There are about 2,930 names in the Bible, but only about a hundred of them finished well.  Canadian, Judy Rae, wants to finish well.

“Heaven is looking better every day,” she said, her personality still shining through brightly, in spite of the cancer.

The disease has now reached her brain, both in the anterior and frontal lobes.

“Although she has undergone radiation treatments, the cancer has not been arrested. There’s nothing more the medical field can do,” said Doug Rae, her husband and Board of Director with Campus Crusade for Christ, Canada. It’s obvious that he knows the only person who can heal Judy now is God.

Battling cancer has brought them closer together than ever. But it wasn’t always like that.  When Doug and Judy were married in 1961, things didn’t flow smoothly. “We weren’t doing anything wrong; we just weren’t doing anything right,” Doug said. They had very different perspectives on God. When Doug chose to follow Christ soon after their marriage, he was alone in his decision.

Six years later, however, Judy agreed to accompany him to a Campus Crusade for Christ Executive Conference. The gathering concentrated on the theme of Christian commitment. Then and there Judy decided that she couldn’t be committed as a Christian until she became one. Vonette Bright, co-founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, seized the opportunity and led Judy to the Lord.

Over the years God healed and strengthened their marriage and also blessed them with three children: Susan, Wendy and Gary. Today Judy is grandma of three.

“If every mother and grandmother had the love and interest in her children that Judy does, the world would definitely be a better place,” said Doug. Carter, the oldest grandson, realized early on just how special his Mimi (grandma) is. At five, he asked her to marry him.

Apart from loving her family, Judy poured her creativity into fabric folk art. It became more than a hobby when over 600 people showed up to enjoy the annual Country House Craft Fair she hosted before Christmas. Exhibiting her own creations along with other craft enthusiasts in her community, Judy created a much-loved tradition. For many, Christmas just wasn’t the same without a visit to Judy’s craft fair.

In 1998 Judy was diagnosed with cancer. Her lumpectomy showed that only one lymph node was affected, but six months later, doctors found that the cancer was moving at an alarming rate. Fourteen lymph nodes were cancerous. She continued to receive treatment but the cancer soon spread to the liver and then to the chest cavity.

Judy had questions. She didn’t know where to turn to for answers, except to God. She also realized that other cancer victims would experience similar bouts of anger and frustration and she wanted to make sure they knew where to find hope. Together with Judy Thorne of North Shore Alliance Church in North Vancouver, Judy started a support group for women with cancer called “Wings of Hope.”

“If you are wondering where God is in your journey as a woman with cancer, join us,” they say.

The group meets every second Monday of the month to share their experiences, information on issues related to cancer and its treatment, as well as care for the spirit. Although the path has not been easy, Judy praises the Lord daily.

“Well, you know,” she says, “I’m just focused on Jesus.”

Judy was called home to be with her Lord Jesus in heaven on May 25, 2001 after a 32-month struggle with breast cancer. Judy had run the race that Jesus set before her.  She struggled before crossing the finish line but she did the most important part right: the FINISH. She ended the race at full speed, charging ahead and eager for heaven.

Judy knew the peace that comes from knowing that she had eternal life. Do you?  Are you living your life in the knowledge that you’ll go to Heaven when you die?

God wants to be our leverage in living, empowering us to feel better about ourselves, more excited about our future, more grateful for those we love and with the peace that comes from knowing where we’ll spend eternity.

If you would like to know Jesus as your personal Savior, why don’t you pray the prayer below?

Lord Jesus, I want to know You personally. Thank You dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of my life. Make me be the person You want me to be. Amen.

“We need the women of the world to come looking for us, we need that hope that someone would come looking for us when we’re missing.”

The room was silent.  It was one week after 9-11, and along with 10, 000 other women who had gathered at the Global Celebration for Women in Houston, I watched this video clip of an Afghan woman pleading with the women of the world to take action.  At that moment, I couldn’t help but wonder: Had I truly gone looking for these women when they were missing?  Or did I read, listen and forget?

