The Mercy House

For weeks I've been on the lookout for the perfect summer bag. You know the one -- just right for the beach, pretty but not too fancy. I haven't been able to find the right one anywhere. Every time I've stepped into a store with purses for sale, I've browsed. Nothing. All the bags I've seen are either too fussy with lots of weird fringe or metal slugs attached to the sides. The longing for the right purse has been there buzzing in the back of my mind whenever I go out or pick up the purse I've been carrying (One I borrowed from a friend like seven years ago and still haven't returned. Sorry, Whit!).

I am happy to report that today I received the bag I've been waiting for all this time.

I have a theory that moms get tired after elementary and middle school, so all their eagerness, parent- teacher conference fuel, and gift energy are spent by the time their children get to high school. Consequently, teacher gifts are always pretty thin on the ground for me. Last week a couple of precious girls did make me the perfect Pintrest teacher presents: mason jars filled with goodies. They even included sweet, punny tags that said things like, "I'm a smart cookie with you for a teacher."

Today the above pictured bag was delivered to me by another student. The adorable, brilliant child who got it for me is from an excellent, spiritually strong family. I also taught her brother and have developed a pretty good relationship with the whole family. To put it briefly, their existence blesses me so much and gives me hope for humanity in general. Inside the bag was a cardboard card with a simple little bracelet attached. It read, "Tie this bracelet on and pray for girls so far away. Share their story from your heart. When the bracelet naturally falls off one day, you will know you've done your part. Learn more: www.mercyhousekenya.org."

I had never heard of Mercy House Kenya before, so obviously I visited the website when I got home, just a few minutes ago. Here's what I saw.



Of course, the whole story made me cry, and here's what I thought. The work that God does every day and allows us to be a part of is so breathtakingly beautiful and amazing. I love how He shows himself in the most horrible, unfathomably painful places and situations.

I've tied on my Mercy House bracelet, and I'll pray for the work that's happening there, even after the bracelet falls off. Lately I've been stepping up my intercessory prayer for persecuted believers around the globe in China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan where a woman named Meriam with two small children is currently sentenced to death for refusing to renounce her Christian faith. I also plan to work this mission into my budget, or buy some of the great gifts in the shop online for my loved ones.

Sitting here now, all that time I spent looking for and thinking about the perfect summer bag seems silly. As He always does, God had just what I needed in mind, and more than that, He used it to show me something He's doing that I can be a part of in my own small way, partly just by sharing it with you.

What can I say? Best teacher present ever! I hope you'll be similarly inspired by the story of the girls at The Mercy House in Kenya. Support them. Pray for them.

"He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" Micah 6:8