Our God is the God of the impossible.
I know that I have professed this before in church, in front of youth ministries, and singing in the car. But, I don’t think I really understood these words until now, and quite honestly I still can’t comprehend it all. God is just freaking amazing!
For a solid month and a half, I had one major distraction and worry on the race: the delivery of my diabetes supplies. Now the truth is I never would have left on the World Race if I hadn’t made an airtight plan and back up plans for getting my supplies. After all, these supplies literally mean life and death to me. But as the old adage states, “God laughs at our plans.” I’m not sure if God was laughing at my plans if He just had an even better plan in place.
Midway through August, I began with my plan A for getting my supplies delivered. The plan was to get them shipped to the month 3 ministry location through an international pharmacy. As I began going through the steps I had meticulously put together, everything rapidly fell to pieces. Addresses couldn’t be found, my internet was limited (which was essential for international communications with the pharmacy). It was always simple issues in the delivery system, but the simple issues formed huge impenetrable barrier.
I’m not going to lie. There were nights when I couldn’t sleep because of worry. I worried about what would happen if I couldn’t get my supplies during month 3. I knew I had enough to make it to month 4, but I wasn’t sure how much farther I could last. The most frustrating part was wanting to take the best care of myself, but being afraid to use my limited supplies. I began to pray that God would preform a miracle like the oil with the Maccabees. I prayed, but I don’t think I really trusted fully. Others kept giving me the same word, TRUST (Proverbs 3:5).
When month 3 in Transnistria arrived, I discovered a new obstacles. Even more limited internet, and literally all of my plans plans had fallen through. Finally I had to give up my control in the situation. I stopped trying to be in control. I gave the arranging of my supplies to someone better equipped to handle the details, my mom. I also decided it was better if I stayed out of the details. I can’t express in words how humbling an experience this was for me.
During the entire month in Transnistria, I received very few and infrequent updates about my medical supplies and their delivery. However I do know this, my mom, bless her heart, tried everything humanly possible to figure out how to get them to me. It was beginning to seem impossible. And without God it really would have been.
One week before my squad had its debrief in Romania, my mom discovered through her efforts that we would be debriefing in Brasov, Romania. Brasov is a rather touristy location in Transylvania, Romania, close to the infamous Bran Castle, aka “Dracula’s Castle”. However, for me the most notable fact about this part of the world is that my step-mom, Isabell, grew up near Brasov. What’s more, she still has family living in this part of Romania.
So a week before my arrival, both of my moms worked tirelessly to get me my supplies delivered to my step- Great Uncle Ioan. When my team and I arrived in Brasov late Thursday night, my express mailed medical supplies finished going through customs Friday morning, and finally, I met my Romanian family (with my medical supplies) Saturday afternoon. Talk about God’s timing!
The craziest part of this story is not how miraculous this delivery is but rather how long God has been putting this plan in place. The beginning of this plan may very well have begun 20 years ago when my mom and dad got a divorce. Because without the divorce, my dad never would have met and married Isabell. Without Isabell, among many other things I would be without Romanian family. Without my Romanian family members, only God knows how I would have received my medical supplies. God is incredible and I now know with certainty that He makes ALL things work together for good.