Although the Taliban came into power in 1996, it took tragedy on American soil five years later for the world to wake up to the suffering of women in Afghanistan.

While political oppression in Afghanistan has now lessened, the suffering of Afghan women offers an important lesson: Who else is missing in the world today?

Young girls who roll beedies all day in the back streets of India?  Girls sold into prostitution, working in brothels all over the world?  What about those chained to the secrets of domestic violence and abuse?  Or the millions of men, women and children affected and infected by AIDS?

We are the light of the whole world.  It is our spiritual destiny to shine and shed light in dark places.  But in order to shine light, we have to be awake to the darkness, and go there.

As global citizens, we need all our eyes to see, all our ears to hear, all our voices to be heard, all our hands to work, and all our feet to “dance upon injustice.”

Although I am becoming more aware of the tragedy and suffering in  our world, I still struggle to live it out in my daily reality, especially when life in Canada seems so far removed from it.

In his book, Good News about Injustice, Gary Haugen, president of International Justice Mission, shows that my struggle isn’t unique.  He writes, “I have certainly felt that dreamlike separation from reality when I have returned from these hellish places around the world.  In no time at all it begins to feel as if the nightmare I came from in Rwanda or the Philippines or South Africa has taken place not in another country but on another planet.  Back home, it simply does not feel real anymore.”

Growing up in South Africa, I lived blindly for many years.  I know now that it’s not our geographical position that determines our awareness of injustice – but rather the condition of our hearts and our willingness to see the world as it is.

Sometimes the realities of injustice can be overwhelming.  We ask ourselves, “Where should I start? What difference can I make?”

I am reminded of the story of a simple woman in India who understood the power of her light. She didn’t have an education, but after enrolling in a training program for health workers, she soon began teaching others.   When she received an invitation to a major international conference for health specialists in Washington, D.C., the humble woman approached the podium with confidence.

“As I look at all of you,” she said, “I compare you to this beautiful chandelier that hangs from the ceiling of this hall.  You, like the chandelier, are bright, beautiful and expensive.  But you are so important and knowledgeable that you are unapproachable for many – just like this chandelier is out of our reach.  We can only look at it and marvel at its beauty.  We cannot get close to it.  We cannot touch it.  But when I think of myself, I think of the little oil lamps that we use at night in my village to see our way in the dark.  It is not expensive and it is not beautiful.  But it is useful and practical.  I see myself like that little lamp because I can take my lamp – my knowledge – and light the lamps of others.  A single lamp sheds only a little light, but many of them together can create a great light.”

What kind of light are you? A chandelier or a lamp? A 60-watt bulb or a spotlight?

Rock star Bono of U2 is a floodlight.  He’s using every ounce of his wattage to shine light on injustice.  Says Bono of AIDS: “You didn’t start it.  But you can end it.  We need your help.”

It’s time to know our power, find those missing in the dark and shine.

It took years for Stefanie Coutinho to fit in.

It was only in high school that she connected with the popular crowd. Suddenly she had four best friends and enjoyed having fun, being popular and dreaming of future success.

When her family emigrated from the United Arab Emirates to Canada, Stefanie was eager to experience life in the Western world and become part of it. The downside was making new friends.

Her natural shyness prevented her from getting close to anyone, but in her second year at university, Stefanie decided to do something about it. Since her family had a Christian heritage in India, she looked for a Christian group on campus. The weekly meetings were fun. The music was good and the people friendly, Stefanie kept going back.

She was amazed to hear students talk about God in a personal way, as if they knew him. “For me, that was totally foreign,” says Stefanie. “ But it got my attention.”

Still there was one particular question Stefanie wanted answered. “How is Jesus’ death on the cross relevant to my life?” she asked.

She continued to attend the weekly meetings, but it wasn’t until she watched Charles Stanley, a televangelist, preach one night on the meaning of the cross that things finally started to make senses.

Shortly afterwards, at another student gathering, the band was playing a song called “Amazing Love.”

