Until a few months ago I had no idea who Kristen Welch was. I was clueless that she ran a very successful blog (We Are THAT Family), that she started a non-profit called Mercy House that saves poverty-stricken pregnant teens in Kenya and that she just so happens to live in the Houston area! I would still be living under a rock if I hadn’t heard her speak at a recent blog conference. She was unlike any of the other presenters.
With all the talk of how to run a thriving, money making blog, Kristen was the one person who stood up and urged everyone to do something to make a difference – even if that meant you only helped one person. This was not a Christian conference and there were no amen’s shouted after her talk, but I was listening and loving every moment of this rare living water in the midst of so much materialism.
Her publisher donated a copy of her latest book Rhinestone Jesus to everyone at the conference and once I finally opened it, I didn’t want to stop reading! If I didn’t have little bottoms to wipe, lost shoes to find, kids to shuttle here and there and a toddler who has to be rescued from peril every 5 seconds I really would have read this book in a day! It’s that good!
In the book, Kristen tells of her heart wrenching trip to the slums of Kenya with Compassion International. The poverty and desperation that she sees are unlike anything she even thought possible in the world. The persistent stench of sewage filled the air. The streets were made of garbage several feet thick. There were children everywhere with dirty faces and swollen bellies, young prostitutes, men drunk on a deadly homemade brew, young boys smelling glue. Everywhere she looked were the hungry and desperate. She writes “These living conditions were not for the living.”
She became angry and prayed “God, how can you allow this?” and immediately she felt God point the finger right back at her and say “Kristen, how can YOU allow this?”
It was the beginning of a stirring in her heart to live different, to make a difference and to say “Yes” to God however she could. Even months after her return from Africa God was still working, drawing her closer and closer towards the plans he had for the destitute in Kenya.
April 30 2010
I’ve been home from Africa for nearly two months. I probably should be “over” my trip now, back to my old self. Living the life I left.
But I’m not the same. I don’t ever want to be the same again. I don’t really know where God is leading me (and my family), but it’s far away from the person I was two months ago.
I’m discovering that my materialism is layered like an onion…layer one has been removed, but I think I’m just getting started on clearing out the stuff (in my home and heart).
I thought I had stuff; turns out, it had me.
I want Christ. He is much greater than all the riches of the world. He fills empty places. And cleans up cluttered hearts.
(Kristen Welch, Rhinestone Jesus)
I love how raw and open Kristen is as she writes. She is quick to point out that even after several years of running the non-profit maternity home, Mercy House Kenya, she still struggles with feeling unqualified and overwhelmed. She wrestles with anxiety and freely admits that there are plenty of difficult stretching times.
“…I want the good part too. I want the happy healthy babies, the beautiful transformed girls. Don’t we all? But as we’ve counted the cost these past few years, we have learned the good part doesn’t come without the hard.” (Kristen Welch, Rhinestone Jesus)
Isn’t that true? The good part doesn’t come without the hard. Whatever big or small dream God is working in you today, Rhinestone Jesus might just be the push you need to leap off that cliff in faith and dive into a new normal.
I love that Kristen is honest about her imperfections and the hardships of life, but also not short on words of praise for the God who sees her through them all.
I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that parts of this book were difficult to read, but only because I could feel the pain through the pages. Her words took me on a trip to a filthy place in Africa that I can no longer pretend doesn’t exists. As I sit here typing this, my sweet two year old daughter crawls up beside me on our couch. She is wearing a shirt and a skirt that match. I wipe her runny little nose with a nearby tissue, kiss her on the cheek and she giggles as her fat feet make their way towards the refrigerator full of food to ask for a snack and some milk. There are too many children who will never know these things. Not abundant food or even two pieces of clothing. How will I ever see my blessings again without thinking of those who lack? I don’t know that I will.
Books like these are the best kind. Read it and you might never be the same.
You can purchase Rhinestone Jesus through our affiliate link on Amazon here. Any proceeds we receive support our non-profit mission of encouraging women to love God most.
