I got mugged!

It had already gotten dark as Lindsey and I were eating dinner. I knew it was a bad idea to walk back to the hostel just the two of us. Taxi was an option, but I didn't know which ones were safe. A couple girls had left just a few minutes before us and there were a couple girls still at the mall. Regardless of all our options, we started to walk. There was the lite street or the back roads and lonely path routes. We chose the lite street. As we started walking I prayed that the Lord would surround us with His angels and protect us. As we turned a corner four men jumped out of a car and although we were right next to a security guard, the next thing we knew our bags were gone and we were left one the side of the street holding each other.

A man from the apartments we were in front of came out at our screams and invited us into the gate. They gave us blankets, got the police, and helped us find the number for our hostel. 

For those of you who like videos, you can listen to us explain how the Lord was all over the situation; and for those of you who like to read, you can read the key points the Lord has taught me…or even better, do both!

Judgement to Compassion: During the month of Kenya I had some frustrations. Through it though, the Lord revealed to me that I had some judgement in me. I was frustrated because I found myself judging others. God asked me to pray for any judgement in me to be turned into compassion and also to pray for humility. So that became my prayer. From the moment I watched the four men step out of the car, I knew what was about to happen and the Lord gave me a heart of compassion instead of my old heart of judgement. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation, the old has passed away, the new has come” 2 Corinthians 5:17

Humility: We should not have made the decision to walk back so late. We should have left an hour earlier, with a larger group, and/or gotten a taxi. The Lord had me put my pride aside and realize that night was not about me making a bad decision, it was about five men encountering God. I could put a lot of the blame on myself, but my Father is telling me that would disguise part of His GLORY in this situation. 

Fear of Forgetting: I've discovered that I have a fear of forgetting. That night they took my journal that I have written in every day of the race. I know I don't always have the best memory, and I have found myself fearful of not remembering all the incredible things the Lord has taught me. Then He reminded me that those things are written on my heart and not just my mind. I don't have to fear about forgetting because they aren't just life lesson or things I learned in a history class, these things have literally changed the person I was into a woman of God. I can have faith that the Holy Spirit is my helper and always will remind me of the things I have learned and grown in. 

Eternal Perspective: Frustration creeps in and tries to distract my mind. I get frustrated that I don't have my own computer to type blogs on or make my videos, that my videos from Kenya don't work on anyones computer, that all but 30 GB of my external have to be accessed from the computer that I no longer have, that I don't have all the cool stamps in my passport anymore, the list goes on. But it's in those moments the Lord reminds me that I live for an ETERNAL Kingdom. All of these things are cool to bring home, but they bear no significance in light of eternity.  

Ambassadors: Right when we got back to the place we were staying, our squad leaders pulled us into a room with team leaders and prayed and spoke truth over us. One of them said that the Lord entrusted us with this (which reminds me of the story of Job). He sent us to be ambassadors for the five men. We fully believe that those men felt something different about that robbery than any other ones in the past. The angels we prayed for not only protected us, they were sent to change the hearts of those five men.