Bonjour Rwanda!

It's been 5 days since I have stepped onto the beautiful African soil of my long awaited final destination of Rwanda! Alleluia! I don't think I have every experienced such overwhelming joy in my life, seeing God's faithfulness become so much of a reality in my life. This was a journey about Him and I walking through the unknown like little child holding the hand of her father. As I crossed the bridge over the border of Tanzania into Rwanda I was greated with a Welcome to Rwanda sign in 3 different languages and a warm smile from the guard saying Bonjour. I was immediately received and I knew part of my purpose for being here was to apologize on behalf of the United States for leaving them to fight on their own. If you have not seen Hotel Rwanda, please do for a solemn reality of a glimpe of what this country experienced or read the book "Left to Tell" by an amazing genocide survivor. I realized the guard spoke very little English but I told him what I needed to do and the presence of the Holy Spirit connected us beyond the language. I could see it in his eyes he felt my sincere love and humbleness. When I got to the immagration office to receive my stamp into the country I was warmly welcomed by another friendly genecide survivor. I didn't know if I should do the same by just getting to the apology, but God moved through our conversation by opening a door. Again, it was a beautiful experience and Fidele's response was, "You are a Christian. You are so kind." But it was me who was kind, but he who extended his love by welcoming me. I didn't know what to say, but it was a holy moment and I knew God did something. He and his sister and I are friends now and I plan to meet her in Kigali this week.

So that was just a basic introduction. There is so much to tell about God's favor upon my journey here, that as I look back, I realize is was like one of those presents that when you unwrap the biggest one, you look inside only to find another box to unwrap, and again and again to you get to the smallest one that ends up being a beautiful diamond. But box was something to be treasured, unlike usually when it happens and you throw the box to the side. I will write more when I have time about what those surprises were....

I honor you, Grandma...

My grandma passed away this week and since I can not be there to properly mourn and celebrate her life and death, I felt God prompting me to honor her on my blog because of the work that she has done spiritually in my life. She was and will continue to be my wisest cheerleader for the gospel...I will miss our conversations about what God is doing in our lives, but I know she will now have an even greater perspective...

Dear Grandma, I would like to take this time to honor you, not because you were a great grandmother (though you were) or because you liked to give away a lot of things (though you did), but because of your amazing relationship with Jesus Christ, an amazing woman of Faith. Although it is a sad occasion that your physical presence will no longer be here on earth with us, I am excited and happy for you that you have gone Home. I would like to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a living example of a disciple of Jesus Christ and not backing down from what you believed. Thank you for being real about the gospel, sharing it wherever you went, and not being afraid of what people would say...I really admire you for that and long to follow in those footsteps. You always chose God's will for your life, no matter what the cost was. It didn't matter how much pain you had to go through or moving from your comfortable house, you still saw the good in what He was doing. I also want to say thank you for your constant prayers, Grandma. I know many of them God has answered in my life while I am here in Africa. Thank you for your confidence in Him and never backsliding when things got tough. Even when people may have thought you had been too religious or preachy at times, it didn't bother you because you knew who you were in Christ. Thank you for speaking truth in our lives, and I ask for forgiveness I wasn't "in the mood" to listen to your wisdom and revalation. I admire your willingness and endurance to fight the good fight of faith, looking forward to what was before you and forgetting the past. Your eyes were like Paul's, on getting the crown of God's call from heaven; to count everything as loss compared to knowing Jesus Christ our Lord. That's you, Grandma. Everything else was worthless compared to your relationship with Him...Thank you for understanding my desires to give everything to find the abundant life in Jesus, the freedom that Christ has offered to each of us, but few rarely find. Thank you for choosing the narrow path and not giving into the fear of man. Grandma, I am excited that you are in the best place possible, receiving the treasures you have built up in heaven. Thank you for living your life loudly, boldly, and courageously for the Kingdom of God. May the seeds you have planted in my life as well as many others grow into trees of righteousness. May you see the fruit of your laboring in prayer. May you rejoice and be glad that you are now seated in heavenly places with the greatest person who has ever walked the earth. You have lived your life, Grandma, as a strong woman of Faith. May God bless you as you rest in His loving arms and dance in celebration that it is no longer mourning time for you. For Song of Soloman says in chapter 2 verses 10-13, "My love speaks and says to me, 'Get up, my love, my beautiful one, and come with me. For see, the winter is past. The rain is over and gone. The flowers are coming through the ground. The time for singing has come. The voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land. The fig tree has its fruits. The flowers on the vines spread their sweet smell. Get up, my love, my beautiful one, and come with Me.'" I believe this is Jesus welcoming you home and into the beautiful spiritual body He has prepared for you to live forever with Him.

