I prayed for a word to focus on at the start of each month of ministry this year. These are the words God gave me along with the biggest lessons I’ve learned (and some gorgeous views around the world). Thank you for being a part of this year, which has been the biggest blessing in my life! I can’t wait to see what the Lord does next!
Nicaragua: Listen
This month the Lord deepened my understanding of who He is as a Father. He showed me how He sees me uniquely as I am and wants to listen to every word I have to say because I’m His daughter. In turn, I learned to listen to Him and realize that He gives me what I need because it’s so much better than what I could ever want. God also taught me how to listen well to others and seek to understand in every situation.
Costa Rica: Dedicate
I thought this month was going to be about proving how dedicated I was to God, but instead Jesus ended up showing me how dedicated He is to me as the bride of Christ. I learned that everything should be out of the overflow of His love for me. I saw the lengths to which He pursued me in such a personal way when I was in the hospital. He also reminded me that I need to be dedicated to those around me in pursuit of unity.
Panama: Aware
After two months of “not feeling it,” I prayed that the Lord would open my eyes and make me more aware of everything I was missing. This was the month that I learned what it meant to follow the Spirit in everyday life and listen to His voice. He made me aware of ways I could grow in serving others and reminded me that I have the choice to claim joy, and nothing can take that away from me.
Morocco: Trust
This was arguably my most challenging yet favorite month. I was forced to face the trust issues I didn’t know I had. I learned what it meant to let God be the one to protect me and defend me. He showed me how to trust His Spirit in me and to trust my team through thick and thin-working through the hard things. I’ve also learned what it fully means to lay down my future, my hopes, and my dreams at His feet.
Ethiopia: Belonging
This month was about finding my place and learning to just be who God was calling me to be. I learned that I don’t have to try so hard- all I have to do is seek the Lord and be obedient. I belong because He created me for a purpose for such a time as this. I have a voice, and I always have a seat at the table. I may not see the fruit of my obedience, but my only job is to point people to Him; He does the rest.
India: New
Everything about life this month felt very new to us in a culture so different from our own. But the real reason I got this word was because I learned that I needed to step into my new identity in Christ and leave behind who I used to be. I needed to lay down my pride and have the courage to be humble. I learned to choose love over fear, faith over feelings, and obedience over selfishness. God has made me a new creation.
Nepal: Dependence
This month I learned the importance of being completely dependent upon the Lord. I started to run directly to Him instead of going to my friends first. I learned to seek Him with my whole heart, even when it felt like He was being silent. I stopped trying to take matters into my own hands and trusted God with it all. I can depend on the Spirit working me and in other believers. He has never let me down.
Myanmar: Life
I realized this month that I didn’t have to get so caught up in my head trying to do the “right thing” but could simply seek to bring life to situations. With this came a newfound intentionality; I don’t want to just exist- I want to live! I realized that Jesus came so we could have life in abundance and that true life is found in Him. And we get to carry that with us wherever we go because we have His Spirit alive in us.
Thailand: Surrender
I spent a lot of time surrendering to the Lord in prayer this month. I had to recognize that there may be things in life that are out of my control, but nothing is out of God’s control. I realized that I need to lay down my own desires and preferences because His plans for me are so much better than what I would choose for myself. And He is faithful to give us the grace we need as we learn to follow Him more each day.
My Race: Depth
At the start of my race, I received a prophetic key that had the word “depth” on it. But it wasn’t until a week before we found out we were going home that the Lord revealed to me the lesson I’ve been learning all along. This year has been about learning the depths of His love and how I can show that to others by being deeply rooted in Christ. He opened my eyes to what it truly looks like and how to practically live it out here on earth. And this is something I hope to carry with me for the rest of my life!
P.S. This last pic is from our debrief in Spain 🙂
