Desiring God.

          Have you ever read a book that challenges you to pursue your greatest joy? Well that book is called the Bible. John Piper's book "Desiring God," digs deep into the scriptures and really elaborates what pursuing your greatest joy is and what it looks like. I'm grateful for this book because it grows my affections for Christ. And a book that is Christ-centered, gospel-driven, all about Jesus, you can't really go wrong with reading it! I've been really enjoying it :)

         Piper's claim is that he is a Christian Hedonist, a term that isn't popular with everyone. But I love how he explains it, "it's not seeking God as a means to help us get worldly pleasures, the pleasure Christian Hedonism seeks is the pleasure which is in God himself" (pg. 20). Our exceeding joy is HIM. I love that. It is so refreshing to read that. We're not doing God a favor by "following" Him. When we follow God, we are seeking our highest joy because to be with Him is the greatest joy. Isn't that refreshing? 

         Maybe you're been told before, I know I have, to be a disciple of Jesus you need to give up a lot of stuff that makes you happy. But those things in reality don't actually bring you any lasting joy. Sure there are things you need to leave behind and forsake to be a disciple, but Jesus never calls you out of joy, He calls you into joy. In His presence is fullness of joy. Being a disciple of Jesus is you giving up all your garbage at the cross and trading it in for His righteousness, blamelessness, and joy. Doesn't seem like a fair trade. Because it's not. You were dead in your trespasses and sins. And yet Jesus, the sinless perfect spotless lamb, took your place. Took my place. Ephesians 2:1-20- Read it. That's seriously the best news in the world.

"The deepest and most enduring happiness is found only in God. Not from God, but in GOD" -Piper

"The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever"

     Also Piper's preface to the book was very moving as he acknowledged some missionaries as heroes and said "all the missionaries who left everything for Christ and in the end said 'I never made a sacrifice,'" isn't the truth in that just so beautiful? Jesus makes it worth it all. 

Looking forward to reading on and letting the Holy Spirit grow my affections for Christ more and more.

And may I forever say "how precious is your steadfast love, O God!" Psalm 36:7

Joy is not far, joy is in Jesus.

Longing.

It's been 16 days since I've returned home to Seattle. 

Not one day has gone by that I haven't thought about, prayed about, or looked at pictures of Uganda. 

I dream about when I can go back. There is a deep longing to go back. 

And not because I don't think I can glorify God right where I am, but simply because I just love it in Uganda. Fullness of joy is in HIS presence, so anywhere I am I have full joy. But there still remains a longing to be back in Africa. I can't really explain it, or give logical reasons as to why. And I'm ok with that. I'll be back soon to Uganda because my lovely, beautiful friends are waiting for me.

My complete awe of Jesus has not diminished but only increased as I marvel at His grace and love towards me. That He invited me to Uganda to love on His children. my brothers and sisters, and all I had to do was say "yes." 

Friends, I don't know what to say, but that it's all about Jesus. May He forever receive all glory and honor and praise because He alone is worthy! I'm in love with Him if you can't tell!

I need to become a better blogger and actually share my experience with all of you! I really want to!!

And I will. 

Soooooo sooo soooo soooo grateful to have been able to go!!! Such a dream come true.

Tomorrow.

That's it. No more countdowns. No more days. It's here! 

The adventure is beginning as I'm flying out tomorrow :) I can't wait to be in UGANDA! And love every single child I see!! Thank you soooo much everyone who has prayed for me and loved me through this trip. 

Please continue to pray for me and my team during this journey. Pray for the orphans, that they may know God's love and  know the Father!! Pray for each person we see, encounter and talk to, that Jesus would be glorified! 

It's all about Jesus! Let's do this!!

LOVE YOU ALL :)))) 

I'M GOING TO UGANDA :)))))))

This is real.... (I keep reminding myself)

Thank you irish for blessing me with such adorable long dresses, skirt, top and nail polishes!!! :) Loveeee you girl!!

 

Got a surprise present last friday, still don't know who got it for me! But I love it all!!!! Such beautiful clothes, shoes, scarf!! And such a beautiful scripture included :) Thank you whoever bought it for me, I'm so grateful!!!