I love you so much and look forward to the the day when we can share about my adventures, but I know that you will be able to be where I am...Come along for the ride, Grandma!

More pictures!

I got kicked out of the internet cafe yesterday because the owner was sick, so I didn't have time to finish the rest of my blog...Here are a few more pictures to see!

I met Siki one night at a cell group and she has an amazing story to tell about being one of the first black Africans to go to an all-white school after Apartheid ended in 1994. We share the same heart to see people reconciled to Jesus and then to each other…Her spirit and mine connected immediately and we could stop talking about our passions for Africa. I know we will see each other and minister together one day…I have never met anyone like her before. You could feel alive just sitting next to her…really.


I chose to get baptized in the ocean the last day of DTS as a symbol of my new commitment with God. I haven’t been been pabtised as an adult until now…I couldn’t have picked a better place, although the water was very…ah….refreshing!


This a TRUE miracle…that we all graduated…Ephesian 2:14-22, my prayer for this whole DTS was answered…I have seen TRUE reconciliation happen, but it’s only by the blood of Jesus…

More of God’s little ones enjoying sweets together!

Anyone for a chicken’s foot? There’s not much meat on them, but the cartilage has a bit of flavor!

Just some of the delicious food we tried from the Xhosa guys’ culture…this is called Smiley…(sheep’s head) and I think it’s because it smiles back at you when you eat it!  I had the privilege of eating the cheek and the lip....chewy!

Playing UNO with the children, our neighbors, on a rainy day….

Preparing for the adventure ahead! Wahoo!

I'm Back...On Blogger, Not In The US...

Okay, everyone…it’s official…I am an honorable YWAM graduate! Wahoo! We had our very multicultural ceremony in the township about 1.5 weeks ago, and it felt like home again after being out of Capetown for 2 months...It was really amazing and it felt like God was as excited to see this day become a reality for our group. Seriously, it’s been a very long 5.5 months together from different backgrounds, cultures, languages, belief systems, walks with God, ages, etc., etc., etc. and for me, this is a TRUE miracle about the grace and faithfulness of God to see our group make it to the end together still loving each other…man, where should I start?????

I am leaving for a journey to Rwanda starting next Tuesday…Yikes! It’s been complete chaos because I feel like South Africa has become my second home for the last 10 months and it’s very difficult to find time to spend with all the beautiful people I met. It’s impossible actually to plan and treasure every second I have left here. I have fallen in love with this place, seriously, and I know this place has forever changed my character and relationship with God and people. If I sound a bit random in my blogs, it’s because I have a million things on my mind in order to get out of the country by next Friday…I still have not made any plans to get out and I have to find a way to add more pages in my passport because I have traveled to too many places…what a shame! 

So my idea is to make it to Rwanda by bus, not plane where I could be there in 5 hours, but by land, which in Africa could be months…I plan to visit Iris Ministries again in Pemba, Mozambique as well as the Salyer family, my adopted American African missionary family. They would like to take a vacation to Malawi, so they may help me get more on my way…Wahoo! I have not set really an exact plan for the journey, but I am trusting God’s timing and guidance for this whole trip. I could explain what lead me up to this decision, but I am afraid I don’t have the time or space on this website to go into great detail…I am going! I am going! I am going! So please pray for my safe travels and God’s guidance and discernment.

