How Is the Impact of a Life Measured?

Rosa Parks was one of the first African Americans to stand up for her civil rights. One day while riding on a bus she refused to move to the back when asked to do so. Her belief in her self-worth and personal rights were challenged so she chose to say no. Many say that her actions were key to beginning the civil rights movement in our nation. Her decision to challenge the status quo was never done with the idea of starting a movement but were simply a response to personal convictions.

I believe it to be the desire of most of us to live in such a way as to impact the world around us. We all hope that our presence and actions in some way make a positive contribution to others and life in general. The fear that we all have is that we will come and go and no mark will be left by our life. An even worse thought is the possibility that no one will notice or care that we are gone.

The truth is that few of us will make a life’s impact that is recognized by great numbers of people. However, it is important to remember that the significance of the mark that we leave is not necessarily measured by its scope and historical impact. The greatest measurement of impact is how our lives measure up in the eyes of God.

A life’s impact is at its greatest point when it glorifies God. If God is glorified by our actions and attitudes, we have made our greatest contribution. The degree to which God chooses to make know this fact is up to Him. Our actions may sometimes impact one person or thousands or even world history. However, we must always remember the significance of our lives is not measured by history books or by the reactions of others. As it has been so well said, “We live for audience of one.” It is here and only here that significance as human beings is gained or lost!

16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. Col 1:16 NIV

Jim and the Medical Team in Ghana Update

This will be the last email from me from Ghana. I will not have access to email before we leave. Thank each of you for praying for all of us.

Today, we went in two directions. Linda and Rusty Simpson and Barbara Graves have been working with a village east of Accra named Mamakrome. They have gotten every child in the village sponsored by World Vision. They went there today to visit. They had raised money to drill a water well for the village. We all got back so late that we did not get to hear about what all transpired but will tomorrow.

The rest of us went west to Cape Coast. We visited one of the slave castles on a rocky beach bluff. It is a beautiful structure and very well maintained and preserved. However, as you hear of the horrific conditions and treatment, its beauty diminishes greatly. The men's dungeon held about one thousand men at a time in a room no bigger than most of our houses. The rocks on the floor are worn smooth from hundreds of thousands of footsteps. They were herded down a tunnel to THE GATE OF NO RETURN, loaded onto boats, and then placed onto ships. It gives an awareness of man's inhumanity to man that still exists today. There are over 26,000,000 slaves in the world today. There are probably 50,000 in the US. The slaves were herded by other Ghanaian tribes to he castles and shipped literally all over the world. All told, somewhere between 12,000,000 and 26,000,000 were shipped from twenty or so slave castles over 300 years. I write all of this to make us all aware of that inhumanity still exists in many countries all over the world.

Today, I asked Pastor Lewis why Ghana has had political stability since March 6, 1957. His answer was very simple, "by the grace of God." Pray that God will continue to grace Ghana. This is an election year for them. They have discovered 600,000,000 million barrels of oil in the Atlantic off their coast. Pray that a leader will be elected that will us the tremendous resource wisely and not just for personal gain. Also, pray that the US will turn back to God and not be like post-Christian Europe.

God bless each of you.

