I spend a lot of time blogging about myself and the journey the Lord is taking me on. Today, I want to do something different. I want to talk about the incredible people I have met on the Race. I want to share a snippet of their journey and how God is working through those who have committed their lives to the kingdom. To show you who the real heroes are. The people who are not known by the world, but who are radically and sacrificially bringing the Kingdom on the daily basis.
Those whom Jesus refers to in Matthew 25:34-40 where he concludes in verse 40 by saying “ The king will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ “ These are a few words on the people I met who are doing this, whether they realize it or not.
***Disclaimer*** Names have been changed for the safety and security of the people mentioned. All images in this blog were posted with permission. Do not attempt to contact these individuals.
This is “Tim”.
Five minutes with Tim will change your life and view of the Father. His peaceful and Spirit-led heart is bringing the Kingdom in incredible ways. This man is unshakable by the things of the world. After he was blacklisted by the “secret police” in Russia, he was left in a small Kazakh speaking town just outside Russia. He quickly relocated his family to that town and started doing what he knew best: loving those God put around him. There is no person I respect more in this world than Tim. His testimony and closeness to the Father have radically changed and challenged me in ways I’ve never imagined. He is a true definition of what it looks like to bring Kingdom through trying circumstances.
This is “Peter”.
Peter has an intense story. Peter is a refugee, but you wouldn’t know it by his attitude! He has so much hope because he met Jesus. Running from ISIS and a non-supportive family for his Christian beliefs at a young age, God brought him to central Asia where he settled down for a few years. This is where I met him. He is so eager to share the Gospel with every single person who he comes in contact with. I remember many late night chats with Peter. We would discuss all the questions his friends had that he was uncertain how to answer. God is using his story and humble heart to bring kingdom to the community around him. It is beautiful to see how adversity has strengthened his faith and love for the Father.
This is “Paul”.
Paul lives in Kathmandu Nepal. I met Paul through “Tim” who supports the orphanage that Paul runs. Paul is a 24 year-old who has committed his life to love on and serve over a dozen orphans. He commits his work wages to provide each orphan with a private education so they have the best opportunities available. He does this with such joy and spends every other waking moment playing, loving, and caring for the kids. I have NEVER seen an orphanage like this one! These wonderful children do not see themselves as orphans, but as Sons and Daughters of God, and they love it! On every visit they insisted we worship and pray together with them. Even though Paul is young, he is happily committed to his little Brothers and Sisters! He challenged me on selfless love like no other.
Meet “Robert”
When I met Robert, he was running 2 coffee shops, feeding 5,000+ refugees a month, providing them with medical care, clothing, and job placements, as well as teaching them employable skills. He is not afraid to step into tough areas if the Lord asks him too. Robert has dedicated his life to building kingdom, through business. His business and ministry have grown so much, that the government more or less kicked him out for “safety concerns.” This did not even slow him down, but instead opened more avenues for him to invest in. He has since relocated to a new area and is bringing kingdom there too! Robert is a passionate, wise, zealous Christian who is doing big things in hard places. I learned an unbelievable amount from him on how to run kingdom orientated business. It was an incredible honor to work beside him for a month, and a pleasure to get to know him on a personal level.
Say Hi to “Natalie”(middle)
This woman was our translator in Kyrgyzstan. Her testimony is amazing, and heartbreaking. She has lost her husband, and one child to health issues. Issues that are easily preventable in North America. However the amazing part is this has only brought her closer to God! It has caused her to cling onto his words, love, and guidance like no other I have ever seen! This also included when she lost her 2nd child (the oldest son) just months after we left. Although her story is heartbreaking, it has modeled to the community around her the healing heart, of the Father. Her testimony has given her the opportunity to speak into the lives of the community around her who have also lost many loved ones to disease and sickness. She is a fascinating example of how the Father heals and loves the broken hearted.
“Dominic”
Dominic is a hard working believer in Kathmandu with many connections. He does work ALL OVER Nepal. My month with him involved following him around the country loving, and praying for everyone we met, believer or not! From the city to the remote mountainous regions of Nepal Dominic has connections. We even got to be the first people to ever speak the name of Jesus in one place! Whether it was feeding over 300 children in the slums of Kathmandu, or helping rice farmers locked far away in the mountains Dominic wanted to be there. He is constantly sacrificing his time hosting race teams year round and impacting the country of Nepal through it.
“Frank”
I met Frank through Spirit led listening prayer in Athens Greece. Frank is most popular within the hard hit homeless population of Athens. He uses the need for food as a means of unification! Everyday Frank goes to a different part of Athens with a handful of ingredients, a big pot, and a few friends.Then he grabs everybody around (usually a mix of homeless, and non homeless people) and invites them to connect over cooking a meal together. His program is called “The Other Human” these gatherings are growing in popularity around the world! Furthermore, he also offers the homeless a place to wash up. He’s rented out an apartment where people can shower, do laundry etc. to care for the jobless in Athens. All people need community, and the homeless need food on top of that! Frank provides both of those in one setting. He is a incredibly compassionate person, with a regular job and regular life otherwise!
“Mandy”
Mandy has been on the field since the 90’s! She has overcome intense persecution several times for her humanitarian work but this hasn’t stopped her! Even when the local government took away all her means 10 years ago. She simply started from scratch again, and now has over 4 VERY successful businesses that are employing locals at fair wages. Furthermore she is investing her time in educating coffee farmers on how to grow and process specialty coffee beans. God has given her a heart for a particular people group and nothing is going to stop her, or slow her down!
These are just small snippet’s into a few of the extraordinary lives shown here. There are so many faces that were not included or talked about. All with an amazing story of how God pulled them through trying circumstances in order to bring the Father’s love to the 10/40 window. Many of these people’s seemingly small stories are impacting hundreds to thousands of lives each! I cannot tell you what an honour it has been to partner with each and every one of these Christ followers.
They are just ordinary people with an extraordinary “YES” to God’s plan for their life. Even though it has required intense sacrifice and trust, they press on. They choose daily to be hands and feet for God, no matter the cost. Because of that, they have accomplished incredible feats such as; Feeding over 5,000 refugees, rescuing dozens of women from the human, and sex trafficking industry, feeding hundreds of homeless, unifying entire cities and people groups.They are those clothing the homeless, feeding the hungry, and loving the abandoned.
My World Race journey is coming to an end. But the one thing these people have taught me is that this is only the beginning of an incredibly unimaginable life God has waiting for me if I am willing. I will not forget their stories, and all God has done in, and through them. These are the real ordinary heroes of the world; the people with a God sized yes. No matter what that “yes” means or where that takes them. How big is your yes? Because that is the measure to which God will use you. The bigger the yes, the more extraordinary, and long-suffering the journey will Be.