As for the rest of my blog, I would like to include pics that will give you a general glimpse into my world over the past 4 months and the places the team has been to minister. We got to do a lot, but I believe the most ministry was done internally with eachother, teaching us to lay down our rights, prefer others more than ourselves, patience, sacrificial love, perseverance, and to treasure the small changes like seeing a hard of stone slowly become accepting of correction and real love. It’s not exactly what I wanted to go through, but I know God is answering my prayers to learn what reconciliation really looks like, and it’s not easy, no way! It requires a lot of stability in God and choosing to die to yourself…how many people want make that conscious decision every day to do that???? But then I find myself asking, What if Jesus had done that for us? I don’t like to think about that.

So enjoy the pictures…most of them aren’t mine because my camera was stolen with all of them from the beginning, but these should give you a good idea of God’s work!

At New Jerusalem, the children’s center we ministered at in Johanessburg, we go to talk the HIV babies to the clinic for their medication…my spirit stirred a lot this day, looking at their innocence and asking God, “Why?” and realizing the unlikelihood that these children would ever have a real family someday...


This is a precious picture because it rare for African males to spend time like this with children…It was one way God was softening Sandise’s heart. This little one sadly died while we were ministering there and we attended a funeral and burial…nothing like in the states…just a hole in the cemetery with a cardboard tombstone…another reality of Africa. Why do we spend so much money to celebrate the death of someone we love? Why not celebrate them more when they are alive?

Out of all the African guys on this team, it was Mfuneko who had the biggest heart for children...He lit up and was always kissing their cheeks...

“Brenda, Jesus loves you, do you know that?”

"I need more arms, God...Can you do a miracle?"

We need to chew on the Word of God daily!

We spent two weeks visiting sick people in their homes to give them hope and encouragement. After just a couple of visits, Brinley and I felt like we were a part of the family, enjoying tea, worship, prayer together...The case worker even blessed me with her beautiful white sweater before I left...it humbled me to tears.

We had a youth retreat for the teenage girls at a group home one weekend on who we are in Christ! God was so cool! He challenged me to speak for 1.5 hours on being in God’s family! It was so fun!

"More babies! Mom, can I keep him?"

I taught the African guys how to make homemade peanut butter cookies to take to their families. It was their first time baking! It was fun, as it turned into a flour fight…

Our last week of Outreach was back in the township church! Alleluia! Now this was home to us! The children we fed good healthy meals and then we did dramas every night and gave them the Word of God to eat!

This teenage girl attended and translated the services for us every night…I felt it on my heart to really pray God’s protection and dreams over her life because I know He has an incredible love for her. She really has a love for God and it’s a rough life to live out when poverty is all around her.

Here I got to preach about the dreams God has for His children, not as the world gives, but REAL KINGDOM dreams that are eternal, more than success, money, fame, materialism, but using the gifts He’s given to build the Kingdom of God.


Our last days of Outreach we spent debriefing on a Lion Game Reserve….Isn’t the cub cute? He is safe to hold because he doesn’t have teeth, but I did get scratched!

Pray 4 us, please!

I can't believe it's almost July! Where does the time go? I wish I had more internet time to post some pictures from my DTS, but not right now :( I am having a blast, being challenged in many areas of my life, as well as seeing God move spiritually in other students lives around me...I am always smiling and in awe of what God is doing...

I am wondering if you could please pray for the team before we go out on Outreach to Johanessburg. That the money to go would come in (we are looking at still trying to raise about $5,000 so if God puts it on your heart to give, you can be such a blessing and send a check to Shouts of Joy Ministries-Stephanie Wendel, 701 W. 4th Street, Kimberly, WI 54136), as well as protection and unity for our team. Because of the many diverse people, we have been struggling a bit with communication issues and conflict...not really bad where it's gotten horrible, but we fail to understand each other and listen to what we are realy saying. We leave in two weeks so any extra prayer and/or financial support would be a huge, huge blessing!

