The Border and Beyond

 About two days ago my team and me left the city limits of Kathmandu, Nepal and began our 10 day journey out to the border towns of India, the city of Chitwan and Pokhara. We all loaded up on a bus for about a 130 mile trip that would take us between 5 – 8 hours due to the roads and the mountain terrain we would be driving through. The scenery was incredible y’all. It was such a fun adventure to get out of the city life and explore God’s creation. I have been enjoying every minute of this transition in our trip. The car ride was extremely long and we used squatty potties along the road sides as well as ate the local food from the food stands when we got hungry. As long as the ride was there wasn’t a dull moment with my team and God along for the ride. We have such a lively bunch and that is such a blessing. Each team mate of mine is so beautiful in the way that God made them. We were laughing, playing games, and telling stories the whole way. A few of the highlights from this car ride were getting to see God’s glory in his creation and also getting to hear one of my team mates testimonies. It is always such an encouragement to see how God seeks us out, finds us and rescues us from all that we cannot. I was reminded of how big the cross is and how good our God is to send us his only Son. WOW – JESUS.

As we approached the end of our road trip we finally had reached the India border but all the monitoring stations (where they check for traffickers and trafficked victims) were closed for the night so we found a lodge to stay in and needless to say it pushed all of us out of our comfort zone. I realized for the first time on our trip as our team leader prayed for us before bed that I needed to be thankful for having a roof over my head no matter what the conditions are. This lodge/hotel was the roughest conditions we had stayed in yet and I think more than the actual quality of the conditions, the idea and feeling of being on the border where over 10,000 girls are trafficked annually left me with a deep churning feeling in my stomach. The reality was y’all that a girl or multiple girls who had been trafficked more than likely stayed in the same room I stayed in that night. They most likely cried themselves to sleep and dreamed dreams that would never come true in the same room I slept in. That made my heart hurt and my spirit cry out to our Father. The weight of the issues we are learning about here are so heavy and something I definitely cannot carry by myself. After lots of prayer and telling stories with my room mate for the night my head hit the pillow and I rested in the Abba’s embrace.

In the morning we woke up and headed to the border monitoring stations and to the offices to visit and meet the real modern day heroes who are doing the ground work in this anti-trafficking movement day in and day out. After the long night and feeling the heaviness of the sex trafficking going on in this area I caught a glimpse of God’s glory in the morn. We ate breakfast up near the roof of our hotel/lodge and as I was praying and thanking God for keeping us safe and for lifting my burdens through the night I spied a beautiful green luscious tree and it was full of the most gorgeous spectacularly white birds I hadn’t seen ever.  I couldn’t believe there was such glory and beauty among all the brokenness and filth and horror in this town. It was as if the Lord was clearly reminding me that he was near and its in his hands. It was incredible to see the work they are doing and to hear their stories and struggles. I’ve never been more inspired. One thing that has been really really eye opening is that this work is not in the hands of westerners – it literally is the Nepali local churches who have teamed up with THI and are doing all the work on the ground and that is also the only way I could be effective. Yes – it’s been a bit of a humility lesson for sure – to realize that I can’t be the one out there on the field – I would draw too much attention and yes I am not as in tune with the culture and never will be as much as a Nepali person is. God is definitely using my gifts and the THI staff’s gifts to help operate the whole organization but it’s been really extremely eye opening to see how things really work and function.

After we wrapped up at the border half way through the day we headed on to our next city – Chitwan. This place is gorgeous. It is where some of the children’s homes are located and it is also home to some of the biggest national parks in Nepal. Yes y’all that means wild and beautiful elephants. My dreams are coming true. Had no idea but we get to ride elephants and do a bath session with them. I am officially loosing my mind. Its really awesome the joyful things that we get to do in the midst of learning about these really hard and oppressive things. I’m extremely impressed by the way the trip has been planed out and is perfectly balanced. God is good. Churh today – because they do church on Saturday’s here – was 3 hours long. It was mind blowing, all in Nepali (I have been taking Nepali language classes but not enough to understand the whole sermon haha). It was so wild to see the fire these people have for Christ. I am asking God to truly burn in me the way he burns in them. They never want to stop worshiping and never want to stop praying. Please Give me some of that God!! So encouraged by these brothers and sisters.

