Walk on the water

http://youtu.be/GO2prEoATH8

Oh, how I would love to do this someday; Take a road trip to anywhere and pray to God that he places the lost on my path and presents the opportunity to pray with them. I say someday as if I couldn't get up and do it tomorrow. It's so difficult to get out of our comfort zones and just walk. To just get out of that boat and walk on the water with full faith. But we fear. And we doubt. And so naturally, we sink. But Jesus isn't natural, is He? Jesus is Super natural. Jesus is above and beyond any expectation and any belief we could ever even imagine with our worldly minds. So we think, how could I ever walk on water? How could I ever keep my head above the tide coming in during the storm?

And Jesus smiles and says, how could you not?

Let's stop believing in what we see, and start believing in what HE sees. He sees our heart, one by one; individually made and beautifully created. He believes in our power. Let's start believing in His. That is truly how the lost get found.

A humble friend; story of a true blessing

  The ticking of a clock, the sweet melody of a Robin, the dew lightly settling on the leaves and the grass, when all the while the sun plays hide and seek as she rises and slowly spreads her light and warmth over the Earth, little by little. This is how my 8 AM Saturday mornings on desk shift always seem to start. The world is still, and so is my soul. It's funny how they say the simple things in life are what makes it all worth while. But in all honesty, there is so much truth behind that. Oh, how I long for moments like this at times when I cannot even hear my own heartbeat. The noise of the world crowds my mind and leaves me screaming inside my head to the point of exhaustion and insanity. But for right now, I am calm. Will you spend a few moments with me in this peace? I ask of you to simply breathe, and just sit still. Allow the Lord to calm the waters of the raging storms within you. Pray this with me, "Lord, quiet my soul. Fill me with your spirit. I am yours and I am new. Be still my soul, be still."....

Ready to move on? :)

 This is a story of inspiration and encouragement. Something I hope will humble you as much as it humbled me.
  I will not use real names, as not to break any promises to keep this discrete and anonymous. But I feel that the Lord used this person to strengthen my own faith, and that is a story I would be selfish not to share. I am obliged to call this person Nathan, which means 'God has given' in the Bible. This is only fitting for a person who was so kind and so gracious to me; a giving person. When I met Nathan in the beginning of the year, he was always very quiet and reserved. He would never hurt a fly, but he wasn't exactly the type to frollick in the fields of flowers either, ha ;) Over time, while most people knew very little about him, I could feel the Lord tugging on my heart strings to reach out to him just to let him know he had someone else behind him. A simple smile, or a 'how are you' seemed like enough to me. But I never acted much on it. I used the excuses I always use; I'm too busy to pay attention or I'm sure he has other friends. Often times, I don't even come up with an excuse, I just walk on by and ignore it. (Doesn't it feel like we have a tendency to do this? To just walk on past people who end up meaning something in our lives some day in the future. I guess it's true when they say we really don't realize a good thing when it's right in front of us, including a friend.)
  So while my stubborn spirit continued to play it safe, short, and simple, the Lord knew me much better than this. Over time, our simple hello's would become a conversation (not too long, but never too short). Nathan was (and still is) a tough character to figure out. I'm not exactly sure what his past was like, he's always too humble to want to speak about himself. But there's always been so much depth in his spirit and a heart of tranquil solitude; he doesn't have to say much to earn the respect of anyone in his presence.
  I will never forget how one of our conversations ended up playing out. "How'd you become so religious?" My biggest joy in life, is when people ask me about my faith. I imagine it was a lot to process when I proceeded with my waterfall of an explanation to this question haha, but I could not contain my joy that someone was interested in knowing about the very thing that makes me who I am. And although I am not sure if Nathan agreed with my views and beliefs, he made it a point to express his respect and utmost sincerity for my heart. Even as Christians, we don't always truly respect others actions and thoughts as much as we should. Jesus judged no one. While Nathan may not be a believer, he surely is an example of Christ in this way.
  A few days ago, I received a message from Nathan asking me about my mission trip to Uganda. When he asked me who he can write a check out to for a donation, I told him he really didn't have to do that (he was already such a wonderful friend to me in encouragement). I chose not to argue with him on this, and I would lie if I said I wasn't truly excited that someone was willing to donate to my cause. I met with him the next morning under his one condition, that I would keep it discrete (another humble action of his). Donations are usually $10-$20, or so I've heard. To be completely honest, I am more than thankful for spare change and prayers. Which is why I was almost brought to tears when I read the amount on the check that morning. I will not say the exact amount, but it was more than what a college kid like most of us can or are willing to give.
  It really made me think, just how much are we giving of ourselves to those who are in need? Even someone who does not follow any organized faith and is still so humble and gracious as this,  the Lord used as a prime example of sacrifice and the love Jesus has for us. How much do we give? How much do I give? I certainly was never as gracious as Nathan was to me in giving to any cause. And I prayed to the Lord, "It's absolutely amazing how you used someone who I least expected, to show me what it means to truly give, even when it means more than what we think we can afford." Nathan has inspired me to give more than what I am willing to. Not just financially, but in spirit and heart as well. My prayers now are that the Lord can teach me to give more of myself to others in need, when they need love or advice or someone to laugh with. I pray that even when I feel tired, that I find the strength inside me to wake up and play with the children, to be an active listener in my conversations with others, to be kind and gracious and dole out compliments to those who need the encouragement, to drop what I am doing when a friend is in need and realize that nothing will ever be more important than to tend to a breaking heart or a broken spirit. Nathan has taught me all of this and more, and he doesn't even realize it. But I am so thankful to the Lord that my eyes are open to this. I have been extremely blessed every time the Lord sends me his Angels in disguise, this particular friend being one of them.
  Nathan, if you ever get around to reading this, I hope you know I had to tell this story to anyone who needs encouragement and hope as much as you have given it to me. You are a wonderful person, whether you see that or not. And the Lord has blessed me with a friend in you. Our past does not define us, but rather the impact we have on those around us in our daily lives. And you have impacted my life more than you know. So I thank you.

