I have had many moments on the race so far where I was able to love on those deemed unlovable. This is one of the most appealing reasons to come on the World Race for me. Depending on the country and the culture there are always outcasts; they could be homeless, street kids, elderly, beggars, physically disabled, etc. I love to gravitate towards those that may be otherwise forgotten. I want to be with those that no one else will touch. I want to include them in society and show them love. Last month in Nepal I had the best, most heart breaking moment yet.
We left Kathmandu and all of the teams dispersed throughout Nepal. I was blessed to be able to travel all over Southern Nepal and visit several of our teams and minister in their villages. Every day we walked for miles and miles from village to village and house to house to share the Gospel. We prayed with and encouraged believers in the area and worshipped God with them. The last team I visited was Josh's team. We lived there with a Pastor and his family who graciously and selflessly took us into their home and made us a part of their family. Pastor Gopal and Amrita truly blessed us and loved us well. They taught us how to love the people of Nepal in such a way that would literally show them Jesus.
They loved us and served us and invited us to live out our faith in these remote villages so people could see Jesus in us. Less than 1% of the country are Christian so we had to walk far and wide to even find the believers. It never failed that by the time we reached our destination we had accumulated quite a following, most of whom had never seen white people in their life. This particular day we showed up to the house and before I noticed anything else, there she sat. Rolling in the dirt off to the side by herself. Her name is Camella. She is a beautiful child that was born with a physical disability that left her paralyzed. I went over and crouched in front of her to see her fly covered face. Wide eyed and open mouthed she stared back at me.
When I talked to her I saw her smile for the first time. I was done. I knew I was there just to hold her. The family urged us to come sit down in the chairs in front of the house but when I went to sit my heart ached for my new friend Camella. I left the circle of chairs and went and sat on the ground beside her. They brought out mats for the crowd to sit on so I moved and pulled her onto my lap. Camella was born completely paralyzed and has never been able to speak, but the Pastor and his church have been praying for her. She can now move her upper body and can drag herself around. She makes noises and can almost form words. I prayed over her as I held her and stroked her hair. As she rolled around on my lap I noticed something. I looked a little closer and froze. Moment of truth. This precious little girl was infested with lice. It was all over! I had a choice: I could either suck it up and risk it or throw her off my lap and run away. Sounds silly, but it was a real moment of decision. No one wants to get lice on the race. It has actually become quite a part of normal routine to check one another's hair before we go to bed each night. I knew I was sent there just to love her and pray over her. She will never remember me and I will probably never see her again. I was determined to make the most of every second with her. So I said a quick prayer of protection and I continued to talk and play with her while I held her head so she wouldn't lose her balance.
I thought, "this is what true love looks like". Risky. Selfless. Willing to love through the mess. Not caring if you get hurt along the way. Its worth it.
So what if I got lice!
Who cares!!
Yeah, I would be miserable for a little while,but eventually it would go away and it would all be worth it. Isn't that what Jesus did for us?
He suffered a miserable death all for LOVE and even in my mess He tells me that I was worth it.
TRUE LOVE!!
What would this world look like if we all loved like that? If we were willing to take risks for one another. If we were willing to show love no matter what it took. What if we were so willing to put aside our selfish wants and desires just to help someone else feel loved. What if we made time for each other in our busy lives? What if we actually lived and loved like Jesus? What if we took His words seriously when He says in John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends."
Selfless.
Completely and utterly full of TRUE LOVE.
This is what it looks like. I only got a glimpse of it that day. For a few precious minutes in the villages of South Nepal I loved like that. Im not claiming that I always love like that. I am not fearless and selfless every day. I don't know if I can live out true love every day for the rest of my life, but I'm sure willing to try. Just to taste of the kind of love that the Father has for me.
1 Corinthians 13:3 "And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing."
If you have experienced the love of the Father I encourage you to give it away.
We taste it and see it most clearly when we are the ones doing it. The more you give, the more you receive. The more you show TRUE LOVE the more you will find it.
And when you find it, you will see the face of God.
I may not have impacted Camella for the rest of her life, but she definitely impacted mine.
