Tomorrow (June 25th) I fly out to Colorado Springs for MTI (Missionary Training International). This is the last leg before I move to the Dominican! I had a long week end trip to Denver, CO where I learned all about Expeditionary Learning and I will spend the next 3 weeks with MTI learning the ins and outs of mission work, culture transitions and many other things! I am eager to learn and interact with other missionaries who will be at the conference. 

Thank you to all who attended the lunch at the Green Acres Dude Ranch in support of my ministry and departure to the DR. Your presence was greatly appreciated! I also want to thank you for your generous donations to my ministry. I know the Lord will use your gifts in many ways! 

Yesterday, I woke up with an anxious heart. The reality of me leaving for the Dominican all of a sudden became REAL! I then turned to my devotional of the day which reads:

“Let My love stream through you, washing away fear and distrust. A trusting response includes Me in your thoughts as you consider strategies to deal with each situation. My continual Presence is a promise, guaranteeing that you never have to face anything alone. My children teethe on  the truth that I am always with them, yet stumble around in a stupor, unaware of My loving Presence all around them. How that grieves Me! 
When you talk through a day in trusting dependence on Me, My aching heart is soothed. Gently bring your attention back to Me whenever it wanters away. I look for persistence – rather than perfection – in your walk with Me.”

– “Jesus Calling” by Sarah Young 

I was comforted by this devotional and immediately felt the weight of my anxious heart lift off my shoulders. How wonderful is it to know that the Lord delights in us as we seek Him for strength and guidance! I was also convicted because I am guilty of knowing that the Lord is with me, and then forgetting that He REALLY is with me when I need Him. I fail to trust Him and ask Him for help when my heart feels anxious or nervous. Along with feeling grateful and “light” my heart was also humbled after reading this devotional because was I graciously reminded to continually to trust in the Lord’s presence when I feel fear or anxiety. The Lord is so loving and kind to remind us that He is always with us! 

Please pray for me as I travel to Colorado and attend the MTI conference. 

The book of proverbs holds so much wisdom and truth and I have found an enormous amount light and guidance from this book. I want to share with you a couple verses in particular that stand out to me and how they relate to my current status.

Proverbs 30:8-9
“First, help me never to tell a lie. Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ And if I am poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name.”

I have spent a lot of time think about this verse and have lots and lots of ideas that have sprung from this one verse. Here are some of my thoughts….there are many so hold on.

As I prepare for my ministry in the DR  and focus of raising support, I do not want to lose the importance of the verse proverbs. I want my riches to come from the Lord. I want to have my every provision to come from the Lord and for it to be just enough to sustain my needs, so that I will continually lean on Him for my financial needs. The Lord already knows all my needs and knows exactly how to meet them. He is faithful and true and will provide for me just as it says in Philippians 4:19 

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

I am so encouraged to know that the Lord has it all under control and knows exactly what I need. As I think deeper into the verse in Proverbs, my hearts desire is to always be insync with the Lords’. I do not want to reach a point where I feel comfortable and thus lose my attention from the Lord. Rather, I want to keep my attention on Him to sustain my every need, and when my every need is met, I want to thank Him with abundance. Again, I want to lean on Him when I am having a hard time and I want to praise Him and give thanks to Him when His grace, mercy and provisions go above and beyond!

Great things can be done for the Lord with money, and my prayer is that I would know what to do with the money that He gives me. I don’t want to reach that point where I say “Who is the Lord?” because I have so much and have forgotten who has given it to me. I want to have just enough and be able to bless others with the money that I have left over. My pray is also that the Lord would show me where in my ministry to place my money so that I would be able to fully do the work of the Kingdom for His glory!

My thoughts and prayers also go to my family and friends who support me financially. My prayer is that they would be able to lean on the Lord for their needs and be thankful for what the Lord has given them to sustain them. I pray they would be able to give where they see fit to further His Kingdom, whether that be through supporting me or another ministry. I want my friends and family in Christ to be reminded of their riches given to them by the Lord.