“I remember looking at the lyrics on the screen: ‘Amazing love, how can it be, that you, my king, would die for me?’ for the first time I realized I really wanted Christ in my life,” says Stefanie. “I prayed and asked God to give me the kind of relationship with him that everyone around me had.”

“Now developing my relationship with Jesus Christ is a priority in my life,” she says “This is not just a spiritual experience; it’s a process of getting to know a real person. He has a character and I can know it.”

It doesn’t mean that now life is perfect. There are still days when Stefanie feels hurt or lonely. “ At those times, I can’t wait to go and talk to God,” At those times, I can’t wait to go and talk to God,” she says. “I know I can be honest about how I feel. When I go to God, I say, “ God you are the only one I feel I can trust. I am hurting, but show me what Jesus would do.’

Take a look at your life.  How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times.  There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget.  In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new.  What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

Cultural practices often create suffering and hardship for women. In 1996, life for women in Afghanistan changed drastically

Women live in fear of their lives for the slightest misbehavior. They have to wear “burqua” and make sure that not any part of their bodies are exposed which could be offensive to a man. Also, the windows of a house where a woman lives must be painted so that she can never be seen by outsiders. There are almost no medical facilities available for them and the levels of depression and suicide amongst women in Afghanistan are skyrocketing.

Cry out to God on behalf of the many Afghan women.

Sometimes the abuse of authority or the tyranny of government, like the rule of the Taliban, may seem overwhelming. What can I do to overthrow a government or change a cultural practice that has gone on for centuries, you might ask. Have you considered a time of fasting and prayer to break the yoke of injustice?

In Mark 9:29 Jesus tells His disciples that certain changes can only be affected by prayer and fasting. Queen Esther called a three-day fast for her nation. Daniel fasted and set his eyes toward heaven. What are you willing to do?

We can go to a God who sees every woman and intercedes with us on behalf of those who most need our prayers.

Thank the Holy Spirit for interceding, especially when we don’t quite know how to pray.

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express”. (Romans 8:26)

Used with permission by Discovering God’s Heart for Suffering Women, a 40-day prayer pilgrimage.

In the video “Tears: Women in Afghanistan,”

I saw this video at a large women’s gathering in Houston, a week after 9-11. This statement gripped me. Did I go looking for these women when they were missing?

Or did I hear and look away? Did I listen and forget?

Although the Taliban came into power in 1996, it took a tragedy on American soil for most of us in the world to really wake up to the suffering of women in Afghanistan.

These women are no longer under the same political oppression, but their suffering offers a lesson. It also asks a penetrating question: What other women are missing in our world today?

I don’t want the women of Afghanistan to have suffered in vain. I want to hold on to their reality and let it deepen my awakening.

There is so much to learn still. But today my heart is looking for the missing women of our world. I am looking for the young girls rolling beedies all day. I am looking for those sold into prostitution and locked up in brothels all over the world.

I am looking for the women who are chained to the secrets and paralyzing fear of domestic violence and abuse. I am looking for the women diminished to mere shadows in cultures that regard them as second-class citizens.

My God—our Father—wants them to be free. He is El-Roi, the God who sees. He knows where they are. He sees their hurt and brokenness, and He is longing for justice. He sent Jesus to bring good news, heal broken hearts, and announce release and freedom from prisons. He sent Jesus to comfort those who mourn and give joy and gladness, instead of grief, a song of praise, instead of sorrow. He wants to dress them in robes of salvation and victory. He wants them to live in the Light.

But how, my heart wonders, can they be set free, if we don’t ask for their release? How can they be found if we don’t report them missing?

Light overcomes darkness

In Matthew 5:13 Jesus says, “You are like light for the whole world.” It is our spiritual nature to shine and shed light in dark places.

But in order to shine light, we have to be awake to the darkness in the world, and go there.

At the time of my first personal awakening, it seemed like I couldn’t turn a page in the Bible without colliding head-on with a Scripture verse on justice. It felt like all the Bible did was talk about justice, injustice, suffering and God’s compassion. For years, I hadn’t seen it.

But then, ever so slowly, first my ears, then my eyes, then my heart and then my voice woke up.