God is stretching me and teaching me so much. It really is so hard to put it all into words. The best way I can describe it maybe is through this vision God gave on the bus while we were traveling a day ago. As I was looking out the window there were all of these dried up river beds where the rocks had overtaken the land and the water had been sucked out. These rocks were left so thirsty for water and I heard God telling me that he is coming like the rain, he is going to saturate each and every dry river bed in my heart that I feel like he hasn’t touched yet with his love and grace. He is pouring out more and more of his spirit over me and revealing the depths of his heart to me and it will be like streams of living water that will flow in and through me and then in and through those I encounter – on this trip and in life always. I love God and all he is doing and all that he is. I know his heart is for me, it is for Nepal and it is overflowing. I am simply praying I have the capacity to soak up every drop.

"My heart heard you say, 'Come and talk with me' and my heard responds, 'Lord I am coming.' " 

-Psalm 27:8

I love y’all – thanks for your prayers and support. 

"And yet, O Lord, you are our Father, we are the clay and you are the potter. We are formed by your hand." - Isaiah 64:8

Pray that I would allow God to continue to mold and shape me here for his Glory and Kingdom. I long to be the work of his hands. 

Fight & Hold Tight

"But you, Timothy (Kaity), are a man of God; so run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perserverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses." - 1 Timothy 6:11-12

A short update this will have to be. I don't have much time because I have had to spend this morning processing spiritually all God is throwing my way. Yesterday we went to play with slum children from India all afternoon. It was one of the most humbling and beautiful experiences that I have ever had with the Lord. A midst the slums there are these bright shining faces with these beautiful white smiles that bring hope. The kingdom belongs to these little ones that God has created. I think the hardest part after playing games and singing songs and praying with these little angels was to leave them and have to separate my heart from theirs.

Seeing these children left my heart with many questions and yearnings that I have been pouring out at God's feet. We must place so much trust in God's infinite love that he is taking care of these little ones and that he has plans for their good. I don't have much to say yet because I am humbled at how big God is and at how much I am learning about his character.

Needless to say God's beauty has left me speechless and so has the pain and sorrow I am witnessing.

Speechless.

So today as my heart is beating to see the Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven here in Nepal and India I will fight the good fight for the true faith. We belong to a kingdom that cannot be shaken and I am so thankful for that. I will hold tightly to God's hand which is ever leading me and ever comforting me. Please pray for my dear sister friends I met yesterday - Lakshmi and Santos - two indian girls from the slum.

Faith over fear are the words that God our Father keeps whispering in my ear.

In love and perseverance,

Kaity 

I'm in Nepal Y'all!!

Well the first thing I said when I finally hit the ground in Nepal was actually - "I'm in Nepal y'all!!" Couldn't get more western haha!!

I am incredibly grateful for each of y'all's prayers for me as I traveled to get here! It was the beginning of a wild journey for sure! The beauty is now I'm here - if you can't tell by my repetitiveness I'm still shocked that I'm here. God is so faithful to ring me to South East Asia so many years after putting this region on my heart years ago! I'm overwhelmed a his intricate plan for each of our lives and how he carries it out in every step! 

So far we have spent the week getting over our jet lag (I woke up a 5am this morn unable to go back to sleep), running around the city of Kathmandu, going to Nepali church, spending time in silence and solitude, praying as a team, worshiping with all the org staff, visiting Buddhist temples, and eating Nepali food. The first thing they really want us doing this week is immersing ourselves in the culture and getting to know and love our surroundings! It's been so awesome and surreal and overwhelming at the same time. 