Thanks to all of you who have been faithful in keeping in contact with me! I love you guys soo much and miss you!

I Believe I Can Fly!

I love this picture so much because when I look at it, I see a prophetic picture of Mfuneko and the rest of my friends here in YWAM. He looks like he could fly away! Over the past 7 weeks, I can honestly say I have seen some amazing miracles, not like the ones that people would rant, rave, and write in the newspaper...but the ones that actually involve hard work of changing hearts and minds. This picture of Mfuneko is also a REAL visible picture of many beautiful invisible changes that are taking place inside of many of us, including myself. Without going into great detail, I would just like to say that Mfuneko has really melted my heart with his insightful "tell me more about..." kinds of questions. He comes from an incredible heartbreaking background that no child should experience, and his story would make any person's heart ache for justice. As he shared, all I could do was ask, "Why God? Why him and not me? Why was I born in America with the best opportunities and he wasn't? Why didn't I have to experience the worst of the worst while I got ice cream for a snack and tucked into a warm, safe bed at night?" To this day, I still ponder these questions about life and God, but we all know we live in a fallen world. I learned that all I could do was listen to his story and mourn for him, praying that God would use me to produce some kind of healing in his heart, and I was touched by a comment he made to me one day..."Steph, you are like a bright star in the sky that when people lose their way, they just look towards you. You will lead them on the right path." I had tears in my eyes because it wasn't cliche, but straight from the heart with his broken English. I asked God about this and I felt that God wanted me to repeat it back to him. I looked in the scriptures about the star of David and it said that the wise man came from very far lands to get to Jesus, whom everyone was waiting for to come to earth. I told Mfuneko that he could also take the words he shared with me prophecy because people are going to come from even far away places to hear his testimony and how God has changed his life. Even worldly, wise in their own eyes, kind of people. They are going to see him shining as a bright light, and wonder how he's changed his life. I really believe this. I have experienced miracles since day three how God has grabbed his heart and taken away much of his darkness! He has become a little brother to me--a "brother from another mother." :)

A Whole New World...

This is the view from my window where I have been spending the last 4 weeks. Hardly the kind of "new world" like Aladdin and Jasmine sing about, huh? The township, "Gugulethu," which means "Our Treasure" in the native language "Xhosa" (pronounced Koh-zah, with a clicking of the tongue) is made up of shacks with no running water or electricity. They are very close together, as you can hopefully see and usually host about 10 people. These townships are filled with poverty, crime of all sorts, HIV, poor education, etc., etc., etc. Alcohol is rampant and children are playing everywhere. Most people would judge this place and think like the people in Jesus' time when they said, "What good can come out of this place?" This is why we are here, to unbury the treasures in the darkness, the lost souls whom our Lord Jesus Christ died for, just like you and I. Little by little we are making our presence known in the community, by playing with the children, praying for alcoholics who wish they could stop drinking so they could be better mothers, a man with heart troubles, etc. Even as depressing as it can be in the natural, I have faith that the Lord is using as bright lights bringing hope to the hopeless and fulfilling Isaiah 61. God is enlarging my heart as I have typed before through prayer and realizing the truth in Matthew 5. It's a beautiful thing, really to live like this, and I am excited to share testimonies of how God is using us as we venture out to bring the Kingdom of Heaven to earth. It's about pressing in and standing in the gap for a community and refusing to be discouraged. God sees the bigger picture and He is in control. He loves this place, and with the time I have here, I am determined for Him to use me as a vessel to pour out His love however I can. Can I get an AMEN?

Becoming a "S.W.A.N."...Aren't we beautiful?