Such a thoughtful gift!!!!

4 Days

I'll be flying out in four days to D.C. and then to UGANDA. God is so good.

My heart is filled with joy. So many things running through my head, what I need to pack, buy, flight tickets and so on, so many different emotions. Most of all I'm in awe of God. So bare with me through this post, it is random and scattered but it is real.

This is actually happening! I'm actually going to Africa to love on the beautiful children that belong to Jesus. I love remembering the first time I told my best friends about the possibility of Uganda and just praying about it with them. It all seemed so impossible back then.  I remember one friend saying "if you're supposed to go, you'll go." And now I'm going. This is God's work, and I refuse to see any of it as just coincidence. God is so in the details, little and big ones, how glorious He is!!

What a crazy year it has been. He has been faithful every single minute, even when I was unfaithful. His faithful never ends!!

 Even when I was tempted to worry and try to take things under my control, His word reassured me to trust Him above all and let Him take care of it all.  

I can't believe I had to raise $3,509. Yet I can say with joy that my GOD PROVIDES. Eleven days till the funds were due I still had over $1,000 to raise. It was intimidating. But I had to trust Jesus, there was no other choice. If I was really meant to go to Uganda at this time, then He would make it happen. And guess what, He made it happen. All glory be to Jesus!

I'm so grateful that I have a community of godly people who love Jesus and love me. The church has been incredibly supportive and generous. You all gave above the total needed, so now I'm able to use the extra cash to bless orphanages in whatever need they might have. Thank you for that!! That's incredible. From the depth of my soul I want to thank every single one of you who gave selflessly, through your prayers, money and help. What you do today echos in eternity. And this is a great echo.

My hope is that you see Jesus through this. I hope you see how faithful Jesus is. I hope you see His beauty and love. I hope you see how He provides. I hope it encourages you to respond to Him.

He really loves me, and I really love Him. But I boast in His love alone, for it was Him who pursued me and found me. My lips will never get tired of giving Him praise.

If I was to share with you the entire story of this journey, you would quickly see how it has nothing to do with me, but everything to do with Jesus.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
     his mercies never come to an end; 

 they are new every morning;
     great is your faithfulness. 

  “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
     “therefore I will hope in him.”

 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul who seeks him. 

  It is good that one should wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

Lamentations 3:22-26 (ESV) 

 

It's all about Jesus.

AFRICA :)

How do I even start a post like this? How do I tell you how much I'm unbelievably excited to go and be with the beautiful orphans? How do I explain to you how everything I ever hoped or wanted is coming true? How do I express to you my complete awe of my Jesus? 

I'm so limited by words, because there are not enough words to tell you of the faithfulness and goodness of my God. Because He is so good He put on flesh and came down for me. He died for me and traded his righteousness for my filth on that cross so that I could be counted RIGHTEOUS before the throne of God! There is no love like the love of God! He died and He rose, He is alive. If He is truly alive and if His word are really the words of God then who am I to not take them completely seriously? That's where the journey began, I started to actually take God at His word.

Scripture that I read and heard hundreds of times before finally captured my heart. And in those moments of when the Holy Spirit would awaken my heart to a certain verse or passage that is when Jesus was beginning this journey of love in me. As His word filled me and continues to fill me I began to see my shortcomings in every area, especially obeying scripture. Scriptures like "what ever you do for the least of these you do it for me," "whoever holds on to their life will lose it but he who loses his life for my sake will gain it," and "to live is Christ and to die is gain" I had ignored ALL my life. But during that time of seeking His face his love made it a reality for me. What I mean by that is that when the love of Jesus became the most beautiful and desirable thing for me that is when those scriptures actually began meaning something to me. When you actually know, like deeply know, that the God of the universe KNOWS you and LOVES you that is when losing your life for Jesus makes sense. When you know this love, of course to live is Christ and to die is gain because either or it all about Jesus. If I live then it is about Jesus and if I die it is about Jesus. Well friends this is what happened to me. I know this LOVE. I've been fighting back tears of joy this entire post but just writing that out, that I know this love, tears came. How good is Jesus that He came for a wretch like me?

