Today is may 11th, which means less than a month until training camp, I have finished my last final exam for the semester, my parents will be arriving in town for my college GRADUATION and It means I really need to get on the fundraising game.
All of these things are things that I have said, and things that I think need to get done but sometimes I neglect to realize that Jesus may have other plans.
Last Saturday May the 7th, I had a yard sale at my house, or as my friend Timothy Moroz would say, I had a “StoopSale” because we don’t really have a front yard but a stoop/ porch. My neighbours were so gracious to let me use their stoops as well so I could expand across three stoops/ porches! I had been collecting clothes, shoes, accessories, kitchen wares, furniture and so much more for months now in preparation for this yard sale. On Friday night I was supposed to have a large group of my high school girls over to me house to help fold and organize all the clothes to get ready for the sale. I ended up picking up 3 girls, and only for a short time. This meant that a lot of the work was falling on me. I was up until 1am and up again before 5 to set up, and I was so very tired. I had some awesome friends who came out and dropped off baked goods for me to sell, (shout out to former racer Jillian (Paul) Riordan for bringing me brownies to sell!) I was confident that the sale would go well and I would raise a lot of money. So as the morning arrived and I started setting up with a few awesome people from my Community Group (also known as my American Family) who showed up at 6 am I had the biggest hopes for good sales. 7 am came, 8 am came, 9am… and so on. I had a few people come by, purchase a few things, (shout out to my friend Breton who got her new summer wardrobe) eat a few brownies or cookies and mosey on off. There was no big sale rush, no steady line or crowd of people, just me on my stoop with some friends. As the afternoon approached my friends Jessica showed up, guitar in tow. She sat on a chair on church street, opened her case and she began to play and sing praises to the King. Jess has an amazing voice. As she worshiped there a lady and her mom came by to shop. The lady was shopping for her two teenage daughters and I was quite glad she was there. As I sat on the curb with Jess and I worshipped the Lord I felt the presence of Jesus in my being for the first time in too long. (Even though I’m a missionary and a seminary student I still struggle to feel Jesus sometime too.) Moments later the woman was ready to check out and I told her the cost was just a donation. We had spoken earlier about the purpose of the yardsale and in that moment I knew the Holy Spirit had a different plan. Some may call it discernment and some call it obedience but the Holy Spirit was clear. I needed to pray with this lady and share the Gospel with her. I was not sure how to do it in that moment but I knew I had to. So I asked the lady (Angel) if I could pray for her and how I could pray for her. Angel told me her life was stressed out and she needed to be less stressed. She was sincere in her response to me, and in that moment I put out my hand and held hers and we prayed. I prayed the Gospel over her. With Angel in that prayer I shared the truth of the person and work of Christ and what it means for her life and ours. Angel walked away from my attempt at a fundraising yardsale on Church street with some cute dresses and some cookies, but most importantly she walked away hearing the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and she walked away knowing there is a God who loves her and will never stop.
So in the eyes of the world my yard sale probably was a failure, but in the eyes of the beholder of the world my yard sale was a success. The whole reason I am going overseas for a year is to share the Gospel to the nations. Right here on my front stoop on Church street Jesus made it clear that it is not by my will, my power or any effort of my own that I will go overseas, but it is by His power, will and by His Gospel.
Proverbs 3:5 says “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding” I was talking to a friend who has to raise her own support the other day, and her sister sent her this verse in a text to encourage her. Autocorrect changed the word understanding to underfunding. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own underfunding. What a profound truth. I am grateful for having the opportunity to do this yard sale this weekend, and to be reminded that this is all in the Lord’s hands and it is for His purpose.
If you would like to help me get to the mission field overseas I would love for you to partner with me financially and or prayerfully. You can donate right here on my blog!
