Three weeks

21 days seems precious little time to have made any impact, and I can definitely say that any impact I was able to make was solely by the grace and power of God. The three weeks I spent in the tsunami-affected area were some of the most meaningful and awesome weeks of my life. It was a privilege to be a part of and see the work God is doing in people's lives. As a brief summary, some of the ministries I participated in included helping teach English to doctors and nurses at a hospital, helping out with a children's program that worked in several different areas/villages, visiting several people at a hospital, helping to start an English club at local high schools, and ministering to and loving people at a nearby village. While I loved all the opportunities God opened for me to participate in, my heart was mostly in the village we often visited and ministered in. I became especially close with one girl in particular, Rini, who lost her mother and several other family members in the tsunami. She is one of the sweetest girls I know, and her heart is very soft. I was blessed with many opportunities to talk with her about God's love and to minister to her with my partner, Wyndi. Wyndi had really established a great relationship with Rini as well, and both of us were invited to spend the night in Rini's "house," which is really a shack they've built out of scraps of wood they gathered after the tsunami. The three nights we got to spend with Rini and her family, sleeping on the floor with them, was a humbling and amazing experience. God opened many doors, and so many people there talked about how "different" Wyndi, Cody, Jarod, and I were from their image of what foreigners were like. It was a blessing to be able to tell them why we were different and why we loved them so much--only through the love of God. One night, Rini even asked me to play guitar for them; and the only songs I knew were praise and worship songs. So Wyndi and I sat and sang worship songs, in English, out under the stars in the village, in front of many of the people. That was pretty awesome, to be singing and proclaiming God's praises and truth over these people, even if they didn't understand all that we were singing. Anyways, over all, the whole experience was beautiful, and it was an honor and privilege to love these people and share the love of God with them.

God did so much in my own life as well. He taught me about how powerful he is and how he is always working for his glory. I think I had lost sight of God's power, but in those three weeks, I saw God do things that only he could have done. I was reminded of how powerful and awesome he is, and how much he loves and longs for the peoples of the world who don't know him. I felt myself refocused, and I realized very much that this was the kind of life I wanted to be living the rest of my days--a life of service before God, a life of daring and courage and love for the peoples that the Lord loves. The Lord did a great work in my life, drawing me back towards himself. He helped renew my love for him, my love for his word, my realization of the power of prayer, and my love for worship. He blessed me with some amazing relationships, particularly with the Texas team I worked with, Wyndi, Cody, and Jarod. These three students have such amazing hearts and have completely poured themselves into the people we worked with. They have a deep love for God and his work, and it was a privilege to know and serve with them. Wyndi particularly became like a sister to me because we worked together every day in many situations. I also met many other amazing people at the guest house we stayed at, other young adults who were loving and serving the people there. I also met local Christians who were incredible people that I am blessed to know.

I wish I could begin to explain the depth of the experience, how much I saw God do, and how much he did in me. Unfortunately, that might take a short book, and even then, words would fail me. All I can say is that God is good and amazing. It made me decide to not be satisfied with just an everyday life; there is far too much to do, far too much that God is doing. Living with God is like living on the edge, and there's no other place I'd rather be living. I want more than ever to be a sold-out servant of God, and I want more than ever to know God like I never have, to love him like I never have. There's so much more I could say...but all I can say is that it's amazing what three weeks can do in one's life.