Sorry it's been so long since I have updated this...It's been on my heart to let everyone know what is going on in my life, and I am hoping to add more pictures soon. I don't know how to explain what's happened lately except ALOT! I chose the title "Becoming S.W.A.N.s" because I am seeing the students on my DTS (discipleship training school) changing and we are Seeing Wonders Among the Nations. Seriously. God is transforming lives among us from some of the roughest backgrounds and making swans out of us. It has been an honor to see God use me to speak life into these precious ones, and I feel like they really are my younger brothers and sisters. They have also taught me a lot about myself and the areas in my life that I need "character building." Not always fun, but necessary because this is the time for pruning. I have realized its challenging to live with guys!!!! Especially ones that leave the toilet seat up and need practice aiming, if you know what I mean! And for some reason, out of all the qualified students, I got nominated as bathroom cleaner! Yippee! 14 people sharing one shower and 2 toilets, just picture the bathroom schedule in the morning! Not funny. Especially when breakfast is at 7:00 am. Slowly, but surely we are practicing 1 Cor. 13 every day...It's a common passage I am slowly starting to memorize. :) But without these small challenges, we wouldn't be a family. Through all its quirks and frustrations, God is showing us the power of community and helping us die to ourselves everyday. I didn't expect it to be this challenging as I have lived in community before, but this is very different. Most of the students are brand new Christians and are just receiving the revelation of the love of Jesus for the first time.
But more importantly, how God is knitting us together is bearing witness to the neighborhood around us. We draw attention to ourselves because it is NOT normal for "colored people, black people, and white people" to live and enjoy being with each other. It's strange, since segregation ended only 12 years ago at the end of apartheid. South Africa's "civil rights movement" shorted ended, so one can imagine the process of healing this country is working towards. I would say the greatest gift God has blessed us with is joy and laughter. There is never a dull moment with this group of people, and no matter how grading on my nerves some of these guys can be, God has a way of using it as a teachable moment. Little by little big changes are happening in the hearts of these guys. I can see transformation happening each day as they are becoming more men of God. It's priceless and I have so much hope!

What You've Been Waiting For!

(I love the village!)

(We took one of the children from the center snorkeling and he loved it!)

(Everybody loves a haircut that costs 25 cents!)

(Crazy kids! Can you see why I love them?)

(Serious rock climbing in Mozambique...ha!)

(No personal space here! We were a big, happy Christian family of 25!)

(Didn't want to say goodbye...)

(Where's Waldo, I mean Wendel? The children went crazy when we arrived in their village...we felt famous)

(a beautiful new friend on outreach)

(Antonio's family)

Home Sweet South African Home...

(It's true! It's true!)

Well, I spent almost a month on my own along the east coast in two different places: Knysna and Plettenburg Bay, and now I am back with the Salyer family in Capetown. I have gotten accepted to attend YWAM, a Christian organization where I will be attending discipleship classes for three months, and then ministering in different places in South Africa. This program will run mid April through September. I will be located in on of the biggest townships (urban areas established by black Africans after the apartheid in which many live in shacks and lower income housing), living in a facility that houses HIV babies. There will be many opportunities to be involved in the community as well, such as afterschool programs, tutoring, working with the law enforcement, elderly, etc. I am really excited to get a more “hands-on” structured experience in urban Africa, as it’s been my heart to see many cultures unite and empower them in the name of Jesus Christ. I know it will challenge me to step out and use my gifts, so that I can see God move through me. I am ready to roll up my sleeves and dig into Kingdom work again! Yippee!

Standing Firm on God's Promises

(A sign of God's faithfulness as we arrived at our first village on outreach)

