As July comes to a close, I thought I'd update you guys on what God has been teaching me this month. Now there have been a lot of things that I could probably choose to talk about, but the one on my mind the most is that He is always there and will never leave me. This month has been filled with many stories that may or may not be too big or exciting, but through them God has really encouraged me and has reminded me that He is with me every step of the way through this journey on the Race.
At the beginning of the month, I had high hopes for support coming in. June was a very encouraging month and I had several other people who I needed to follow up with for July. For the first couple of weeks, I had some really encouraging conversations and some people pledged to support me financially which was amazing. But the whole process of setting people up for financial giving and getting their checks all figured out can take some time and after a couple of weeks of not seeing my account balance go up, I was starting to get discouraged as my previous hopes for July were beginning to dwindle. I know that there will be tough times through the support raising process, but it's still hard for me not to get discouraged.
But then God showed up in some pretty cool ways (at least I think so) that just reminded me that I'm not alone on this journey. Most of them have nothing to do with my support raising, but God used these events to encourage me nonetheless.
It started with me getting a dent in my car while parallel parking. I like to think of myself as a good driver and I often pride myself in my ability to parallel park. So when I see a spot that may be not feasible for parking in, I see it as a challenge to test my abilities. Sometimes they work in my favor, but in this case I ended up brushing against the car in front of me. I didn't realize until a little while later (after I had found a parking spot) that I had gotten a dent in the front bumper. I immediately started to worry as I thought of how much it would cost me to replace it and what my parents would think and how this would be a step backwards for my Race funding. I was going home in a couple of days so I decided to wait until then to tell my parents. For the next couple of days, the dent was still there (but it did seem to be not as big as I remembered). However, on the day I was going to go home, the dent was gone! I remember being taken aback and just staring at it, thinking it was a dream. But there my car stood with no dent. I immediately felt God's presence and began thanking and praising Him for this miracle. (I realize that it could probably be explained with some simple physics, but then again, God controls physics and I know it was only by His grace that my dent popped out). It was just a little reminder that God was still with me and walking alongside me.
Fast-forward to this past weekend. I was giving a presentation at my uncle's church on the Race and inviting the congregation to consider supporting me. It was such an encouraging experience (I'll explain more about it later). But first, the Friday that I was driving home I was filling up my gas tank and thinking about my presentation in a couple of days. I was a little nervous at the thought of speaking in front of people (as I always am) and was unsure as to whether God would use this to bring support in for me. Now normally when I'm filling up my car, I like to guess at what the total will come to. Normally I'm not too close, but I just threw out $48. As the numbers slowly turned to $48 I was beginning to accept that I wasn't going to be close again, but all of a sudden it stopped…and there it stood at $48.05. Now yes, it wasn't exactly $48 and it could be just a lucky guess, but I'm not one for coincidences or luck so I took it as a sign from God. I'm not too sure what the sign meant for me, but it still just left me feeling encouraged and trusting that this weekend was going to be a good and fruitful experience for me.
On the Sunday of my presentation, I was still a little nervous, but was excited at the same time to talk about the Race (it always gets me excited!!). The church was very welcoming and the pastor and my uncle said some very nice things before and after my little presentation. I stuck around for a little while after the service to talk with people and answer any questions they had. They were all very excited for me and were very encouraging to me as I could tell they were very interested in what I was getting myself into (which at times, I'm still not sure of lol). But then this couple came up to me and introduced themselves and we began talking. They were just visiting from out of town as one of their relatives was getting there children dedicated at the service that day. They knew someone that did ministry with YWAM and said they had a heart for missions as well. They wanted to support me and the husband handed me a check. I was deeply grateful and moved to see their generosity as this was a couple that I had never met before nor did they even go to my uncle's church. I waited til after our conversation was over to look at the amount (I didn't know if it would have been rude or not) and it was for $500. I was just floored! I was expecting maybe $100 tops (which would have been just as much appreciated) but this just took me by surprise so much that I had to acknowledge that God was there right beside me and at work.
I drove back to Madison that day feeling greatly encouraged as I reflected on all the ways God showed up. But He wasn't done yet. My mom called the next day just to talk and our conversation turned to the couple who had supported me the day before. I don't remember if they told me their last name or not, but it turned out that their last name was Nicholas, my first name! I just couldn't believe it. Once again I felt the Lord's presence and I just had a sense of peace on the whole support-raising journey.
Now I understand and acknowledge that there are plenty of cooler and more amazing stories than these, but they impacted me just as much because in each of those experiences I felt the presence of God. I knew He was right there beside me and that He was watching over me whereever I went. And that's something that I too often forget. I can get so wrapped up in circumstances that I forget that I have a God who lives inside me who is in control of all things. Things may get rough and seem hopeless, but in the end I know that I have a God who works all things out for the good of those who love Him. And that's an encouraging thought as I press along on this journey to the World Race.
I want to thank everyone who has come along on this journey with me both through prayer and financial support. I couldn't do this without you and I love and appreciate you all.
