Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

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So, I have a confession…I am addicted to spending money on things (mostly souviners). Ok, so thanks for letting me get that out. Because of this realization, last month towards the end of Cambodia I God told me that I needed to fast from spending my personal money for a month on snacks, food, and souviners. Each month our team gets a budget to live on. To be honest, it is just the right amount for our necessities. I am taken care of. Most times, no luxuries are included i.e. icecream, coke, snacks, Mexican Resturants, etc. I think you can understand. Well, since ATMs and money exchangers are so readily available with the swipe of a card, I could have things. Really, anything I wanted within reason.

When it comes to other countries, I simply love things-clothing, paintings, jewlerly,wood workings, etc. To me, these things have so much culture; thus, I love displaying them around my house. On top of that I simply love buying these things for other people too (niece, nephews, siblings, parents, friends, etc.) Thailand and Cambodia were simply the perfect place to purchase all these amazing things.

That’s just it…God reminded me that they are just things. When I came into this world, I did not bring them with me; consequently, when I leave this world they cannot go with me. They are just things. Items that will perish, rip, brake, or tear. Sure, to me they have a lot of meaning, but in the end they are just things. Let’s look at my camera for instance. I lost it for almost 1 week. I, my teammates searched high and low, but it was no where to be found. I came to terms with never seeing it again. It was just a possession. Then one day, it magically appeared in my clothes bag. Hmmm…

This is exactly what God wanted to teach me. I obeyed and said Rwanda sounds like a great month to do this, but He was wanting something different. He was wanting the entire country of Kenya. I was afraid of that especially since it was our longest time in any one country (Jan.1-Feb. 4). I obeyed and commited to not spending any money this month with the exceptioin of postcards since they were not for me. Becacuse of this simple obedience, God has and still continues to pour out His blessings.
 

The first blessing came after an extreme game of ultimate frisbee our second day in Kenya. We went out to eat, but because of my budget I had little to no money. All I could get was a small bowl of soup and a piece of bread. My buddy Jared offered to buy me something more, but I told him I would be fine. When our food came, he put half of his sandwich on my plate. I was simply floored because he is a guy and well food is good. Well because of his generousness, God straight up blessed him before our own eyes. One of my teammates brought a plate of fries over to him. THEN, another teammate gave him half of her sandwich plus more fries. Is God faithful or what? He ALWAYS takes care of us. ALWAYS. I was blessed and he was blessed ten times more.

Then there was another time when we were coming back from riding ostriches (crazy I know) that I really wanted some chocolate. I said to God how wonderful it would be to have something sweet. Then Papa provides. My teammate Erin pulls out some candybars and asked us all if we wanted one. This happened countless times throughout the month. God always providing for me. God even gave me a HUGE bag of skittles from the States through one of Samara’s friends.
 

Because Kenya is our debrief month, when our Squad Coaches (a.k.a. parents) come, we typically do things that require money. Well, this month requires a lot of money because we are in Kenya which naturally equals a Safari. When I first heard about it, I was set on not going becuase it would cost $115. Yeah I know…a lot of money! As you might guess, God provided the funds. Praise Jesus! So on Feburary third, I get to take part in this (probably) once in a lifetime opportunity.

Yes, this month God has taught me about material things; more importatnly, He has taught me that He is a Daddy who provides. He takes care of His children in every circumstance if we just put our trust in Him. He wants to be our number one Provider. I was prepared for a month of little, but God wanted to shower his daughter with blessings! He is always wanting to do this…So, I/we just need to be more willing to recieve them!
 

 
 pre-safari adventure