As for being on my own, (riding for 8 hours on a bus, sleeping in a tent, discovering the city, walking along the beach, eating, etc.), it was an experience, and I encourage everyone to do it. You’ll discover many aspects about yourself and how to handle situations on your own. Doing ministry with other Christians is relatively easy compared to doing it on your own, at least in my case. For example, Jesus sent his disciples out two by two, giving them authority over the unclean spirits (Mark 6:7). In Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, Solomon says, “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! And if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?” My answer to the last part as I experienced these weeks was crawling deep into my sleeping bag, relying on my own breath as body heat…:) There’s a reason why two are better than one at times.
It was challenging to spend all this time alone with God. You have more decisions to make, time on your hands, and meal times aren’t as exciting. But, despite all this, God really created many spiritual light bulbs to go off in my head from reading the Bible. This was definitely a new thing for me!
For example, Ecclesiastes really spoke a lot to me about the seasons in life, and how life is meaningless without God. On my own, every day felt mundane-- even reading the Word at times. I wasn’t having deep spiritual conversations with my friends, praying with people, doing ministry, etc. It was just me in the midst of other travelers who were not interested in God. They were treating themselves to every type of adrenaline sport possible--skydiving, paragliding, swimming with sharks, abseiling, scuba diving, surfing, etc, like Solomon in Eccles. 2. I didn’t want to judge their behavior since I, myself, have risked my life in some of these things (remember me freaking out in the sky?).
And I also know these things are a gift from God (Eccles. 3:13). But, I couldn’t help but think that when it was all over, and the high has been achieved, what were they going to find true fulfillment in? I was frustrated with myself because I kept asking God, “Why do I feel so lonely and discontent when I have you, and these people seem more happy? Am I jealous because they get to do these things, even though I am in a different season in my life? Why do I want to be like them when I know the truth?” I think many of us ask these questions and then feel bad because we feel like we fail God by not making Him first in our life. After all, it is a whole different ball game when you don’t have the company of other Christians backing you up! And God did make humans to fulfill the need of companionship (Gen. 2:18). So where is the balance?
During this time, I came to the conclusion for me that I have to focus on how much I am truly embracing and depending on God’s promises and His character. My relationship with Him has to be first, it has to stand alone. No matter what happens in life, I need to have the faith to believe He will never leave me nor forsake me. Whether I have people in our life or not, I need to believe beyond my physical senses and emotions that nothing can separate me from His love (Rom. 9:35-39). There’s a line in a popular song by Hillsong that really encourages me when I feel alone—“I sing because the world can’t take away Your love.” Above everything else, We need to have stronger faith in God’s unconditional love more than anything that’s tangible or felt emotionally. We lose our senses (physical and common,ha, ha!) as we get older, and our feelings change one minute to the next, but God’s love is constant –it’s our unshakable foundation from which everything in life is build upon. Since God is jealous for our love in return, whether through voluntary or involuntary experiences, He will at times stretch us to see how strong our love for Him is. He doesn’t want to be second to anyone or anything.

Trust me, I know this isn’t any easy concept to grasp; every day I am challenged by it. It humbled me to look like I didn’t have any plans or friends. The honest answer to “why are you traveling alone?” was an open door for persecution, and I learned to accept the uncomfortable silence after my reply. But through these examples, little by little, God is strengthening my faith. My deepest desire is to become more confident in being a “child of God,” rather than a “child of amazing worldly accomplishments and experiences.” A little backwards to human thinking, but look at what Jesus taught and how He lived out the Sermon on the Mount. That’s a child of God!

Have You Bathed Lately?

(Fresh mangos! What a sweet fragrance!)

God often uses natural items to speak to me supernaturally. The next few blogs aren’t necessarily about ministry experiences, but more of revelation that God gave to me as I was able to still myself and take in His Word. My prayer is that it will touch someone who reads them.

