Jun 22, 2012
A few days ago a friend and I went to goodwill so I could attempt to find some clothes for a talent show As we were exiting this store we heard this quiet “excuse me,” but we ignored it thinking it wasn’t directed at us. Then twice we heard the “excuse me!” but a little louder this time, I turned around and discovered this pregnant lady trying to get our attention. So I walked back over to her and she looked rather nervous and kinda surprised that we had acknowledged her call. I asked what she wanted and she proceeded to tell Katie and I that the car she was using ran out of gas, and someone dropped her off at the Goodwill so that a church friend could pick her up and take her to another friends house so she could get money for gas for the car she was borrowing. She asked if we could maybe give her a ride to the CVS down the street so she could meet up with a different friend there.
We of course said that we would give her a ride and asked if there was anything else she needed. As we walked to my car, she kept repeating “thank you Jesus” and “thank you so much girls” and such. Once in the car she started talking a lot, and said that she was talking so much so that she wouldn’t cry. So in an attempt to keep conversation going and encourage her, I asked what church she went to. She answered and asked why I asked about church and if we were Christians. I gladly answered, “yes we are Christians, and I asked because I noticed you saying ‘thank you Jesus’ and was just curious”. She smiled and kept talking a bit more and then asked where we went to church, so I told her about the church I attend and about Gospel for Asia. By this time we had reached the CVS and her friend wasn’t there. She was starting to get really nervous and panicky and without thinking I offered to take her where she needed to go and help her out in whatever way I could.
She was overfilled with thankfulness and happiness that she was literally speechless. After she regained her composure, she asked if we could stop by Taco Bell to get her some food for the baby. We of course went to Taco bell’s drive through and paid for her meal. I gave her my contact information and kept encouraging her that it was the Lord’s answer to my prayers that I am able to help her out as one of my sisters in Christ. She kept marvelling over how calm and peaceful Katie and I were the entire time. After Taco Bell, we drove to her friends house so she could get her friends debit card to get gas, but she needed $25 so she could get gas. We didn’t have cash on us, so we went to an ATM and I got her some money so she could fill up the car she was borrowing. After that we went back to her friends house, she got the debit card, then we drove her, I’m guessing to her house.
I invited her to Gospel For Asia’s prayer meetings on Tuesday night and she said she might come. I’m hoping to hear from her again, and I’m so glad that we were able to be there to help her out. God is so good! I had been praying for an opportunity to obey Him without hesitation, and He gave me this! I’m glad this sister is safe, and I’m glad we could be a light and encouragement for her. God’s timing is so perfect. 🙂
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Apr 23, 2012
Recently I heard a message from Auntie Gisela. She is K.P. Yohannan’s wife, and every third thursday of the month we have a Gospel For Asia ladies meeting where she will share a message with us. This month’s title was “The Gospel is Good News.” It’s good news for all who receive it. Even though times will get tough, God can handle it and will dust us off again. Nothing is too impossible for God.
God knows. So why worry? I’ve had struggles with depression off and on, and until just recently I’ve had a hard time combating it and refocusing on the Lord. It finally clicked during ladies meeting, that whatever I entertain in my thoughts, or in my heart will bear fruit. So if I dwell on those thoughts and feelings of depression, it will bear fruit and make me useless in reaching the lost in Asia. So in order to protect my call, I need to not think on those things. Just like in Philippians 4, where Paul says “whatever things are true, whatever things [are] noble, whatever things [are] just, whatever things [are] pure, whatever things [are] lovely, whatever things [are] of good report, if [there is] any virtue and if [there is] anything praiseworthy–meditate on these things.” (NKJV)
So if I immediately combat all those negative thoughts that I am worth nothing, that God doesn’t care about my desires, that there’s no point in me doing what I do because it’s all worthless, with the TRUTH that the Lord clearly lays out in His word for me, for this exact purpose, then I don’t have to worry.
Yes, it is hard to do. It’s so easy to entertain those thoughts. But I will NOT allow the enemy to get a foothold on my any longer. God loves me, He sent His Son to DIE for me, He rose again conquering death so that I may have a chance to live forever in His presence, and He is continuing to renew and transform me into His image. Who can be depressed when they can understand and grasp the depth of God’s unfailing love for them?
There is joy in the Lord. A Joy that will never fail. A Joy fed from His Spirit living in me. Even in times of trial and darkness, His joy is there to shine through me. And I’m happy about that. I am content in the Lord.
Anyway… that was my quick update of where my thoughts are at the moment. Hope it was a blessing to you! Remember that God knows what’s best for you. He knew it before you were born, and He knows how best to fulfill His plan in your life. So trust Him, and don’t worry. 🙂
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Mar 12, 2012
So I just recently had a revelation. An “ah-ha!” moment, I would normally say. You know the verse Philippians 4:4 where Paul writes “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I will say rejoice!”