I am still at the beginning of this pilgrimage. But I’d like to be alive, alert and fully awake to everything the Father desires.

Where is the Body of Christ in its awakening? Like a sleeping giant, perhaps we have still only opened one eye to this issue. But we need all our eyes to see, all our ears to hear, all our voices to be heard, all our hearts to beat as one with the heart of the Father, all our hands to work at justice, and all our feet to “dance upon injustice.”

Now, the more I am awakened to suffering and injustice, the more I want the church to wake up and see the world as God sees it. But I am also reminded of my own first blindness. Growing up in South Africa during Apartheid, I lived in the midst of injustice and was completely blind to it.

The Bible reveals that blindness is one of the enemy’s ploys. And not only does he try and blind us to Truth, he also covers up the evil and wickedness. Proverbs 10:11 (NSRV) says, “… the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.” But God provided us with a Helper—the Spirit of Truth—who can cut through any of the enemy’s schemes.

As the church, we cannot be excused from our responsibility. “Justice, like judgment, must begin in the house of God,” says Loren Cunningham, founder of YWAM, in the book Why Not Women? “This issue of freedom and equality for women will be decided with or without the church. It is my deep conviction that for God to be glorified, the people of God must take the leadership. If we don’t, we will miss the greatest opportunity since people fought for the freedom of slaves. It we don’t seize this opportunity now, the church will fall behind for generations.”

Reality of suffering

But even now, although I am more aware of the tragedy and suffering in our world, I still struggle to live it out in my daily reality, especially when life around me seems so different. Truth is, when my immediate reality includes love, respect and freedom, it’s easier to assume that others’ reality does too.

It takes a lot less effort to live in a small world.

In his book Good News about Injustice, Gary Haugen, president of International Justice Mission, shows that my struggle isn’t unique. He says, “I don’t know whether Jesus experienced dreams while he was here on earth or whether he felt as if he had awakened from a particularly bad one when he found himself back in heaven after his ascension from the earth. But I have certainly felt that dreamlike separation from reality when I have returned from these hellish places around the world. In no time at all it begins to feel as if the nightmare I came from in Rwanda or the Philippines or South Africa has taken place not in another country but on another planet. Back home, it simply does not feel real anymore.”

I saw that even when home—my comfortable, safe space—was in one of those places Haugen calls “hellish,” it was possible to be blind. I know now that it’s not your geographical position that determines your awareness of injustice, but rather the condition of your heart. And your willingness to see as Jesus sees.

And sometimes this reality seems overwhelming. Where to start? And what difference can I make?

But I am encouraged that this is not my issue in the first place—it’s the Father’s. I have merely decided to join Him. He asks me to pray and use my life to bring light to the world.

But ultimately, it is the Shepherd who goes looking for His missing women and children. It is Jesus who hears the cries and sees the hurts.

He is the source of Light who gives power to go into dark places.

What I have to do, is be awake, have oil in my lamp, and follow wherever He may lead today.

When last have you taken time to dream?

Today, let’s move into those dreams that come into your consciousness and stir up your desire for a better self and a better world.

1. Getting started: Take a pen, some paper and start writing. Don’t think about it too much. Allow yourself the freedom to write and dream without editing. (If you have to, you can edit later!) Dream about the following:

• Three places I’d love to go
  (eg. the little coffee shop I always pass by, Japan, the moon)

• Three things I’d love to do
  (eg. learn to sign, learn to salsa, sponsor a child)

• Three things I’d love to accomplish
  (eg. start my own business, write a book, start a blog, produce a play)

• Three skills I’d like to acquire
  (eg. salsa dancing, web design, flyfishing, painting with oils)

• Ten things I’d really love to have
  (a car, a house, an iPod, etc.)

• Three relationships I’d love to nurture
  (with my grandmother, my father, God)

If you are having trouble with this exercise, imagine you had only six healthy months left to live and make a difference. Then go through the questions again.

