I’ve been struggling lately with some serious writers block. I’ve tried and tried to write but nothing ever comes out coherent. I’ve wanted to write about the things the Lord has been teaching me. Like the cool way he lead me to look at Christmas this year, or what I’m learning about what it means to be set apart. I’ve tried to write about what I’ve learned from World Race America and the hardships we went through. I’ve tried to write about my fears and anxieties about this next season of life, but every time I try to write anything down I seem to lose my direction and it comes out a mess. But today I was reminded of a moment from this last year. A simple moment of faith that impacted me far more than I even knew in the moment. A moment that I feel the need to share with you all. So bear with me as I try to break through this writers block and try to express through words the power of this simple moment in a bubble tea shop in Koreatown in LA. So here goes…
This was during our ATL portion of our trip. The portion where we had no place to stay and no ministry lined up for us. We prayed and asked the Lord (ATL) where he wanted us to go and trusted He would provide for us. We ended up staying in an apartment in Los Angeles with a wonderful woman named Elaine. (If you don’t know about Elaine yet, ask me about her! I’d love to share about this absolutely incredible woman who impacted our lives so much.)
We were coming to the end of our time with Elaine in LA, so she wanted us to go to dinner with her and some people from her church. We ended up going to Koreatown and having an incredibly delicious dinner. We shared a giant plate of food piled high with meat, potatoes, and veggies covered with a mountain of cheese that was then lit on fire at our table. It was quite the dining experience! After dinner we decided to stop at the shop around the corner for some bubble tea. We all ordered and sat at the tables inside as we continue to fellowship with the people from Elaine’s church.
As we are talking, one of the men from the church begins to pray for my teammate at the table. I was sitting right next to my teammate, so I joined in in the prayer as did some of the others. I didn’t think anything about it at first. Putting my hand on someone’s shoulder and praying for them has become so natural to me I don’t even think twice about it. It was when I looked around that I saw something that shocked me.
A man had just come in the shop. As he was standing at the counter in front of us, ordering his bubble tea, he stopped. He suddenly turned around, reached a hand towards our group and joined in with our prayer. I smiled in awe of this man. He knew nothing about our prayer, yet he still joined us. He stood quietly but boldly in his faith with a hand raised towards my teammate joining with us as the body of Christ. He stood there for a long time. (Honestly none of us knew how long this prayer was going to last but it was definitely a lengthy one. Poor guy didn’t know the commitment he had made when he joined us.)
After a bit he put his hand down, turned, got his drink, and left the shop. I had been blocked in during the prayer and unable to get up to speak with him. As I saw him walk out, I prayed that the Lord would bring him back so that I could talk to him. As I watch the man pauses. He turns around, walks back into the shop, and returns to the counter. I knew that I was supposed to get up and talk to him.
I walk up and begin to talk with him. Come to find out he was from the LA Dream center. We had just partnered with the dream center a couple of days before. As we talked we found out that one of his close friends was a girl we had spent some time talking with while we got ready to go out to skid row. She knew about the world race and when she saw our van she was so excited to meet us. (Cool thing about her is that I still follow her journey and she is now working with a ministry called circuit riders that we also stumbled upon during our time in California. That is another cool story but for another day. I must stay focused!)
I told the man that I just had to let him know how much his faith and obedience had shocked me. That he would turn and join in our prayer in such a bold way was so encouraging. I told him he inspired me to live out my own faith just as boldly. He simply said that it is what we are called to do.
Y’all! I had seen people start to walk in the shop during our prayer, see him standing there, turn, and walk away instead of coming inside. Yet this man didn’t care. He stood there without any fear of man and joined us in faith as we prayed.
It was such a small thing, honestly. He simply joined our prayer, but I was shocked. I was shocked because this wasn’t in a church. This wasn’t in a home. This was in a bubble tea shop in the middle of Koreatown. It would be like praying for your friend in Starbucks and suddenly looking up to see a stranger at the counter turned towards you, holding a hand out towards you, joining you in prayer.
I don’t know about you but I hadn’t experienced that before this moment. Yes, I’d seen people praying in public before but this was something else. You see, we were sitting down at our tables, off to the side, quietly praying for our friend. This man, however, was standing at the counter, in the middle of the room, reaching out towards us, bowing his head, and joining us prayer. It wasn’t subtle.
I was so encouraged in that moment by what I saw. I saw a church alive. I saw people living out their faith boldly right here in America. I saw people unashamed of their belief in God. I was inspired at the simple act of obedience and the impact it can make. The man had no clue the impact that choice to join us in prayer would have on me. He just simply felt the desire to pray with us and did.
I realized in that moment how even the smallest of things can have the biggest impact for the kingdom. You don’t have to travel the world as a missionary, or be a preacher on a stage to boldly proclaim your faith to the world. Sometimes all it takes is something as simple as joining others in prayer in a bubble tea shop.
I’m so thankful for this man and his obedience. His small act of joining our prayer taught me so much and encouraged me to live out my faith at all times, no matter where I am or who is around. This last year has taught me many different lessons but one of the biggest things I learned is how to live out my faith everyday no matter where I am. I learned to live my life on mission and see everyday as an opportunity for ministry.
This moment in Koreatown was part of what it took for me to learn that lesson. I pray you feel as encouraged as I did and that this story inspires you to live out your faith boldly wherever you are.
It took me the last 2 years to truly understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ. How could I go make disciples if I didn’t even know how to be one? I have spent the last two years learning how to live out my faith no matter where I am. Learning what a relationship with Jesus truly is. Now I get the opportunity to share that with others! The Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to go live in Guatemala and walk alongside other women as they learn this same lesson. I cannot think of a better way to spend my days!
I am getting closer and closer to my fundraising total! My goal is to be in Guatemala by early March and to do that I need to be fully funded by mid-February. I ask that you prayerfully consider donating to help me reach my deadline in time. I am thankful for you all. Thank you for following my journey and for supporting me so much. I would not be able to live the life that I am blessed to live without you guys. Thank you for allowing me the freedom to follow the Lord as He takes me into this new season! It means more than I could ever say. I love you guys!
Until next time….
