The time of sitting in teachings; receiving words of prophecy and encouragement; being sent out into the streets with no more than the clothes on our bodies and a heart full of faith; and being under the watchful eye of our leadership, has finally come to an end. A sort of abrupt one.
It's strange that you've been waiting for this moment for so long, and yet, on its arrival it still catches you a little off guard. Luckily the preparation process was thorough, which provides a sense of peace at the thought of heading into the unknown for the next 8 months. Or maybe its the vigorous excitement that is softening the somewhat scary notion of this reality.
Our reality, however, has been traded for something quite different. A new version. One could almost refer to it as a life lived by the unseen. Our focus of striving towards wordly success or the praises of people has died down, and now our eyes are fixed on the things of our Father. Like Paul died to himself in order to live for Christ, so too will our lives be laid down, left behind, so that we may freely serve our King who sits on Heaven's throne. Now (if not before), we can fiercely devote ourselves as vessels to be used in His service - wherever He takes us!
Thankfully, we are not thrown out as empty vessels with nothing to offer. For the last two months our buckets have slowly but surely been filled with the knowledge and experience of others - even in our own time with the Lord, He has changed our hearts in many ways and added to the mixture. During the entire training period we sure received a lot of input, and for many, the point of complete saturation had now arrived. Our buckets had been filled to the brim and could take in no more.
Then, in Johannesburg, God sent the team from America as a sharp-edged arrow to pierce this container, so that its content could start flowing out to those in need. Finally we could put all the lessons into practice... And then we saw God move:
We experienced His heart for the sick and the broken as we watched Him do the unthinkable. Pain was bound and health restored. We witnessed many miracles in a short period of time and now we can all testify to the fact that God is undoubtedly ALIVE. We don't have to merely read or speak about other people's encounters any more. No. Now we can testify to God's power through personal experience. And it truly is a marvelous privilege to be present when our Healer heals and our Provider provides.
Our faith grew as our leaders slowly let go of the reins. The final bit of equipping was given... And now the time has come for all 3 teams to run free with the Holy Spirit as our Guide and the message of Christ in our hearts.
Comments