“I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” -Hebrews 13:5
“Then I will win her back once again. I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her there. I will return her vineyards to her and transform the valley of trouble into a gateway of hope.” -Hosea 2:14-15
“O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is unfailing love. His redemption overflows.” -Psalm 130:7
“He entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.” -Hebrews 9:12
Namaste from Nepal! This morning is the final morning that I will greet someone with Namaste because it is our final morning in Nepal! This month has been so captivating and beautiful. As I walked the daily morning path to the coffee shop I love so much I looked around at the tall trees, security guards I pass each day, the Moto with a boy and his father smiling, and the monkeys oohing and aahing as the birds chirped, the sacrifice box for the Hindu gods on the corner, and the wall of murals I seem to find something new each day, and I felt so in awe that God sent me to this place. It fills my eyes with tears of joy and amazement that God loves me that much that He wants to send me into His world to tell of Him to His people. His world is so beautiful it brings me to tears! People are truly so good! I once was scared to go overseas because of the unknown and scary possibilities, yet each time all I find is so much beauty and so much kindness. Though scary things happen at times, Jesus is radiating so beautifully through His children in every corner of the world.
My friends, I always felt that I could not go on the mission field due to funds and due to fear. It paralyzed me when God first called me to go to Southern Africa for a five month discipleship training school with YWAM. God is so faithful to speak to you tenderly and care for your worries and fears. He loves you so much and He is waiting to passionately show you His romance and love for you! His eyes are beaming with tears of love and joy and heartbreak for you! He wants you to know your identity in Him! You are beyond good enough, beautiful enough, strong enough, bold enough, compassionate enough, and intelligent enough through Jesus! You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you! The Lord will fight for you as your mighty warrior!
This morning I had a plan to write about our ministry, yet when I started to type I felt encouraged to share about how God is so faithful to overcome our fears. Here we go back to the story! When God first called me to go to Southern Africa for those five months, I was so amazed and at the same time so paralyzed with fear. It was my first year at University and I was so excited to study Special Education, my deepest passion is being with people who have special needs!
That year was the year I accepted Jesus, was baptized, had a loving community who so desired to follow Jesus, and began walking with the Lord. By the end of the year, Jesus called me to do something different next year. I wondered what it could be! That summer, I went to South Lake Tahoe with our ministry community and it was amazing! As I was sitting by the campfire one night, I felt that Lord say, “Go, go, don’t be afraid, go!” He was speaking of going to YWAM in Southern Africa.
My heart whispered a weak kneed yes! I went back to my cabin and the first thing the Enemy attacked me with was “if you go, you will not come home, something terrible will happen to you.” Thus beginning, fear of going into the mission field. My absolute cry of my heart was attacked because the Enemy was afraid of me going because I received so much healing, intimacy with the Father, friendships, and learning to follow the Lord in sharing the gospel with His people.
That night, I prayed to the Lord with my cabin mates for God to please send help. God did just that! That summer, I worked at a grocery story and a woman came through the check out line. She had an accent and I asked her, “I love your accent! Where are you from?” She replied, “I am from Potchefstroom, South Africa.” My heart leaped! That is the small city in South Africa our school was in! Amazing! This woman is named Nonna. She welcomed me to her home and showed me photos and gave me a book and a sculpture. In the two weeks to come, I met another couple from Durban, South Africa and a man from church from Johannesburg, South Africa! How faithful is God!
The Enemy often attacks with fear when God is calling us into our deepest freedoms and passions. The most beautiful thing to do in this situation is to walk into the fear, still feeling the fear, and go for it! The Lord will provide you with all that you need. He will redeem your fear! I find myself having to do this over and over because I still find myself fearful! I am so thankful that we have Jesus forever! All fears are faced with Him and that is so soothing because I really am not capable on my own to follow Him. It is an amazing place to be, walking into fear with God, because it makes one completely dependent on Him. God loves to provide for us!
Thank you so much for reading and thank you so much for donating! I am so in awe with the support coming in! My heart is so amazed and thankful! This week, we got to have a women’s camp at a home for rescued woman and children and it was so beautiful! It was an amazing way to wrap up this month in Nepal! I am so thankful for month two and so excited for month three in Thailand! Our team, Overflow, will be in a bamboo village by the border of Myanmar, teaching English! Thank you so much! Have an amazing month!
Peace be still by Lauren Daigle:
I don’t want to be afraid every time I face the waves
I don’t want to fear the storm just because I hear it roar
Peace be still
Say the word and I will
Set my feet upon the sea, till I’m dancing in the deep
Peace be still
You are here so it is well
Even when my eyes can’t see, I will trust the voice that speaks
Faith rise up, oh heart believe, let faith rise up in me.
