God stories from Nepal:
For this blog I wanted to use a little bit of a different format. When going on a mission trip a while back my awesome friend in Christ Kara Jontony told me to bring her back some God sightings. When she said that to me I really didn’t know what she meant. she then went on to explain to bring her back some stories about how I have seen, felt, or experienced God working and moving within my life and others lives on the trip. So I would like to dedicate these next couple of blogs to just sharing some God stories of how I have seen him move within my life and the lives of others!
Story # 1: Buying a guitar!
For about the last 3 years now I have felt as if God was leading me to learn how to play the guitar. I have had many talks with God through prayer asking him if I am hearing him right and really trying to discern if he really wants me to learn how to play the guitar. I have been really nervous and honestly just scared. I know I don’t have a good singing voice and I have never been musically talented. I have always grown up playing sports and have never really been a part of music besides a couple months playing the trumpet in fifth grade and some choir classes that I had in middle school. In praying and asking God for courage and faith to step out and trust in him in trying to learn to play the guitar, I believe he has reminded me of what true worship is. He has reminded me of King David who was a man known as being someone after God’s own heart. He reminded me of 1 Samuel 16:7 where God explains how he does not look at the outer appearance of a man, but how he looks at the hearts of all people. In Psalm 14 God also explains how he looks down from heaven unto the hearts of all people to see if any are seeking his ways. I have been reminded that true worship comes from the heart. Nowhere in the Bible does it say one must have a good voice to worship or praise God. Now I don’t want to be distracting to people in worshipping God with a bad voice, but I also don’t want to be held back anymore from worshipping God in fear that I have a bad voice or that I will distract others. For too long I have been held back by fear…and it has stopped me from fully whole heartedly worshipping and praising God like he deserves and like He is right in front of me.
I love the line from Jesus Cultures song “You Won’t Relent” where she sings to God saying,
“I don’t want to talk about you like your not in the room, I want to look right at you and sing right to you.”
So knowing that I don’t have much musical talent and a great singing voice, I am stepping out in faith and trusting that I am hearing God right and buying a guitar!
*As we traveled through the city to look at guitars I was vert nervous and scared. I was scared that I was hearing God wrong and that I was going to waste a lot of money making this purchase. I was scared that I just wouldn’t be able to learn how to play and that I would be a failure. As I continued to press into prayer with God while walking through the city, I asked him “God are you sure you want me to buy a guitar, please give me a sign.”
As I continued to pray and then stopped praying to listen to what God’s Spirit would say to me, a song suddenly came into my mind and got stuck in my head. At first as I sang it within my mind I didn’t think twice about it. I honestly just figured I was getting distracted again from hearing God’s voice. But then a part of the song came into my mind and just kept repeating itself to me. It was a Will Reagan song that is called “Help me find my own flame.” The part of the song that kept repeating within me was, “There is no better time, there is no better time, there is no better time.”
The song is talking about that there is no better time to worship God and get into his living presence. It talks about finding your own flame and finding your own passion and love for Christ. It talks about not riding on someone else’s own flame or trying to be like them, but finding your own flame in Christ!
* Call me crazy, but I believe God can speak to us in a multiple of ways. I believe he speaks to some through an audible voice. Others he can speak through people, through His Holy Scripture, through songs, through movies, through nature, and so many other aspects of life. I believe he can also speak to us through our mind and knowledge. God can do all things and he can cause us to think or remember things at certain points in ways where He is truly speaking to us through thoughts and things remembered.
* I believe this was a God moment where he spoke to me!
So I stepped out in faith, trust, obedience, and love in trusting that as Will Reagan says, God will do what only He can do in and through me! I want to burn with unquenchable fire and love for God and I pray that the guitar will be just another tool and way for me to worship God and get into his living presence!
I found a great Yamaha guitar and the host’s son for our contact Subash has been a great friend and is teaching me how to play. Every time before I begin to play I pray to God asking him to help me worship him through my heart and out of a place of true love for him. Even though it’s not songs yet, I pray that it will be worship to God’s ears from my heart. I also pray that He will use the guitar as a tool for me to worship him and to bring others into his presence through the worship and love coming out from within me from my heart and my life.
Every time I play I pray that it will be to worship God and sing of His Glory and Love!
“My heart is steadfast, O God! I will sing and make melody with all my being!
Awake, O harp and lyre, I will awake the dawn! I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the people; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is great above the heavens, your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.” – Psalm 108:1-4
* Remember that God looks at your heart and calls you His child who He loves!
“ For the Lord sees not as man sees, man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7
Music to look up to listen to: You won’t relent by Jesus Culture and Help me find my own flame by Will Reagan
