Interruptions.
They are inconvenient, annoying, and not fun. No one likes being interrupted. We like to have our plans, we like to get where we are going and get home.
I’ve learned to embrace the opposite.
God likes to make plans right in the middle of our plans. Isn’t that fun? You’ve probably heard me say quite a few times this World Race phrase “Life is ministry and ministry is life.” It means that I don’t just spread God’s love in the confines of “ministry” but look for it everywhere in my life. That means that God might allow ministry to pop up when I least expect it, or least want it. I’ve stepped into this and allowed God to interrupt my plans, my schedule, and LIFE, for reals.
I didn’t like it at first. At the beginning of the month, we were in a city with our whole squad called Katmandu and just had team changes. They wanted us to go out and make a memory with our new teams and bond with each other. My team, Women of Wonder (W.o.W), was on our way to lunch when two ladies stopped us and asked us for money and food. I IMMEDIATELY kept walking. I know, sounds awful. I actually rolled my eyes when my teammates stopped and listened to their story and offered to buy their baby’s formula. They spent a good chunk of money to be interruptible and help these women out. I was struck by their generosity, not just with money, but with their time as well. We were all hungry, all wanting food and anxious to get started as a team and explore the city, but they saw the person in front of them and loved them well.
We spent about a week in this city as our squad changed teams and got new leaders and positions. We were adjusting, and honestly it was a time where I think God used it to intentionally teach us how to be interruptible.
My team decided to take a Sabbath to rest from all the travel and new changes. I found myself at coffee shops and exploring the little backpacking town by myself. I talked to God a lot about what the month would look like and asked Him what He wanted from me this month. The word “interruptible” pops up in that still, small voice. Alright, guess I have to learn to be more interruptible. I finished up at the coffee shop and planned to head home. Key word “planned.” My mind was still reeling from the word “interruptible” and as I’m about to turn the corner for our apartment, I see a butterfly fly the opposite direction. [side note: butterflies mean a lot to me, God uses them to communicate with me and comfort me, it’s a long story, blog coming soon]. I sigh, change my path and follow the butterfly. It flies down an alley and disappears.
“Alright God, I’m being interruptible! What’s going oooonnn. What’s in this alley way?”
A dog. A dog was in the alley way. So I sat down and pet it and loved it and gave it attention that it just wasn’t getting. Did God really redirect my path to love a dog? I look up from the dog and see a man standing in front of a restaurant watching me. I’m startled and say hi and start a conversation. Turns out he’s from India and working in Nepal on a business trip, he spends a lot of his time away from his family and he is lonely. He saw me sitting and petting a filthy dog that doesn’t get love and saw my sweet spirit. He said that if I can love animals like that, I probably am someone who could love others as well. He was looking for a friend. He ended up inviting me to eat with him and pay for a snack and we ended up sitting and talking for hours. ALSO, turns out he is an amazing artist and in encouraging him to pursue his dream, I asked if he could sketch me. Check it out!
The next night I invited my whole team back to have dinner with him again to give him company and friendship. I loved seeing this man who was missing his family and lonely have a night full of laughter and smiles. All because I was interruptible.
The next day I wasn’t feeling well at all and was on the couch with a horrible stomach ache and head ache. I needed food and water and the PLAN was to go out and get food and come back. As I went out and was walking to get food, I realized that my stomach ache and head ache went away. I didn’t think much of it but I went and got food, some WiFi, and was headed back when another man stopped me.
“Excuse me Miss! Do you have a moment?”
Interruptible. Okay, then!
“I saw you walking across the street and just felt pulled to you and I want to be your friend.”
“Well, okay then!”
We went and got lemonade.
Turns out he’s from Togo in Africa, he’s a professional soccer player and has been in Nepal for 8 months. He loves Jesus and has such a wonderful spirit about him. We kept walking and found some other World Race friends and some others and others and the rest of the month, my new friend Mido made friends with 80 other World Racers, played soccer, had meals, prayed and worshipped together, and now is a contact for my squad mentor in Togo when her next squad goes there next year. He gave us prophetic and encouraging words from God and sent us off with prayer. Holy Crap. All because I was interruptible.
That SAME DAY, I was introducing Mido to some of my friends when they were praying over some one else’s ear. Turns out that guy knows a church planter in Katmandu. There is a total of 1% of people who are Christians in Nepal, very hard to come by. He called the church planter over and they invited us to their church. Interruptible. Okay, then! We are going to church! We walked a few blocks and up many flights of stairs to a small room. There was a guitar and there were cushions so we sat down and I lead us all in worship. We spent the next few hours in prayer, worship, testimonies, and just uplifting and encouraging each other.
All because I was interruptible. My plan was to go out in the morning and get food for the day and come back, and I ended up staying out ALL day making new friends and following God’s divine interruptions He had for me.
Fast forward a week and we are in Chitwan having breakfast and Bible study as a team. I stay later to work on blogs and videos and pictures and the one waitress there smiles and stares at me. I smile back and she invites herself over and we start a conversation. The PLAN was to finish a blog and get some things done. God’s plan was for me to create a sweet friendship with this beautiful woman. Turns out she is the sweetest woman in Nepal. As I leave I ask her if I can pay for someone’s meal in the restaurant. She looks at me startled and asks why. I tell her it’s because I love Jesus and want to love people. I pay for someone’s drink and without looking to see who, I head home.
The next day we are back doing the same thing and I stay because I didn’t finish what I wanted to finish yesterday. A beautiful blonde woman interrupts my work and introduces herself. Sandy, from Switzerland. She was the woman I paid for yesterday and she wanted to say thank you. Turns out she was so touched that a random stranger would pay for her drink so she decided since someone did something nice for her, she would return the favor to a stranger the next day. She came into the restaurant and picked me out of my little crowd and decided she was going to pay for my meal (unbeknownst to her that I was the one that paid for her the day before). LOOK AT GOD.
I was reluctant to continue the conversation because I was anxious to get things done but I’m so glad I did. Interruptible. We spent the next few hours talking and making a sweet friendship. We talked about our families, she opened up about some tough stuff she had been going through, we bonded over movies and laughed at how she couldn’t hang out with us because she “had to go feed her elephants.” Thought it was an excuse, but it’s real, she was there volunteering and taking care of elephants. We spent the next week hanging out with this new friend Sandy every day. She joined us for Bible study, worship, lunch, dinner, and our last night in Chitwan with an epic dance party. She came and helped us pack, we went on walks, we got to feed her elephants and she showed me rhinos! As we said goodbye I gave her a note and watched her open it up with tears. I’m so glad we became friends and we all got to love her. We made plans to one day visit each other
All because I was interruptible.
Okay, I could go on and on about the countless stories my team has this month of making friends and loving people despite the plans we thought we had. Interruptions have never looked so good to me now. And I’m excited to go home and do all of this in my own country and hometown! Gosh, to think of the stories that will happen when I live out “life is ministry and ministry is life” and let God decide what my day looks like.
Sometimes you think you’re just going to the grocery store and God wants you to love the homeless person outside. Sometimes you think you are just going to the movies, and God wants you to prophecy over the ticket agent and take her to coffee on her break. Sometimes you have plans and God just messes them up. What an exciting life to live.
Friends, I feel alive and full of God’s love just by opening my eyes to what He wants for my day. THIS is how He wants us to live, on HIS timeline. Yeah it might be inconvenient, uncomfortable, or annoying at first, but He has goodness around the corner and there are people that need love! Who knows, you could end up having a dozen new friends from 5 different countries. The possibilities are endless.
All because you decided to be interruptible.
Let’s do this!
All my love,
JJ