The streets here are not real - they are full of dirt and pot holes and beggars and wild animals. The gutters are lined with trash and sewage. I just want to squeeze all children running around and my heart breaks for each one who needs a home or loving arms to rest in. So amidst all of this pain and brokenness this place is also beautiful. It's the living proof if how God makes beauty out if ashes. The colorful landscapes and the white smiles of the Nepalese locals light up the dark and dirty streets. There are these immense glimpses of Gods glory and his presence here that give my heart an extra beat and hope for all the hopeless here. 

I am so excited to see all God has for me and my team mates here! Our projects will start next week when we begin to travel to the children's homes and boarder monitoring stations! Right now I am just so thankful to see live how God is the father of all nations. 

Please be praying for my health - my stomach has been a little off, but it could be worse! Also pray for my team and our unity - it's incredible how divinely linked we all already are and how quickly we have bonded in the spirit! Also pray for The Lord to give me his heart and eyes for this country and its people so I can love and serve them wholeheartedly! Lastly pray that I wouldn't miss one opportunity to glorify God and that when I need comfort or feel scared that I would walk by the spirit and deny my flesh!

Thank you for following along with me! Thanks for loving me which empowers me to love others! You are a blessing to me! I miss you and I'm praying for y'all too! Until the next time I have wifi! 

Psalm 121, revelation 5:9-11, psalm 86:9-15, psalm 119:1&11 and 2 Timothy 4:17 are some of the scriptures I'm meditating on that I'd love for you to pray with me! 

Blessings and Love,

Kaity

Step by Step

Wow. If there is one thing I have learned over the past 24 hours it's we must walk with God simply step by step. In the midst of chaos and confusion or mixed up plans or maybe even missed flights to Nepal He is present and in every step. 

I'm pretty sure by now you all know one way or another that my travel plans did not go according to the original plan. I flew out of Washington, D.C. yesterday and missed my connecting flight with my team mates in Houston due to delays and such. This put me in Houston,Tx for a night by myself and running all over to try and figure out new flight plans. If you know me you know I'm a planner. I like a little bit of spontaneity here and there, but if I'm doing something or going somewhere I have a plan and I like it to work. The Lord laughed at that yesterday. After a long night and lots of prayers God has set my heart straight again and has taken me on a detour so saturated with his love and support. 

I am sitting here at the gate about to board in an hr and looking back just at the last 24 hrs can't believe how shook up I was by the mishap of it all. What's true is all I've been able to stand on in the midst of feeling stretched and challenged is God's unfailing love and truth in His word. Some of the scriptures he laid on my heart today in my hours and hours if rest are:

Isaiah 54:17; Psalm 94:14 & 18-19; Deuteronomy 31:6&8; And 2 Timothy 4:17

The two most powerful I will type out for you - 

"And remember your journey from Acacai Grove to Gilgal (D.C. To Nepal haha edited version), when I, The Lord, did everything to teach you about my faithfulness." - Micah 6:6

"Oh that we might know The Lord! Let us press on yo know him more. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of the dawn or the coming of the rains in early spring." - Hosea 6:3

"Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery if  tiny baby growing in its mothers womb so you cannot understand the activity of God who does all things." 

- Deuteronomy 11:5-6

As God lead me to read these verses throughout the day He clearly spoke to me and my distraught heart. He desires me to be desperate for him and to know his faithfulness deeply. His greatest longing is that I would hunger and know him MORE. He does all things and he does them for the good of those who love him. He is working in each moment and all of this flight mix up has lead me to realize I need to cling to him not just everyday but every moment. 

I have an odd feeling this is insane prep for Nepal and how life will be there. So many new ways of life and new things surrounding me will lead me to a desperate need to clog to God in each moment. Thanks Jesus. 

Haha so maybe God is teaching me a lesson - maybe God is just being God and maybe the world is just messy. Whatever it is He is here and He is near and I am clinging. 

Thank you for your prayers, thank you for your encouragement in the midst if my doubt these past 24 hrs. I'm so grateful for the support God has shown me through y'all! Couldn't do it without you! Until next time!!

