Week One!!!

First full week in Indonesia! A beautiful country, beautiful people and beautiful experience.

But I won’t lie… for the first several days my word of the week was discouraged. For so many reasons, questioning what I was even doing here. That even though this had been my dream, maybe I was in the wrong place.

A sweet reminder from the Lord that I just kept coming back to was “Covered in the fragrance of your people’s prayers.” Because our squad has been so prayed for by so many people. I’ve been prayed for by so many people. There’s so many people pulling for us and God never makes a mistake. We are exactly where we need to be.

You are always there. In every moment. The gentle whisper. A constant reminder. I never go alone. Or first or last. You go before, behind, beside

There’s a song called Highlands and the lyrics to the chorus are:

“So I will praise You on the mountain
And I will praise You when the mountain’s in my way
You’re the summit where my feet are
So I will praise You in the valleys all the same
No less God within the shadows
No less faithful when the night leads me astray
You’re the heaven where my heart is
In the highlands and the heartache all the same”

We are shaped by the hills and valleys. Our testimonies are so so powerful. People want to hear your stories. It makes the gospel real when it comes to life in front of you. No one can deny a changed life. And even when it’s hard and discouraging, He is NO LESS GOD!

I want to share this story of a lady from 2 Kings 4:1-7 that just resonated with me so deeply this week:

The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves. Elisha replied to her, “How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” “Your servant has nothing there at all,” she said, “except a small jar of olive oil. Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.” She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another one.” But he replied, “There is not a jar left.” Then the oil stopped flowing. She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

God is just asking for one step of obedience. He will take care of the rest—even when it feels hopeless, discouraging, or uncertain.

And this week? He filled my jars.

This week’s jars of oil:

• teaching kids to play guitar with Jon and Emma
• Worshipping side by side with an Indonesian church
• Seeing the Lord’s beauty on full display at the ocean
• Moments that whispered the goodness of God
• Friendships that refresh the soul
• Intentional interactions with the people of Batam
• The man on the beach who told us he would see us again one day in paradise
• Having the same favorite song as a man I got to pray for
• Meeting, praying and playing with some kids in the mall
• Meeting God’s people from a new corner of the world
• And so so so much more… every small jar overfilling with His sweet goodness

Because He deals gently. Even when everything inside of us is screaming how God must hate us, want nothing to do with us, or be so brought to shame by us, His only response is gentleness. Gently holding our heart in His hands. Saying “I’m right here for you thought it all, no matter how bad it is. I’m not leaving. And even if you do, I’m always waiting right here with open arms. I don’t want to offer you harsh words or scorn, only my embrace. Please understand the gentle heart I have for you my child.” And beneath every pain, anguish, protest, move of resistance, our greatest desire, driven by our greatest need, is falling fully into His loving embrace, being fully covered in His love, which touches every part of our being.

Jesus holds us in an embrace tighter than we could ever imagine and there is not a thing in heaven or earth we could do to break his loving grasp. Our pain, numbness, grief, desperation – they are not a reflection of Christ’s heart, rather they are the brokenness of this world. He holds our hearts in His deepest being. He comes down to our level to meet us in every hint of hurt. His innermost being cries out to us. We have always been His greatest desire, created to be in perfect communion with Him. All of heaven rejoices for each soul that returns home with the goal of every to be returned to their Maker.

In Matthew 9 a woman, residing at rock bottom, reaches out in a crowd full of people and touched Jesus’s cloak in desperate faith. When we reach out to Jesus, He takes notice. He meets us. He heals us. He takes us by the hand and leads us into healing. Do you believe that He is able? Because He is.

Matthew 10:39 is a reminder that I lost what I thought was life to be made truly alive in Him (reading through Matthew if ya can’t tell and you should too it’s so good!!)

Never forget, the most important thing is… show you have Jesus in your heart!!!!