As many of you know, I am having to start fundraising again for a whole year for the next season the Father has called me into. During this time on the race I have tried not to think about it but the enemy keeps coming hard at me with lies of being a burden, lacking faith, unworthy of God providing and many more. But I instantly turn to the Father and just tell Him what is going on and why am I lacking in trust and faith knowing that He will provide for me.
Well He has blown me away before with fundraising and always make sure everything comes together for His plan. So I have started praying about what are some ideas for raising money and asking Him to break down these lies with His truth. And He has been doing just that in everything I have been doing. All of my devotions from my Jesus Calling talks about trusting the Lord in following through and how He will keep His promises. And then verses after verses showing me how everything He has been telling me is backed up throughout His word. Even when listening to the messages of my teammates and even my own I hear Him saying ‘see I have this and I have you, my love.’
Then last week we were doing house visits and we walked up to this house where there was this little old lady with a huge smile upon her face. She invited us into her home and had us sit upon the furniture, while she chose to sit on the ground. My heart was already humbled by her and then I knew I was about to be blown away.
Her name is Naomi and she is 77 years young. We were instantly greeted with heavy hearts when she told us she has 11 children but 8 of them have passed away from all different things, some disease and others were murdered. Then finding out her husband had died a long time ago and it was just her and her little granddaughter living there. Then found out that she had just lost one of her granddaughters three weeks ago, she had complained of stomach pains and then two hours later died. Teresa, one of our squad leaders who is with us for this last month, asked her how she dealt with this, she replied about the Lord being there giving her strength and comforting her. We asked her what the Lord was to her and she answered with, “He is my provider, guider, strength, and savior.” And it does not stop there. We asked her to tell us a story of her faith and I knew right then and there I was about to hear from a powerhouse. She told us about last March how people came to her telling her that some men were plotting to come and kill her. One night she woke up from deep sleep and knew the Lord has woken her and was telling her to start praying. She then heard voices outside of her home and she peeked out the window to see a group of men with weapons at her door. She told us how she heard the Lord say, “I am here with you and I am going to protect you.” Then she felt Him silence her to where she could not talk or make a sound while the men tried to get through the door, but they were unable to get through. The next morning she heard the Lord tell her to move to the other house on her property and so she did. Again that following night the men came back but the Lord said again that He was with her and protecting her. She grew concerned that they might try to come through the window on the other side on the house if they could not get through the door. The window just had bricks piled up in it and they had not been cemented down yet, so the men could just push them down and come in. But they never did and they could never get through the door. She knew the Lord was going to protect her and He did.
She then told us about another story of her faith in the Lord. There are times when she has no food and did not know what she was going to do for food. But she would hear the Lord tell her to start a fire and get things ready to cook and she would. Every time this has happened someone would show up with food for her.
She even told us that she heard the Lord say she would have visitors today and then we showed up at her door step. When we asked her what is the greatest thing in the Christian life, she simply replied that it is faith and trust in the Lord. We asked her if she had a Bible. She said yes and then showed us a Bible falling apart and missing half of the Old Testament and New Testament. We then told her that we would bring her a brand new Bible the next day because we want her to be able to have the whole thing. The next morning I had the honor of giving her her new Bible and it brought me to tears and my heart just bursted with so much joy and blessing. She could not believe it and even asked, “Is this for real?!” She had such a huge smile across her face and would bring it up to her face and down again.
I instantly knew when hearing her story that the Lord brought me there to her to learn about one of his people’s trust in Him. And also that I have been called to a life of missions and a life of full dependency on Him. He even supported that by the devotion I did the next day saying this same exact thing: “You, however, have been called to take a ‘road less traveled’: continual dependence on Me.”
Lately, He has brought me such a peace about the coming season and how I simply need to come to a newer level of trust and dependence on Him. He even gave me an idea for a prayer devotional book where He wants me to use stories like this and people I have had such an honor meeting and spending time with. I never in my life thought I would write something but the Lord keeps telling me this is a way to bring people together and have the chance to see and hear the stories of those He has placed in my path.
The Lord blows my mind away every single day with how He shows up in crazy ways and how much He desires and loves me and will never guide me astray. I know He has me and sometimes I may stumble and fall into the lies but He always reaches down and picks me up and brushes the lies off.
