Greetings from Philippines!! Last month, my team and I had the incredible pleasure of adding Liz and Sammy, two 21 year olds, to our team while in Indonesia. Sammy was kind enough to write a guest blog for me – check out her time on the World Race for a month!
Hi! My name is Sammy, I am 21, and from a town south of Seattle, WA. Back at home I’m working on my associates (and then bachelors) degree, slowly but surely. I am currently job hunting, going back to community college, and I am an Air Force Reservist stationed here. As for how I ended up in this busy city of Bandung with 9 new World Race sisters – It’s quite random actually (Well, not in God’s eyes). I had been on a couple mission trips before, and I longed to be surrounded by a Christ-loving community with a heart for travel and ATL-like ministry. Long story short, I found AIM on the internet, and July was one of my only free months this year.
Right before I was supposed to leave, mental and emotional chaos and stress flooded my mind. I felt so overwhelmed, and hours before I was supposed to drive to the airport I was convinced I couldn’t go. I finally prayed to God, fully surrendering every heavy burden on my heart, proclaiming to Him: “You decide if you want me to go”. Not surprisingly, the Lord filled me with an overwhelming sense of peace after not sleeping for what felt like days.
“Trust me, and give it all to me” -Jesus.
Now, within the first two weeks of being there, it wasn’t the physical roughness or lack of sleep that I struggled with the most. It was being attacked by the enemy, and being fed these constant lies of fear, doubt, depression, and hopelessness. I felt like no one could possibly understand what I was going through, and that I was destined for downfall and succumbing to the sin and spiritual death of this world. I kept quiet, and I had never brought my deepest struggles to the surface. Through this “blindness”, I kept praying, and in this weakness I read, wrote, and continued to meditate on the word.
Many times I don’t realize what the Lord is doing until I look back. God brings out these worldly struggles, unburies them, and heals them. Being such an independent person and never truly surrounding myself with a faith and God-led community, I carried this subconscious pride of believing I didn’t need help. Or I at least had no clue how to go about it. But the Lord pulled on my heart, beckoning me to just let go. I can’t carry it all because we weren’t created to. These girls have been such a blessing in my life, whether they know it or not. They are so willing to talk and give me advice. I believe Liz can say the same. She is an amazing new friend (also an exposure girl) I gained on this journey, with a similar perspective as me.
Let’s talk about ministry! So, yes, what did we do? (The other girls have written a bunch on this). We were not as busy as I expected to be, and many times we had hours to wait and do nothing. But that meant time to talk to God and study the bible. Our host, Sugi, was very intentional, bold, and so eager to teach us everything he could about the Islamic culture, the Quran, ways of evangelizing, and building relationships. Learning about the Quran has opened my eyes and given me a new understanding of how good, just, and forgiving our God is (YAHWEH, Jesus). Side note: If you ever doubt your faith, go look into other religions and you’ll run back real quick. Anyway, we were introduced to Sugi’s church, friends and family who were equally inviting, curious, loving, and hospitable. Our other host was Desy: A humble and gracious woman of God with such a sweet and childlike heart. When we worked on painting the classroom, she never hesitated to be right alongside us. Encouraging, laughing, praying, and even buying us treats and helping us run errands.
Another ministry opportunity I had was to visit a refugee camp/school in the mountains near Jakarta. Three of us from C-squad met up with another World Race team (Fusion), and helped in the classrooms, met and talked with students and teachers from Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. These people had experienced oppression, interrogation by the Taliban, and were forced to leave. Now stuck in Indonesia, many of them had to leave behind friends and family, not knowing if another country will accept their citizenship. As Americans, we don’t choose our freedom, we are just blessed to have it. And remembering this, we also didn’t choose our salvation, it is a gift. No matter how grueling life is, Jesus has already set us free. I pray for the ones who feel unloved and forgotten because of their circumstance unchosen. We are all equal and made in His perfect image.
Something else some of us discussed at the end of the trip is identity in the Lord. It is vital for us to be fully rooted in who God says we are. Something else I didn’t realize is that I was forgetting my purpose, and that God is intentional, constant, relentless in His pursuit, and has placed us where we are for a reason. This trip isn’t in vain for any of us. It is only when we become still, surrender all of our pain and fear, and live just for today when we experience the comfort and rest in Jesus. I still struggle, and by no means am I done asking the Lord continually for new strength and courage and faith.
What I have taken away from this trip is the importance of being still in each moment God has given us; Life is a gift and we are out of control. The Lord has shown me His faithfulness by renewing my confidence and trust in His perfect plan. It’s almost too simple to understand or carry out – to just believe what God tells us.
{Isaiah 7:9 “…Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm.”}
As Haley and I talked about, we obey fear; It is the captain of our souls if we let it be. Or, we can fear God. It is not a fear of terror, but a glorious, powerful fear that understands authority and protection. It knows that God can do whatever He wants and has complete control of everything (I mean, He created it, so He can destroy it). I want to tremble in awe at nothing less than the Lord. A profound wisdom comes from actually meditating on the thought of: “What would actually happen if we fully surrendered and trusted the Lord with everything?” And this wisdom is not just from reading the truths God tells us in the bible, such as Hebrews 10:35-36.
This wisdom is gained by the supernatural strength breathed into our spirits from remaining confident in the Lord. He tells us to do daring things, and He commands us to be strong and courageous. That’s an order, and if we expect to receive blessings, we must do what He tells us! He tells us to obey, and that is why confidence is so important. These wild and outrageous acts of boldness are what fuels a fire in our souls, radiates light unto others, and fills us with His everlasting goodness, hope, passion, and faith.
Now, about Hebrews 10:35-36: “So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you. Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that He has promised”. Miss Haley herself gave me this bible verse to pray about, as well as feedback about what true confidence in God looks like.
Thanks Sammy, for an incredible month and a new friendship!
Keep an eye out for my next blog about what this month looks like and my plans upon returning home in less than THREE WEEKS!
