that face.

december 20, 2005 - january 7, 2006 was a life-changing experience. i learned a great deal in the short time i was able to spend in the northern, Himalayan mountains of india. my eyes were opened to the existence of absolute poverty & the true slavery & false hope that come from idol worship. among many other things, i met some very real people who impacted my life beyond words...young people unashamedly standing up for their faith in the face of imminent danger & persecution.

it's nearly impossible to forget people like that...people that touch you to the core of your very being & teach you more about life & love without ever saying a word. you can see it in their eyes. i think it's safe to say we've all met at least one person like that. & if you haven't, i pray that you do...

standing in a cramped, 2nd floor music shop no bigger than a dorm room in a small town in india, i noticed a little boy outside no more than 3 or 4 years old, sprawled out onto the dirty steps scrounging to pick up the few tarnished coins that had been dropped...a mangy, malnourished dog sniffing at his barefoot heels. where was his mother? i turned back around, unable to stand the thought that he was all alone. while i tried to attend to the business we'd entered to store to attend to i couldn't help but turn back around every few minutes to see that he was ok...the last time i turned around...there he stood, coins in hand, his brown eyes staring back at me as if to say, "love me". it was in that moment that my heart shattered. i was able to discretely snap his picture with the camera that was already in my hand, flash off, without his noticing...for the whole time his eyes never left mine. i will never forget that face. soon thereafter, sitting on the steps of the compound, guitar in hand staring out into the street, the words to the beginning of this song poured out...

"love me"

*verse 1
a little face looks up at me

with tears in his eyes & no shoes on his feet

no mother in sight he stands all alone

too young to be without a home

his little heart's breaking day after day

& if he could speak i know he'd say

*chorus

love me

why don't you care that i'm here?

so the song is still a work in progress...the second verse is about a girl who feels abandoned, alone...had a hard life and doesn't understand why. she, too, says "love me...why don't you care that i'm here?"

the last verse, even though it's not fully written, gives me chills. this time the words speak of Jesus remembering His time on the cross...looking down on His children with a saddened heart repeating those words, "love me...why don't you care that i'm here?"

what an impact people can leave on our lives. more importantly, what an impact He can leave on yours.