well first i’ll start off by praising the Lord and saying that I am FULLY FUNDED!
After well over a year of praying, hoping, relying on the Lord for provision, I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders!! I am so overwhelmed with freaking HAPPINESS & THANKFULNESS for how the Lord has provided for me in this season of fundraising!
I wanted to say a quick thank you to every single person who has donated & prayed for me. I can not stress enough how grateful I am for each and every person, and especially now that I can stop, slow down, and reflect on what just happened, I was able to go through and look and the countless names of friends, families, anonymous donors, and even complete strangers that have helped me& contributed to the Kingdom impact that God is using me in. I wanted to stop & let you know that I am thanking God for His provision, for every single person that has donated to me, and praying that He blesses you!
This blog in no way comes even close to doing justice the amount of crazy things I have seen the Lord do, or how much He has moved in my life over the past 4 & 1/2 months.
Right now, I am sitting in my hotel room on a busy street in the middle of India, at my mid- point debrief. I am reflecting on what the heck just happened in the first half of my race, and man. It’s crazy. It’s hard to convey my life at the moment in a few short paragraphs, or even be able to give you a tiny bit of insight into the journey God has taken me on, but I’m going to try and do my best. Because of the partnership of my supporters, I have been able to do, see, and experience all of these things, and I want to let everyone know so they realize just how much their support for me has impacted the Kingdom.
In the past 4 & 1/2 months I have….
Worked at a home for women who were previous victims of domestic abuse, sexual assault, etc, working in the garden and in a daycare alongside some of the strongest women I have ever met in my life.
Built an amazing friendship with someone who didn’t even speak the same language as me, and relied on someone translating to communicate.
Met a woman who inspired me so much, just because one day I was walking down the street and happened to wander into a certain art shop in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Praised the Lord at the top of a temple that was created for the worship of golden idols and false gods.
Worked (well, played) in a daycare, met the group of children that absolutely stole my entire heart, cared for them, wiped their tears, pushed them on the swings, taught them English, and prayed for them.
Learned that I won’t always be able to see the fruit of my labor, and I’m not entitled to, but God just calls me to be a worker in His Kingdom.
Spent countless mornings on my favorite rooftop, dancing and praising God.
Sat in the mud, pulling weeds for hours, and having conversations with my Father.
Learned so much about the body of Christ by simply working in a banana tree field.
Walked the streets of a night market to evangelize and pray for locals.
Made friendships that made it so hard to leave them.
Lived on an island, in the midst of a culture that most people in this world fear, look down upon, and misunderstand, and had the Lord absolutely break my heart, and give me a crazy amount of love for them.
Spent 7 hours straight a week in a prayer room, sitting in the presence of God, and interceding for the people outside the walls.
Went on prayer walks through apartments, speaking truth and shedding light on dark places.
Seen the Creator’s abundant creativity on a hidden beach and saw more beauty than I ever have in my life.
Met a man who was so curious about my beliefs and was able to share Jesus with Him; even though He did not walk away a believer, I was able to plant a seed, pray over my new friend, and even have more insight into Muslim beliefs.
Made friends with two subway workers that gave me so much joy every time I saw them, and realized the love that God has for His people, even when they don’t know Him.
Spent every major holiday away from home, realizing what it means to abandon familiarity and come together as a community of believers even when you’d rather be spending Christmas Day with your family.
Found so much joy in the little things, like visiting our favorite fruit man every morning, buying samosas in the afternoon, and watching movies with my team in the evenings.
Worshipped so loud in a building that echoed so much.
Had a team leader that made me laugh always, pushed me, loved me so hard, and discipled me so well. (Liz, if you’re reading this, “i look like that”.)
Spent countless times looking out the window of a plane, bus, taxi, sungthaew, grab, ferry, tuk-tuk, and just thinking to myself— “this is actually my life.”
Became a pro in planning kids VBS’s with a 30 minute warning, leading them, and still having a ton of fun.
Seen God in so many strangers.
Visited a drug rehabilitation center, met some men that have easily become my favorite dudes ever, played volleyball and sang worship songs with them.
Watched the stars in the middle of a field in India and been overwhelmed and in awe of just how BIG God is.
Squished 20 people in the bed of a truck, rode to church, and met fellow believers in little villages.
Helped paint the walls of a bible college, prepping it for when students return.
Spent a week out of ministry laying in bed, been so sick that I started getting kind of irritated with God, while my squad mates went mud fishing.
Performed the nativity scene in front of kids more times than I can count.
Slept on the floor for weeks (have a lot more weeks to go), had my face gnawed on by mosquitos in the middle of the night, taken freezing cold bucket showers, had crusty clothes from hand washing and not being able to get all the detergent out, and felt pretty uncomfortable at time, but felt confident that it’s so worth it, just to be able to follow Jesus.
Sang in front of so many churches because apparently we double as a “choir” as well as missionaries.
Sat in the kitchen, peeling potatoes and chopping up carrots, laughing with my favorite person ever, Dara.
Grown with, fought with, lived with, ate with, laughed with, and loved with, the coolest group of 6 girls that I’m so lucky to call my team.
Learned how to discern God’s voice so clearly.
Been frustrated with ministry, and even questioned why I’m here, but had God speak truth into every situation without a doubt.
Had God show me the abundant love He has for me, reveal gifts that I never knew I had, and used other people to speak into, encourage, and even prophesy over my life.
And most importantly…said yes to following Jesus into a season where most of the time I have no clue what is coming next, what my day will look like, or how God is going to show up, but trusting that He has my back and pursues me wholeheartedly, and so that I can do the same.
Thank you for reading! Writing this post allowed me to look back and reflect what the last few months have looked like, and man am I grateful and PUMPED for what else God has! -Tay Morg