Gospel for Asia is an organization born from prayer. Literally, it started as a Tuesday night prayer meeting in our founders house, and still to this day, we are a living breathing organism grounded in the greatest gift given to believers in Christ – Prayer. We have Monday, Thursday, and Friday morning prayer before we go to our ministry areas, we have Tuesday night prayer every week, we have a Friday night all night prayer on the first Friday of every month, as departments we have prayer once, twice, or even three times a week, and of course there is personal prayer time. I’m not saying this to brag or anything, but just to make a point. With our lives grounded in prayer, you can bet that we see the effects of those prayer requests every day, sometimes immediately after we’ve prayed. I don’t know about you, but for me, this is a cause to rejoice.
Some of the answers to prayer may include, healing for brothers and sisters, people coming to know the Lord through the various ministries we have on the field, people faithfully giving to further God’s work, etc. Aren’t these amazing things?! But what about those prayer requests that we don’t get the result we had been hoping for? Say, we pray for healing for a brother or sister in Asia who was brutally beaten for professing Christ our Savior, we pray and we pray and we pray, but then that brother or sister goes to be with the Lord. How is that a good thing for the family that they left behind, or for the believers he was discipling in a distant village, or even for those who persecuted him? Doesn’t Paul say Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS?
Is the word “always” subjected to only the happy answers to prayer? Shouldn’t we also rejoice in the answers to prayer that aren’t as happy? Praise the Lord that brother is no longer suffering, but he is forever in the eternal presence of our Lord Jesus! Praise the Lord I didn’t get the raise in my paycheck, because HE knows what I need more than I could ever imagine! Praise the Lord for _______ (you fill in the blank).
Often times working in ministry I will get caught up in the numbers of the results. No matter how hard I try not to focus on the numbers, it seems to always creep into mind. Recently we have been praying for big things to happen on the web, but what happens if we don’t see that prayer answer? Or if the numbers go down? Will we still be praising the Lord for the lives transformed by the prayers and gifts given by those who were perhaps sacrificing what someone might call the “widow’s mite”? I want to say I would rejoice in this situation. I want to say I would rejoice in every situation, whether it be death, or new life, or sickness, or health. I will definitely be praying for the Lord to make this transformation in my heart and mind.
I am praying for each of you. I may not know your name, or what you look like, but I do know that God loves you more than you could ever fathom. And I pray that if you know Him, that you would grow in Him. If you don’t know Him, I pray that you will come to know and love Him just as He knows and loves you (even before you were born!).
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Jan 31, 2012
It was the day before my bestest friend was coming back from Canada and I was super excited. Like most nights that week, I was headed over to hang with some friends of mine and I invited one of my roommates along as well. We were to bring drinks over, so a quick stop at TomThumb was necessary. As we perused the isles for some liquid to quench our thirst I had no idea that my car would be attacked. Attacked?? Well, here’s what happened. A family from Gospel For Asia had some ingredients for all night prayer that we had that Friday night and didn’t use. They weren’t sure what to do with the mushy corn, so they were going to take it home I believe. Little did they know my car would be conveniently unattended at TomThumb, so they disposed of the corn there.
From my perspective however, my roommate and I came out to find two packets of frozen corn from Target wedged between the antenna and the front door of my car. What?! Target brand corn, at TomThumb… on my car? Where in the world did this come from? And my windsheild wipers were up too… so strange! Who could have done this? and EW! The corn isn’t frozen! it’s all mushy and gross!! Anyway, I continued on my way and told the my friends what had happened. I ended up throwing the corn out, but was confused for a few days after that. Later  however, the Gospel For Asia family confessed on my Facebook that it was them who placed the corn. Which was a great relief to my cornfused mind. 🙂
So, that was my mushy happenstance! Hope you enjoyed it!
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Dec 4, 2011
I had an “aha moment” just now as I was listening to my current favorite song “How He Loves” by John Mark Mcmillan, while chatting with a friend of mine about how we are trusting God for the future instead of us trying to manipulate circumstances so they work out how we want them, instead of how God wants them.
This is what I sent him:
– It’s crazy that EVERYTHING in our lives was planned out to perfection before we were even born.
– That God planned what we would learn, how we would learn it, and when would learn to apply it.
– Meaning that everything that happened before we learned the truth, before it finally “clicked” was His plan as well.Â
– That those experiences are what brought us to the realization of His Truth in this very moment.
– Just like everything we are learning now is for preparation for what’s in store for us in the future.
– Everything is timed perfectly.
– So perfectly in fact that we often times miss it.
– We miss what He is doing and has done until He points it out to us.
– And it’s all so that we can know how much He loves us. All so that we can then turn and give glory to Him for working the good in our lives amidst all the bad that we perceived as bad, which was actually for out ultimate good.
Isn’t that crazy? God is so good. Anyway… that was my Aha moment.
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