Jim Howard for Mission Builsa Team 2008

3 hours and my brain is sizzling

You are probably wondering about the post before this one. I probably won't be adding too many videos to this site, but I have to explain myself. Yesterday I spent 3 hours with Brad Bridges at CAM Center. Brad is a young man in his late 20's who works in the mobilization department at CAM. The purpose of our meeting was to to look at Facebook and blogs as a tool for CAM missionaries to use. Brad's ideas and fingers on the keyboard were almost too fast for this older woman to keep up with! You all know I love the computer and the Internet so it should come as no surprise how exciting I found it to explore the possibilities and be a part of something at CAM once again. Brad showed me so many things about blogging and Facebook and how to connect the two. We needed some test things to post, and, well the baby video was worth it! It still makes me laugh. I know some of you reading this will see and understand why Facebook could be such a great tool for getting CAM's ministry out there to more folks, especially the younger group. Like it or not for us older folks connectivity and relationship building are happening more on the Internet than any other place. I have always said my 90 year old father-in-law Everett is my hero. Even today he's still reading and learning new things. He has shown me more about the computer than anyone else I know. He's my standard for aging gracefully and staying alive mentally with younger generations; thus Facebook, blogs, Internet, etc. I will be meeting with Brad again in a couple of weeks and we will continue to build on this idea and see how we can use these tools of connection and interconnection for CAM.
One of my first projects will be developing with Keegan a group on Facebook for those who have attended Quest and who will be invited to the next Quest. The idea is this will give us a common "meeting place" to share, discuss, and stay connected. One of the elements of Quest is accountability, but many miles separate us and that can sometimes easier said than done. You are probably thinking that email would work as well. Maybe, maybe not. Facebook allows for all of us to "be in one spot". Keegan will be able to lead the group with less time because it will be like everyone is in the same class room and no one can interrupt or disturb it. No emails getting lost or forgotten. Assignments can be posted and questions asked. Quest occurs twice a year and now there can be an easier way to keep it fresh and ongoing in the six months between.
Quest will be our first trial, but we are discussing how new candidates will be able to use Facebook or blogs for their support raising and for connecting to their fields of assignments in the time before their arrival on the field. Causes has already been started with the CAM Christmas ministry (those of you who use Facebook know what I am talking about) and it has shown that it may well be a viable tool. Brad had so many examples of how Facebook has already been used to either bring people to CAM's web site for more information, raise funds, or even begin the application process to join CAM. I could hardly sleep last night for thinking of new ideas and just how much I want to learn myself. What a change from my usual thoughts of all the drama of the office where I work!!!! I have so missed being a part of CAM on a more active basis. I don't know where this will lead and I don't know how involved I will be, but I know what that the time spent yesterday with Brad and the computer will help me personally continue to follow in my father-in-law Everett's footsteps. Have a great day and may you glorify God in all that you do and say.

Facebook/Blogger Linked + Baby Video

My blogspot and facebook are now connected. That's why you see so many new posts at once. From now on it will do it one at a time. Enjoy!

The Snail

Charles Spurgeon once said, "By perseverance the snail reached the ark." For some reason this description really captures my attention. Nothing moves slower than a snail, and it takes much time to move short distances. I see these two snails inching their way from wherever they were to the ark and then when they arrive, they look up at the gigantic structure and the incline to the entrance! How impossible it must have seemed! All the other animals were flying by them in their hurry to arrive at their destination before the door was shut and the rains would come. I wonder if they were the last pair to arrive? Sometimes I feel like one of those snails in my spiritual journey. Inching along with a lot of effort and little distance to show. I get lost in the journey and feel a failure when I compare to others heading the same place. What I fail to see is in the story of the snail's journey to the ark, the Lord waited for them. The doors did not shut before they arrived, and they did arrive. He knew them and He was waiting for them. It is no different for me His child. All I need to do is keep my eyes on the destination and my heart full of the purpose of the journey and all will be okay. Someone else once said, "It is not talent or training that guarantees victory; it is perseverance." Thus my task is before me today as every other day, persevere. "You will need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised." Hebrews 10:36 Have a great day and a great week and keep persevering.

Worth the Cost?

I work in a doctor's office that is very busy. We work in very close quarters and spend a lot of hours together. Recently it came to light that one of the employees was embezzling 10's of thousands of dollars from the accounts. This young woman was very, very adept at what she was doing and she fooled everyone of us. In a small office you have to develop some kind of relationship with the other employees, and when something like this happens it affects us all and that has been the case at work. But if that weren't enough, we find out that she may not be prosecuted because the DA doesn't think it's worth the cost to prosecute. Breaking several laws and stealing 10's of thousands of someone else's money isn't worth the cost!!!!!! Give me a break. And here's the icing on the cake, we have found out that she has done it before and was not charged or prosecuted then either!!!!! Same reasoning. When did breaking the law have to be worth the cost? I have never been more disappointed in our legal system than now. This means this woman can move on to another place and do the same thing. Not only were our employers robbed, but our several of our patients and we the employees were robbed (for us it will show up in no raises or none and less bonuses or none). I am sure this is a regularly occurring incident in our world , but when it hits close to home it always becomes more personal. Read on:
Another co-worker's father died this summer from negligence in a rehab nursing home. It was obviously the cause of death and the co-worker wanted this personnel to never work in medicine again. She gathered the proof and presented it to different attorneys. They agreed the proof was sufficient, but they both refused to take the case. The reason why? It wasn't worth the cost. Because he was elderly, there wouldn't be enough money won to make it worthwhile. In other words, his life wasn't as valuable as a younger person's life. They even said they could get 10's of thousands of dollars, but it still wouldn't be enough. Now, I have only given the fewest of details here, but you get the idea. It felt like a sucker's punch to hear this. I'm older; the nursing home may well be in my future; therefore my life will have no value. Not bad reasoning if a little extreme.
Needless to say, depending on our legal system gives one pause. I can only rejoice that I don't live under the law, but under grace. Life is not fair, but God is just and merciful and He alone can and will meet my every need (and yes, fear too). Thanks for listening.

