My biggest prayer of late has been this:
“God, please give me Your eyes to see with, Your ears to hear with, and Your heart to feel with”.
Day One of ministry in Zambia: Door to door evangelism. This was a huge stretch for me.
*My thoughts: “You want me to whaaat? Go to a person’s home, interrupt their day, and tell them about Jesus? Won’t they get mad? People in America hate that!”
All day I struggled with the thought that I wasn’t cut out for this type of ministry…and all day I had to remind myself of something the Lord told me at Launch:
“I anoint you. I equip you. Be bold.”
Many of the people here are already Christians, so a lot of times, we were privileged to encourage them in their faith in Christ, help them grow a little deeper, and pray over them!
As some of you know, I love nature, and I believe it is our responsibility to care for it. So usually when I go for a leisurely walk, I come back with a handful of trash to throw away that I picked up along the way. Some places we walked to evangelize were not the cleanest, and it hurt my heart to see God’s beautiful land treated this way.
One home we visited during the week had a group of women. All of these ladies were Christians already, with one exception. There was a woman there who said she had heard of God and Jesus, but didn’t know them. It was an honor to share my testimony with her, and share about who Jesus was, and what He did on the cross for her. I got to tell her that God knows everything about her, and still loves her…that He desires to have a deep relationship with her. Then heaven rejoiced when this beautiful daughter of God decided she wanted to have a relationship with Him too!
Something I have noticed here in Zambia is that the people are a lot more aware of the spiritual realm than a lot of Americans. This is good and bad. You see, in their culture in isn’t uncommon for someone to be a Christian, but then go see a witch doctor if they are sick. Many people are under curses from the enemy because of this involvement, and many people are believing lies.
Now that I have you confused, let me explain through an example. When we were going door to door ministering to people, we met a young man named Elvis. He was a Christian who wanted more of God, and said that he USED to be a prayer intercessor at his church. He explained that about a year ago, a bad spirit came into his home to attack someone in his family. When this happened, he said his soul left his body to fight off this spirit. After this encounter, Elvis went to see a ‘prophet’ (not a Christian one), who told him that his soul had been separated from his body in this battle. Because Elvis believed his soul was no longer with him, he felt he was useless to God, and could no longer be a prayer intercessor. I know this to be untrue. I absolutely believe he was in a battle with an evil spirit, but I do not believe his soul is now permanently separated from his body. It was such a privilege to share the Word of God with Elvis, and tell him that he has the Spirit of God dwelling in him, who raised Jesus from the grave, and that he gets to walk in victory NOT defeat!
Another day this week, we went to a children’s church service, run by Pastor Lawrence. Pastor Lawrence is a ten year old boy. He has a heart for reaching his generation with the love of Christ. I have NEVER seen such an incredible passion for God from anyone so young, and it was such a blessing to work with him!!!
Remember when I said I was praying to feel with God’s heart? Well, I got what I prayed for.
We have also been working in an orphanage called SOS. The children all have different stories. Some are there because their parents died of AIDS, while others are there because they were abandoned. When we first arrived, the children were sitting in a big circle in chairs outside. I was standing with a group of children, because there weren’t enough seats, but I didn’t mind standing. A little boy, no older than 7 (the same age as my brother, Braden) picked up his chair and walked back to me. When he offered his seat to me, I was so surprised that all I could do was tell him I wanted him to have somewhere to sit, and thanked him anyway. Then a little girl, no older than 9 (the same age as my sister, Devin) did the same thing. At that point, something broke inside of me, and I had to choke back tears. Who am I that these children, who have been through more than I can imagine, would treat me with such goodness? I don’t deserve it! How are they so sweet and respectful? We played games, sang songs, and shared the Word of God with these beautiful children. As we were leaving, a little girl begged me for my watch and my camera. I wasn’t surprised when adults on the street begged, but to see children begging for things tore my heart in two.
There are two little girls that have attached themselves to me, Nasii and Gloria. They are both 9 years old. Gloria wears a pair of TOMS that are so small on her, she has to fold down the backs and wear them as slippers. I can’t tell you how many times I have wanted to give my own shoes away.
There are not words to describe what I have been feeling for these children, and for these people….the only words that come close are deep, deep sorrow, and brokenness. Though I didn’t even have the words to share with God about it, He knew very well what my heart was going through, and this is what He told me:
“This is a gift to you from Me, this is how I care for my creations. You have my heart. Just abide in Me and I will hold you tight, through it all. I promise beloved, I will never let go of you. Don’t forget that I AM the way here. Don’t forget that I win, that love wins, that I created a solution to this.”
I am looking forward to more opportunities to love on the world with the heart of God. What is better than that?
Fun Facts:
~Apparently “Brooke” is really an odd and difficult name to pronounce here in Zambia. Instead, I have been called ‘Broke’, ‘Brooka’, ‘Blook’,and ‘Clobo’ (yes, Clobo).
~I have already had a man want to marry me because I white.
~I have terrified an alarming number of children because they have never seen a Muzungu (white person) before. Like, they run away crying.
TTFN! Please pray for me and my team!
