - before we ever opened our eyes - He made a way to make it right.

How can we then choose to take this dress, this suit; this spotless, beautiful, garment of Grace and roll around in a puddle of mud? Why would we? We are beautiful spotless children of God. It's time we saw ourselves as He sees us. Maybe then we would value ourselves as he sees value and worth in us. And maybe then we would understand that our actions matter to more than just ourselves, more than just this day, this place. We were bought with a price, and in humble and grateful obedience and praise I want my suit to remain clean, because it matters for all eternity!

For the first time in my life, I know that I am not who the world, or who the sin in my past, tells me I am. I am spotless, and it is my choice to do all I can to overcome any temptation that comes my way. For the sake of the cross, for appreciation of His sacrifice, and for the unfathomable love of my God.

You are clean. You are loved. You are beautiful. See yourself through His eyes, and live as light.

-Sally