Learning About How God Moves

Lately, it seems that every conversation that Stacy and I have, something or someone has come along that directly speaks to our conversation! Wow! It's just showing me a little of how God moves in seasons of our lives. Let me give you a few examples:

*After a couple Sunday's in a row of the prosperity gospel being preached at our church, Stacy and I talked about how that is such a problem with the African church (and just the church worldwide). That many pay for blessings, when God gives us his blessings for free. This past week, a man came to visit us to give us some donated items. He was a muslim and was converted to Christianity and is now a prophet of God! The words that he spoke were almost word for word the conversation that Stacy and I had previously had--that God's love is absolutely free and that God doesn't call us to be rich, but to bring ourselves lower--to serve the poor and needy.

*A little over a week ago, we began talking with one of our volunteers about connecting us with a really good lawyer. As we begin our move to Doryum and building on our new land, we need to have a lawyer fight for us to make sure that everything is done well. We also need someone who can help with the children's custody papers and eventual adoptions. Last week, a man came to speak with John and Stacy. He said he had heard about our ministry and wanted to do anything he could to help. He is a lawyer.

*Around the same time, Stacy and I were talking about supporters that their family needed to stay here full-time. Right now, they are living off of their savings, but that won't last forever. We were talking about God moving in heart of Ghanaians here to support their family and their ministry. This last week, John and Stacy went to visit the lawyer to talk to him more about the ministry and to hear what God is doing in his life. After talking with him for a long time, the man took out his checkbook and wrote a check for $1,000 US dollars before they left. He didn't hesitate to let them know that there is more to come too. WOW!

*Stacy and I were talking about the need for churches to really preach to the heart of the issues going on within the body. Here we see many Christians, but not as many CHRIST-FOLLOWERS. We want to see a revival in the church where people will lay down their life, their riches, their hearts before God. This morning, the guest preacher that came spoke about the same thing. He said the church needs to be unified (Stacy and I talk about denominationalism all the time), needs to experience more of Christ's love (we have been talking about the Triangle--for all those RWC peeps that know what I'm talking about), and living a holy life (we have been talking about not keeping any secrets, but speaking out the darkness in our lives so that we can experience freedom and telling our story so others can experience the same freedom in Christ). It was powerful stuff! Of course at the end, he asked for a donation and Stacy and I just looked at each other as we watched no one step forward. The Spirit was calling for people to be delivered, not for him to recieve an offering. In any case, God really reminded me that HE HEARS the desires of our heart for his church! And he's not just speaking to us, but to people everywhere for his church to dig deeper!

*In the same church service this morning, I was so moved by the worship and felt like God spoke to me about something I've really been struggling with lately. I've been a little homesick lately, but also feel so called here. It's been hard thinking about the future and whether God is calling me to be here longer or to go home after this year. This morning, as I was worshipping and praying, I felt like God reminded me of His Son's sacrifice--that he gave his OWN SON for me. It was such a powerful reminder. And out of that sacrifice, my only response is to give my WHOLE LIFE back to him, to sacrifce everything at the foot of the cross where Jesus sacrificed everything for me. I still don't feel like I have an answer for what the next year will hold, but I do feel like God will tell me when the time is right. He only wants me to listen fully and to be obedient to his call. Right now, his call is to simply BE where I am and DO what he's called me to NOW. Later, the call might look different. We will see what happens!

*We've been having some random donations come in--monetary and physical donations--to help with the ministry and the school. That's been a surprise and soooo good!

*Starting to get set up to build on our land. Have been supported by a group called YGAP from Australia. They are doing some pretty amazing things to help us with this building project. They have a couple of guys who are going to be riding bikes from Spain to Ghana--starting in November and arriving here in March--to bring awareness to the issue of slavery and bring monies into the City of Refuge. They are also having a huge fundraising banquet and the monies from that will be donated to City of Refuge as well. Wow!

*The Semester at Sea kids were really moved by their experience here and the leaders said that the kids went back "a family". We've even had some contact us already, wanting to come back and serve short term.

We are seeing God move in powerful ways here. Answering prayers and seeing our vision expanding for what God wants to do in this place and through this ministry. I can't say "wow" enough! It's constantly on my lips. God is good. . .all the time!