My Plan

God's plan was for me to come to India in September to work with rescued girls through Freedom Firm.  All of the details of that first sentence were made very clear to me before I had taken off. 

My plan was to stay for six months, but the more I have come before the Lord the more clear He has made it that His plans were different.  Two nights ago I changed my plane ticket and I now will be leaving India at the end of December (just about two months earlier than the original date).  This decision has taken a lot of prayer, thought, and advice seeking, but I have come to the point where I can honestly say I have heard His voice, and as far as I'm concerned He is calling me home. 

It's been crazy, I feel like I was born to live overseas.  Throughout my missions career I have never felt homesick, but have strongly felt a desire to settle in the land so my relationships and ministry could take on a deeper level.  This decision is conflicting in the fact that it is difficult and easy at the same time.  I find it difficult when I think of the judgment of man and how I think it will actually be harder to leave early than it would be to stay (for many reasons).  But I find it so simple when I think about what I want my life to be used for (glorifying God) and who I am striving to seek and obey in this life (Jesus), no matter how difficult it may be. 

I think of the story of Abraham in Genesis 22 when God asked Him to sacrifice His only son, Isaac.  The next sentence after God tells Abraham to go to the place of sacrifice simply says this, "Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey."  That is the kind of trust in God I want.  I want Him to be able to tell me something, whether it is, "sacrifice your son," or "go home," and as soon as I hear his voice I want to "load up my donkey early in the morning," with no doubt in His guidance.

There are times I feel as if I could stay and it would be fine, I mean surely God would bless my time here right?  I actually do believe that He would bless my time in India if I stayed the full six months, but to me that isn't the issue anymore.  The issue is God told me to go home, and I want to respond to Him the best I can.  I think of John 10:4 where it says, "...his sheep follow him because they know his voice."  Again, I have heard His voice and I cannot deny what I know to be true in my heart.

Of course this doesn't all make sense.  Why would God want me to go away from the mission field?  Away from a place where so much help is needed?  First I have to remember that wherever I am placed is my mission field, India, Michigan, and anywhere inbetween, I am a missionary.  Second I think of Isaiah's words in chapter 55 verses 8 & 9, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.  "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  This may be something I will never grow to understand, and I am okay with that just as long as I do understand that God is above me and He has my best interest in mind...even if I can't seem to understand it myself.

My plan now is to obey God, and as far as I am concerned in my heart and my mind, that is exactly what I am doing by flying home in December. 


Hakuna Matata

Write On

Thursday morning was a sad one.  That was the morning Christianna left.  As we were standing outside at 6 am saying our goodbyes, I was handed an envelope.  After Christianna left and we all went inside I looked at the envelope to find that my dear friend, Kristen had sent me a letter!  This is the first letter I have received since being here.  How perfectly does God work?  I was super down because one friend had just left, and then my spirits were lifted because a friend a half a world away sent me a letter ten days before.  It was great to hear from her.  It reminds me how much God has blessed me and continues to bless me.  In the letter she also put a picture of us from a mission trip to Mexico in 2008.

 Below the picture you can see a dried flower.  She also put that in there because I had mentioned before how I will miss the colors changing.  With that she reminded me that, "The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever." Isaiah 40:8

 

She also brought up 2 Timothy 1:3-7.  Dang girl, God is using you to impact my life big...even through a letter.  2 Timothy 1:7 was sort of a theme verse before I left and so many people shared it with me before I left.  I had forgotten about the "spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline" God has given me and I thank Him for using Kristen to remind me.

This was two nights before I left at my going away bon-fire. =)

I love you so much Kristen!  Thank you for your encouragement and your beautiful friendship.  You delight my life and I thank Jesus for blessing me with you.

Love, Sarah

Here Am I

"Freedom abuse is our future,

Heads turn; tell me what is a caste?

Say to the girl, wishing for death,

'Slavery’s a thing of the past'. "

Let me break it down...

"Freedom abuse is our future."  This is saying how our generation uses "freedom" as an excuse to do things they want...to satisfy their desires or get away with certain things.  I know this is a free country and we can do the things we want, but it seems to me that this tends to be taken a little too far.

"Heads turn; tell me what is a caste?"  The caste system in India is where people are placed in different levels or categories and there is nothing they can do about it. There are different castes for religious leaders (or holy-men), kings or great landlords, merchants and so on. Then there are the Untouchables who are also known as "non-people." They tend to do the dirty work and live in certain places to keep away from higher castes (because it is the higher castes who want them far away). Some of the Indian law doesn't even protect the Untouchables. The "heads turn" part is meaning that most people don't really know about this, and if they do, they turn their heads away because they don't want to get involved.  They hear about this, say, "That is not right," and go on eating their dinner.

"Say to the girl, wishing for death, 'slavery's a thing of the past'."  This is talking about modern day slavery. Many people don't know but there are more slaves in the world today than were seized from Africa during 4 centuries of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade. I have heard many stories about girls who are sex slaves and how they pray for death because in their eyes death would be better than going through what they do every single day. I've also heard stories of girls who would run out in the street trying to get hit by a vehicle with the hopes of dying.

All in all, I am saying we tend to not take freedom seriously or hold it for all it is worth, especially as some would do anything to have the freedom we do.  A lot of people are ignorant about what goes on in the world...or, if they do know, they mostly do nothing about it.  I don't know what you think about this but to me it is just not right at all and I hope to be used to make a change.

"...Here am I.  Send me."  Isaiah 6:8

Please God,

I ask you to send me to Southeast Asia.

I have no clue why, but those people are on my heart.

You are a good God, and with this I know that You will send me where I can fulfill Your plans for my life, whatever country or countries that may be.

But You are a God that I can talk with, and share my heart with, and that is what I am doing. At the same time I seek You for Your wisdom and guidance in my life. I love you Father.

Isaiah 6:8
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here I am. Send me!"

Children of Burma

Children of Cambodia

Children of Laos

Children of Thailand

Children of Vietnam

Children of Peninsular Malaysia

Children of Brunei

Children of East Malaysia

Children of East Timor

Children of Indonesia

Children of Papua New Guinea

Children of The Philippines

Children of Singapore



Are you in love yet? I know I am.
=)



Hakuna Matata

Who Is "He," Anyways?

"Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils.

Of what account is he?"
Isaiah 2:22

Personally, this verse just blows me away.
I first took note of it during my first week in Kenya. While I knew it was a true, sweet verse, I had no idea what God was wanting to tell me specifically through it, although I knew there was something.

So for about a week or more, I would say this verse over and over again just trying to find out what God was wanting to tell me. I knew that it was saying we needed to put our trust in Christ and not other people, but at that time in my life that was not something troubling me. I wasn't really looking to others for answers that could only be found from searching God. So what was it?

Well, it finally hit me. It clearly was not my own mind understanding, but it was God speaking to me. He told me that it was not 'men' on this earth who I would look to for answers and to put my trust in, but rather, it was myself. I found out that it was I, I was the 'man' I was putting my trust and hope in for my future. I was barely turning to God for guidance, I was trying to find my own way, I was trying to make my own plans. I knew before that it was silly, but it was then when I really took on the challenge to not trust in myself, but to lean on God and find my way from Him.

Without a doubt, this is still a struggle I am dealing with, although it is getting easier. I am aware & have a huge desire and longing to give my life over to my Creator fully. I guess you could say I am in the process of giving Him the 'pen' to my story. But I know wholeheartedly that this is no mistake, this is how it was intended, and it is turning into a beautiful love story with me and my Bride-Groom. I love it and only hope to continue to give a little (or a lot) more to Him each day. Because after all, what did He die for? Oh yes,
my life.





Hakuna Matata