Leavin' on a Jet Plane

Leavin’ on a jet plane – don’t know when we’ll be back again!  Our wonderful God has blessed us with 6 plane tickets to Africa, and we are excited to take flight with Him in less than 7 weeks!!  There’s no better pilot to be flying with than God!!  We are flying out of Seattle May 27^th and will return home August 14^th.  Wowzers, our total flight time is around 27 hours each way, but we praise the Lord that He provided a perfect route for our family.  Our departure and arrival times are perfect because we serve a perfect God who knows our needs!

Just to give you a little history, when God told us to attend the mission school in Africa, of course we wondered how in the world “we” were going to pay for it….key word “we”.  We know God is our provider and will not leave us stranded when He has called us to do something, but living on one teacher’s salary with a family of 7 has already stretched our faith.  However, He continues to remind us that there is always enough with Him!!  He changed our focus from, “How are we going to pay for it?” to “Lord, we trust that YOU will provide the way as we seek your will.”  He has taught us a lot about finances in the past 3+ years, and we are learning to manage His resources given to us more wisely and to trust that He will always provide even if we don’t see it with our natural eyes in that very moment (Hebrews 11:1).  The enemy has tried to keep me in bondage and throughout my life I allowed a wall to be constructed around my heart which blocked me from fully trusting God in my life, but in the past year God has chiseled away the jagged edges as I have allowed myself to be clay in the Potter’s hands.  We are learning to trust Him more and more, and He has shown us that He is faithful to uphold His promises to us.  Allowing this truth to penetrate deep into our hearts has really given us such a peace, and we have learned to submit all things to Him instead of becoming anxious (Philippians 4:6-7). 

The cost of our plane tickets did go up by $2,000 from our original quote a couple of months back, but God has blessed us with the resources to cover this expense.  He brought about personal revelation to me through the scriptures and began to open my eyes and speak to me in a very personal way.  He asked me – Are you willing to lay down everything for me?  Are you willing to give everything you have right now and then trust in me for the rest?  Do you trust me?

Mark 12:41-44 This is the story about the widow who gives all she has.  The Lord began speaking to me about all of the funds we had access to and how these resources are from Him.  He has graciously blessed us with a bountiful tax return, cash from Josh’s IRA and donations.  Although we had other plans for our tax refund, and of course retirement funds, in our hearts we knew that the Lord was asking us to give all that we had for His purposes in Africa.  We were given a peace about using a portion of Josh’s IRA to pay for our plane tickets, because in the end, it’s all God’s resources anyway.  We want to take what He has given us and be faithful with it when He asks us to.

Matthew 6:34 – God has asked us to live for today and not worry about tomorrow.  Some may think we’re crazy for spending thousands of dollars to go to Africa when we could save up for a “rainy day”.  Yes, the Bible does talk about saving up and being prepared, but sometimes the things we save up for aren’t the things that God wants us to save up for.  We know that from the world’s perspective what we’re doing may seem like a waste of time, money and energy, but the Lord has reminded us that we are not to live by the ways of the world (Romans 12:2).  Everyone’s situation is different, but we know that in our current situation God is guiding our steps and has told us that it’s time to use the resources He has given us (even if WE had other plans for them) because He’s got the best plans in mind for us (Jeremiah 29:11)!

Matthew 25:14-30 – God has reassured me through this parable that as we invest in Him with all that we have been given (our time, money and energy), we are honoring Him and He is pleased.  Sharing this parable doesn’t mean we are looking for monetary gain or for our portions to be doubled.  When I think of “riches”, I think of eternal blessings and richness in spirit.  If God chooses to double or increase our finances, then we will humbly and graciously accept His goodness towards us, but in the end, we are already rich in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 8:9)!

Some may question our decision to go to Africa, but we know that our loyalty is in God.  "How do you know that the idea of going to Africa is from God?" you might ask.  The Bible tells us that God, "by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of - infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes" (Ephesians 3:20).  If a dream comes from God, it will be so big in your life that you can't do it on your own.  If you could do it on your own, you wouldn't need faith.  I recently read a "Daily Hope" message written by Rick Warren, and it is so relevant to our family's journey in this season that I felt prompted to share it below.

Decision Making: Use Your Muscles of Faith

by Rick Warren

"But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.  Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind... Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do." (James 1:6, 8 New Living Translation)

After God gives you a dream, the next step for building your faith is decision - God challenges you to do something about your dream.  Nothing is going to happen to that dream until you wake up and put it into action.  You have to make the decision to go for it!  For every 10 dreamers in the world, there is only one decision maker.  A lot of people have dreams, but they never get to step 2 - making the decision to trust God and follow their dream.

Faith is a verb.  It's active and not passive.  It's something you do.  Decision making is a faith-building activity.  You use your muscles of faith.  Faithful decision making requires two things:

1. You must decide to invest your time, money, reputation, and energy.  You lay it on the line; you take the plunge.  You say, "God, you've told me to do this, and I'm going to be faithful to do it!"
2. You have to let go of security.  You cannot move in faith and hold onto the past at the same time.  You have to move forward.  Moses had to let go of his position in Pharaoh's kingdom in order to do God's will.  Nehemiah gave up a secure job in order to go build a wall around Jerusalem.  In other words, if you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat.

God brings you to a point of decision so your faith will build as you move toward the dream God has given you.  What step will you take today to work toward the dream God has given you?  What do you need to let go of so that you can move forward in pursuing your dream?

JOYFULLY SOARING AND DREAMING WITH GOD!!  Preparing for take off.........