Well, last week was full of adventure, which is pretty fitting since it was “adventure week” here at Adventures in Missions. It was a week where me and 3 other people from my Guatemala team were sent out for the week to ask the Lord what the week is going to look like and then step out and obey. We started the week staying at one of my teammates, friends, parents’ house. The first day we were there, we drove around and just looked for people to pray for. We were driving around a park and saw an older man walking on a path. We decided that he would be our first person to reach out to. When me and one other guy from my team walked up to him and just started talking, he was totally friendly and just open to talk. We asked what we could pray for, and he immediately started crying. It showed me that no matter how much of a stranger you are to someone, that when you display genuine love and care for someone, that they are more than willing to open up. He shared that he just wants to have a relationship back with his son. We prayed for him and I have full confidence that healing will come to that relationship. The desire he had in his heart and the way God spoke over him gave me such encouragement for restoration. Later that night, we went to Ruby Tuesday for dinner and got to meet an amazing waiter who we, over the week, got to encourage, pray for and just learn about.
On the second day out, we decided to go into downtown Atlanta and spend some time with the homeless. As far as “leaving an impact” goes, we probably did as much as any ordinary person could do. We supplied them with fresh socks, food, an ear to listen, and some truth about their worth in this world. But as usual, when you reach out to people, you are the one who is impacted more. While my team was talking to one guy, I went over and talked to another guy, Mike. I started talking with him, and just encouraging him and all of that stuff. I don’t want to go on a rant to make it sound like I’m this incredible person, so I will save all the details of what was spoken. Anyway, when I asked him what I could pray for him for, he just said “to remember me”. All he wanted was for someone, me, to remember him. Not a bed, or a house, or new clothes. Just to be remembered. It blew me away how POWERFUL love is. All the material things that Mike lacks and we take for granted, he just wants to know that someone cares about him. It immediately brought tears to my eyes and it was hard to even pray for him through that, but it was one of the most beautiful moments of my life.
If that weren’t enough, on the morning of our last day there, we decided that were gonna head back that night instead of the next morning. We were gonna go have dinner at Ruby Tuesday to see that waiter one last time and head back. We had the whole day to kill so we figured we would go sit at panera, tell testimonies, and just have “free prayer” signs up. Well, we were later informed that we were not allowed back to Adventures in Missions until the following morning. Unfortunately we had already told our host for the week that we were done staying there for the week, so we were without a place to stay. After finding out that we can’t come back, literally ten minutes later, these two sisters from South Africa sit next to us and ask is for prayer. So we prayed for them, and then they began to pray for us. They asked about us and what we’re doing, and after explaining it all, without hesitation, one of the sisters (Bernadette) offered her house to sleep at and her sister gave us $40! Long story short, we took the offer. From the minute we got there until the minute we left, we sat around her and her husbands dinner table sharing life stories and encouragement with them. It is next to impossible to describe the blessing they were to us and the amazing people they are. With amazing stories to boot.
I understand that this was not the most poetically written blog or even the most descriptive. I would have to write a 6 page paper to describe it all. I just wanted to share it because I just want to encourage all of you to step out and just trust God. Trust for provision, trust for miracles, trust that he will put amazing people I to your lives out of nowhere that will change you forever. The weird thing is, we were TOLD to do this. Our faith needs to be one that looks and sounds so foreign to other people on the outside, but with a love that will resonate with them on the inside. So all this to say, choose adventure, choose scary, choose uncomfortable, choose love, choose Christ.
