Do you ever have something happen to you that’s so crazy cool that all you can say is “wow God!”? Something that you know there’s no way it could’ve happen without the beautiful orchestration of God, who knows exactly what we need?
It happened. Granted, it’s been happening over and over these last few weeks. Moments where I just need to stop and say, “wow God!” But this one…this one got me.
I sobbed.
At my church in Denver (Park Church), during communion there’s always an opportunity to ask someone to pray for you in the gallery (aka the gathering place). The past few weeks I’ve felt a nudge to go over and ask someone to pray over me and my trip, but every time I’ve talked myself out of it. I sit on the other side of the sanctuary…it’d be awkward…I don’t want to cry in front of a stranger.
So this week (yesterday) I sucked it up. I gave myself a little pep talk (“Leah, you can do this. You got it. You won’t even cry. The World Race is exciting!”), and marched right over to the prayer team. And…they were all busy. There were only two people praying, and they both were already with people. So I stood rather awkwardly to the side, hoping that one of them would be done before the communion music stopped playing. It seemed like an eternity.
Suddenly (right when I was about to give up), I hear a voice from behind me that asks if I’m okay. I said yes, I was just waiting to pray with someone. This man volunteered to pray with me, so we did some introductions and (of course) I start crying. Between sobs I briefly explained that I was going on this really long mission trip, and I really need to trust that God is in control of finances, and that He’s got me where He wants me.
Cue “wow God” moment. This man (his name is Gary, by the way) looks at me and says “is this trip the World Race?” Tears flowing, I said yes. Gary proceeds to tell me how he had this same conversation with a girl in his small group last summer, and she left on the World Race in January. He tells me that he and his wife Jamie have had to raise crazy amounts of financial support, and he totally can relate and knows what I’m going through. Okay God.
So Gary prays for me, and tells me a little more about his experience with trusting God and raising support. Before I left, he said that he and his wife would most definitely be praying for me, and that it’s going to be beautiful how God will provide everything I need.
Five minutes. That’s all it took for God to break me down, and reassure me that He is with me. In that one little prayer time, He used Gary (and Jamie) to remind me that I’m not alone. Even in this vulnerable place of waiting and trusting, not knowing how God is going to provide, or what my life looks like for the next several months, God reminded me that He WILL provide. He will provide through random prayer encounters, through blog subscribers, and through Facebook friends who I haven’t seen in years.
I am not alone in this. God is good. He is faithful, and He reminded me of His glory in just one “wow God!” moment.
