There is something extraordinary about Ireland; my soul
feels alive here. I’m experiencing deep-rooted joy and delight rising up inside
that I have rarely felt before, and it is overflowing in this place. I don’t
know what it is… but God is on the move in me and in this country. Everywhere I
look His Creation sings of His glory. The presence of His Spirit follows me
wherever I go. I feel profound connections with a land and a people I have met
only two days ago. It cannot fully be described or contained, but neither can
the depths and mysteries of God. As I continually strive to abide in Him, His
love and presence abound in me and cause an overflow to those I encounter. My
soul sings with joy at the work of His hands; I wish I had the ability to fully
describe how I’m feeling right now but mere words don’t do justice to the gifts
and experiences brought about by the Lord.
Jesus met me last night in an intimate way. I was lying down
in the camper that’s become our home for the next month simply listening to
music and trying to spend time with the Lord. As I lay there I began to think
about everything that I “should� be doing, and the invisible yet menacing “to
do� list began formulating in my head as feelings of stress and overwhelment (I
made that word up, don’t worry about it) came into my heart. My team had prayed
for me in Romania about these constant feelings of being overwhelmed and
defeated and I received a lot of freedom from that… but I could feel inklings
of them creeping back once more. I have
to do this… I have to do that… it’s been so long since I did this… I haven’t
blogged at all since Romania… it takes me so long to do this… etc. were
some of the thoughts that were causing me to stressfully spiral downward.
But praise God, the Lord is good and meets His children
right where they’re at. A song suddenly came on my ipod that I knew was Jesus
speaking right to me; I don’t even remember the song now but the lyrics said
something about how Jesus is ALL WE NEED. My thought spiral instantly ceased
and my “to do� list melted away as Jesus melted my heart. All I need is YOU, Lord… nothing else in this world matters. There
was such freedom and surrender in that thought as Jesus simply took me away
with Him. I was cuddled up under the blankets trying to keep warm and I
literally felt like God had wrapped His arms around me and was just holding me there
in His sweet embrace. The revelation of His immense love for me in that moment
was deeply overwhelming and I just started to cry. I envisioned Him and I together;
we were simply laughing, dancing, and playing with one another when He took my
hand in His, held it up to His heart, and allowed me to feel the beat of His
passion for His daughter. There was such joy, freedom, and peace in that place;
He had swept me away and we were simply delighting in each other’s presence. One
of my teammates (Carin) had the same vision for me the night before and had shared
it during feedback; God is simply confirming words for His children every day.
To say this was a “powerful experience� doesn’t seem to
scratch the surface of what the Lord did in my heart that night. I am intensely
grateful for the work He’s doing in me and I continually long for more intimacy
with the lover of my soul.
I told my team about this sweet embrace and they simply
rejoiced with me. Carin felt led to anoint me with prayer and ask the Lord for
more. She (and a few others on our squad) have been sensing that something big
is going to happen in Ireland; she wanted to pray that this experience would
cause continued and greater depth and intimacy with the Lord and that I would
be able to serve out of the overflow of that love. My team gathered around,
laid hands on me, and prayed that the love I felt from the Father would be felt
by those I come in contact with through ministry… and that they would be
changed by that. I’ll go into more recent experiences in subsequent blogs but I believe this prayer is already being answered;
I am feeling intense love for people I don’t even know and that’s not from me –
it’s from the Lord. PRAISE HIM!!! 🙂
p.s. If you haven’t been able to tell already… I’m alive and
well in Greystones, Ireland! It’s gorgeous here. I hope you all are doing well;
I am incredibly blessed by your continued prayers and support… thank you thank
you THANK YOU! I love you guys. 🙂 More is coming on Ukraine too!! 🙂