2. Now, think about the following and write whatever comes to mind as you read the words. Give yourself two to three minutes on each item:

• My ideal self
• My ideal body
• My ideal home
• My ideal work
• My ideal relationship
• My ideal life
• My ideal day
• My ideal world

3. Perhaps another way to think about these questions are:

• What I hope for myself is …?
• What I hope for my family is …?
• What I hope for my world is …?

4. Write a dream list. Write a list with every dream you have, everything you would like as part of your life. It’s your list. Keep it safe and look at it often.

5. Now focus in: This year, if I could do only one thing, what would I like to accomplish? Write it down.

6. Pray. Laurie Beth Jones, best-selling author of The Path says, “Prayer has been called the most powerful source of energy known to man … Prayers opens us up to receiving the divine help which surrounds and envelops us on a constant basis.” In Matthew 21:22 we are encouraged to pray because, “You will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Now take some time to bring your dreams and your most intimate hopes to The Dreamgiver, the One who desires for you to live your absolute best life.

Sample prayer:

Dear God, today I bring you my life, my hopes, my dreams, my deepest yearnings. . . You know me intimately. You knew me even before I was formed in the womb. You called me into this world to do good and live the life I was uniquely and specifically created for. I ask for Courage and Wisdom to life this life–the life of my dreams. Show me where to start and help me be open to hearing your Voice today. I ask for a greater consciousness of your Presence, today and every day of my life. Amen.

A blessing for dreamers:

May your Dreams take you to the places of your truest self. May your Dreams give you insight into who you really are and what you can accomplish. May your Dreams remind you that you are powerful, necessary and unique. Remember, only you can bring the Beauty of your Authentic Life to this world. May you know Courage, Focus and Determination as you follow your Dreams.

There are about 2,930 names in the Bible, but only about a hundred of them finished well. Canadian Judy Rae wants to finish well.

“Heaven is looking better every day,” she said, her personality still shining through brightly, in spite of the cancer.

The disease has now reached her brain, both in the anterior and frontal lobes. “Although she has undergone radiation treatments, the cancer has not been arrested. There’s nothing more the medical field can do,” said Doug Rae, her husband and a director with Power to Change Ministries. It’s obvious that he knows: the only person who can heal Judy now is God.

Battling cancer has brought them closer together than ever. But it wasn’t always like that. When Doug and Judy were married in 1961, things didn’t flow smoothly. “We weren’t doing anything wrong; we just weren’t doing anything right,” Doug said. They had very different perspectives on God. When Doug chose to follow Christ soon after their marriage, he was alone in his decision.

Six years later, however, Judy agreed to accompany him to a Power to Change Ministries Executive Conference. The gathering concentrated on the theme of Christian commitment, and then and there Judy decided that she couldn’t be committed as a Christian until she became one. Vonette Bright, co-founder of Power to Change Ministries, seized the opportunity and led Judy to the Lord.

Over the years God healed and strengthened their marriage and also blessed them with three children: Susan, Wendy and Gary. Today Judy is grandma of three.

“If every mother and grandmother had the love and interest in her children that Judy does, the world would definitely be a better place,” said Doug. Carter, the eldest grandson, realized early on just how special his Mimi (grandma) is. At five, he asked her to marry him.

Apart from loving her family, Judy poured her creativity into fabric folk art. It became more than a hobby when more than 600 people showed up to enjoy the annual “Country House Craft Fair” she put on before Christmas. Exhibiting her own creations along with other craft enthusiasts in her community, Judy created a much-loved tradition. For many, Christmas just wasn’t the same without a visit to Judy’s craft fair.

In 1998 Judy was diagnosed with cancer. Her lumpectomy showed that only one lymph node was affected, but six months later doctors found that the cancer was moving at an alarming rate. Fourteen lymph nodes were cancerous. She continued to receive treatment, but the cancer soon spread to the liver and then to the chest cavity.

Judy had questions. She didn’t know where to turn to for answers, except to God. She also realized that other cancer victims would experience similar bouts of anger and frustration, and she wanted to make sure they knew where to find hope. With Judy Thorne of North Shore Alliance Church in North Vancouver, Judy started a support group for women with cancer called “Wings of Hope.”

