A very close friend of mine suggested I read Rhinestone Jesus recently and I took her up on that. This book so far has opened my mind and made me ask myself hard questions I didn’t let myself ask before. If you haven’t read it I HIGHLY recommend you get a copy today. Kristen Welch is a Christian mother, wife, writer and missionary who talks about how her journey with God is in no way what she expected. I feel that my faith and my relationship with God and my passion to serve has grown in new ways since I started this book and I hope if any of you read it you get something out of it as well.

The nerdy student in me never really graduated my 11th grade English Class, (thanks Ms. M), and I have to highlight, write notes, ask meaningful questions, and do reviews of these kinds of books when I read them. One thing this book taught me very early is that it is easier to grow in God when you have relationships with others trying to do the same. I thought as I prepare for my vision trip in October it would be a good idea to blog my journey with this book and hopefully start conversations with those who read it about how I/we can say “Yes to God when sparkly safe faith is no longer enough” (Which is the description of Rhinestone Jesus)

I didn’t make it through the prologue before this book made me cry. It wasn’t necessarily sad tears or pity tears, but more tears of guilt. Embarrassing, selfish guilt that I didn’t know I had in me.

"A majority of the residents were small, unsupervised children. They called out to us, “How ah you? How ah you?” hoping we would put something into their upturned hands. We could see by their swollen bellies that they were malnourished. Their faces were filthy and covered with flies, which they didn’t bother to shy away.
It was a hellhole, not fit for the living.
I began to cry and couldn’t stop. I wanted to shut it all out. I was angry with God. “Where are you? How can you allow so much suffering?”
Then I stopped and closed my eyes. I saw God’s finger pointed at me as He asked my spirit the same question: “Kristen how can you allow this?” In that exact moment, I knew my life would never be the same.”"

That sentence right there: “Kristen how can you allow this?” made me fall to my knees. We blame God for the injustices of our world but we do little or nothing to help them. How can I ask/blame God to help feed the hungry and save the orphans when I am sitting on my leather couch in good ol’ safe Missouri letting ice cream melt in a bowl because I am still so stuffed from dinner? It’s no fault of their own that those orphans were born where they were, just like it makes me no better than them that I happened to be born here. God loves us the same.

If my sister was hungry, I would feed her. If she lost her job and needed help with money I would take care of her. Why am I not doing more to help my brothers and sisters around the world then? Why am I letting my closet grow and my bank account swell when those things could save one of my brothers & sisters lives? How can I show the world that we are all related? Every single one of us children of God?