Beyond

[Heads up! This blog post is long but please please take a moment to read it. It is full of words God has placed on my heart. It is full of His truths and things that God has been revealing to me in this time. To put it simply, HE IS MOVING!!!!]

In just the application and interview process of the World Race, God revealed himself to me in ways unlike ever before. He showed me that I need others and I need to fully trust in him which has led me into a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Him. However, here’s the hard truth… While I have seen God draw near to me, I have also seen the enemy’s interest in me peak. I’ve felt the enemy attempt to steal my joy and my fire for Him and this journey I get to embark on. The enemy began to fill me with anxiety about fundraising and leaving the comforts of this life to serve Him. It felt like the enemy was winning, and I began to question if my faith was truly as strong as it felt. 

Recently, I attended Motion Conference in Birmingham, Alabama. The topic for conference was beyond, and the theme verse was Ephesians 3:20 which says “Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think.” The day that I applied to the world race my pastor spoke on marriage. In all honesty, my first initial response was to check out but something kept telling me to lean in and apply the words she was speaking to my current situation. I will never forget hearing her say the words “God is not calling you to do anything hard. He is asking you to do the impossible.” My mind immediately thought of the world race and fundraising $16,000- what seems like an impossible amount. That very night I came home, applied for the world race and within 4 days I had been accepted and had committed to this journey. All of that in 4 days?! Impossible alone, but possible with God. My very first fundraiser went live at the beginning of July and by the end of July YOU GUYS HAVE GENEROUSLY DONATED $2,000 in less than ONE month!! What seemed impossible was made possible and is being made possible by our God who has placed each person in my life to support me in ways that don’t make sense. That’s the cool thing about God, sometimes our minds can’t even comprehend so much of what He does. YOUR obedience and YOUR generosity is living proof of Ephesians 3:20.

The first night of conference, Pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr. spoke about checking your circle. However, it was not the typical ‘show me your friends, and I will show you your future’ message. Pastor Rich spoke about Mark 2:1-13, the story where the paralyzed man was an outcast and when God said his sins were forgiven, people laughed. But then God healed Him and said “Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?” (Mark 2:8) The chapter goes on to say that the man did exactly that. Got up and walked in “full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this.’” (Mark 2:12). These verses reveal that if we can trust that Jesus died for our sins and if we have faith that He defeated death, than what is greater than that? What is there that God cannot conquer? The answer is nothing. He has no rival and no equal. God CAN do the impossible. God WILL do the impossible. God HAS DONE the impossible. God IS DOING the impossible.

Pastor Rich went on to say “Faith has to be tested before it can be trusted.” This brought me great peace because although the devil tried to knock me down and even made me question the strength of my faith, I stood firm in God and in His plan for my life and trusted Him fully with all that I am. My own interpretation of Pastor Rich’s words is that when it may feel as though the devil is the one testing your faith, it is GOD who sees the authenticity of your faith and begins to open your heart to TRUSTING in that faith… God is indeed the one who tests YOUR trusted faith. The faith that you are feeling and seeing move in your life is being tested by God to show you areas you can begin to draw even nearer to Him. He is challenging you to go beyond and keep finding more. Because while He is going beyond, He is also calling YOU to go beyond. He’s calling ME to go beyond. God is not done moving!!!!

I believe that there is so much more to come with this journey and that this journey can impact lives before I am even on the mission field. God is meeting you and I in the middle, He is using us and changing us to be life changers. He has gone before us and now it is up to US to put that plan into action and meet Him right where He is meeting us. Allowing God to use us in ways beyond our expectations and even before our calling has begun.

To end this blog, I want to first say thank you to each and every person who has helped me get to where I am. Whether that be praying, encouraging, uplifting, or donating, YOU are the reason I am able to do this. Because of your obedience to God, I am able to fulfill my calling and change nations. I also want to thank all of you who read this far. I know it may seem like a jumbled mess but sometimes God speaks so many things into your heart that the only way to express it is messy, it is REAL. God is not done yet and I cannot wait to have your help to live my calling. Help me show the world that God can do what feels impossible and that the best is yet to come.