Do you ever look back in your life and look at the way you were raised? The random activities that you were placed in. The church your parents took you to every Sunday. And basically all the things that you didn’t necessarily choose.
Then, years later you stop to look at where you’re at and get that “aha” moment of, “wow, this is what that was all for”. It is the moment you realize that everything maybe does happen for a reason. That God did have a plan and purpose all along. Even though I’ve always believed that, that is the best way that I can describe as to how I have felt all this month.
When I found out that we were partnering with a church that was Assemblies of God, I got both equally a sense of comfort and fear. I got comfortable because that is the denomination that I grew up in for 18 years. I knew that the people from the church would most likely resemble the church I grew up in, and that made me feel a little safer. However, I also left that church when I moved to college.
For the last 4 years, I got to discover what it looked like to find my own faith. My own community. I church hopped a lot throughout college in search of a community that felt like the family I had at my home church. Crazy enough, I didn’t find that until my senior year. Then when I finally had a new church family to call my own, the culture was totally different. I went from a bilingual church, to an only English speaking church. Where there was more structure. Where programs ran differently and timely. Where being late is not the norm. Not saying one is better than the other, but I also felt disconnected from the ways I grew up. The way we were taught. The miracles I saw. The way everyone was so expressive. And the very real sense of spiritual warfare.
That’s what made me nervous. I had been so out of tune with what I knew the Spirit to be growing up. I formed a whole different view of God in college. Or at least the holy spirit part of Him.
I was in deep prayer asking God:
“Are we actually able to heal?”
“Did you really give us those gifts”
“Do I even have those gifts?”
“What does your spirit look like?”
“What about everything I grew up with and saw, was that real?”
“I know what I saw…it had to have been real, right?
“Help, I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
At Biola, I wrestled with a lot of my upbringing. I formed my own faith which was wonderful. But that power of the Holy Spirit was something I still didn’t understand because I didn’t see people at my school expressively acting through His spirit In the form of prophecy, speaking in tongues, healings, etc. But that’s how the devil works. He will go far with any truth if there’s even the slightest bit of lies or doubt he can grab on to.
Thankfully, God showed up. He said, “Why do you doubt my power? Why do you see me through the lenses of those around you? Don’t you seek MY truth? What does my word say? Believe ME. When you experienced the power of the Spirit as a teenager and spoke in tongues, that was true. That was me. Oh, and one more thing: stop putting me in a box.”
WOAH.
Ok God. So I stepped into the World Race with an open heart and mind. Ready to see the Spirit work in mighty ways.
And we have.
We have prayed over illnesses, physical pains, broken relationships.
I saw an older lady dance away her aching back that was no longer there after we prayed for her! I saw a man who had a demon within in. We prayed for him too. We have cast out demons. We have experienced spiritual warfare. And we saw how God always wins.
To some of you this may sound a little crazy. It is. But, the reality is, that life with God is crazy. There is more to this life than just the physical realm. Jesus came down to this earth and left us with the power and a u t h o r i t y to use those gifts for healing, prophecy, casting out demons and so much more.
God raised me in a certain church to see certain things that not every believer sees. He let me go through certain doubts about that in college. He showed up when I was confused. He also showed up when I was seeking truth. Now I get to go back to my roots and experience God’s power with this amazing church in Colombia. The Holy Spirit is alive and active here! And He is alive and active where you are too.
We are so lucky to be a part of this church’s revival. This first month has definitely shown me how to appreciate the church I grew up in. And to fully activate the power of the Holy Spirit and not be afraid anymore. I will forever be grateful.
In case you’re wondering, yes, the people here in this church do in fact remind me of the church I grew up in. They are expressive, loud, love to joke, don’t take life too seriously, know how to have fun, spanish-speaking, and all about the Holy Spirit.
If you would like to know more about the wild things that have happened here so far, feel free to reach out. I’d love to talk in more detail about the way God is moving here through the lives of beyond me and my teammates!!
Mark 16:16-18
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
