This is blog attempt number two. After over an hour of typing my computer crashed for absolutely no reason…well probably because Satan is scared of the truth I am about to speak…he is kind of a coward. It is now 11:30am (Ireland time). Our team left our ministry location in Northern Ireland 25 hours ago. We have now been in the Dublin Airport for 22 hours. The average amount of sleep amongst racers is about 2.5 hours. The pack weight restriction was changed no less than 3 times this morning between the hours of 4:30am and 10:30am. Thankfully, the final pack weight landed in our favor at 30.0 kilograms (if only we would have found that out before trashing all of our toiletries…). In just 4.5 hours, we will be boarding a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, where we will spend 10 hours and get the chance to experience yet another night on an airport floor. Tomorrow morning we will have a 2 hour flight and arrive in Kiev, Ukraine. There we will board a bus to Zdolbuniv, Ukraine, my team's final destination. Just a mere 55+ hour trip with my very "light" load and we will be home sweet home for the next month. 🙂
As intriguing and restless as the past day has been (especially the past 7 hours after being rudely awakened by airport security and sternly advised to change terminals), I have had a lot of time to reflect on my past month in Northern Ireland.
Basically…. God. Is. Amazing.
So much has happened in the past three weeks that it is hard to put all of my experiences into words. My team and I have been working with two Vineyard churches in Coleraine and Enniskillen, Northern Ireland. It has been incredibly amazing to be a part of a church body that shows Jesus' love to their community on a daily basis. We spent our Sunday afternoons working for the church's Sunday Food Giveaway, in which the people who are financially burdened in the community are invited for fellowship and showered with encouragement. They are also given free groceries for the week. My team and I also did healing on the streets. No doubt. God still does miracles in healing today, that was incredible to witness! We helped pass out informational fliers door to door. We did a huuuuge car boot (garage sale) for the church. We passed out free candy and donuts and lunches. We did toilet cleaning. We had a free bar-b-que for the community….and so on. It was so awesome to see people's lives be transformed through the power of Christ's love.
　
The activity that pushed me out of my comfort zone the most and grew me the most spiritually was called "Treasure Hunting."
The dictionary defines treasure as-"something of great worth or value; also: a person esteemed as rare or precious." In the treasure hunting excercise, each individual in our group prayed for God to give us a clear picture of a very specific person that the Lord would encourage us to pray for/over. We asked for a clear physical description of the person, their name, and a location of where we would be able to find them. We asked for details that may be deemed as unusual and what they may need prayer for specifically.
I was amazed when I got a picture of a man in a blue striped hoodie. I also was given the image of long, messy hair (which is not common amongst Irish men). I also envisioned that this man would be sitting awkwardly outside by himself, possibly by a bank off of the street. I was so shocked by the clarity of the picture the Lord gave me in mind.
An hour later…I found Ross. The man from my vision. He was God's treasure. He met almost every description perfectly. He had very long and disheveled hair. He was sitting alone outside of a coffee shop, next to a bank. He was wearing a blue striped hoodie (small stripes…which is exactly what I had pictured after praying). Crrrrraaaazyy!
I asked Ross if I could pray for him. He didn't give me any particular prayer requests, but I sensed a financial burden. I prayed that he would be blessed and granted peace. He wanted to see my treasure map that I had filled out an hour prior to meeting him. He was very intrigued. I was able to share God's love for him, invite him to church the following weekend, and I have continued to pray for Ross ever since our meeting two weeks ago.
There was no immediate epic ending to the story or a major plot twist, but I have faith that God is able to do something epic in Ross due to my very small step in obedience. I believe that the Lord only calls us to love His children, His treasure. We can't control their response, but we are called to be God's voice, His hands and feet. We are called to speak His truth. As it states in Ezekiel 2:3-8:
He said: "Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ And whether they listen or fail to listen —for they are a rebellious people —they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people. You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious people; open your mouth and eat what I give you."
　
I encourage you to listen to the Lord when He speaks and then act in obedience. So many blessings will follow. He just wants to share his love and be loved in return. Christ desires His children to be pursued and loved, they are His treasure.
Thank you all for your continued encouragement and support! I love you all!
<3 Cassie