Kissing Uganda :)

Anyways so that was what happened first, Jesus captivated me by His love through His word. So what happened next? Holy Spirit spoke to my heart that it's time I act upon the word. And when you know this intimate love of Jesus of course you say YES. Holy Spirit put it on my heart to go to Africa for a while now and love the His children who are orphaned in the world today. The issue was that I had NO idea how I would get there. Being the way I am I started researching on google all sorts of different mission trip organizations in hopes of finding one that I could go with as an individual. Most mission trip organizations are formed from your own local church and so I just didn't know how that would happen. I quickly began to be hopeless and in my hopelessness Jesus showed up. It's funny how when I was no longer doing the work and feeling like I will never get to Africa, just hopeless, Jesus showed me how I'll get there. I can't boast in myself at all, this entire journey is God ordained, and that's why I'm so confident in it, because it's about Jesus not me. So in my hopelessness I opened up a blog that I keep up with and the lady wrote a little about another lady who lives in Uganda and loves Jesus. Her name is Katie Davis and she wrote a book called "Kisses from Katie." So I read some of Katie Davis's blog and felt such a peace in my spirit that I knew I had to go there and be with those orphans that she wrote about. I searched for a way that I could visit and there was a button titled "VISIT." I died a little inside from excitement, I don't know how that happens but it did haha. It lead me to another link, the organization Visiting Orphans page. Tears of joy flooded my eyes, it was a confirmation from Jesus when I read that individuals are completely welcome, that they will add me to a group of a mission trip. That night I texted a few of my close friends and asked them to pray for me because this was becoming a reality.

Couple days later I talked to my best friends and their support and love for me was the biggest encouragement. They prayed over me and stood in agreement with me that this wasn't something I made up in my head but that this is from Jesus.

A month later I sent in my application for the Uganda trip and then it became real. That night that I applied more tears of joy flooded me and my heart was full. I read every blog and watched every youtube video of Africa in general or Uganda. My heart grew some more. Jesus's love in me began to be poured out as I prayed for a people that I love that I have not met. I continue to pray for the orphans and my passion continues to grow. Jesus continues to grow my heart. I feel like I'm about to explode from His overwhelming massive wonderful love. And I know that when my feet finally touch the red dirt of Uganda and I see the beautiful children whom I love so much already, my heart won't contain itself any longer, it will burst.

My trip to Uganda is from July 21st to August 1st and the approximate cost of the trip is $3,400. I know that is a crazy amount of money but what I know even more is that God is faithful and He is good. God is not limited by my bank account, He is God and His will it will come to pass. So I have nothing to worry about because I trust my Jesus and that He provides in every area. The amount covers all transportation, accommodation, food and everything else. If you would like to donate towards my trip then please go to:
1)  visitingorphans.org
2) Press DONATE on the far right
3) For the fund category select "Uganda- July 21, 2012- Waiting List"
4) Fill out the rest of the information and make sure you select "donate to a specific team member" then type in my name, "Tina Sidorko," in the space provided.
fyi, these donations are tax deductible!
THANK YOU SO MUCH :)

Another way you can help is by buying a cute headband from my etsy shop! Just go to:
1) www.etsy.com/shop/sweetheartcollection 
2) Purchase whatever you like and I'll send it to you!
THANK YOU ONE MORE TIME :)

Some of the headbands for sale on my etsy!

He had Uganda in His plans for my life before I was even a thought in my parent's heads. He isn't surprised by how I can't afford this, He has a plan and a purpose. Would you prayerfully consider donating towards this trip so I can go to Uganda? With every dollar that you give, you are sowing a seed and that is just incredible. I thank you in advance for your generosity!

I'm just one girl who can do nothing on her own, but with the power of God living in me I believe amazing things can be done for His glory and His name as long as we say YES. He is so good. Let's GO BE LOVE.

His LOVE is the reason why I'm going to Uganda.

For His glory,
Tina

I want to hug Africa.