Last week I had the opportunity to spend 4 days on a reservation/ranch of an indigenous tribe here in Colombia...more to come on that later. As I was preparing for this trip, I felt so inadequate to teach, overwhelmed by the lack of my spanish, and just unsure of why He chose for me to go.
He speaks so clearly through His Word and spoke to me through Isaiah when He told me that He will put His Words in my mouth and that His righteousness has gone before me and His glory will be my rear guard. What else is there to do when The Almighty tells you these things? Just rest in His Arms, sit, and listen to what He wants to tell you!
And so I did just that. Of course, Jota and I prepared for this weekend and knew HE guided us as we were completely on the same page with each lesson. Of course the enemy stuck his head in and made me feel like I was having difficulties communicating with Jota my ideas and understanding his ideas (something that rarely happens). I began to get nervous as here I am an english speaker teaching in my second language to a group of indigenous youth who will be listening in their second language or translating into their language for the group. And again He met me with His Words, I will put MY WORDS in your mouth, Kendall...rest in me!
This was lesson number one for me. Have you been wrestling with these thoughts as well? Thoughts of inadequacy, frustration, guilt because of past sin, and just unsure of why you? Rest in His Words that He has gone before you, will give you HIS WORDS, and will be your rear guard! Remember His focus is to bring Himself glory, it will happen with or without us! I don't know about you but I love watching HIM work and don't want to miss a thing!! So I am resting in HIM and watching HIM work!
Lesson number two: Devotion, True Adoration, True Love, Passion, Compassion, and the First Club in Acts...all of these things were questioned as I watched and was loved on by a group of people who have been completely run over and mistreated by everyone. I saw what each of these looked like in real life and in Light of His Truth! It was truly a blessing and I am not sure I have the words today to describe what HE taught me and what I am still processing through.
These people came from all over on their bikes, riding 2-5 hours each way to come and hear His Truth, and carrying at least 2 people with them! They came with what little they had to this reservation/ranch and all of their love, devotion, adoration, and passion for HIM and HIS Words! When they arrived they were welcomed in, given food, a place to stay, clothes, and lots of love!
They included me in this group, although I brought my own clothes, they wanted to share theirs and their culture with me. Acts of selfishness were as normal to them as brushing our teeth is to us. You know when Paul describes the New Testament Clubs? Well, this group of people not only read his words but believed that they were THE ONLY WAY and put them into practice!
What would that look like in our society, if new believers would read HIS WORDS and accept them as THE ONLY WAY and immediately put them into practice? What would your club look like? What would your day to day activities look like?
And these people are doing this all with the internal struggle/battle of finding their identities as believers and as indigenous tribe. It is a difficult battle as they do not want to loose who they are as indigenous but don't want to miss any aspect of their new lives as believers.
I listened to stories of young women who had been sold, by their fathers, for 20 goats and 4 necklaces to a man twice their age who beats her and lets all of his friends do whatever they want with her. Looking for her identity and value in HIM and trying to honor her father and her culture at the same time. Difficult is hardly the word that justly describes where these young women are and what they are dealing with! Yet those words above that I was challenged with by the Father, I saw in this young woman! And she sits and asks me for help/pryr/advice! Who am I? Little does she know that I am learning so much from her but I remember what HE told me before I left...HE was here before, HE put HIS WORDS in my mouth, and HE will be here to finish what HE started!
Yeah, not sure if any of this makes sense to you as you are reading this blog. I am still processing through a lot of things HE showed me this past weekend. I will post more once I have processed it all! Until then, please be pryng for these beautiful people in the Guajira as they take the strategies that we taught them and begin to implement them in their lives, lives of other members of their tribe, and other tribes!
He speaks so clearly through His Word and spoke to me through Isaiah when He told me that He will put His Words in my mouth and that His righteousness has gone before me and His glory will be my rear guard. What else is there to do when The Almighty tells you these things? Just rest in His Arms, sit, and listen to what He wants to tell you!
And so I did just that. Of course, Jota and I prepared for this weekend and knew HE guided us as we were completely on the same page with each lesson. Of course the enemy stuck his head in and made me feel like I was having difficulties communicating with Jota my ideas and understanding his ideas (something that rarely happens). I began to get nervous as here I am an english speaker teaching in my second language to a group of indigenous youth who will be listening in their second language or translating into their language for the group. And again He met me with His Words, I will put MY WORDS in your mouth, Kendall...rest in me!
This was lesson number one for me. Have you been wrestling with these thoughts as well? Thoughts of inadequacy, frustration, guilt because of past sin, and just unsure of why you? Rest in His Words that He has gone before you, will give you HIS WORDS, and will be your rear guard! Remember His focus is to bring Himself glory, it will happen with or without us! I don't know about you but I love watching HIM work and don't want to miss a thing!! So I am resting in HIM and watching HIM work!
Lesson number two: Devotion, True Adoration, True Love, Passion, Compassion, and the First Club in Acts...all of these things were questioned as I watched and was loved on by a group of people who have been completely run over and mistreated by everyone. I saw what each of these looked like in real life and in Light of His Truth! It was truly a blessing and I am not sure I have the words today to describe what HE taught me and what I am still processing through.
These people came from all over on their bikes, riding 2-5 hours each way to come and hear His Truth, and carrying at least 2 people with them! They came with what little they had to this reservation/ranch and all of their love, devotion, adoration, and passion for HIM and HIS Words! When they arrived they were welcomed in, given food, a place to stay, clothes, and lots of love!
They included me in this group, although I brought my own clothes, they wanted to share theirs and their culture with me. Acts of selfishness were as normal to them as brushing our teeth is to us. You know when Paul describes the New Testament Clubs? Well, this group of people not only read his words but believed that they were THE ONLY WAY and put them into practice!
What would that look like in our society, if new believers would read HIS WORDS and accept them as THE ONLY WAY and immediately put them into practice? What would your club look like? What would your day to day activities look like?
And these people are doing this all with the internal struggle/battle of finding their identities as believers and as indigenous tribe. It is a difficult battle as they do not want to loose who they are as indigenous but don't want to miss any aspect of their new lives as believers.
I listened to stories of young women who had been sold, by their fathers, for 20 goats and 4 necklaces to a man twice their age who beats her and lets all of his friends do whatever they want with her. Looking for her identity and value in HIM and trying to honor her father and her culture at the same time. Difficult is hardly the word that justly describes where these young women are and what they are dealing with! Yet those words above that I was challenged with by the Father, I saw in this young woman! And she sits and asks me for help/pryr/advice! Who am I? Little does she know that I am learning so much from her but I remember what HE told me before I left...HE was here before, HE put HIS WORDS in my mouth, and HE will be here to finish what HE started!
Yeah, not sure if any of this makes sense to you as you are reading this blog. I am still processing through a lot of things HE showed me this past weekend. I will post more once I have processed it all! Until then, please be pryng for these beautiful people in the Guajira as they take the strategies that we taught them and begin to implement them in their lives, lives of other members of their tribe, and other tribes!
RSS Feed