Hello friends!
This is my first official blog from the field! Wifi has been the most spotty because we have been in rural areas in Mozambique – Chibuto and Zavala. It is so beautiful here. There are trees everywhere and of various kinds. I’m trying to remember everything as it is because the pictures just don’t do it justice. It’s such a simple beauty.
A lot of things have happened. After almost a week of travel we arrived in Chibuto! It rained for the next few days after that, hindering us from doing ministry, but allowing us to get settled. Once it cleared up, we were able to do children’s ministry for a few days. we also did village ministry – going out to a nearby village to pray for people and invite them to church. We don’t really have a consistent schedule, but that’s Africa time for you! Then, after a week in Chibuto, we went to Zavala. It is more of a beachy area and surprisingly more rural than Chibuto. Ministry was different each day there as well, but every night, a church service was held.
During all of this, it was hard not to ask the question, “Why am I here?” A lot of the time, I was unaware of what was going to happen next or I felt like I wasn’t helping much. When we did village ministry, a large group of us went around with a few of our hosts to pray for people. I often times found myself outside of the house praying for general things for the family inside. On the most recent day of doing this, I asked God that same question – “Why am I here, God?” When I didn’t hear an immediate response, I decided to read my bible. I read about weariness and Hebrews 12 was listed. I received encouragement through scriptures to hold fast and to dig in – which was wonderful – but I didn’t receive a clear answer for my question.
The next morning, after we arrived back in Chibuto I decided to read one of the letters my friend Lauren wrote for me. At random, I pulled out a letter and sure enough, it was focused on Hebrews 12:1-2. When I went to journal about it later these words came into my mind:
“I am the orchestrator of everything. I work everything together for your good. Your life is a beautiful symphony that I have conducted. Sing sweet songs in my name. May your life reflect my goodness and my glory, because that is how I intended it to be. Nothing is random. There are no coincidences. Trust me. Trust my complete and total power. I love you.”
When I don’t know what I am doing, I can have faith that my God does. Before I left for my trip, I was reminded of the story of Moses. When Israel was imprisoned for many years by Egypt, they probably felt like all hope was lost. Little did they know, that God had a plan which started with a baby in a basket who would be raised up to be the one who delivered the Israelites from Egypt. Very few people knew about Moses, not to mention knew what God’s plan was for him. The God of the Old Testament is the same God with us today. He is unchanging. So I too can keep the faith and remember that God always knows what is going on. When things don’t make sense to me, I know they make sense to Him. All I have to do is continue to walk in obedience and love.
With love,
Baileigh
