Deffinition of Sad

Eva is at home on a friday night wearing her pijamas and talking to her cats...

this is wrong...

Can't sleep.... so I blog

Apparently my name not only originates from the Hebrew language, but Sanskrit too.

The name Eva comes from the Indian origin. In Sanskrit the meaning of the name Eva is: One who gives life.

Under the Hebrew origin the name means: Life. Living one. A variant of Eve.

Growing up, I never liked my name. My name in its entirety is Eva Patricia Munoz Ramirez. Eva after my grandmother, Patricia after my mother, Munoz is my father's last name, and while it is not on my birth certificate I took on my mother's maiden name out of Mexican tradition. If I was in Mexico I would keep my mother's maiden name until I got married. After that I would drop it and take on my husbands name, and my name would look something like this....

Eva Patricia Munoz de Whatever. 

The "de" in my last name would mean that I know belong to my husband's family.

But back to why I didn't like my name... First of all it wasn't unique. I am the fourth woman in my family that I know of who has this name. Secondly, it will forever be associated with the fall of man. I remember feeling bad whenever that story was told at church. People would jokingly give me a dirty look whenever it was mentioned, but I took it to heart. So I really didn't like my name... but I'm beginning to see it in a different light. 

A constant theme in my life is redemption. I think that is evident in my name as well. 

Eve, along with Adam, sinned and as such brought on the Fall of man. It's funny how God was able to take the woman who brought death into the world and cause life to flow from her.  He was able to take something ugly, and make it beautiful again. 

Voices in my Head

We all have them… some more severe than others.

They are the voices of our influencers. Our close family and friends, and of the saints both gone and still with us. Those who have encouraged us to do more, to be better, and even though sometimes they have failed their voices continue to push us so that we won’t. Answering the call of these voices have pushed me to become who I am today. Added to their ranks are the voices of the world’s victims.

I firmly believe God has called us to be a catalyst for change. To see the atrocities of this world and scream out NO.

I was accepted into NightLight as their fall intern. Twice a week I will be traveling to Los Angeles to either do administrative work for them or participate in their outreach events. As such I was asked to go to a conference where I could learn more about sex-trafficking and it was both intense and heartbreaking. The first day dealt with identifying victims of trafficking, the second with assessing the needs, and the third with creating a program that met those needs and discovering our part in meeting them.

The majority of the women in prostitution are in it because they have either been trafficked or in some way coerced. Women who have been kidnapped, raped, or threatened with the murder of loved ones if they do not comply. I saw a documentary where 86% of the prostituted women would leave this life behind if they could. It is a modern day form of slavery. Women and children are bought and sold for the benefit of others.

Sex trafficking is not just found in prostitution, but online pornography as well. This is what the part of our outreach will be based on. We will not only be educating people on how to identify sex-trafficking, but helping put a stop to it by educating people. One act of prostitution defiles a person as a one-time event that can potentially be repeated. Online pornography defiles a person not only as a one-time event that can be repeated, but that single event will continue in files and in the minds of people who have seen it. It is a continual victimization.

Prostitution and pornography defiles a person because it strips them of their God-Given dignity and makes them less than human. It makes them into an object. We cannot destroy a human, but we can an object. Furthermore, when a person views pornography it opens the doors to wanting more. Soft porn can lead to wanting to view something more adventurous and eventually to engaging a prostitute. In today’s church one in every two men have or are struggling with pornography. One in every four Pastors does too. So there is a huge sense of urgency here. Prostitution is all about supply and demand. The greater the demand, the more people are trafficked. But if the demand is decreased or all together stopped, trafficking will end.

Looking at my generation, I am seeing a stirring in the waters. People are rising up and speaking out. Some would call it a fad, but I see it as something more. If those who are working will stay committed, change can occur. Where our parents called for Civil Reform, we are crying out for Global Reform and I firmly believe this can be obtained.


Some Helpful Websites:

http://www.faastinternational.org/

http://www.stopthetraffik.org/default.aspx

http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/trafficking


Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then you light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and He will say: Here I am.
Isaiah 58:6-9

Random Memories

A passage way found in the Red Fort in India



A Sikh Temple



India Gate, to commemorate all the Indians who lost their lives in the Second World War as they fought for Britain.