“If you are wondering where God is in your journey as a woman with cancer, join us,” they say. The group meets every second Monday of the month to share their experiences, information on issues related to cancer and its treatment, as well as care for the spirit.

Although the path has not been easy, Judy praises the Lord daily. “Well, you know,” she says, “I’m just focused on Jesus.”

She is as determined as ever to finish well.

Judy Rae knows the peace that comes from living in the Spirit. Do you? Are you living your life in the power of the Holy Spirit?

God wants to be our leverage in living, empowering us to feel better about ourselves, more excited about our future, more grateful for those we love and more enthusiastic about our faith.

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, God has given you His Holy Spirit to help you live life according to His perfect plan. Why not pray this simple prayer and by faith invite Him to fill you with His Spirit:

Dear Father, I need You. I acknowledge that I have sinned against You by directing my own life. I thank You that You have forgiven my sins through Christ’s death on the cross for me. I now invite Christ to again take His place on the throne of my life. Fill me with the Holy Spirit as You commanded me to be filled, and as You promised in Your Word that You would do if I asked in faith. I pray this in the name of Jesus. As an expression of my faith, I thank You for directing my life and for filling me with the Holy Spirit. Amen.

When last have you taken time to dream?

Today, let’s move into those dreams that come into your consciousness and stir up your desire for a better self and a better world.

1. Getting started: Take a pen, some paper and start writing. Don’t think about it too much. Allow yourself the freedom to write and dream without editing. (If you have to, you can edit later!) Dream about the following:

• Three places I’d love to go
  (eg. the little coffee shop I always pass by, Japan, the moon)
• Three things I’d love to do
  (eg. learn to sign, learn to salsa, sponsor a child)
• Three things I’d love to accomplish
  (eg. start my own business, write a book, start a blog, produce a play)
• Three skills I’d like to acquire
  (eg. salsa dancing, web design, flyfishing, painting with oils)
• Ten things I’d really love to have
  (a car, a house, an iPod, etc.)
• Three relationships I’d love to nurture
  (with my grandmother, my father, God)

If you are having trouble with this exercise, imagine you had only six healthy months left to live and make a difference. Then go through the questions again.

2. Now, think about the following and write whatever comes to mind as you read the words. Give yourself two to three minutes on each item:

• My ideal self
• My ideal body
• My ideal home
• My ideal work
• My ideal relationship
• My ideal life
• My ideal day
• My ideal world

3. Perhaps another way to think about these questions are:

• What I hope for myself is …?
• What I hope for my family is …?
• What I hope for my world is …?

4. Write a dream list. Write a list with every dream you have, everything you would like as part of your life. It’s your list. Keep it safe and look at it often.

5. Now focus in: This year, if I could do only one thing, what would I like to accomplish? Write it down.

6. Pray. Laurie Beth Jones, best-selling author of The Path says, “Prayer has been called the most powerful source of energy known to man … Prayers opens us up to receiving the divine help which surrounds and envelops us on a constant basis.” In Matthew 21:22 we are encouraged to pray because, “You will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Now take some time to bring your dreams and your most intimate hopes to The Dreamgiver, the One who desires for you to live your absolute best life.

Sample prayer:

Dear God, today I bring you my life, my hopes, my dreams, my deepest yearnings. . . You know me intimately. You knew me even before I was formed in the womb. You called me into this world to do good and live the life I was uniquely and specifically created for. I ask for Courage and Wisdom to life this life–the life of my dreams. Show me where to start and help me be open to hearing your Voice today. I ask for a greater consciousness of your Presence, today and every day of my life. Amen.

A blessing for dreamers:

May your Dreams take you to the places of your truest self. May your Dreams give you insight into who you really are and what you can accomplish. May your Dreams remind you that you are powerful, necessary and unique. Remember, only you can bring the Beauty of your Authentic Life to this world. May you know Courage, Focus and Determination as you follow your Dreams.

Memories came flooding back.