In Christ's love,

Kaity

Perspective

A blank page
An empty stage
A white canvas
A clear sky
All just waiting for the world to pass by
Ready for the taking 
Ready for the making 
Unformed clay
Unsailed waters 
Unstacked hay
And the Kings daughter

On the edge she simply sits
Every dream at her finger tips
A season of change
The east wind blows 
And suddenly it’s all rearranged 
Where to cling?
How to hold tight?
What can keep her from the world full of fright? 
Where is God in His strength and might?
Tears fall from her face, caught up in the mystery of time and space
She prays for endurance to finish the race
Leaning alone on only faith
Daily asking God for so much more grace
Needing constant reminders of His promises 
When all the answers seem unclear
All she needs is His presence near
Only his unfailing love can make her calm again

She fills the page
She takes the stage
She colors the canvas
And dreams up clouds for the sky
All by fixing her mind up on high
High up on things above
High up on her beloved one
No more waiting and no more fear
For Jesus came to draw her near
He died on the cross and He formed the clay
He not only sailed but stood on the waters
And He stacked the hay
By His power & might 
He conquered the grave and defeated the darkness of night
To the cross she must cling
Through the doubt
Through the storms 
Through everything - even the unknown
Even the unseen

Love is the most Radical of All

Yesterday I blogged about my One Dress One Month experience and how it had impacted me and those around me, today I am writing about love. Not just any kind of love, Christ's love. The love that dwells in us through God's spirit if we confess with our lips that Jesus is Savior and Lord of our lives and truly believe that in our hearts (Romans 10:9-10).

Yesterday I had the joy of getting breakfast with a new friend who I know as Joge. She is one of my dear friends, Kate Miller, best friend from childhood and she has just moved to the Boone, NC area and is looking for work and settling in. I wanted to meet up and hear where she's at in all of this and also see if I had any connections after being here for 5 years that I could put her in touch with in order to make the transition smoother and more enjoyable. Of course the Lord is Lord and as I always find Him doing, he turned this time where I was desiring to bless Joge into a blessing for me too. Her spirit is so kind and gentle and loving it is hard not to be blessed in her presence, but on top of it she had some wise words to share with me about her time doing DTS with YWAM in Uganda and South Sudan. I was telling her that I am leaving for Nepal soon and that I just feel like in my time of prayer and seeking the Lord specifically for my preperations for this trip that I find myself speechless and at a loss of what to even ask God to give me or how to ask him to prepare me. Joge began to speak about her time over seas and simply said that all we need in preparation to do God's mission overseas is love. Simply put, she said that love may look different depending on where you are but it already lives in you through Jesus Christ in you and that as long as we are allowing it to flow freely through us we are equipped with all that we need to go to the nations.

Love is Radical. 

It's not our special talents, it's not our unique abilities, it is not our expert skills that are going to bring Christ to the nations or anyone right in our back yard for that matter. Without love all of these things are pointless (1 Corinthians 13:3). The love of Christ is Radical and it is life changing and that is what we must carry with us everywhere we go, love binds all things together in perfect unity (Colossians 3:14). Love is patient. Love is kind. You know the rest and if you don't you can find it in 1 Corinthians 13. It's all about love.

Hearing Joge remind me of what has changed my heart and what has set me on fire from the beginning as a believer - Christ's love - as shifted my focus and shifted my perspective. It seems so simple, but through Joges words God has moved me from a spirit of fear and timidity about being prepared for my trip to a spirit of power, love and discipline (2 Timothy 1:7). I know that I carry God's Spirit and I know that I am the beloved and I cannot wait to share that with his children near and far.

I hope and pray today that you will love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength. Let him be your source of joy and peace and love. Dig deeper with God so that you can love others more deeply.

