As I prepare to leave for Thanksgiving break, I am surprised at how fast the first semester has flown by. With only two weeks left, I have begun to ask myself: Am I accomplishing what I set out to do? The answer is both yes, and no.
When I arrived at Impact 360, my number one goal was to find out what form of missions God is calling me to. I would learn to hear God's voice, and then He would tell me where my future is going. During my time here, however, I have realized that while seeking God's will is good, often it is revealed step by step. I can use this year to learn academically, develop deep relationships with my fellow students, and spend time seeking God, or I can focus all my energy on hearing God's voice, and get frustrated when I don't.
As our group leaves for Brazil, my focus must be in the right place. If I spend the whole month only trying to discern God's call for me in missions, I will miss out on incredible opportunities to reach out to the Brazilian people, and to develop deeper relationships with my own team members. God is focused on accomplishing His purposes, not my desires, and I should be willing to jump on board. Our team will emerge from this experience with a much deeper understanding of the world around us, as well as lessons we will remember for a lifetime.
God has already used Impact to develop my experience in relating to and getting to know other people. He has also broadened my knowledge of the Bible, different worldviews, poverty, economics, and so much more. This semester has opened my eyes in many areas, and in that, I am accomplishing just what I planned... but more importantly, what He planned.
When I was single, before I met Greg, I took a class that Pastor Gary taught (when we were in Atlanta). It was about discovering the call in your life, and it was a 4-week class, I think. The only thing I remember from that class was this: "The journey is just as much the call as the call itself." I might just have that on my tombstone. God is all about the process. The Red Sea didn't part instantly...Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, "and all night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land" (Ex 14:21). It took ALL NIGHT. And it was enough of a wind to make the land dry. It was a process. So keep doing what you're doing: take note of where you are; take note of what God is telling you TODAY...and just trust that when the time comes for you to know the when's and where's...it's God's responsibility to speak more almost more than it's your responsibility to listen. You are too in tune to Him to not hear it when He calls. :) Love you!
ReplyDelete