I think it's unique how God places certain people into your life during certain times. I believe these people are to prepare you, and help you realize the call that God is placing on your life. For example: as I prepare for Uganda and YWAM, I have notice that there are a lot of missionaries who appear in my life. Last night was another example.Background:
I've been wrestling with a lot of things lately, and the primary issue is whether or not God wants me to go onto these mission trips. I feel so greedy at times, because while it seems that everyone else is saving for the future and being grateful for having a job, I can't wait to get rid of mine. I'm so excited to leave, that it seems as though I'm being financially irresponsible. Spending all my savings on a mission trip seems stupid, because what happens if I can't get a job once the trip is over? How will I eat, where will I live? I'm not as worried about while I'm on the mission, because at least I can ask people for money through support. Although, what right will I have in asking someone for money if I'm not a missionary any longer? Not only that; why is it okay for me to ask people for money, but a seminary student is suppose to take out a school loan? Also, in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, Paul stated that he and the apostles worked day and night so they wouldn't be a burden upon the believers. This shows that sometimes God provides a way through the a normal job, and if so, should I spend more time working and less time asking for money? Oh, I wish there was a book that showed all the different ways that God revealed His will to people, so I could go down a list and see whether God was confirming His will...
So, back to my situation last night. A guy from church called and asked me to help him hang some drywall last night. When I got there, we started talking about his plans to go on a 6 month language training mission trip, followed by a two year stint in Ecuador. I was completely shocked. I had no idea that this man was thinking about missions, yet here I was, listening to his story. He started explaining where he was going, why he was going, and how excited he was. I actually didn't think a whole lot about the coincidence, because I was too busy contemplating whether it would be okay to give him a support letter. I realized that he probably wouldn't have the ability to give me money, because he was was preparing for his own trip, but I still wanted to share my story with him. (For whatever reason, I want to share my life experience in hopes that it will help others learn from my mistakes and successes. Maybe it's an arrogant thing. IDK, but I digress.)
We spent the next couple hours hanging the drywall, and at the end of the night, I pushed past the awkwardness, and gave the guy my letter. I said, "I just want to give you my story, and share what God is doing in my life." All of a sudden his wife walks into the room and starts asking me about the trip and where I will be going. I started to explain, and the guy's fire alarm went off, and he ran out the door. I was about to leave, but his wife kept talking about missions and our various trips. She repeated the whole story about where and why they were going, but then she did something really helpful for me; she told me how she knew God was confirming it. She explained that she felt a strong pull to go at first, but then her and her husband kept running into people that were from the small village in Ecuador that they were going to. Her husband also had an experience of various Latinos trying to speak to him in Spanish. Over and over again, it was another story of how God brought so and so into their lives to confirm the trip.
That was an incredible experience for me; I went over to a friend's house thinking that I am going to help them, but in turn, God use those friends to help me! I realized that lately I've been meeting so many different missionaries, and have developed an instant bond with everyone that I met. I had realized that I was meeting a lot of missionaries, but I never realized that God might be using them to prepare my way. I will admit in fact, that I was disheartened when I realized how many missionaries I knew. With so many missionaries, I can't expect my friends from church to support me over them. I mean, these other missionaries have work which seems much more important than mine. Theirs is definitely more sacrificial than going scuba diving in Belize for three months! After talking with that lady last night though, I realize that it's not a competition between missionaries. God didn't place these other missionaries in my life in order to make my fundraising more difficult, but to confirm my call. I needed that conversation last night, more than I needed any money. I needed to know that God uses my family to support me, not to deter me. I really need to trust God's love, because Satan will use all sorts of lies to stop me from going.
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