“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.” Ephesians 3:20, 21
These verses keep going through my mind as I continue to unpack my trip to Texas. As I have shared before, I am in a mentoring program called BLAST, Building Leaders, Authors, Speakers & Teachers. Author and speaker Shannon Ethridge is sharing her multi-faceted experiences and knowledge with 40 of us from around the world. It has been an incredible experience.
We have small groups that communicate and help us stay accountable within the course. Debbie from North Carolina is one of the women from my small group. In May we were doing our monthly call and we felt moved to step out in faith to start praying, Texas in July. It became our motto when we talked in June and we asked Kristin, from Wyoming if she would join us.
As we moved closer to the time of the July class, God amazingly started to open doors for this to become a reality. The more we believed on Him doing it, the more things started coming together. It is so amazing as I remember this process in hindsight. So before we knew it Debbie and I had our flights booked within minutes of each other arriving and departing. We booked rooms and a car rental. We discovered Kristin would not be able to join us, although we were disappointed, we were trusting that God had a plan even in that.
July 9th arrived through a whirlwind of a new job and a nasty flu I ended up catching from my son. Before I knew it I was on a plane at 6 in the morning off to Texas. I just made my connection in Denver after going through customs and then security again. God’s mercy I am sure. As I stepped off the plane in Dallas, I looked to the right and there to greet me was Debbie. She said she recognized my voice first!
It felt like meeting with an old friend. God blessed us with a connection right from the start. We found our rental car and started off on our journey to Garden Valley. Thank goodness for GPS. (whatever did we do without those?) We stopped to have lunch at a place where I could experience a southern bbq, but alas Debbie said it was not like true bbq. They are all about the meat down there in Texas!
We arrived at the Anchorage Cafe at Mercy Ships ministry base an hour ahead of schedule. We sat down on the patio with lemonade in the muggy Texas heat. It was glorious! I could feel myself winding down already, just ready to rest in whatever God brought our way.
Shannon arrived extending her invitation to stay at her house. Another unexpected blessing. She drove us around the area explaining all of the rich ministries that were based there. Mercy Ships, Teen Mania, Youth with a Mission. Keith Green, a forerunner in Contemporary Christian music, had started Last Days Ministry before his life ended in a plane crash. Paul Baloche, Christian songwriter and worship leader is Shannon’s friend and the worship leader at their church.
I could hardly take in how richly blessed this area of East Texas was. Obviously God’s hand and favour were upon many things here. It was beautiful countryside as well. I had pictured Texas as dry and hot, little tumbleweeds blowing in the wind. This land was lush and green with many trees and flowering shrubs. Another gift.
I won’t go through every detail of my trip but I will say that each part of it was more than I could have asked or imagined. It was a privilege to meet some of the people we had been watching on video for 10 months. It felt like we knew them already. I must say it was a humbling experience to watch others do presentations and hear of what God is doing in their lives. I felt quite ordinary but I believe that too was a gift from God. I just wanted to take in as much as I could without the hindrance of thinking I was something. I get in the way much too often.
My expectations were in the right place for a change, in God alone. To Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine!
What kind of experiences has God given you that were more than you imagined? Take a moment to recall these times, the building blocks of faith God has planted in you.
Father, thank you for blessing me with this opportunity to experience you in a new way. Help me to trust you in all things and with every opportunity that comes my way. I want to live in the power of God and not in my own strength. I want to humbly accept all that you offer me. Remind me of your faithfulness when I forget. I will always praise You.
