This week, my team gets the honor of doing something called Unsung Heroes, where collectively we travel to a city or area and ask the Lord to provide for our lodging. In addition, we ask the Lord to direct us to connect with people who are ministering or have established ministries in the areas surrounding that area.
When we make these connections, we are given the unique and incredible opportunity to sit down and talk with these people about partnering with Adventures in Missions to host future teams, whether from the World Race, Passport trips, or shorter trips.
It opens a door for a lot of people in ministry, especially those who may not have a lot of people serving with them in their ministries, which means with Adventures’ teams come out, they can serve those ministering and their ministry.
Anyways, this all leads me to my encounter today. This morning when we were going over the schedule for the day, Caroline was explaining that the morning is for research, prayer walking, and whatever you feel the Lord calling you to do.
For her that meant, going to stand in the rice aisle at the Super 99, the grocery store across the street from our hostile.
She had no clue why, but she knew for sure that is what the Holy Spirit was telling her to do.
We’re not supposed to go meet strangers alone, ya know, so I volunteered to go with her.
We stood in the rice aisle for about an hour. The whole time, we were each quietly asking the Lord what to look for. I felt the Holy Spirit tell me someone in a yellow shirt, with a mustache, who spoke English. Caroline felt the Holy Spirit tell her a man.
I felt like we weren’t supposed to leave the aisle until 10:47am, and then I felt like we should stay in the store until 11:01am, at least.
We began making our way out of the store and Caroline went back to the Rice aisle and then back to the soda aisle.
It was in the soda aisle, I saw a man with a mustache, in a yellow shirt.
Then I panicked. To be honest, I didn’t think that far ahead, or maybe I didn’t think God was going to do what He said He was.
May the Lord help my unbelief. (See Mark 9:14-29)
I felt the Holy Spirit tell me that this was the man He was telling me about, but Caroline needed to hear it from God not from me.
Caroline led the way, and we went and introduced ourselves and asked if we could sit down.
The man introduced himself first as Santa Clause, then told us Wayne.
Wayne talked to us about a church in the area, and a lot of ministry opportunities that they have, and it was genuinely just such a blessing to meet him.
He shared with us about his family, pieces of his story, and what he does around the Panama City area. He told us if we ever needed help or anything at all, to let him know, and he would do his best.
This really reminded me today how faithful God is to lead us and provide for us every step of the way, and how God in the Bible is God still.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
