The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose; it shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, Even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, The excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, The excellency of our God. Isaiah 35:1-2
Montenegro awakened to the joyous sound of three teams gathered together in one city to spread the good news of Christ. While the country did not look like a desert, I would liken the hearts of the people to that. They were not initially receptive to all the American Christians that surrounded them, the majority of people we met were hard and unfriendly but they began to open up and blossom as they experienced the glory of the Lord through us. The flowers bloomed everywhere we went. Not only could this be seen on every street but in every shop and café that we visited. What was happening on the outside was a reflection of the transformation on the inside.
April showers bring May flowers. It was in the month of May that I, too, opened up as a flower and blossomed during a month that refreshed and renewed me. Our ministry objective was to evangelize in the community, to build friendships and love the people that they might experience the goodness of God and be drawn to the programs offered by our ministry hosts. Even when our new Montenegrin friends opted not to join us at church or the home group I was still so blessed by Phil and Tanya who lead us well. Their passion for the ministry in that country was inspiring and motivating. They poured into our group and fed us well spiritually. The bible studies and the extras that came with time spent around them ministered to me. I experienced the joy of being loved by not only Phil and Tanya but my new team, and my devoted boyfriend back home. Due to all the love I was receiving I felt lead to bless the precious people in my life on the World Race. The Lord awakened in me a desire to use my artistic talents to show them that I care for them. Artwork was made for my new team members, some former team members, squad leaders, new friends in the community and our ministry hosts.
