Each morning, I wake up in my tent (my body already sweating from the humidity) and I can see the sun rising over the beautiful skyline of palm trees here in Mozambique. As I rise with the sun, I give thanks as I realize that this is a new day the Lord has made. And out of that thankful heart comes a choice to mark my steps for the day; I will choose to walk with God this day. And that’s the beauty of my journey thus far. I am in a foreign place, assigned to an established ministry, but what God asks of me is to simply choose Him daily. 
As I have been reading the book, Experiencing God, I have been learning “my lifetime on earth provides the opportunity for me to become acquainted with Him and to choose to enter a relationship with Him. Time is a period during which God wants to develop my character into His likeness. Then eternity will have its fullest dimensions for me.” Right now in this moment I choose in. Wherever anyone is in their lives, there is a choice that leads to surrender; an open heart that learns to trust and as it let’s go, we slowly die to self. The abundant life in Christ can start no other way.
I would lie to you if I said this journey has been easy. There’s been days or even weeks when I’ve felt confused, downcast, lonely, or just sad. To see hurting and lost people can really lead you to question God’s character of perfect love. There have been struggles, but in the end God’s pursuit cannot be denied. I have to choose to base my trust in God on what I know—His love for me—and I choose to trust that in time He will help me understand the confusing circumstances I am experiencing. And because I know of that love He has for me, I have assurance of that same love from Him for those who are all around me. With that being said, I have to trust that God wouldn’t call me to be a missionary in Mozambique, Africa unless He knew such a call is what was best for me.
I wake-up, unzip my tent and I head over to a small hut to eat a baked potato for breakfast, which I have learned to eat it like I would an apple. My team and I are also here with team Ardency, living at “Life Child” school’s playground. This school is not like any I have seen before, except for maybe in Haiti. The toilets are non-existent (hello squatty-potty life). There are palm trees everywhere and the locals make it look too easy to climb up them and fetch coconuts with only their bare hands and feet. After breakfast, each group of 5-6 girls head out to their assigned jobs. The first week I headed out to another town called Gogone (Go-gon-ee). There, we built relationships with the teachers and kids. I tilled a field, painted tires on the playground, played with kids, and helped feed the children at lunch time. One day my group and I visited homes to pray and help mud a straw house for insulation.
On Saturdays, we get paired off in twos to stay overnight in a local church member’s home. I was partnered with Christi from my team and stayed with a lady named Carolina—a single mother of 4 children. We were blessed by her hospitality and blessed to join her in worship and dance together at her lovely home. Through that experience I am reminded about just how big God is and that He truly is moving all over the world. This woman of God, Carolina, showed me how a thankful, joyful heart comes from a loving relationship with Jesus and nothing else. The pastor of the church, Esvaldo, and his wife, Annamaria, started this ministry called “Life Church” in Mozambique about 15 years ago. Through a lot of patience, obedience and trust, The Lord has miraculously transformed entire communities through them here. It’s amazing to witness such marvelous fruit from lives dependent and surrendered whole-heartedly to the Lord.
I may think at times like I’m not doing much, but in actuality I’m living out what I am created to do: love. God lives inside me and I must believe I have the power to bring the kingdom. I must believe that all the glory and power is God’s. I must believe that my relationship with him is where mission-living starts. If I don’t choose to believe those truths then it’s like I am saying all this is wasted. But it’s not! Jesus says in John chapter 15 multiple times that we are to abide in Him, and then from that we will bear much fruit.
The Lord also reminded me this week “No eye has ever seen, nor ear has ever heard, no mind has ever conceived what the Lord has prepared for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) Do I believe He knows what’s best? All I can say is that I will keep running this race marked out for me. And I choose to surrender and trust.
