MISSIONARY GOING ON A MISSION TRIP!

Over the past few weeks God has been speaking to me and I have had so many things that I needed to process and pray about and journal about, and being so busy at school and with preparing for convention I wondered if it would ever happen....

I finally had some quiet time yesterday afternoon to sit and write and again when I got home from church last night.

So several weeks ago at church Joel announced that our church was going to be participating with the church from Tegucigalpa and the church from San Pedro Sula in a mission trip to Nicaragua.  I thought a little about the trip, but then put the idea away, I thought "what could I do?", and right now I am so busy with school and convention.

But since that time it seemed like there were so many things that kept coming up that made me think I should sign up for the trip.

When I first asked about the trip, I was thinking that if it was a work trip, I could go.  You don't need to speak Spanish to dig a hole or swing a hammer, but it isn't a work trip.  It is a mission trip to evangelize and do activities with some of the children.

Ok, step back, I don't speak Spanish so I don't know what I could do.  But still, it was on my mind.  Last week on Wednesday morning Annette shared about the story when Jesus was walking on the water and Peter called to him and said, Lord if it is you, call me out on the water.  Peter had to have faith in the boat because the waters were stormy, but still the boat was a comfortable place for him.  I think of it like my comfort zone.  To go out on the water he had to have a deeper faith.  He wanted a deeper faith, that is why he called to Jesus and asked him to call him out on the water.

To me, Honduras is my boat.  I have to have faith to be here, but yet it is in my comfort zone.  (Never thought I would be saying that!)  Although Honduras requires faith, to step out and go on this mission trip, where I don't know who is going, I might not know anyone other than Joel, and there might not be anyone bilingual, I have no idea what I would do - that requires a much deeper faith!

Sunday night at church during worship I was praying and first I had the enemy saying to me that the trip was just about me, that it was something I wanted to do, it wasn't something God was calling me to.  I had to make him shut up  Then what I heard was, and I heard it in a sweet, tender voice, it isn't about me, or about me wanting to go to Nicaragua, it is about me wanting to have a deeper faith.  It is me saying to God - I want to step out of the boat, if you will call me out of the boat, I will go. 

After worship and getting to hear that sweet voice of the Lord, Joel preached about us being sheep and we know the voice of the shepherd!  I love that story, and it is so true!

So, even though I don't know the plan, and I don't have any idea how I will be helpful or what purpose I will have on this trip, I am going.  I am stepping out of the boat and saying Lord if it is you, call me and I will come! 

The trip will be from March 27 to March 31.  Please pray for me as I really have no idea what I am doing in this situation and it is totally out of my comfort zone and a huge stretch for me!  But I am ready to be used and excited to see what God has planned!