I do so hope this story is an encouragement to you all. May the Lord be with you and continue to open your eyes to the blessings around us! I will write again soon. Until then, keep an eye out for those Angels. Don't let them pass you by like I almost did :)

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it."~Hebrews 13:2

Nduwamungu Anuarite

My little princess; I sponsor this beautiful child through compassion international. If you would like to learn more, check out  https://www.compassion.com/account/login.htm. 

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you."~John 15:9

Hello lovely people :)

I know the testimony before this post is a bit long. You will notice I always have a lot to say haha, and I always make it a point to share who I am with anyone who is willing to hear it, in hopes that my struggles and my blessings will be an encouragement to always have faith in the Lord. Mother Teresa once said, "If you want a love message to be heard, it has got to be sent out. To keep a lamp burning, we have to keep putting oil in it." This is my attempt to light a lamp of all my blessings for every one of you reading this. 

   If you have read my intro, you will see that I have been called on a mission to Uganda this summer. I cannot express to you the feelings and the thoughts that I have at this point. Excitement, peace, fear, anxiety, a sense of  meaning and purpose, love; the Lord knows me all too well to challenge me by giving me mixed emotions to see what I will choose to do step by step. So far, I have had the fear of going to a dangerous country, the insecurity of not knowing how in the world I will raise $2700 by May, the compassion for the children and families I will be blessed to serve, and the love of a God who, despite all of my childish doubts, loves me and carries me through every storm and every hardship. 

    I don't know exactly what to expect from all of this. I have had opposition and people who do not agree with what I am doing. But I also know this is something I have literally dreamed about, and know with every piece of my heart that I am meant to go. All I ask for now, is for prayer. I am a firm believer that prayer is what can truly change our world. And I pray that both you and I can learn from the lessons the Lord teaches me on this journey, and that we may reach out to our brothers and sisters in love, always. I may not write on this every day, but I will be back often to keep you updated and take prayer requests. I love you ALL, and thank you for reading. My prayers are always with you :)

My training material for Uganda! 

Testimony of Zandra Christopher

                I am walking through a dark cloud. I hear the cries of people in pain all around me. My eyes are closed and I feel the small body on my hip nestle her face in my shoulder. A light pours down through a hole in the sky, and I slowly open my eyes to look towards it. The smoke is slowly lifted away, and I walk out of the cloud, leading hundreds of people away from the darkness with my head lifted high. Africa, in all of her simple beauty and grace, calls me to save her people and lead them to the Lord.

            This was the vision that the Lord gave to me in a dream my senior year of High school. I had never felt anything more real in my life. My name is Zandra Eileen Christopher. I was born into a family that raised me in a Catholic Church and eventually divorced by the time I was 5 years old. The idea of God was just a figment of my imagination. I only knew of Him what I learned in Sunday school every week. But even still, I knew there was something, someone, bigger and mightier who was watching over me. After my parents divorced, there was a huge custody battle for my sister and I that lasted for years

