From Martha

Martha here! So, Dad asked if I would like to write the next blogspot, and I decided I would love to do just that. For those of you that followed our family through Caringbridge years ago, you probably read a few of my sibling’s posts. But this is the first time for me! Though most of you are probably aware of who I am, I’ve always liked introductions.

My name is Martha Moses, daughter of Mark and Jan Moses. I have four wonderful siblings and one dog. I just turned seventeen. I love my family, I love my friends, I love my heavenly Father who loves me far more than I could ever fathom. I enjoy music, poetry, art, and reading, as well as drinking hot tea. My goal in life is to love God with all that I am, heart, soul, mind, and body. But take note; it is a goal. I’m not there yet. Ask my little brother and he will remove any doubt. :) I am part of the body of Christ, a child of God. I am also a horrible procrastinator and often indecisive, but we will skip over that for now. :) So that’s a bit of who I am, and now to India!

A little over a month ago I returned from a mission trip to India. I went with a group of 20 fellow missionary kids from all over Asia. I didn’t know what to expect before the trip, having only a vague idea of what we would be doing and where we would be going. But I was excited to see what God would do through us and in our lives personally. And God did work; it was an awesome week. We ministered in a region in North East India, near the border of Nepal; teaching kids Bible stories and songs. Despite an ever-changing schedule, my teammates were ready to teach whenever and wherever, with an eagerness that was wonderfully catching. A group of us were able to live with some families in the village we were stationed and had a blast learning some of the language, helping out in the kitchen, drinking tea early in the morning, and sharing testimonies.

The trip was a host of fun cultural experiences like sleeping in a crowded, overnight train, riding down the mountainside on top of a car, eating the food, doing devotionals by lamplight, and waking up to the mist coming over the mountains. But it was also a humbling experience as we felt the generosity and astounding hospitality of non-believers to whom we were strangers. It was neat to see how God was working in the hearts of the people of the village, and I pray that it continues to grow. I wish the week could have lasted longer, and I would to go back if I ever got the chance. But above all I thank God for the opportunity and for the people that supported me in prayer and in finances.

So India was amazing. But I’m still glad that God has placed me here in the Philippines. There is a lot for me to learn yet here, and I hope not to squander the opportunity. Like I said earlier, I just turned seventeen. A rather nostalgic change for me is that this is the year I will leave the Philippines and head to college. Though I am excited about the change, I am also dreading leaving both my home and life in the Philippines. There is a verse in Psalms that has been coming back to me again and again over the past year. When thinking about the time I have left here in the Philippines, and consequently the time I have left in life (it is never to early to think about that) the verse becomes even more important. David says to the Lord in Psalm 90:12, “So teach us to number our days, that we may present to You a heart of wisdom.”

There are other versions that say, “that we may get a heart of wisdom” but I love the imagery inspired by the first version. That when all is said and done, when our days are at an end, that we ascend to the throne of God and kneeling before his holiness we present to the King of kings, a heart of wisdom- evidence of a life well lived. And that is what I want for my life, to number my days, to make the most of every opportunity, so that when I stand before the King of Glory I may offer to him a heart first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy - a heart of wisdom.

James 3:13-18
Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.
But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.
This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.
For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.