It has been roughly 63 days since I left home in America where I had a comfy bed to sleep in, a hot shower available at all times, electricity wherever I needed it, and a life that felt “normal”.
I have now traveled to India and Nepal, and I am currently in South Africa. I struggled the past two months trying to figure out how to get a handle on “life on the Race.” I am 100 percent an extrovert, but over the past few months of being surrounded 24/7 by 54 other World Racers, I HAVE NEVER WANTED TO BE ALONE MORE IN MY LIFE! It’s not that I don’t love my brothers and sisters, my problem was that I didn’t know how to say no to conversation and late night hangouts (because they are my favorite). I wasn’t getting any one-on-one time with the Lord because I couldn’t say no, and as time went on I began to get anxious and stressed.
At the beginning of last month, in Nepal, I asked the Lord to show Himself to me in ways He had never done before. As we were sent out each day for ministry I waited with anticipation to hear His voice, to feel Holy Spirit leading me to go pray for that certain person, or to receive a word for someone. And it never happened. Was this because I wasn’t listening? Or was God really not speaking to me?
Ministry in Nepal-
A majority of our ministry in Nepal was evangelism. We would be sent out to certain parts of the city and our goal was to rely on the Holy Spirit to lead us to people who were ready to hear about Jesus. When we weren’t doing evangelism we would go have soccer ministry with the street kids where we just loved on them. Then we fed them the Word of God and a meal before sending them off. We went into the slums and prayed for God to show up in the lives of the people there, we prayed over people who needed healing, we boldly sang out worship songs about the love of Christ on public transportation, and challenged people to take a look at who Jesus really is, the only one who can truly bring salvation and fill the void in their hearts, instead of adding Him to the long list of gods they already worship. We met a lot of people and made some really great friends during our time in Nepal, but while God was showing me all these amazing things and as I heard all the stories from my squad mates, I still felt a void and by God.
What I learned-
The first couple weeks I felt like I couldn’t even do simple things that would normally come so naturally to me, like soccer ministry, and playing with kids. Instead I felt like there was a major disconnect. I kept asking God where He was and why He wasn’t showing up. What He revealed to me was simple;
I wasn’t spending enough time in His word.
He was right in front of me but I wasn’t seeing Him because I was allowing myself to get distracted by my surroundings. I wanted this huge move of the Spirit in my life but God was trying to teach me that I needed to seek Him just as much as He was seeking me.
I realized that I was trying to pour out more onto others than I was filling up with Him, and I was running on empty. Taking time to process my days was something I needed to make a priority. I needed to figure out how to get away from the commotion and noise in order to quiet myself before the Lord so I could actually hear His voice.
What I did-
So, after this revelation I decided that I was going to get up earlier every morning and find a quiet place to meet with the Lord. Within a couple days of this I felt drastically different, and as I looked back on my time in Nepal I started to recognize all the ways the Lord was trying to reveal Himself to me.
Where I felt stuck before, I could feel a release. In ministry I started to recognize how the Lord had been leading my team and I. What had changed was my ability to listen. I started to hear His still small voice again and could feel His closeness. This was because I was making time to get filled up. You can’t do ministry without being ministered to.
Last month Jesus showed me the importance of resting in Him, Matthew 11:29-30. He is our source of rest and He does not give us anything we cannot handle. But we have to do our part in our relationship by taking the time to communicate with our Father and quiet ourselves before Him enough to actually hear His voice.
Matthew 7:7-8
A Challenge-
Bottom line is God will not keep anything from you. For me, I was asking for more of Him and that is exactly what He gave me. It was not in the way I expected but I think the lesson I learned this month, for me, was a lot more valuable than a miraculous encounter. I found more of Him by spending more time with him. It is as simple as that.
I would encourage those of you back home to simply seek Him. Put Him first in everything you do, because the Lord wants to speak to you! And for those of you who are considering going on the World Race or are already preparing to leave on this grand adventure, realize that the most important part of your journey is going to be putting the Lord first. Make time for Him, because you can’t live out your calling if you are not letting Him lead you. Not every day will be an adventure and the thrill of a life time, it is hard work and don’t think that just because you are going on a missions trip that it is going to be any easier to find the time with the lord. You have to be intentional and make time for Him! I think that no matter where you are in life, whether you are working at 9-5 job or are in full time ministry the most important part of your walk is to seek the Lord and spend time resting in Him.
PRAYER/SUPPORT:
You can continue to pray for me and my team as we finish up our last couple weeks in South Africa!
Also I am $2,259 away from being fully funded, please partner with me, anything you give helps in a tremendous way!
Our next financial deadline is two weeks away and some of the girls on my team are still in need of support to meet this deadline:
Olivia Pinizzotto needs $1,200 http://oliviapinizzotto.theworldrace.org/
Rachel Zerby needs $582 http://rachelzerby.theworldrace.org/
Michelle Song needs $447 http://michellesong.theworldrace.org/
These are some pretty amazing women of God who have such a huge heart to see lives changed by Jesus, please consider supporting them today and help keep them on the field!
