Growing Through Missions

This summer I was invited by a former student (now a dear friend) to go with their church to Ecuador on a mission trip. I will be sharing more about this in the future, but I wanted to talk about why I chose to go.

When Joseph asked me several months ago, I told him that I needed to pray about it. I just was not sure if God was leading me to go. I needed confirmation from Him that this was His plan and His timing. The first confirmation that I got from God was at church. Our church has a fly-wheel and it is: “Gather, Groups, Give, GO”! Pastor Hopper talked about missions one Sunday and how we are all called to go. For some people, this may mean local mission work. We are all called on that mission field. For others, it is to go… overseas – either short-term or long-term.

The next time I felt God assuring me it was His will was at work. God spoke to me one day while our Headmaster was doing Friday devotions. I knew that the message he was sharing was another confirmation that God wanted me to go.

There were some other times, when I was praying, singing, talking to others, that also led me to know that this trip was part of God’s plan for my life.

I was very hesitant at first. I had never traveled alone. I knew Joseph and his wife, but not the rest of the team. I did not attend any meetings since I was the only one out of their state going. (Joseph’s father had a team from his church in Tennessee and Joseph’s team was coming from Georgia). However, I knew that this trip would stretch me in ways that I did not think possible. So, I decided to go.

Sometimes, you just need to trust God and go when He places that calling on your heart. This could be locally, nationally, or internationally. There are no boundaries to where God will call you, when He will call you, and how He will equip you with your calling.

Go and watch yourself grow gracefully!

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