The past few days have been absolutely amazing! Saturday we had our last kids crusade. It was a bittersweet day as well. But what an AMAZING service we had! We were able to get the orphanage kids we have been working with to come to the crusade! 3 of them received the Holy Ghost! Isn't that awesome?! We had nearly 200 kids there! We counted about 180 and got tired of counting! ;) 14 kids received the Holy Ghost for the first time and several had a refilling! God came and showed out! Altar call was just one of the most amazing I've been involved in since being here. After praying for the orphanage kids and some others I stood to the side and just watched. I watched as kids poured their heart out on the altar. I watched the stammering lips and loose tongues. I watched as tears flowed and praises went up to the father. I stared in amazement. If you didn't already know… God is amazing! ;) He is the same here, He is the same in Arkansas, He is the same in China and in the Pacific Islands! He is never changing! What a joy to know I can feel God here in the jungles of Africa just as I can in my prayer closet at home. What a comforting feeling. I have watched many muslims "perform" during their hours of prayer and nearly wept for them. Though as many times a day they pray can put us to shame, thank you God all I have to do is call on your name and your there in a second! All we have to do is cry out to God and He is there! No "rituals", no certain prayers or words need to be said, "Just call upon the name of the Lord" How awesome is that?!
We got to meet with Terick again tonight. This makes the third time. I was very excited he stopped by because he was suppose to saturday but forgot he had an exam and apologized for his absence. Once he got here he asked how everyone was feeling and making sure the girls with malaria were better. He said, "here in Africa malaria is our friend because we have it o often. But when white people come and get it we take it more seriously because they don't get it and it can be much worse. So I am glad your friends are ok." After catching up he wanted to get right into practicing the songs he learned last time. He is doing a great job! He is even singing all the words with it now! Tonight Brier taught him, "Tis So Sweet To Trust in Jesus". He thought this one was more difficult than the last but was thankful she taught it because it helps him learn more. By the end of the night he was singing and playing perfectly! I will try and post more videos of him singing when I get to some better wifi! :) We then talked about our favorite sports. Considering the World Cup just ending he was curious. He was rooting for Germany and France so he was very pleased Germany won! :) What made me so happy tonight was when he started playing he pulled out the tract we wrote the lyrics on! It had looked worn as if he had been reading it. God is working here y'all! We can all feel it! You can just feel it in his voice as he sings and when he asks us about church. Please be in prayer with us that he will get a revelation of the truth! God is moving on his heart, you can just feel it! It is so amazing to watch! A muslim, singing about how sweet it is to trust in Jesus and about the blood of Jesus. It's amazing! I absolutely hate we are leaving in 2 weeks! Please pray also that we can get him in touch with a local pastor so he has connections when we leave. I don't know why, but I have a great peace about him. God is working in him greatly. I just know it!
This thursday we leave for 4 days and travel up north to be apart of the youth camps there. We are all very excited! Pics and stories to come! Please pray for safe travels and for a mighty move in the youth camps! :)
Friday night we had our weekly devotion at the Sully's house. Brother Sully talked about how no matter what we do in life, no matter where we go, do everything for the Kingdom. "Whatever you do in life, do it for the harvest. Whether on the receiving end or the giving end, do it for the harvest." His words truly moved me. Though sometimes we do things we don't want to do, we must always do it with a thankful heart. Most of all, we must do it for the kingdom! After that we had prayer, and what an amazing prayer meeting we had! We kept praying and kept seeking and God showed up! We had tongues interruption and everything! God said, "Encourage yourselves in me tonight. And know that I have surely been here." How amazing! It's so hard to put experiences like that into words. It's moments like those I wish I could record to rewatch forever. Those spontaneous prayer meetings with this group and missionaries will greatly be missed. I was talking with a friend on the Sully's roof watching the sun go down, and we began talking about our futures and how being here as affected it. I began pouring my heart out about my experiences this summer and with AYC. Though I am extremely thankful for everything that has taken place this summer and for everything I have learned through the Next Steps program, I now know for sure that I am not called to West Africa. It's not a bad thing, not everyone is called here. It's a wonderful, wonderful place! Full of happy people and amazing churches! It's been a life changing summer! I have enjoyed every second of it, and learned more in 2 months than I have most of my life. But during my time here God has been pulling my heart back to East Africa. I have not been able to get it out of my head. It has been my prayer since being here that God reveal my "next step" to me so I can try and have a plan. I believe that God confirms his will with peace and when I think of going back to AIM in East Africa I have a great peace in my heart. The door has been opened, now I all have to do is walk through it with great faith right? It's exciting to think about! But anyways! I said all that to say this, sometimes we feel like we don't belong where we are or we are in the wrong place. Maybe like you don't belong or that you took a wrong turn somewhere. But the thing is, you're still moving, you're still growing, still learning, and still going places. You're not stuck! God isn't finished with you yet. You're not done till you die! ;) So when you find yourself in those places, continue living every moment to the fullest. Soak in every lesson and every word. Take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way. "Chase lions!" and remember, "It may not be your final destination, but it's apart of your journey." Everything you go through in life prepares you for what God has waiting for you. So keep going. :)
I'm pretty much an open book on my blog so you all will know about East Africa in due time. (God's time) Please in your time of prayer say a prayer for me. Pray that I can continue to walk through every door God opens for me with great faith. Love you all! See ya soon.
Until next time,
-Brandi :)
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