Three lenses

It’s about 11am. I’ve had breakfast, and have gone to the market to pick up a few souvenirs for my kids, and I’m already feeling worn out. I slept well last night – thanks, in part, to the Ambien – but I feel like I’m fighting something. And yesterday, despite the night before’s horrible sleep, I went almost non-stop. So I’m up in the hotel room, trying to get a quick nap before heading out to the school, then the orphan homes, and then an evening out with the staff.

At any rate, I guess the most exciting thing I can think to write about is Pheaktra. As many of you know, he was in the hospital for more than a month with a severe kidney injury inflicted when he fell out of a moving vehicle. Well, he’s home now. And it’s so wonderful to see him up and moving around. 

He’s very thin, and he has a huge scar across his abdomen. But he is in good spirits, and is thrilled to be back with his family. His older sister Srey Ka seems especially happy to have him home, her huge brown eyes glistening with tears when she talks about him.

Pastor Rich Nathan says that we should look at all of life through “the three-fold lens of scripture.” Every situation can be seen through the lens of creation, the lens of the fall and the lens of redemption. In other words, when we look at the world, we can see the goodness of God’s creation – He made it, and it’s got his stamp of identification and, ultimately, ownership. But everything can also be seen through the lens of the fall. Everything is broken, imperfect, damaged. Additionally, one can look at every situation through the lens of redemption the lens that shows us that God is working to fix things, to save people, to make our world new.

And in our work here in Asia, it’s very easy to see all of these principles at work when you know how to use those three lenses. I think of Pheaktra. He’s such a wonderful little child. But he’s been damaged and broken physically and emotionally. But God is fixing him, repairing his body and redeeming his childhood. All of these children are like that – the whole world is, but it’s especially easy to see when you can observe the scars and the recovery.

Mostly, though, in this world it’s easy to see the brokenness. The prostitution, the corruption, the impunity, the poverty – it all screams out, “Something is wrong with this world. This is not how it should be!” I’m praying that as we submit to God’s way of doing things here, we will also get to see a lot more of the kind of redemption we observe every time we visit one of our orphan homes. 

So today – as always – I’m grateful for an opportunity to have a job where I can see not only the brokenness of the world, but God’s plan in action to redeem it and make it all new. And I’m also so grateful for everyone who supports Asia’s Hope with prayers and financial contributions. There is so much work to do, and every dollar makes a difference.

Thank you, God for allowing me to be a part of your redemptive work. And thank you friends for all of your support.