The picture was taken in 1969 – a year after Communist tanks rolled into Prague – and shortly before Natasha left Czechoslovakia with her Russian mother and two brothers. They’d found a way to escape to England. Her father, who was Czech, stayed behind. They fled just in time.

“Soon after, the borders closed and a wall went up,” she remembers, “I lost my father, as well as my country.” Natasha had trouble adjusting to life in England. Her classmates expected her to be just like them. But a deep-seated sadness seemed to separate her from her peers. “I was misunderstood and lonely,” she says. In 1987, after completing her degree in Russian literature, Natasha left England for Asia.

“I wanted to get away from everything and look for the meaning of life.” she says. “I wanted to see if things were different on the other side of the world.” Long fascinated by Chinese art and culture, Natasha soon became frustrated. There just wasn’t enough time for her art. Sensing this creative tension, her Mandarin teacher encouraged her to quit language school and enroll in the university’s fine arts degree program. Even up to the day she graduated, Natasha doubted her dream would ever come true.

But it did.

Natasha attended lectures, wrote exam papers and communicated with her fellow students – all in Mandarin. It was one of the toughest – but also one of the sweetest – times in her life. She practiced diligently and to the amazement of her teachers, Natasha learned the dance of the Chinese brush. It took a while before her fellow students trusted her. Even more challenging was adapting to a new way of thinking. She discovered that Chinese thought patterns were very different from her Western ways.

And yet, this sense of the exotic was what initially attracted her to Asian art. “It’s so simple, yet it’s able to express so much,” she explains. “I wanted to explore the mentality of the people who produced this great art.” She discovered that unlike Western painting which tries to reflect what the artist sees, Chinese and Japanese paintings are a meditation on the deeper things of life.

When Natasha finally gained entrance into the inner sanctum of Chinese culture and art, she was filled with awe. “I felt like a secret door had been opened to me and I saw treasures rarely glimpsed by Westerners.” Still, Natasha mourned the separation from her father, her childhood and her Czech roots. When the Communist wall finally crumbled in 1990, she booked a ticket to Prague to see her father.

Her father was seriously ill and she sensed it was the last time she would see him, but it wasn’t quite the happy reunion she hoped for. Years of separation had chilled the relationship between father and daughter. “It was horrible o go back,” she says, sadly. “My father had really changed and said he didn’t want to know me anymore.”

It was a cold welcome all round. Prague was no longer the happy place she remembered. “Everything was so alien. I met many relatives, but I had no memory of them,” she says. “I kept banging against a wall.” Disillusioned Natasha returned to Taipei. A year later her dad died.

Grieving her loss, Natasha painted a little girl standing in front of a giant wall. With a big red bow and a small backpack, the girl seemed innocent and helpless against the overwhelming circumstances which faced her. As people admired her work, they recognized the walls around their own hearts. They saw walls that separated them from their loved ones, their dreams and their longings. For Natasha, the wall became the symbol of separation from her culture, her people, her language, and ultimately, her identity.

She yearned to reconnect with her roots. But Natasha knew many emotional walls had to be broken down before her people could fully enter into their new freedom. Perhaps, she thought, her art could help rebuild her native land and heal the wounds left by decades of alienation.

She painted “The Wall is Broken,” a colorful painting showing a little girl – pigtails bobbing – skipping along a path leading to a castle on a hill. Behind the girl, the wall is crumbled. Natasha had broken through.

Soon after, on the eve of the 30th anniversary of her leaving Prague, Natasha and her mother returned to the Czech Republic for good. Again she seemed out of place. After 12 years in Taiwan, she felt a part of her had become Chinese. And unlike the people who had stayed behind, Natasha embraced a world that was much bigger. She realized that the hearts of the Czech people were still walled off against the rest of the world.

The wall in her paintings now represented misunderstanding between cultures as well. It made Natasha even more determined to build bridges through her art. But breaking down walls is a process. “There are economical and political walls, but there are emotional and psychological ones, too.” she says. “It is a mindset of not trusting people – of closing yourself in and not believing anything.”

