Call for Prayer - the Journey Ahead

As the departure looms nearer - 4 sleeps - so too do my thoughts and emotions on the upcoming adventure. 

To get you up to date, briefly: on Monday 10th January I leave to ultimately end up on the Logos Hope on about the 8th of Feb. Through a practical ministry of sharing books and literature, building and rebuilding, visiting, loving, caring and receiving we aim to bring knowledge, help and hope to the nations. 

Amongst the many thoughts/emotions/etc going through my head and heart have been excitement about the journey ahead, sadness at leaving friends, relief at leaving home, curiosity as to what lies ahead and joy in serving Christ in this way.

Before I actually get to the ship, there is a bit of a journey to be had:

I leave Australia on Jan 10, stop over in Kuala Lumpur to meet a friend then fly to London.

I will be in London 3 nights from 11-14 Jan before flying to Germany. After a free weekend, the Global Orientation conference will last for 10 days (17-28 Jan). It will include such things as field orientation (learning more indepth details about the field to which you are going), discovery group (team-work, cross-cultural communication, culture shock), missions market (chance to learn about other fields OM works in - interactive with games, competitions, costumes etc), prayer groups, fellowship group (join with others from your country), receiving field meetings (meet with directors and fellow team mates of field you will be joining), home field meetings and 'farewell party' thrown by representatives from OM Australia.

After this, all heading to the Logos Hope fly to Dubai for 10 days of pre-ship training (PST). I have been given a barrage of terms to learn in anticipation of this such as 'port', 'starboard', 'man overboard' etc and we will be doing safety training in relation to living on a ship - ie water training with heavy clothing, CPR, life-boat handling, climbing up and down rope ladders with fire extinguishers etc and learning things more specific to the Hope and the ministry undertaken on/from her. 

I then join the Hope in Dubai on approximately Feb 8th. This, I have a total peace about. The time in between, however, has my stomach in a knot. I don't know why. I know the entire two years will be, amongst many other things, a time of testing, learning and growth but something within me is anticipating the first major challenge/obstacle/stretching during the first 4 weeks. 

I would really appreciate prayer about and during this time. Thanks! :)

my limitations vs God's power

"You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant - not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." 

-2 Corinthians 3:3-6

I acknowledge that I am yet a babe in my walk with Christ, no matter my yearning for it to be otherwise. The thing is to not let my limitations limit what God can do through me - that will always be the case; to not let ourselves limit God, no matter where we are at. As the above passage says, our competence comes from God so we need to have faith in him. After all, his power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Cor. 12:9).

Last night at my churches evening service, a friend had a word for me: each time he prayed for me, Chad felt that I didn't have enough confidence in God; that I realised all too well my limitations and wasn't allowing God to work through me in spite of myself. About 2 minutes later I had the opportunity to pray for Chad - he had a twisted pelvis and when he sat with legs out, his right leg was 1cm shorter than the left leg. After a brief prayer, I watched as Chad's right leg lengthened and evened out to be level with his left leg!! 

I'd heard of this and know of many people whom God has healed and I have no doubt that he does heal today, yet I had never had the privilege of praying and seeing the healing occur before my eyes. Now I have seen it happen, Chad said he could actually feel it happen and after I saw him stand and do various movements which had been previously been causing him pain for a few months. God is good!

It was exciting to note how God let me know there was something that needed to change, then immediately gave me the opportunity to change - simply by saying 'yes' and allowing him to move. I look forward to many similar occurrences!

Thank you Father God, for your healing hand upon Chad and for allowing me to be a tiny part of your plan. Thank you for the lesson learnt - I'm sorry for not having enough faith, but thank you that you love me enough to nudge me in the right direction and give me the chance to grow and see you do amazing things! Lord, I ask that you continue to prompt me, reveal my imperfections that they may be changed, for you to be glorified through my life, in Jesus' name. 

Obedience to God

"The golden rule for understanding in spiritual matters is not intellect, but obedience."

-Oswald Chambers

"Our love is a response to God's love. Likewise our obedience flows from our gratitude of what He has done for us".

Jack Kuhatschek

How much does my obeying or disobeying God affect things? There are the big things and the little things. The big things such as listening to the direction He has for your life or if He shouts "NO!" but you decide to go your own way... If I had been disobedient to God in the big things, I wouldn't be qualified as a school teacher or heading out to the mission field next year. But what about the little things? (I know one could argue that the little things can have a huge impact also, but please just go with me on this one for the moment!) If He gives me a word to share in church and I don't step up and do it, then He will often give it to somebody else to say and it will get said either way, so the church doesn't miss out however YOU then miss out on the blessing of having stepped out and been obedient, of knowing that really was God speaking to you and of being a blessing to somebody else.

However in other situations - such as in the supermarket and God gives you a word for a random person. Fear may hold you back - fear of rejection and ridicule, what the other person may think. However if you hold back in such a situation, is somebody else then going to step into the aisle and say, "well I have a word for you" in your place? Not usually. So then it affects the other person - if God truly has His hand on their life and you were supposed to be a step towards bringing them into relationship with Him, He will use other stepping stones, however how does that impact things? Our God is a big God and He can do things without us yet usually chooses to include us and offer us the opportunity to be a part of His plan.

And what about in my own home? God has made it clear to me that I am to speak with my father about his beliefs and to go back to the healing that occurred in his life a few years ago from cancer. Back then I didn't use it as a step towards spiritual healing (yes he was physically healed, but I believe it's better to be a sick person going to heaven than a healthy one going to hell...) however God has brought it up to me in recent times saying it's not too late. In fact, if I had brought it up with dad back then it may not have done much except perhaps tear us apart. Now, it may do the same thing, however my parents already think so lowly of my beliefs and the fact that I choose to cling to them and live my life accordingly that it can't get any worse and the only thing at stake here is my parents salvation - something worth making myself look foolish for.

I believe it's also a test of my obedience; when that moment comes, when God nudges me and says "now is the time, speak up", will I be obedient or will I chicken out? That's also when the matter comes up: is it being courageous and brave, or merely trusting and having faith? Being obedient to God shouldn't be about us, about me, but simply stepping out in faith, albeit a bigger step than usual! I sincerely hope I will be obedient and act upon the measure of faith given to me, however it's a real possibility that I may chicken out. I have no real idea what to say to dad beyond the initial question. I guess it's just a case of trusting that if God tells me to say something that He will then give me the words...

John 15:9-10 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love."

This is where the question of obedience stops being a question, in my eyes. It's a command - "remain in my love". How do we do that? "Obey my commands". It's as simple as that really. In theory, anyway...

Please pray that this will be the case, that I won't chicken out when God says it's time, that I'll be sensitive to His guiding particularly as this conversation takes place and continual prayer for both my parents would be appreciated if you have a moment.