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere.” 2 Corinthians 2:14.
When you travel to different places, everything is new…The sights obviously, but for some reason, God awakened my sense of smell when I went for walks around the city. When I realized this, I began to pray that God would teach me something through them and the scripture I found above. Here are some of those thought and prayers from my journal…
Yesterday as I was walking, I became aware of many fragrances around me, especially the flower bushes. As I proceeded to walk by them, I stopped, and turned around to drink in the pleasant aroma. I began to realize that I wanted to be like this flower bush, living such a fragrant life, that people would take notice of the glory of the Lord within me. I began to think about my fragrance, and at that time, I definitely needed a shower from sweating…hmmm…not so delightful, even for myself.  I found myself asking, God, is this my attitude towards other people that aren’t like me? Am I being judgmental towards the backpackers? I didn’t have to wait long for answer to come to my spirit. Yeah, honestly, I wasn’t being very loving. So I started praying that God would bathe and refresh me in the sweet fragrance of His Holy Spirit, so that through me, the knowledge of Him would spread everywhere, not just in church or in my circle of friends. We all have good and bad fragrance days…Some days we take a shower, and some days we just stink. When we are walking in the Spirit, our “shoots are spreading out, and His beauty is like the olive, and his fragrance is like Lebanon” (Hos. 14:6).
Most of us know how to live a fragrant life--being washed in the Word, soaked in prayer and worship, refreshed by the company of other Christians, pouring out the love of God through loving acts, etc. 1 Cor. 15:58 says, “Therefore my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord, your labor is not in vain.” We need the grace to do this. Thankfully, in 2 Cor. 9:8, it says, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.” The rest of 2 Cor. 9 lists the benefits for doing the Lord’s work, not only for you, but for the receiver as well. They include: 1) God will increase the harvest of your righteousness (vs. 10), 2) You will be enriched in every way through your generosity (vs. 11), 3) It will produce an overflow of thanksgiving to God by the receiver (vs. 11), 3) The receiver will glorify God because of your submission from confessing the gospel (vs. 13), 4) The receiver will long for you (vs. 14), 5) The receiver will pray for you (vs. 15). I agree with Paul in vs. 15 when he says, “Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!” Mainly, our fragrances will encourage others to ask questions about our relationship with God, in hopes of creating a harvest of righteous disciples.
So think about this. What are some of your favorite scents? Why? Mine are the salty crispness from the sea, the rich aroma of a strong cup of coffee, the sweetness in the air as I walk past a fruit stand, and the mouth watering scent of homemade chocolate chip cookies coming from the oven. I like them for two reasons: 1) they remind me to thank the Creator because “every good gift and perfect gift is from above coming from the Father” (Jam. 1:17), and 2) so that others will “give glory to our Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).

Enlarge the Place of My Tent, Lord!

(Mirranda and I celebrating her salvation)

(Gepke and I on Outreach in Mozambique)

When I was on my own, I found that it was easy to get into my own world; I hardly spoke to people or went out of my way for them. I got caught up seeing my new surrroundings from a different perspecitive, which caused a lot of feelings to arise in me. In the past, I would try to numb them, forget about them, or basically feel really sad. But I didn’t want to do that this time. I wanted to tell God about how I was feeling, and as I did, I realized God was beginning to answer a prayer that I have had since October. This prayer has been Isaiah 54, particularly verse 2. I actually took the time to understand what it personally meant to me one day, and God really opened my eyes! Let me share with you…
I have been asking God to “Enlarge the place of my tent.” In the Old Testament, the tent referred to the place that God’s presence dwelt before they had the Holy Spirit. So what does this mean for my life now? Well, I am asking God to make more room in my spirit for Him to live. It’s almost like spring-cleaning for me, if I actually did that :) I have been asking God to make my heart bigger, so that I can love more people well. Rather than walk past the hurting, turning away from the pain around me, I am praying that God will help me to naturally care more. He’s showing me in order to do that, I need to get rid of the spider webs--my negative ways of judging, criticizing, feeling inadequate, jealousy, hopelessness, etc. Isaiah 57: 14-15, 21 says, “build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstruction from my people’s way…I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and humble in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite…there is no peace for the wicked.” In two other places in the Bible, contrite spirits are looked after by God and acceptable sacrifices to God. To me a broken, contrite spirit is to be desired. This means, God will usually use our circumstances to train us to grow in this area of character, just like muscles need gradual strengthening and building up. The mission school in Mozambique really helped in this arena, because I feel like I have a firmer foundation of WHO I am and WHOSE I am. I know this sounds like a simple truth, but we need to be reminded of this because this world has ways of making us “forget.”
It’s funny how literal God can be when He wants to teach you His Word. Before I left for traveling on my own, I felt like I should buy to tent to save on accommodation. So I bought a cheap tent that was supposed to fit two people, which would be perfect for me to sleep and to put my stuff. However, when I set it up to see if it would work, I quickly discovered it was way too small. I took up the whole tent, with barely any room for my backpack. I was unhappy, thinking how it was going to be absolutely uncomfortable to sleep, move, and live in this thing. So I took it back and got another two person tent that was larger. It was perfect! I could spread out and relax! I even had plenty of room to write in my journal and read the Bible without feeling claustrophobic. I was able to focus on Jesus, rather than the discomforts around me. And when I began to focus on God and His truth, He gave me more compassion for the people around me. For example, in the first time town I went to, I met a girl named Mirranda, who gave her life to Jesus. At first, I judged her, but I began to see her heart (as God does). We became friends, and I invited her to have a “girls night out” where I was staying. My new “tent” had plenty of room for her!
The rest of verse 2 also spoke to me a lot, so take some time to read it. I trust God will also give you some deep insight!

