Lessons from God..via General Conference

General Conference was awesome this year! I was privileged to experience a great time of fellowship with many awesome new and old friends. Also, the services were amazing...the Home Missions service blew me away. I don't believe a single person could have sat through that service and not have walked away with a stronger burden and having felt more greatly encouraged about reaching the lost.

Over the years, especially more recently, God has used various men and women of God to speak a word to me, and often this has occurred at this conference. However,this year was different. This year He chose to speak to me in some different ways..and I am in awe of how much peace I feel at this moment. It's true, if His eye is on the sparrow, how much more is He paying attention to what's going on in the lives of His children?

Lesson #1 - Men Can't Close Doors on God

I won't go into personal details as to how God taught me this particular lesson, but I learned that:
Sometimes God closes a door..and sometimes man closes a door. It can be very hard to tell who really has closed a door, but one thing is for sure: If man closed it, there's always another door. Always. No matter how the situation may look. The hardest part is determining whether God or man has closed it, and sometimes this answer only comes through prayer and time...but it will always come.

Lesson #2 - God Cares About the Small Stuff...the Really Small Stuff

One night, the booths where missionaries, the publishing house, etc. sell items had closed and I had walked with friends a ways a way from that area and was standing around chatting with them, when I realized I had left my coat somewhere..I thought of how I had laid it down on a couch in the Foreign Missions area before being in a photo and decided that was where I should check first. So, I ran back as quickly as my aching feet in my heels could carry me, begged the security to let me back in..and lucky for me, my coat was still there. I quickly threw it on and took off to meet up with friends that were waiting for me.

After meeting with them we stood around a few minutes deciding where to go eat with people and took a cab to a restaurant not too far of a walking distance away, but too far for girls who had been in heels for days. :o) Upon arriving at the restaurant, which was on a downtown street corner, my friend and I quickly grabbed 2 of the seats available outside and didn't leave our spots, even though we were freezing, for a good 30 minutes.

After sitting there that long, I got up, don't even remember why, and a bag full of cds bought from the booth area fell out of my lap. I hadn't bought any cds. I asked my friend if they were hers. No. Our other close friend. No. By this point I was starting to ask everyone in the group, even those I had just met.."Did you hand this to me?!!"

Eventually I found myself standing on the edge of the corner, talking to a new friend, who by this point had the cds out and was looking through them out of sheer curiosity as to what they were. Meanwhile, I'm standing there feeling like a thief and not even knowing how I got the things, let alone who to return them to.

About that time a friend of mine runs up, yells something at the guy I'm talking to (she was just acting goofy, trying to embarrass him), sees the cds and yells out to another girl I know, who I hadn't even seen walk up. "She has your cds!"

Apparently a friend who had been in that picture with me at the booths had left her cds by my coat, and I had picked them up, and not noticed until an hour later when her and our other mutual friend walked by that random street corner, where I had just discovered I had the cds, about 5 minutes before. The friend had just prayed with her that they would find the cds, because she was so distraught about losing them.

God really does cares...even about the small stuff.

Lesson #3 - Never Lose Your Zeal for God and the Things of God!

During the Holy Ghost Crusade I was privileged to help with registering the people that received the Holy Ghost. Basically this means that I sat on the platform behind a booth and people who had just received the Holy Ghost were sent to the booths to fill out a form, giving their information, such as their address, whether they had been baptized, etc...the very last line was an "interested in" line, where one would mark the areas of ministry within a church in which they would like to be involved.

Well, an 82 year old women received the Holy Ghost and was sent to me...a couple of people assisted her. She had a cane, and they pulled a chair up behind her so she could sit down as she wrote. I heard a lady in her 80s received the Holy Ghost that had sought it for over 30 years, I'm not sure if it was her, but "have a feeling that it was...anyway, as she was filling out the form, she got to the have you been baptized?" part, and checked yes....next was the "interested in" part...The whole time I was watching her I was curious what she would check when she got to this part. There were 7 or so options listed..among them: music ministry, Childrens ministry, Bible studies, Sports, etc...

As I sat there I watched her pause for a moment reading them..then, fully focused on the task at hand, she checked every single one of them...except sports. :O) Then she paused a moment again, looking it over, slid it back over to me, and,though she was missing every other tooth, the huge smile she gave me was one of the prettiest I have ever seen. :o)

If she had that much zeal, how much more zealous should we be about God and working for His kingdom?!


Yes, General Conference was a time of great fun, fellowship, and blessing this year..but it was also a great classroom for me and for that I am very thankful.

God's Amazing Ways

The other day, during a slow time at work, my coworker and I were googling and yahooing(?)(lol) our names out of boredom. Well, that, and I've also been told that prospect employers may do this, so it's good to know what info/ pics are out there of you. While doing this, I stumbled across one of the neatest "God moments" that I've ever had. A girl I am now blessed to call friend, but had never met yet, had written an article for the apostolic website: ninetyandnine.com.

