Monday, November 26, 2012

Dear God,

You gave us cause to sing!  All day long we were overwhelmed with what you are doing in the midst of committed people caring for others:  students willing to pay their own way to live in substandard conditions to help African villages, Peruvian mountain towns, and Asian ghettos, professors leading students in rural areas to help and teach sound business principles and practices, doctors and nurses leading the way in medical education and treatment of HIV-Aids, assisting in food safety and security, and aiding in providing microfinancing loans to help persons build lives and sustainable businesses, all this through Indiana University.  As we sat around tables sharing ideas, proven projects and programs, and looking at ways to collaborate in the future, we were all jubilant.  As I hugged one of the medical leaders, he said to me, "It's all about faith!"

Yes, it is all about faith.  Our friends who made a sizable contribution to Stanford University presented their program because they feel compelled to assist a billion people living on a dollar a day.  The business school staff, faculty, and students exhibited excitement as they shared their experience of helping people make their way to sustainable, meaningful lives.  The medical school talked about other programs evolving out of their successful medical programs that will assist entrepreneurs in mentoring, supporting, and coaching the poor to learn skills and take steps toward cultivating their own businesses.  All this is designed to transform whole societies.

As the four of us sat at our dinner table after a long, exciting day, we sang together our prayer of thanksgiving, four voices singing one song of praise out of one profound faith.

Gracious God,
you are compassionate,
filled with
tender love.
Your kindness overflows
like an
overflowing fountain.
You touched us deeply,
inspired us greatly,
and overwhelmingly
challenged us
for the future.
We are
so grateful!

Love, Andrea