Following Jesus

What if we run out of money?  What if times are hard?  Is Covid a problem? What about medical care? What if I can’t stand local food? Will my family be alright? Are these concerns you’ve had as you consider the unknowns of a mission field?  As we seek answers, let’s focus on God’s character as seen in the examples below. First, have you ever wondered what it would have been like to see the multiplication of the loaves and fish which allowed the disciples to feed thousands? Was it magical? Did it happen suddenly or slowly? I guess we’ll never know exactly how it happened, but it did happen because of who God was and still is. Second, some years ago, during spring break at a school for children of missionaries, some students went to needy areas on service projects. When they returned, they reported on their experiences. “Marie” went to an African country. They painted classrooms and helped teach Vacation Bible School.  As they began an art project on their last day, Marie pulled out a large bag of crayons and started giving six crayons to each student. Too soon she realized that there were only ten crayons left in her bag and several more children waiting. She considered going back to the first children to take some of theirs away or giving less to the remaining children but she didn’t like either option.  As she pondered this she gave six crayons to the next child.  She then looked into her bag and saw that she still had ten crayons. She continued around the room and did not have an empty bag until she had given the last child six crayons.   What do these stories say about God’s character?  In the story of the loaves and fish, Jesus demonstrated compassion. “… ‘I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way,’” (Matthew 15:32 ESV). In the example of these students in a remote country, the creator and sustainer of the universe saw to it that each small child had six crayons. What else can we call that but compassion?  May we be challenged by these examples to grow in our compassion toward others’ needs as well as our trust in the God who sends us to the place of His calling! May we be challenged to be a part of what God is doing worldwide by seeking His call on our lives! If He calls, He equips, and He provides. “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord,” (Psalm 27:14 ESV)!

One day He will return in the same way He ascended. Will He find us standing and gazing into heaven, or will He find us busy at the work He has given us to do?

We are called to be stepping along on our journey to be directed to restore this imperfect world.

Walk with the King today and be a blessing!

In all circumstances we must be satisfied with Jesus. Allow your cup to run over.

Imagine God saying to you, “Here I am!”

God surprised us with unexpected answers to prayers during our seven-month whirlwind after being accepted as members of Wycliffe Bible Translators.  My husband completed his semester of teaching University, and I began an online course. We wrote letters, visited churches, and made phone calls. We had a very successful garage sale and arranged to store items we wished to keep. Our house rented more quickly than we had expected so we began to search for an efficiency apartment with an open-ended lease! Then, friends unexpectedly invited us to live with them until our departure! After moving in, we continued raising support. We traveled to the location of our mission’s headquarters for three weeks of training and finally to the site of my two-week educational therapy training.  During all of this, I was having extreme left knee pain, and after several failed interventions, a partial replacement was my only option. We continued making support contacts while I recovered at our friend’s home. One day, while our hosts were not at home, their phone rang. My husband answered and found that it was from an investment company. He dutifully took their number and offered to give our hosts the message. As my husband told me about the call, he thought a little more about the name of the person representing the company and realized that the name was the same as that of a former university student. He called back and discovered that this person had indeed once been his student. They caught up with one another’s lives, and as my husband described our future plans, the investor excitedly said, “I want to be part of that by sending monthly support. Just tell me how and where.”  We had been praying that God would supply our needs, but we had never prayed that God would use a “cold” call while living at a friend’s house to be part of that answer! Every missionary can tell similar stories. Our support came from churches and individuals as well as from unexpected sources. There were acquaintances who heard about our plans “by the grapevine,” and someone we got to know while trapped in a blizzard! Jeremiah 29:11 tells us, “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”  God is full of surprises, and when we follow his lead and step out in faith, he will continue to surprise us with unexpected answers to prayers; even when we have not specifically prayed them.