Check out these verses that I have been reflecting on that speak about love the Word puts it best:
-Romans 12:9 & 13:10
-Ephesians 4:2
-1 Peter 4:8
-1 John 4:7 & 1 John 4:18-19
-Matthew 22:37-39
-Mark 12:31

Blessings,

Kaity

One Dress One Month Reflections

This whole past month of April I have been participating in a campaign called "One Dress One Shirt One Month". For this campaign I have worn the same cotton, pink and white striped dress for 30 whole days. Why you may ask? Well the purpose of wearing the same dress is to invoke peoples curiosity and to start conversations about human trafficking and also to catch a glimpse of what it feels like for those who are stuck in the sex industry these days. Over the past month we have gained sponsors who will donate money to our campaign which goes straight to The Hope House in Asheville which is a home that provides recovery for victims of human trafficking and sexual abuse.

The past month has simply flown by it seems, even though each day in my dress has dragged on, the whole season of being 'stuck' in this dress has gone by so fast and I have had little time to truly reflect. Wearing the dress has left me feeling stuck and helpless, which I know can sound slightly dramatic but the truth is having to wear the same thing leaves me without options and in America as a kid who grew up here, no options is not even reality. We here have a million and one options. After I graduated college last May it was a wide open canvas of options upon options, every day outside of this month when I wake up I get to choose what I want to wear, what I feel good in and what expresses how I feel and desire to look. The month of April has been full of settling, of coming to terms with my situation and realizing that this is what lies before me everyday. I thought that by picking a pink dress it would be more fun and exciting, considering pink is my favorite color - this has almost brought me to the place of wanting to pick a new favorite color. The truth is I feel like the color pink has lost all of its spunk and meaning and joy that it usually brings me this past month and I hope it will all be revived tomorrow when I get to indulge in the whole pallet of colors that lie in my closet that have gone untouched for 30 days. So yes, as you can tell there have been trials and pains and mental battles I have had to endure through while participating in the One Dress One Shirt One Month campaign, but I know that these trials I face are simply so small compared to the trappedness and lack of freedom that the victims I am taking a stand for feel daily. I know that their pain is deeper and more vivid and real and their lack of options, their lack of freedom is more intense then I will ever know. 

This month has brought a lot of freedom too on a brighter note. It has brought me to a place where I am fervently in prayer for those trapped in the oppression of human trafficking. It has brought me to my knees and my heart has been broken to pieces for my brothers and sisters who are denied the freedom of life and life to the full. It has also brought me to the place where I have realized that simplification of life is more honoring to Christ and those around me. I have what I need and then some and it has been made apparent that I don't need all that I have and that the spirit of generosity is one of the kingdom and something that I can afford to look more like. 

Today I think I had one of my favorite conversations about my dress. The mail man that comes to the church office where I work, everyday, finally spoke up today and said in a laughing tone, "That dress must be pretty comfortable you wear it all the time!" In which I responded - yes I am actually participating in raising awareness for human trafficking by wearing the same dress for a month. He then proceeded to say, "I wondered if my mind was playing tricks on me and I wanted to ask you for so long but I was afraid to." WOW. Yes he has manners but it brought me to this revelation of how we are so scared to interact and engage with the messy or out of place things in life that need to be addressed and need to be acknowledged. It seems to me that that is half of the problem with human trafficking. People are scared of it. People are terrified of the violent abuse that is taking place because they don't know how to fix it or if they can even make a difference. The same was true of my mail man friend, he didn't want to offend me or to butt in on my personal business, he didn't want to get in trouble by asking so he just didn't. If we don't ask those who look a bit different or look stuck or look lost if they are okay or if they know there is a way out how will they ever know. I am so glad my mail man friend asked - I am so glad that I got to be a voice for the voiceless. I pray that God would break down the walls of fear that are embedded in our communities towards this darkness of human trafficking that is taking place whether we have the guts to face it or not, I pray that God would begin to make it impossible to not notice and to not do something about in our communities. I pray that God would raise up laborers for the harvest of those who are enslaved and bring about a time of revival and freedom for those who are hurt and trapped. 

"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?  And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" - Romans 10:14-15

There is still time to sponsor this campaign and they are only a few hundred away from their fundraising goal so if you feel lead to give to this cause check it out at this link! 

One Dress One Shirt One Month!

Blessings & Love,

Kaity Ruhland