Her latest paintings reflect this somber mindset. Her Prague works are strictly black and white. “People here can relate to this austere mood,” she says. But in time, Natasha hopes they might all step out into full color again. “The love of beauty is so ingrained in the people here,” she says. “Everybody keeps saying my art is a gentle stroke on the heart that gives them hope. Hope, truth, light and beauty-it’s what people have lost here.”

While the new generation of Czechs are staking their hope in the stock market, Natasha wants to rekindle their belief in something that goes beyond economic power. “I’d like to wake people up to another hope,” she says. Although it will take time, Natasha is committed to her people. She found the place where she belongs. “In Taiwan, I was loved and appreciated, but here I have roots.” she says. “I’m finally home.”

Take a look at your life.  How would you describe it? Contented? Rushed? Exciting? Stressful? Moving forward? Holding back? For many of us it’s all of the above at times.  There are things we dream of doing one day, there are things we wish we could forget.  In the Bible, it says that Jesus came to make all things new.  What would your life look like if you could start over with a clean slate?

Living with hope

If you are looking for peace, there is a way to balance your life. No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.  Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you’ll experience life to the fullest.

Picture yourself and your friends seated around a table amidst dainty food, silver spoons, classical music, china cups and scented nosegays Between sips of smooth, warm tea, you chat freely about your lives.

What more non-threatening environment could there be to share the love of Christ?

For many years, Power to Change has used home-based evangelistic parties to reach women for Christ. Victorian teas are a new twist on this idea, and the Lord is really using them for His purposes.

With ideas and support from Power to change, Christian women are getting together with a few friends to host the teas for their non-Christian friends, neighbors and co-workers. So far, the teas have been very effective in reaching women of all ages with the gospel.

Anne Feenstra of Abbotsford, British Columbia recently hosted a Victorian tea. She shares her experience in the following interview with Power to Change with the hope that you, too, will be inspired to talk and pray with your friends about hosting a tea party with a purpose.

Power to Change: Why did you decide to host a Victorian tea?

Anne: I wanted to impact my community and I love entertaining. This seemed like something I could do in my own home. It wasn’t overwhelming to me–like going out on the street preaching.

Power to Change: Who came to the tea?

Anne: There was a team of three of us that organized the tea. We invited our non-Christian friends and we also invited Christian friends to invite their non-Christians friends. We told our Christian friends to come only if they brought a non-Christian with them, as the whole purpose of the evening was evangelism. We had 31 people attend the evening, and at least half of them there were non-Christians.

Power to Change: Which part of the evening excited you the most?

Anne: Actually seeing the results! We were all trusting God that there would be some people there that would make first time decisions for Christ. There were seven people that indicated that they had prayed to receive Christ and one that had made a recommitment.

Power to Change: What are you doing for follow up?

Anne: Each of the people who prayed have been sent a Knowing Jesus Personally magazine. In many cases, the individuals who invited them are continuing to encourage them, answer questions, invite them to church and just love them.

Power to Change: Why do you think this idea works so well?

Anne: Women love to be pampered, and the Victorian tea theme gives a certain elegance to the gathering. It rained the night of our tea. At first we were disappointed that the weather wasn’t better, but we decided to have our sons meet each woman at her car with an umbrella and escort her into the house. It really broke the ice and each woman came in laughing and feeling special. God had it all planned, right from the start.

Another part of the appeal is simply the intimacy of a home. Sometimes people are apprehensive about going to a church, but most people are pretty comfortable in a home. Having a team of neighbors host the tea also really worked well. The three of us were so excited and enjoyed such camaraderie as we worked on this. I hope they say, “Let’s do it again!” I really want to do another one!

The Sunday after the tea, we had an “angel party” with our three families and rejoiced together in what God had done. Our churches were really supportive too, praying with us, loaning us some chairs and rejoicing with us when we saw the results.

Power to Change: Any suggestions for someone who is thinking about hosting a Victorian tea?

Anne: Go for it! You’ll be blessed and you’ll bless others.