A Franciscan Benediction

When I am reading I love to write in my journals quotes and writings of authors. Here's one I found today and I thought we might all find it a prayer for today.

May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that yo may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

AMEN

The Twins are 6 months old

Holly took the twins in today for their 6 month check up. Both girls were declared in good health and growing and developing well. Developmentally they are about a month behind, but the pediatrician says this is to be expected and they will catch up with their peers soon. Ashlynn was 27 inches long and weighed15# 13oz while Kylee was 26 inches long and weighed 14# 12 ounces. Both girls were smiling and happy--- until they got their immunizations. A
Another praise today is that the company that Greg interviewed have two more positions for which they want him to interview. The company prides itself on getting the right man to the right job. Please keep praying for him.

For many of you I have sent out prayer requests for Alan and Pam May who serve with another mission in Kenya. Here are a couple of prayer requests from their recent emails. We all need to remember the people of Kenya and those there serving Christ.
"Pray for us as we make our way to the airport in the morning and then fly into Nairobi. We are likely to fly into Wilson field which is a neighbor to the huge Kibera slum where so much violence is still taking place. Pray we can get from the airport to our friends' house where we will hang out until we can get out of Nairobi."
"Please pray for Dr. Ghalay, she is an Indian woman, but she was born and raised in Kenya. She became a Christian after she married, and she is one of the most devoted followers of Christ that I have ever known. Her husband is a Sikh, and he is not at all happy that his wife is a Christian. She is abused by her husband in many ways. She always wants us to pray with her when we see her. I have seen her twice this week, and she has cried and asked us to pray for Kenya...it is her only country. Please pray for her and others like her who are not black Africans, yet only know Kenya as home. There are many 2nd and 3rd generation Asians in Kenya."

Ministry Prayer Requests

Dear Team members and Family,

Greetings! I hope to do a better job this year of keeping you abreast of some of our prayer needs. Here’s the first update. Please share this with those you think have interest and will pray.

Prayer is the true work of God’s people as we seek to bring in His kingdom. CAM is facing an exciting year, but a challenging one.

1. CAM Finances

§ Pray for God’s provision for our missionaries. The great majority of us, including myself, are below minimum support levels. When the missionaries are below support this also causes the mission to experience an equal lack of funding for missionary services.

§ Pray for divine appointments with those that God has called to labor with us financially in reaching and mobilizing Spanish speakers to go to the world.

§ The fall of the dollar is radically affecting our missionaries in Spain (they have lost 35% of their buying power this past year )and other parts of Latin America.

2. Recruitment

§ The majority of missionaries from the U.S. currently serving around the world will be retired and gone within the next 10 years. Pray God will raise up the next generation of young men and women to go and represent our country and churches.

§ Pray for divine appointments on the campuses of Moody Bible Institute, Dallas Theological Seminary, Cedarville College and Texas A & M University with those students that God is leading to work with Spanish speakers.

§ Pray for energy, wisdom and strength for our staff as they travel.

3. CAM Fields

§ There will be CAM Summit held in Dallas to better align field ministries with our ends statement which is to produce among Spanish speakers a “growing number of biblically mature believers who make disciples globally” Pray for God’s leading in developing effective strategies.

§ Continued fruit among the 43 million Hispanics who live in the U.S. CAM has 160 graduates from its Seminary in Guatemala pastoring churches across the U.S. Pray for wisdom and boldness for our country’s leadership to deal with and define an effective immigration policy. Hispanics are only one of the multiple nationalities that are coming to our country. Ask for vision for the U.S church for reaching the internationals within our own borders.

Thank you for laboring on our behalf.

In His service,

Keegan

Pressing on Toward the Goal

"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,
I press on toward the goal to win the prize
for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
(Philippians 3:13-14)

Keegan and I are straining toward what is ahead. We press on toward the goal and that is the journey we want to share with you. Our focus is forward, filled with hope and purpose. God has blessed us abundantly in our journey these last 35 years together and we are always excited about the future. Our journey crossed and touched many others in journey and we have so many wonderful family members, friends, and sojourners. This is the day and age of the small world interconnected through this media, the internet. We're hoping to meet many of you here and to continue to press on together toward the goal to win the prize.