           Although I didn’t understand why, my father was granted custody against our will and we were taken from our mother. For the first time in my life, I wondered if there really was a God. I remember opening the letter from the court and hearing my Mom read the words aloud that sent so much pain through me. It was the first time that I literally ran to my Bible and dropped to my knees holding it and praying out loud, “Where are you? If you’re there, please, don’t do this to us.”  At 9 years old, despite the pain of everything that followed after that, I now rest easy in knowing that this was a blessing in disguise. Just as Paul went through hardships for His glory, the Lord said he was a chosen instrument to spread the word to His people because of who he had been and what he was ready to do. I was bitter for years and turned away from God.  When I truly found Him at the age of 16 and was reborn a Christian, the scales fell from my eyes and I saw more and more beauty every single day. I was and am, His chosen instrument.It was the end of my sophomore year of high school and I was already ready to be on my own and out of the house. I never got reunited with my mother, and although I loved my father dearly, I needed my mother more than anything. But I kept myself extremely busy with a job, my grades, and extracurricular activities to make sure I was in control and would be secure for life after high school on my own. I was closer to Christ than was when I was younger, but I still did not know Him personally. By chance, I was invited to Student Life summer camp with First Baptist Church of Groveland for a week that ended up being the best week of my entire life. I had never been to this church before, and only started to attend in the weeks leading up to the summer camp. During the day we would go to a poverty stricken community and run a free VBS for the kids, and at night we would drive back to the camp facilities and dive into the word and worship service. The first day seemed like nothing out of the ordinary; introductions, scripture, a song or two, break. But in those next few days, my life would be forever changed.

It was the most beautiful experience in the world, being broken down into feeling like everything I was didn’t have purpose or meaning if it wasn’t for Him. We played with the children from Deland every day, and poured our hearts into them. I remember the little girl who never left my side, Savannah, asked me endless questions about God. It broke my heart to find out that she and her brother lived with a mom who was an alcoholic and paid little attention to them. But seeing her smile when we talked about the Father who would never leave her, made me really think that if a child can feel Him and be in awe of Him He has to be real. I got to know the other kids on the trip, and every night we’d have devotion and cry together that we were alive and had made it through our life struggles from the past. It was the last night of the camp, and the speaker, Ed Newton, did the alter call before worship. Raising my hand with my eyes closed and my heart wide open when He asked who was willing to give up who they were to be with Christ, was the most humbling thing I have ever done. I was mesmerized, walking down the stairs up to the stage, and to this day I believe that it wasn’t me who walked up there, but the wings of the Angels that the Lord sent to guide me down there. It’s a feeling I can’t describe, all that I know is that I wasn’t in my body. I was on the clouds of heaven. I felt a presence that was unfamiliar to me, yet I felt like it was the closest thing I had ever known to Home. As the band played and we all cried together and held each other in awestruck wonder of what He had done in our lives, I smiled and felt the weight of the world lift off of my shoulders. I was even led to sponsor a little girl from Africa that night. I knew it was the first step in my reborn life that the Lord had laid on my heart as a vow that I would serve Him and His people for all the days of my life. After tears of joy, it was the last devotion we would have before going home, and I was chosen to do it. I had never opened myself up so bravely, and I ended my testimony with a song I wrote called Red Rose. It was a song the Lord used me to write that told the story of how He sings to us, His red rose, and reminds us that the storms will pass, “No matter the seasons, please stay strong. The winters and lightening lasts so long. But I see your courage, you’ll find it in you to carry on.” It seems like so long ago that this happened, and it’s crazy to think that Christ IS my whole life now. But I’m learning more every day, and He is the center of it all.

Every day is a new experience. Things fall through, things look up, and the Lord is ALWAYS right there walking with me. I hit dry spells every now and then and I am forced to seek Him harder and deeper. And there has never been a time that I didn’t find Him in the end. I am a full time college student on track to be a Nurse, I meet with 7 beautiful girls for a wonderful bible study, and I am enrolled in the NROTC program on campus. I have never been busier. But I have also never been surer of my faith and who I am in Christ. My identity is in Him. And I want to spend the rest of my life learning from Him and being awakened by His love. I take great joy in knowing that when people see me or hear me speak, they know that God is and always will be who I live for. 

The vision I was given runs through my mind almost every day. I will be a missionary nurse in Africa, where I am called to be. I knew I was called to be there when I was called to sponsor my little girl in Rwanda, Africa; Nduwamungu Anuarite. When I chose her to sponsor, I had never learned about the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. The more I learned about it, and the more I prayed about it, the more I knew I wanted to be there with these people and teach them about an unending Love that never fails. Not long after committing to my little princess, I was given the vision in a dream and woke up in a sweat. The Lord knows what He was doing. This is the path I am on. To whoever reads this, I hope my testimony is an encouragement to you that He lives in all of us and is just waiting so anxiously for us to run home to Him. I pray that He teaches you the way back when you stray, and that He blesses your heart with peace and beauty for all of the days of your life.