God has been working on the interns and their hearts, and he has also been working on the staffs’ hearts as well, which means God has been working in me. God has taught me that I should walk in His light with no shame. I typically struggle to show my vulnerabilities, my struggles, and my mistakes with others in the group. I only shared them with God, keeping it just between Him and I. God opened my eyes to learn that I am supposed to open my heart and share my struggles and my vulnerabilities with my group. I typically feel ashamed and shy sharing my internal struggles, but if I only share my experiences and my struggles with one person as opposed to two or three, I am more open to weakness. Sharing with a small group of people means more people praying and walk-in alongside me to keep me strong. God uses people getting together for His power and His truth, so now I have become like a moth. At night if there is a light shining a moth will fly right to and stay in the light. This means I should always be flying to the light so that the light can shine through me. I am not perfect. It doesn’t matter if I am an international missionary or a staff, I am not better than anyone else, I am not above or holier than anyone, I am equal with my brothers and sisters in Christ. We are all sinners but we have Jesus inside of us, which means we should open ourselves to be humble and allow God‘s light to shine through us onto others so that others can see His light shining and be drawn to the light. That has been my breakthrough. I am going to let my light shine for Jesus!
Is there a place in your life that God is calling you to be a moth? I encourage you to embrace and allow others to come alongside you in your victories and struggles, it is so freeing and rewarding!
Scriptures
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.” Matthew 5:14 “For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”” Ephesians 5:12-14
Church Interns' Testimonies Esther, the overcoming warrior, was born in South Korea and raised there for several years then her Christian family moved to the USA. She is Deaf with Cerebral Palsy. She struggled with negative thoughts telling her she would be free without disabilities and could do whatever she wanted. Before she joined, she did not see any of the uniqueness that God created inside of her. She experienced the embrace of God’s love through us in His kingdom. She finally had a realization that God created her beautifully for His purpose. The scripture that impacted her is Isaiah 44:2, “ The Lord who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you: Fear not … whom I have chosen.” She decided to release the lies of her mind and trust God’s help by strengthening her faith. She noticed she was able to do more physical activity, with His help, than she had expected. She found God’s purpose for her life! (We celebrated with Esther for her breakthrough- below pictured.)
Hadassah, the joyful surrender, was born in Liberia, West Africa, and got adopted by an American-Christian family. I met her during my furlough season in Iowa. She feels something was blocking her relationship with God, but had a strong desire to grow in intimacy with God. I have seen the amazing moments of how God has been transforming her heart as she joined and went through the process with us. She finally understands what a relationship with God looks like. She explained that if there are any filthy drops in a glass of water, then it looks cloudy, symbolizing a struggle to interact with God. She also explained if she cleans the glass and purifies the water, it represents interacting with God better by going deeper into intimacy. She repented all of her sins and allowed Him to clean her heart. She experienced freedom and joy with God! (We have been cheering with Hadassah for her freedom- below pictured.)
Clifton, the creative warrior, is a Deaf Jamaican. His heart desperately hungers and thirsts for the truth of God. He went through the process by learning how to repent and wait on God for His messages. He decided to go to his tree that he planted 10 years ago. He sat patiently waiting to hear God’s voice. He noticed the yellow leaves falling on the ground from the tree and received a crystal clear message from the Lord. He explained that when God cleanses his heart by repenting and releasing the sins, it is like the yellow leaves falling from the tree. The tree will keep green and grow strong if he allows God to keep cleaning his heart. He ensures to repent daily when the Holy Spirit convicts him. No more yellow leaves in his heart. He experienced precious communion with God. The truth of God sets him free! (We took a picture with Clifton's special tree- below.)
Letshan, the natural leader, is a deaf Jamaican as well. He struggled to understand God’s love for him. He heard the testimonies of how God transformed our hearts and that touched his heart. He realized that he was not the only one who went through the struggles in his life. He started understanding that Jesus loves the messy people intimately. He made a huge confession of his sin and asked God for forgiveness. We went outside and witnessed him drive a stake into the ground as a symbol of allowing God to set him free from the sin with this powerful declaration. He experienced overwhelming love when the team ran and hugged him, reminding him of the story of the prodigal son. We joined the celebration as God celebrated with him for returning to Him. He believed His love for him! (Here is the picture of us to celebrate with Letshan for his breakthrough- below.)
My team and I thank God for allowing us to witness the powerful breakthroughs of His four beautiful children – Esther, Hadassah, Clifton, and Letshan. Would you join the celebration into the kingdom of God with us?
I would like to ask for your support for Clifton and Letshan, two students who joined the training program for their internship. They both obeyed God’s calling to join with no idea of what it would look like. After that, they started understanding more about who God is and recognized how much God transformed their lives during the internship. This led them to want to grow more intimate with God. During their time in the program, they announced that they will join Disciple Training School in January. They believe this is following God's plan, to do missionary work in Deaf communities. They each need $4,800 to complete their DTS program. Please contact me if your heart has been touched by our Lord to help support them financially. We look forward to seeing what more God will be doing in Jamaica! Keep us in your prayers!
 |
Comments
Post a Comment