6 Months...ALREADY!!!!!

I am stunned that it has been six months already. I am filled with a lot of mixed emotions as I prepare to fly back to Michigan next week. I am excited to see my family and friends and enjoy the warmth of the Michigan summer, but in order to experience that, I have to say goodbye to Lesotho. It is not fun to do. The staff and volunteers are my friends. The children are mine. The Geurinks are my family. When I return in January, I never know which children will still be here, so I must prepare to say goodbye to all of them. The next few days are going to be filled with finishing up projects, packing and saying goodbye.

The reason why it is so hard to say goodbye, is because BG is a very special place. When you are here, you experience God. You hear His joy through the children's laughter. You experience His love by watching the staff care for the children as if they are their own. I feel as though these children are mine. When one of then gives me a cheeky grin and jokes around, I feel pride in my heart for them. When they are sick or hurt, I hurt and want to do whatever it takes so they can get better. I celebrate the first steps I get to see, but then mourn for the families that are waiting through paperwork and court dates for these children to be theirs. The emotions with this job are full, but they are so good.

We have had a lot of teams over the past 6 months. Through this I have seen how the children truly trust me. The children love new friends, but some of them are a little nervous at first. Knowing that in those moments they come to me for security was such a highlight for me. Also through these teams I learned how much I love sharing the Word. Some teams allowed me to come in each night and open up the Word with them. There is power when brothers and sisters in Christ come together to grow, learn and serve our Abba. Last week we had a team from Holland Christian High School with us and one of the students snapped this photo of me with one of the boys in the house I work at.

 

This child joined us 2 weeks ago. He was found in a trash bag. I praise God for allowing me to be apart of his life. He loves to cuddle and just started showing us his beautiful smile. I pray for him and the other children here that they know they are loved by an Abba Daddy, who will never leave them or forsake them. May God be their father both now and forever more. 

Thank you all for your prayers, support and encouragement. I pray that through the journey God has placed me on, you can see Him and only HIM. All praise and glory goes to my Abba.

"I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.

I have decided to follow Jesus no turning back, no turning back.

The cross before me, the world behind me no turning back, no turning back.

The cross before me, the world behind me, no turning back, no turning back.

Christ is enough for me."

Faithful

There is a team from Holland Christian High School serving at BG this week. It is so exciting to share my Lesotho home with high school students who truly want to serve. Today we left BG and went to the Good Shepherd Center. The GSC is a place where teen moms can stay with their children and receive an education. It also is a place of support for teenaged orphans living in Lesotho. They assist many students who have lost their both of their parents with school fees and tutoring. The HC team was able to be with the GSC students all day. They shared stories, worshipped together and prayed for each other. An HC student shared their testimony of being adopted and another shared her story of losing her mom. The GSC students were encouraged by hearing that students in America walk similar roads that they do. To say the Lord was in the room would be an understatement. The Lord was overflowing out of the room. At the end of our worship, we split up into groups of 10 and prayed over each other individually. Friends, I want you to know, there was so much power in this moment. Students laying hands on students who live an ocean away, praying for similar struggles and peace. The Lord is good!!!

The Lord is faithful.

That is all I could think about today. On June 11, 1996, I was 16 years old and excited about summer vacation, then the phone call came. Two of my friends were in a car accident and one of them passed away. I was so angry at God. I wanted nothing to do with a God who would take the life of a teenager who wanted to give her whole self to serving Him. My friend was going to pursue a life of mission work. She wanted to make sure that everyone knew how much they were loved and that they belonged to a family. My heart was filled with anger and bitterness. If you would have told me then that I was going to be serving God, I would have laughed at you. BUT, through the prayers of many and the Lord's faithfulness, today I stood in a crowded room and led worship. The anger was taken away, and God was using me to do what she dreamed. As we sang "Oceans," I smile and choked back the tears. "Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders. Let me walk upon the waters, wherever you would call me. Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander and my faith would be made stronger, in the presence of my Savior."

The past 18 years have been a journey and through every step, the Lord remained faithful. As I heard the students today, both American and African, shared their journeys and heart, I was reminded of my friend. She wanted the world to know that they belonged. She wanted people to know they were loved. The Lord is faithful, and it is humbling and a complete joy to know that I get to serve Him by telling people they belong to someone, no matter what their earthly journey looks like.

He is faithful.

"but those who hope in the Lord

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint."

Isaiah 40:31

Living in the Tension

Author, speaker Jennie Allen once said, “Life is full and hard, but rich and fulfilling too.” I believe this sentence describes life in Lesotho well. Life here is very full and very rich, there is so much indescribable joy. There are so many occasions where one can clearly see that the Lord is their “Daily Bread” and provides exactly what is needed at the right time. Yet with all the joy and provision, comes deep heart ache and grief. I believe it is because of the deep heartache and grief, that the cause the joy and celebration to overflow from their daily lives. Living in the joy and grief, means living in tension. Living in a way that is always seeking God, even though you firmly believe He is always with you, you still seek to find Him. The tension is a hard place to be, yet it is a good place to be.

The past few months I have felt like I have been living in a huge tension. I desire to be completely obedient to God’s call for my life and in doing that I realize how much I need to be more like the people of Lesotho. I need to trust God more. I need to allow His indescribable joy over take each moment of my day, so that in all things I can reflect Him. There are moments when I feel like I am a horse walking around with blinders on. I am so focused on what tasks need to be done, that I overlook God’s presence in every situation. I am so busy looking ahead to the next team that is coming that I overlook the ones who are right beside me. The biggest tension right now, is that I am so focused on the next journey of sharing Beautiful Gate to those in the United States and Canada, I feel I am missing the beautiful people around me.

You do not have to be a missionary in Africa to feel the tension. There are moments in your daily life where you seek to be in God’s presence more, but the blinders you wear cause you to focus on something else. Today I pray for myself and for you that living life in tension causes us to surrender fully to God every day, so that His mercies and peace and indescribable joy overtake any other emotion we may have. The Lord is so rich and so full, that nothing else in this world can stand against Him.