Beauty on the Backroads

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Wrestling with faith and doubt: Review of Daring to Hope by Katie Davis Majors

It is tempting in Christian circles to hold up missionaries and other “heroes of the faith” as prime examples of every spiritual ideal. A young woman who moves to Uganda, starts a ministry, and adopts a baker’s dozen of daughters could easily be thought of as perfect or at least some kind of holy that is unattainable to the rest of us.

But Katie Davis Majors, in her new book Daring to Hope: Finding God’s Goodness in the Broken and the Beautiful, assures readers that she wrestles with faith and doubt, just like the rest of us.

Ultimately, our hidden reach for God counts so much more than our public one. Some people may look at my life and say how amazing I am or what a radical Christian I am, just as some people may praise you because you seem to have it all together, but what really counts will be the quiet devotion practiced in our own homes. What will matter most at the end of our lives are these people right in front of us who get to see all of it, the happy stories and the tragic ones, the pretty good parts of us and the ugliest parts of us. At the end of time all that will count is that we lived the Gospel with our very lives, that we paid attention to the people God gave us and dwelt knowledgeably and hospitably in the place to which He called us. (p. 100)

In this follow-up to her popular Kisses from Katie, Majors recounts many stories of hope and heartbreak in her Ugandan neighborhood, how saying “yes” to God and the people He brings her doesn’t always end happily, the way she thinks it should. She shares with readers what she has learned about God and His faithfulness in times like these and emphasizes the importance of wrestling with God through these circumstances.

She writes:

I think we often look at our lives and see the barren places. It seems the garden is empty, plans dead and withered, dreams laid waste. It is easy to believe the lie that the good is over and gone and maybe God is done working here, in me and in you. … Could we rejoice in the waiting? Could we believe that God who brought Jesus out of the black of the tomb and green shoots out of the hard earth will bring beauty out of our barren seasons? Could we know that beauty is in this whole process, the growing and the pruning and even in the waiting, not just the part with the beautiful flower? (p 69)

The stories and lessons in this book are accessible to anyone desiring to live a life of faith where they are. It is not a book only for missionaries or spiritual leaders or young people. It is for anyone who wonders if hope is worth it when the outcome is unexpected.

You can hear from Katie in the book trailer about what this book means to her, here:

And if you want to read more, check out Katie’s post on Ann Voskamp’s blog.

(Disclosure: I received an advanced copy of the book from the publisher. Review reflects my honest opinion.)

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What it takes to change the world

I hesitated before I clicked the link on the story.

I’m a notorious scroller through my newsfeed, consuming headlines and scanning for an overview of information rather than reading every single word. When I click a link to a story, it has to be worth it. My time is limited (so I think) and I only want to read the best stuff. Or the important stuff.

As much as I hate “click bait” headlines, this one was hard to ignore.

Rip currents swept away a Florida family. Then beachgoers formed a human chain.”

First, I watched a video, which featured an interview with the victims. While I was glad they were alive, the story the video told was not what I was looking for. I wanted to know about the human chain. About how it started and who, if anyone, led the way.

The video had not affected me emotionally, so I was surprised that when I read the article I was crying real tears and I could not stop the flow of them.

With 10 people stranded in a rip current and law enforcement waiting for a rescue boat, ordinary people enjoying the beach that day decided to take action. And they changed the story. What could have been a tragedy is now a legendary tale of everyday heroics.

And how they did it is all the encouragement any of us need to change the world.

Photo by Margarida CSilva on Unsplash

First, they decided to do something about it.

“These people are not drowning today,” Jessica Simmons thought, she told the Panama City News Herald. “It’s not happening. We’re going to get them out.” (Quoted in The Washington Post.)

This is the first step any one of us can take to effect change.

Whatever that thing is that’s happening in front of us that isn’t right, we can do something about it just by deciding to participate and not be a bystander.

Not today. Not on my watch. Not if I can help it.

Next, they recognized their strengths.

The woman who made this decision did so because she knew she was a strong swimmer. She did not enter the water on a passionate whim. That may have been what got some of the people into trouble, although I’d rather be the kind of person who jumps into the water to help than stands by waiting for someone else to help.

Her action was fueled by her conviction that she could do it. How many of us walk through life wanting to make a difference but believing that we can’t? I wonder what the world would be like if we took an honest look at our strengths and put them into action when a need crossed our paths.

Then, they used what they had on hand: surfboards and boogie boards and their own bodies.

It sounds like there wasn’t any professional rescue equipment on the beach at the time of the rescue. People grabbed what they had with them, the stuff they brought to the beach so they could enjoy the water.

I tell people all the time that I have no special skills when it comes to volunteering with a refugee resettlement agency. I don’t speak a language other than English. I’m not a teacher. I don’t have a law degree or social work training. But I’ve quickly learned that I can bring what I have: a working knowledge of American culture, life experience living in the U.S., a friendly smile, an incurable case of curiosity and a fierce loyalty for the newly arrived residents of our community.

Photo by Om Prakash Sethia on Unsplash

One of the most powerful messages I’ve ever heard from a non-profit centered around the question “What do you have in your hands?” The organization funds and distributes micro-loans in developing countries and it’s the question that disarms helplessness. We all have resources, experience, talent that we can share with others, even if it’s not financial. That’s often the first thing we think of, but it’s not the only thing needed.

On the beach that day, all some people had to contribute was arms and legs. It was more than enough.

Finally, they worked together.

I don’t know how many people it takes to make a chain to cover 100 yards, but I know that five people wasn’t enough. Neither was 15. Some reports say it was more than 80 people who linked arms and stood firm and passed the struggling swimmers down the line until they, too, were on solid ground.

Few people can change the world alone. I’m sure there are some who do and who have, but the most effective change comes when people work together. Following the crowd doesn’t always have to be a bad thing.

Ten people are alive because these four principles were put into action, and more than those ten people have a renewed sense of the human capability for goodness.

So, can you change the world?

I absolutely believe we can.