You Revive Me

Do you ever have those moments where you feel like it's just you and God in a room with nobody else around? I had one of those special moments this morning and surprisingly enough, I was surrounded by quite a few people. I was at the gym this morning running on the treadmill before heading to Red Hill for the day. I had my ipod in listening to a random playlist of songs when Christy Nockels "You Revive Me" came on. I have heard that song countless times, but this time it was as if God was whispering the words in my ear. As I was running I started to think back on this amazing journey our Father has taken Nathan and I on. The joys and the struggles that accompany the past 10 months and how they have changed both of our lives for the better. Incase you haven't heard this song, the lyrics go like this...

You revive me
you revive me lord
And all my deserts are rivers of joy
You are the treasure, I could not afford
So I'll spend myself till' I'm empty and poor
All for you, you revive me lord

Lord I have see your goodness

And I know the you are
Give me eyes to see you in the dark
And you face shine of glory
That I only know in part
And there is still a longing
A longing in my heart
My soul lord is thirsty
Only you can satisfy
You're the well that never will run dry
And I thank you for the blessing
Of calling me your friend
And in you name I'm lifting up my hands

I'm alive im alive

You breathe on me
You revive me

As I listened to the words I began to thank Jesus for those times in the past 10 months where we felt hopeless and alone in a desert. A desert where all we saw when we looked out was thousands of miles of sand and nothing else. I thanked him for bringing us out of that time and filling our hearts with so much JOY and love for where He has brought us. I thanked him for breathing new life into me and for giving me this passion that I know only comes from Him. My prayer during those times was Psalm 28:6-8, which says, "Blessed be the Lord! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. The Lord is the strength of his people, he is the saving refuge of his anointed." In the confusing and lonely times I cried for help and the Lord heard my cry. He reminded me that this life that I'm living day to day in South Africa isn't my own, but it belong to HIM! He has placed me where I am today and I am so confident in our calling to this beautiful and broken country. 

God is moving in huge ways in Red Hill and Satan knows that. He continues to try and bring us down with the smallest things. He doesn't like that Christ name is being proclaimed everyday in this community and people are coming to know Jesus as their personal Savior. This disgusts Satan so much that he is using attacks to make us feel like what we are doing isn't important. These attacks from Satan are not going to hold us back from the work that is being done in this place. He has brought on another attack and it's in the form of a tooth! With that being said, I would like to ask for a specific prayer request. About two weeks I went to the dentist with terrible tooth pain on the left side of my mouth. As I sat in the chair I figured I just needed a filling or something small. The dentist took an x-ray and came back in to tell me that I was going to need to get my back two teeth surgically removed. I have had quite a bit of work done on those back two teeth but there is no longer anything they can do. As I sat there listening to his words, my eyes filled with tears and I felt defeated. Things have been so amazing since we have been back and I have felt so much better knowing now about my food allergies. I felt like Satan swooped down in that dental office and stole my joy right from me. I left the dentist office, got in the car with Nathan, and had a good cry. I began asking WHY!? We went to Red Hill and talked to Lumka and Kennedy who encouraged us and told us everything was going to be fine. It was in that moment, sitting in the Red Hill container, that I began to see Jesus in the midst of it all. We found out later on that the procedure was going to be quite costly, but knowing that I serve a God who has no bounds and no limits, I began to feel his peace cover me. I reminded myself of that verse in Psalm and how it says, "The Lord is MY strength and MY shield; in him MY heart trust, and I am helped." We began to pray and e-mail friends and family back home to explain the situation and what needed to be done. The Lord has continued to be faithful and has provided us with the necessary funds to have the procedure done this Wednesday. We are blown away by all of you and how you continue to support and love on us thousands of miles away. 

We truly believe Philippians 1:6 with all of our hearts. "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." Like I said before, God is moving in huge ways in Red Hill and we are so blessed to be here, serving this beautiful community everyday. We are anxious and excited to see Christ plan continue to unravel. If you could join us in prayer for the coming months and the attacks that Satan is going to continue to bring. Pray that even through those times, that Christ name will be exalted above the mountains that surround Red Hill. Pray for Nathan and I that we will continue to focus our eyes on Him daily and even in the difficult times we will see Him high above everything. Please pray for the procedure on Wednesday and that the pain will go away quickly and I'll feel back to normal by next week! We are so grateful for your prayers and support as we continue to live life here and with the help of Christ, bring hope to Red Hill!