It was basically on hearing God say "wait" and about her desire to return to the missions field. I wrote a letter in reply, thanking her for the article, saying how I could relate, and said, "Who knows, maybe one day we'll run into each other overseas!"...little did I know that within 5 months we would be roommates in Estonia on a mission trip together..having never even spoken to each other besides my reply to her email. I must say that when we realized who each other was, any doubts I may have had about whether I was in God's absolute perfect will vanished. I love when God confirms things so obviously like this. I tend to desire clear confirmation before proceeding with any major decisions..and thankfully, God has usually been pretty good at giving it to me.

Recently there are some things God has been stirring up in my heart, and, as usual, I have prayed for confirmation regarding them. And, He may, or may not give me that confirmation. But, in the midst of asking Him for it, I have felt like I've heard him say, "I trust you"..Now I don't claim to be any pro at hearing God's voice (blogging my thoughts on this later), but, from experience, I tend to know when it's His voice, because it's usually something I wouldn't dream up,do or hear of my own accord. "Trust ME?!" I, of course, trust God, but why would HE trust me? This was very humbling...and I don't know if that's His way of saying, keep praying and the right decisions will come, or what...but I kinda feel like the child at the baseball game, who's not really playing all that great..in truth, he just got 2 strikes, but his father still shouts out, "That's my son!!!" I know I don't deserve it..but thanks to God's mercy and grace, I believe He does trust me and I pray I do Him proud.

Below is the great article that my friend Gabe Reese wrote (Jan 2006..and my short reply following it):

When God Says Wait
By Gabe Reese
January 9, 2006

So, what are you doing these days? The question gets asked when I happen to see friends that I haven’t seen for years. Their careers are getting established, they are married, some even have children! I give them a bright smile and say “Oh-the same old, same old!” It seems like after all this time, I should have something more exciting to say. It’s not like I’m letting life pass me by—I love my job helping special needs children reach their fullest potential and I am very involved in my home church, but it’s not really where I imagined I would be at this time.

I thought by now I would be on the foreign field as a missionary or an AIMer. I was called to foreign missions at Missouri Teen Camp when I was 12 and experienced my first taste of foreign missions on a Youth on Missions trip to Prague, Czech Republic. Incredible! The desire to work in the foreign field burns in me but the door has yet to open for me to step through. (I’ve tried opening it myself a couple of times but I’ve learned God is better at opening doors than I am.) I know the experience I’m getting here in the home field is valuable preparation for the foreign field. The word spoken to me has been to be ready to go, but also to wait on God’s timing.

But Why God?
Wait—it’s a hard word. Who is delighted at having to stop at a red light or gets excited about waiting in a long line? Waiting is especially hard when you are waiting for a prayer to be answered. We can be assured that our prayer is heard and will be answered, but the timing of the answer is in God’s hands.

Waiting times are trying times. In my own experience of waiting, I have felt many questions about why the wait is so long. Weariness in waiting comes when I see desires fulfilled and prayers answered in the lives of friends. I am sincerely happy for them and rejoice with them, but I admit it makes the waiting harder. I get frustrated with myself when the questions fill my heart and I struggle to keep the vision clear. The enemy has taunted me asking, “Where is your God? What is He doing for you?” Though I grow weary, I remember the words of Isaiah,”The everlasting God…fainteth not, neither is weary…there is no searching of His understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength… But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength…” (Isaiah 40:28-31).

When I am discouraged and filled with questions, I pour it out before the Lord. David encouraged this, “Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah” (Psalm 62:8). My God has infinite understanding. Pouring out to Him draws me closer to Him. In these times He speaks to me, encourages and strengthens me to continue waiting on Him. I know He is MY God, MY friend, and He is on MY side.

The Key to Waiting
The way to wait on the Lord is worship and the Word. “I wait for the Lord…and in His word do I hope” (Psalm 130:5). Worship takes the focus off of ourselves and places it on our faithful Savior. We see by the examples in His Word that He is faithful and this waiting time is for His higher purpose. David and Joseph experienced waiting times between a calling, a dream, and the fulfillment thereof. Their waiting times were shaping times used to prepare them for the positions God had for them. The Word assures us that those who wait on the Lord will not be ashamed. David wrote, “I waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me and heard my cry…many shall see it and fear and shall trust in the Lord”(Psalm 40:1,3).

Your waiting time is a testimony of God’s faithfulness. He uses circumstances in our lives to show others He meets us where we are, He will walk with us, and He will keep His promises. Your testimony of answered prayer and fulfilled desire will cause others to fear God and put their trust in Him. Isaiah 55:8-11 is an encouraging text as it tells us God’s word never returns void. It always accomplishes His purpose. The word He spoke to you will come to pass. The vision He gave you for your life will be fulfilled!

“Wait on the Lord, be of good courage and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).

My reply:

Re: “When God Says Wait”
I just want to say thanks to Gabe Reese for writing this article. It’s encouraging to know that there are other people going through the same frustrations as oneself. I wish you all the best, and hope for open doors for you in the near future. Who knows; maybe one day we’ll run into each other overseas. :0) God bless!