Open the Floodgates of Heaven!

My friend Lisa from school sent me a picture (I am the 3rd person over from the left in the camouflaged shirt...can you see me? Ha, ha!)of one of the best teaching/worshipping times that we had in class at Holy Given during the first week. I had goosebumps, not because of the rain, but from the tangible presence of the Lord. Let me tell you why...

We had been talking about the nations in class and people were praying for their countries in their respective languages (there were dozens of nations represented at the school). They were praying for the Spirit of God to break forth in their countries and repenting on behalf of the people who lived there, crying out on behalf of the nations.

It was hard to imagine that God would have mercy on us, and how the BRIDE of Christ could ever be beautiful, complete, and restored. We had an intense time of prayer, different people representing their nation in life, crying out for God's children to unite. God even put it on my heart for me to speak on behalf of Rwanda, for the victims of genecide, especially the children. Let me tell you, I was a WRECK, and I can guarantee you, most of the students felt it too. Our hearts were broken for our brothers and sisters...

As the prayers and tears came to a calm murmur, the wind outside the tent began to pick up and within about 30 seconds it was absolutely pouring!! I mean POURING!!! It hadn't rained in a very long time! It was weeks before the rainy season started! It had been sunny and hot and clear for weeks up until that moment! The heavens were opened! The Lord was responding...

I couldn't help but want to dive into the rain to feel the God's love washing my tears away. I was drenched, and NEVER in my life did God's timing seem so perfect and just for us...I danced around and laughed, completely in awe as the rain streamed down my body.

And I wasn't alone. Many people felt the Spirit move them to join the rest of us "crazies." in "soaking up" God's presence. We started singing "Let It Rain" in English, and then Portuguese, and pretty soon other people from their nations came to the microphone, singing in their language...It was such a precious, unifying moment in the body of Christ. Completely priceless.

It was like God was tangibly expressing His divine promise to us in Acts 2:17-'In the last days,' God says, 'I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.'

God WILL pour out his Spirit on the nations (he's even doing it right now!!) and his bride WILL be beautiful--not limping and broken and falling apart. As surely as I felt the penetrating rain soak me through and through, God will do what he has said he would do. PRAISE GOD!!

'Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder: 'Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself. She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear.' Rev. 19:6-8.

A House that God Builds

African Culture...

This is a picture of my little African "son" Antonio, a village boy, and myself carrying straw to Antonio's house to replace the roof. I felt truly African, even though I was called "goonya" (white person) from all the Makuan children as I trekked through the village with the straw on my head. I was quite a spectacle as people and children came out of their houses to watch! :) It's a good idea every year to put on a new roof, if the family can afford it, before the rainy season starts in January. In fact, as I write this in South Africa, there has been horrible floods in Pemba due to intense rain. I knew God wanted me to help his family when I saw the living conditions of their house. I imagined myself waking up soaked in the middle of the night with no place to go. I don't think I would be very happy, and my heart went out to Antonio's mother Maria when she explained why she wasn't doing well. I could definitely emphathize.
Matthew 7:12- So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.