God is True Rest

The first day of training camp, now over a month ago, God told me to turn to Hebrews 4. The entire chapter is about entering God’s rest. I was hit with the revelation that I could always be in a place of true rest if I remained in God and allowed the Holy Spirit to be a helper in my life always. John 14:16-17 says, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper to be with you forever”.

I am so grateful for the ministry structure of the World Race because in every country, we are given a weekly schedule that includes a day devoted to Sabbath. Hebrews 4:9-11 says, “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience”. Sabbath is not just about not working. It is about having the time and space to seek God’s face and to listen to his voice intentionally. It is about disrupting the spirit of busyness and being obedient to having the same life rhythm as God. Genesis 2:2, “And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done”.

Every week, Sabbath has looked different. Sometimes, it is spending the vast majority of the day alone with God, seeking his face individually. Other times, it has been prioritizing movement and sports. Allowing God to minister to me through the activities I enjoy so much. God is so kind to teach me how to experience his love and presence in all things, not just in devoted time in scripture. God is truly so nice. He wants to meet with his kids in every moment of the day!

I have been living in Guatemala for almost three weeks now. God has revealed himself in new ways. He has shown me the love he has for every nation, tribe, and tongue. He has ministered to me my calling for my time in Guatemala, and how he wants to use me in this nation. He has increased my love for prayer and intercession. He has grown a fire in me to be an imitator of Christ and no one else. Ephesians 5:1 has been my daily meditation. “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children”. Every single day, I pray, “God, I just want to be like you. Make me more like you. Teach me how to live like you. Teach me how to love others like you. I want to be more like you, Jesus.” I have seen God as authority, teacher, and friend like never before.

This is our weekly schedule, so you can partner in prayer each day for our specific ministry. I hope to provide more information on each of these events in future blogs.

Tuesday- Prayer room, feeding program for the kids in the village of Santa Marta, teaching an English class for G2, and playing with the kids in the village.

Wednesday- King’s table ministering to widows, single moms, and alcoholics. Prayer room, then worship, games, and prayer with the kids in the village of Santa Marta.

Thursday- Sabbath

Friday- Prayer room, feeding program for the kids in the village of Santa Marta, teaching sports, and playing with the kids in the village.

Saturday- Every week is different. This week, we will be celebrating Guatemalan Children’s Day by taking the kids from the village to Guatemala City to have a day full of activities.

Sunday- Transporting to Antigua for an English-speaking church, street ministry with asking the Lord who to talk to, and visiting our other teams.

Monday- Cleaning the Reindom house, lesson planning, and prayer room.

God is moving in power in Guatemala, and I am so grateful to be a part of it. Several praises from this week:

1. God has been teaching me how to love and minister to the kids despite the language barrier, praise God!
2. God completely healed my teammate from asthma that she has had her entire life. Her asthma had affected her every day of training camp and ministry. She used an inhaler every four hours and still struggled to breathe. Finally, on Saturday, I said to my team, “guys, I think we should start to pray for healing over her asthma and believe that God wants to heal her”. The next day my team had a really powerful night of intercession and prayer. The Holy Spirit was demonstrating his power and authority. After praying for quite a while of praying one of my teammates goes, “let’s pray for healing for her asthma now”. We all laid hands and believed God as healer and asked for healing. God immediately healed her asthma. She has not used her inhaler since that night.
3. God has been encouraging me so much in the secret place with him. He has been teaching me how to prophecy over my squad with scripture and words of encouragement. I am so grateful for how much he loves me and each of my squadmates and leaders!

Ways to partner with me in prayer:

1. Unity for my team of five. The enemy comes to “steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10). He hates it when the plan of God comes to fruition. He will scheme to cause division so that we are distracted from the mission of bringing God glory. Pray for supernatural unity. For each of us to love like Christ. That no scheme of the enemy would prosper. That God would be brought glory daily by our thoughts and actions. John 13:34-35 says, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Our team has to be our first ministry because it is the first thing that shows the love of Christ to Guatemalans. Pray for more love. 
2. Health for me and each of my teammates. We have all been battling sickness in various ways. Pray for complete healing and continued health for our time in Guatemala. Pray that the food we are eating would start to nourish our bodies in all the ways they need to be nourished.
3. For each child, we interact to feel the intense love of Jesus. That they would encounter the living God. That they would hear the gospel and receive it.

God is so good. He is so kind. He is real. He is holy. He is worthy. He loves you.

Grace