The Taj Mahal



The Bible speaks of treating others with kindness because people of the past have spoken to angels without knowing it. I think I met one outside this temple called the Lotus Temple. India runs under the Caste System. People who are born into poverty and oppression will die under poverty and oppression because that is their lot in life. The weight of the system was wearing me down that day, and I didn't want to be there. Then Mercy showed up outside this temple. She was a Christian that came up to us. When I asked her where she was from, she said, "North" and pointed up. I asked her what she came to do, and she said "I'm here on official buisness." She had a kind smile and was so full of light that it eased the burden I felt. I'm really glad she was sent to us.

Ode To Joy

This makes me smile : )

Compasion

Warning: The following may not be suitable for all audiences
Reader Discretion is Advised.

I love this song. It’s by Everlast and it’s called “What It’s Like”

We've all seen the man at the liquor store beggin' for your change
The hair on his face is dirty, dreadlocked and full of mange
He ask the man for what he can spare with shame in his eyes
Get a job you fuckin' slob is all he replied.

[CHORUS]
God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in his shoes
'Cause then you really might know what it's like to sing the blues
Then you really might know what it's like…

Mary got pregnant from a kid named Tom who said he was in love
He said don't worry about a thing baby doll
I'm the man you've been dreamin' of
But three months later he said he won't date her or return her call
And she sweared damn if I find that man I'm cuttin' off his balls
And she heads for the clinic and she gets some static walkin' through the door
They call her a killer, and they call her a sinner, and they call her a whore

[CHORUS]
God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in her shoes
'Cause then you really might know what it's like to have to choose
Then you really might know what it's like…

I've seen a rich man beg
I've seen a good man sin
I've seen a tough man cry
I've seen a loser win
And a sad man grin
I heard an honest man lie
I've seen the good side of bad
And the down side of up
And everything between
I licked the silver spoon
Drank from the golden cup
Smoked the finest green
I stroked the daddy's dimes at least a couple of times
Before I broke their heart
You know where it ends
Yo, it usually depends on where you start

I knew this kid named Max, he used to get fat stacks on the corner with drugs
He liked to hang out late He liked to get shit faced and keep pace with thugs
Until late one night there was a big gun fight & Max lost his head
He pulled out his chrome .45 talked some shit and wound up dead
Now his wife and his kids are caught in the midst of all of his pain
You know it crumbles that way At least that's what they say, when you play the game

[CHORUS]
God forbid you ever had to wake up to hear the news
'Cause then you really might know what it's like to have to lose

Then you really might know what it's like
To have to lose...

First of all, let me start off by saying that I don’t think that abortion is right, and having ministered for eight years in a gang infested environment has shown me there is no honor in “defending” a street that will never belong to me. Because of my life in Christ, I am called to live by a different standard, a standard that those who are still caught in the world are not under and could never understand. This is another example of what it means to be caught in darkness. It is the inability to see what you are doing, or to see what you’ve done. One day we will all be judged by God for what we did, and within us some will be counted blameless because of what Jesus did.

What I’m asking for is for us to stop blind condemnation and let compassion and mercy rule.

I’ve shared this with you before… when I was training to go to Rwanda, I firmly believed I would only be ministering among the Tutsi who were the victims of the genocide. Halfway through I realized this was not to be the case and I began to question my ability to love these people. Kristen was wise to pick up on this possibility and spent a good part of one of our nights reminding us of how we are not above those people we would be ministering to. Within us all lays the ability for any kind of sin, even murder. Fear… Hate… Lust… these are all parts of our human nature, but it is by the grace of God that we are given the means to not mess up, and it is by His blood that we are cleansed if we had.

I’ve been struggling a lot spiritually this last year. A lot of it is because of the choices I’ve made and the people I’ve let influence me. Another part is because I’ve lost my focus. I’ve been called to work in developing countries. I want to take a more Holistic approach to ministry. My conviction is while it wonderful to tell people about the Lord, if we are doing nothing to meet their physical, emotional, and mental needs then we are missing a part of a Christ-Like approach to ministry. That is why I’ve applied to work for Nightlight. It is an organization that seeks out women and children who are trapped in prostitution. To this date they have about 80 women in their shelters in Bangkok, Thailand and of these about 60 have given their life to the Lord. The Los Angeles office works to distribute the jewelry these women make, and seeks to educate people on sex trafficking with the hopes that this will one day end.

We all have our preconceived notions, I know I have mine about prostitution. But I don’t want to see through that lens anymore. I want to see what He saw when it was written, When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Matthew 9:36

Another Great Verse is:

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22: 36-40

You see my friends… it all hinges on love. Whether or not we love God and other people more than we love ourselves.

yours