TRUST

Week 3 and 4

Tell me what you would do in this situation? You see a man on the side of the street. He is about 20 years old and is crippled. He sits in the same spot of the same street almost every day. You decide to go talk to him, get his story and see if he knows Jesus. You find out sometimes his mother will take him into the city to beg. Sometimes someone will pay him to sort through garbage separating trash from recycled material. Most days though he just sits there in that same spot with nothing to do, nowhere to go, and not one to talk to. He does not know how to read or write. You ask him if he has any dreams and he says, “To have a job where I have to stand!”

You might be thinking, “There is no way I can help this man!” “His needs and dreams are beyond my ability!” “Is this even a true story?” Well the answer is yes! This is a real person who is ministered to by some people in one of the houses in that YWAM runs in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Sometimes circumstances and situations that happen to us in life seem completely out of control. We get so frustrated searching for an answer to the question “WHY?” or trying to fix the problem ourselves, when all we need to do is just trust God to work. Proverbs 3: 5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path.”

God does not promise us prosperity and an easy life on this earth. We will all suffer from things because of sin. We make the suffering greater on ourselves when we trust in this world or ourselves to fix the problem and not God. You cannot control your life! Control is an illusion. This man could not control being crippled, he was born that way. Same with the children I am working with in the Refuge House. They were born with HIV. In His Sovereignty God has us each right where He wants us. We can either choose to go along with it or we can fight it and make life more difficult on ourselves by doing so.

This past couple of weeks I was faced with a difficult situation that really challenged me. There were some things going on that I didn’t agree with. They broke my heart and it made me angry. Normally when a difficult situation happens in my life I fight till I get my way or justice is done. Sometimes I get my way, sometimes I do not! Regardless of the outcome of the circumstance I always manage to feel burned out and frustrated with life when it is over. I realized this week it is because I rely on my own strength to solve the problem and not God. Sure I fool myself into thinking I am involving God because I pray and ask Him for help however, the minute I am done praying I’m back to solving the problem on my own, frustrated at the fact it seems God does not want to help. Oh but He does want to help me! In fact He wants to fight for me and carry me through this! 1 Peter 5:7 tells us to cast all our anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. When we’re feeling overwhelmed with stress, we’re encouraged to “cast our anxiety” on God. He’s not a stern judge waiting for us to break under our worries; He actively wants to help carry our burdens.

This time I decided to shut my mouth, follow that verse, and pray with faith about the situation. I was amazed at how quickly my prayers were answered when I did! Only God can work to change the hearts of people. He is the one to show them right and wrong by writing truth on their hearts. We have the freedom to accept His Truth or reject His Truth. The Lord is our confidence and when we trust and believe in His ways we will be kept from falling into the anxious and stressful ways of life. We remember that He is Sovereign, He is in control, and even if we do not see the results of the circumstance this side of heaven we know He is being glorified.

So back to the 20 year old; after learning all this, this week, I would probably sit there and talk to him. I would pray with him and for him; it’s really all I can do in that situation. If there was some way I could help him then I would but if the help he needs goes beyond my ability I must go to God with it! Sometimes all a person needs is a friend or someone to listen to them and love them. Sure he would like to have that job but more than that he wants a friend. He is constantly overlooked because of his disability. Sometimes we overlook that simple responsibility of being a friend to take on something that is beyond our control and really isn’t a priority to them. Let God handle the big things! You enjoy the company of this person and together wait and watch for God’s mighty hand to work so you don’t miss the blessing He has!

Prayers for the week:
I go on Friday to hopefully get my visa extended for 60 more days! Please pray they give me 60 instead of 30.

My church family is going through some changes right now. Pray for God’s wisdom, guidance, and discernment for the pastors and that He would open the hearts of the congregation for the changes that will occur. Also that God would protect the church from any deception.

Continued prayer to find a tutor for the boy I told you about in week 1 that does not know how to read.

Thank you all again for your prayers and support! God bless!