I remember distinctly walking into the home of our month two contact and having an overwhelming feeling of wonder for the unknown. During our time in Gaborone, Botswana my team and I partnered with a beautiful church called Gaborone Community Chapel. The church was planted by a young Kenyan couple who had left a successful dental practice to answer the call of God and move to foreign lands all in the name of ministry. Maki and Lamaz actually had planned on taking a trip to visit their family back home in Kenya during the month of February but due to a lack in communication we were also set to arrive so Lamaz went on without his 5 month pregnant wife to visit their families. She graciously stayed behind to host us and guide us along our way in Botswanan culture. We were also blessed to be guided by two young men volunteering and working for the church, Kevin and Luda.
Our week was generally pretty full with one off day to explore and tour the land. We would spend 2 days a week on campus ministering to the students, another 2 days at the mall approaching people as we felt led and sharing our story, and the last two days setting up for church, practicing worship, and actually having the service. I have to admit I was terrified of evangelism so the thought of it was not something I was excited about. The first week into it, I was feeling okay about it but not excited. People seemed to receive what I was saying but we were also told they would say pretty much anything to appease us because we’re white. So my thought process is great, what is actually resonating with them? Am I wasting my time here or is the Spirit even moving? People would say they were going to come to church or our Bible studies and not actually show up, talk about discouraging.
It wasn’t until the second week when my teammate Ryan showed us the video, Holy Ghost, that I truly understood what it looks like to be led by the Spirit. I saw the way that the Lord is able to work through people even in this modern day and it got me SO EXCITED! I saw the boldness that he equipped people with their passion to share His name without hesitation knowing that people might not agree or even judge them. The Bible tells us that the world will hate us for what we believe and for some reason that is not something I ever thought would become a reality. When I saw this fearlessness they had through the Holy Spirit it made me not care what anyone thought. It made me wonder why I even cared what anyone thought. Why would I care about anyone’s opinion other than God’s? It was upon that realization that I felt a surge of boldness and a sense of freedom knowing that the person I should care about was the Father. I felt free to talk to everyone about Him.
I remember the next morning our team was praying for provision from the Holy Spirit and that He would highlight anyone He wanted us to talk to. We asked for images, words, or anything relevant. This was not something I had been in the practice of doing and I had definitely not had an expectancy prior to this morning. However, the Lord decided to give me the color purple and I was so excited to see what He would reveal that day. When we got to the mall I was scanning the mall for anything purple and trying to listen for the Holy Spirit. I saw four pillars all painted purple and just considered it confirmation that the Lord indeed had given me that vision. The girls on my team went to the upper level of the mall and there was a salon that was decked out in purple. There was a man standing outside the salon named Dylan and I began to ask him about his life and his relationship with the Lord. He seemed a little hesitant but I was sure that was where I was supposed to be. It didn’t take long for another couple people to join us and start telling us about them. Before I knew it there were literally 8-10 employees outside the salon sharing with us and letting us pray for them. Some of the girls were wanting prayer but did not give me much direction on what to pray about, they just said, “everything.” This was one of the first times I truly felt the Holy Spirit speaking to me. He told me that one of the girls needed prayer for a spirit of fear that she had been living with and the other had a servant’s heart and needed prayer for that gift. Both of the girls were so grateful and another one even stated that she also needed prayer for the fear holding her captive in her life.
I walked away in that moment not knowing if I would ever see those women again but that is the moment I had the realization that all that was left for me to do was to trust that the Lord would honor that seed that I had planted, or the soil that I had toiled. I am not always going to know where people are at in their walk with the Lord and I might not always be that person that helps bring them to Christ. This is where trust comes into play. I have to trust that Lord has me exactly where I am supposed to be in that exact moment and ministering that person right then and there. I need to be at a place where walking away I can know that I was led by the Spirit. God will not only bless that but He will be working in their hearts and although I might not ever see that and that’s okay because I trust Him.
Botswana was a challenging month. It was over 100 degrees everyday, we were crammed into combi busses everywhere we went, leading Bible studies on a whim, and so much more. However, it was a month full of feeling wooed by the Holy Spirit. I have never felt so intimate with Him before and so pursued. I finally am at a place where I am beginning to understand boldness and discernment and I am so excited to see where the Holy Spirit leads me in months 3-11! I talked to so many people about the Lord in Botswana and so many people seemed to have a legitimate interest in what I was saying about the Lord. Sometimes my spirit would be a little down because they didn’t show up to the Bible study or church but that is when they Lord reaffirmed my need to trust that He did use me to make a difference in their lives whether I will ever see it or not. Trust and obey.
