After my amazing five days in Southern California, it took two plane flights, 8 hours on a bus, 1 taxi ride, a 15 passenger van ride with 23 passengers, and a 7km drive down a bumpy dirt road to find myself back in world race life. Adapting back was easy, since the previous week felt like a dream, and I was excited to start working in a community my squad-mates had already been working with. After setting my tent up in the dark and being served food by a contact I had yet to meet, I was back into the swing of things.
Ministry in Mozambique covered a large part of the community we were in. We were all divided into groups of 2-3 and split among 6 churches. I worked with Josh and Tara Bruce at an amazing church where we led Bible training in the afternoons to members of the church. The second night I was there we held a “revival” and invited all of the churches. Hundreds of people showed up and it was a night of worship and prayer under a magnificent star-studded sky.
At the end of the night we had people come to the front who were seeking prayer. Our first group of people came up for prayer for physical healing. We were all supposed to go up to the individuals in front of us and pray. I instantly approached this elderly man in the front row. He held out his hands and closed his eyes and I put my hands in his and started praying. Language held its barrier but the Holy Spirit broke through. Within 30 seconds of me praying the man before me jolted and let out a “yelp”, very similar to a bark. I have never experienced anything like this while praying over someone and was completely caught off guard. At first I just looked up not knowing what this meant, but for some reason, I knew not to fear it. Even though I wasn’t fearful, I needed more support, so I grabbed Natalie’s hand as she was praying for the woman next to me and stuck it on my guys shoulder. I continued to pray and every minute or so he continued to jolt up a bit and bark. Then out of nowhere Brian jumped in and started praying directly into this mans ear. I continued to hold his hands and pray for healing, believing in the manifestations of the Holy Spirit. When we finished praying the man looked up at me with tears in his eyes and with no words being exchanged it was obvious he had been healed. Though I knew what was happening before me was true, I had never experienced the working of the Holy Spirit in this way. It was so encouraging to me to see how God allowed me to be used by the Spirit, but also brought Natalie and Brian around me to confirm truth and support through prayer.
Throughout the next five days the Lord began speaking to me more “clearly” than usual. He would put passages on my heart to share at our church that were not only applicable in ways I didn’t imagine, but that also had been on the minds of others in the church. Even in my personal devotion He would provide me with things that would come up over and over in the most random situations. Our last day at our church was another amazing day of feeling the Spirit. Tara, Josh, and I decided to pray over the individuals of our church before we left. Josh prayed for the men and Tara and I split up the women. Our translator didn’t translate our prayers and we didn’t know of any specific requests, so it was completely trusting the Holy Spirit to move. It was crazy when I would put my hands into those of the women, things would just come to me. For no logical reason I was praying for joy in some, and for boldness of voice in others. As I was moving down the straw mat of women I sat in front of this one woman and immediately felt a weight on my chest. My arms were heavy and it was almost hard to get words out. It was purely feeling a huge burden that this woman was carrying. Feeling the physical of someone else’s burdens was another new encounter for me but I held firm and trusted the Spirit. When I returned to my chair Tara instantly turned to me and asked me if I felt anything strange. When I told her about the heaviness she instantly confirmed similar feelings while praying too. Even though I wasn’t doubting what I felt, it was comforting to me to know it wasn’t just me.
This past week has been full of new and incredible experiences. I feel so blessed to have seen the Spirit work in these ways and have had my own perception of how God works expanded immensely. I love how God has provided me with a community of people who have been able to encourage and affirm me in these new truths and I am overjoyed by what I have been able to be a part of in these past 10 days.
