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So, it has been a hard few months for me on a personal level. I had committed to doing this work with Play for Hope and at the same time I was learning some difficult and valuable lessons about me and my life and the pain I have carried for more than a few years. So, while this was going on, I had neglected to work on my fund raising and the time for the trip was coming dangerously near. Every time I would think about it, I would feel anxiety, but turn from it as if I could make it not real by ignoring it. I am not sure why I did this. I think it has something to do with the pain I have been working through...........but, nevertheless, I was putting myself up against it.
So, one day, I said a prayer and asked God to forgive me for my foolishness and to provide every cent I needed to get over there and work with these coaches and children. It’s funny because the whole thing calls into question the old American theology of “God helps those who help themselves”. I hadn’t helped myself very much and had made a mess of it and I needed Him, badly. So, does God help those who help themselves or does He help those who ask for His help or is it just too complex to understand? Yes.
I have raised almost every dime I needed in 3 weeks and all I did was ask. I have received donations from school mates I haven’t spoken to in years, people I have met only once, young kids I have coached, starving college students, and many others. Very few of them are wealthy, if any. Here we are in a recession and people care about homeless kids in Africa. One donation came with a note that said “I am not religious at all, but I care about the development of Africa’s children.” So does Jesus. makes me think Jesus wasn’t terribly religious either. (-:
So, I am heading over there with this amazed look on my face. Amazed about the grace of God and the love of people. And, by the way, I have discovered that Facebook is good for more than just kindof-but-not-really connecting with people.
