IBS Job 11:13-18

“If you prepare your heart,

you will stretch out your hands toward him.

If iniquity is in your hand, put it far away,

and let not injustice dwell in your tents.

Surely then you will lift up your face without blemish;

you will be secure and will not fear.

You will forget your misery;

you will remember it as waters that have passed away.

And your life will be brighter than the noonday;

its darkness will be like the morning.

And you will feel secure, because there is hope;

you will look around and take your rest in security.”

My heart needs to be prepared for his use. My time here in Uganda and what the lord is showing me here ultimately comes back to this, my heart set and prepared on Him and Him alone. The enemy is always trying to distract me from Gods plans and lure my eyes away from God and trap me in sneaky snares. Sometimes I can get so focused on staying above water then I lose focus on what God is trying to tell me for that day, that moment. But when I come before Him, heart ready and hands outstretched, withholding nothing, Hiding nothing, I see Him. In times of misery, the Lord is always there, and he’s the one who washes our worries away. When I have sin in my life and I’m confused about why I’m not shining, why I’m in fear, He won’t use me to my fullest. But no matter how dark it can seem, He shines through to my heart, and He allows me to lift my head blameless before Him, confident and secure in His forgiveness. And that’s the point in which He begins to use me. That’s when he makes me shine. This is the point to which God is driving me. To be confident the morning will come, and in the morning, find rest in His security. 

Application

this week I will memorize this passage

IBS Proverbs 17:17

A friend loves at all times,

and a brother is born for adversity

Throughout my time in ignite, the lord has been working in my heart to be more open with my brothers. To come to some when I’m struggling, and not just keep it inside and in my own heart. And this verse has been coming up in my field time. This was a verse for the kids in the kids club, and the kids all learned it, and when this verse came back up in a bible study, I really felt the Lord speaking to me. Not too long ago the lord placed on my heart to even step out and talk more with the young men here, and share with what the lord he’s been doing in our lives. Because I can talk to the lord all day, and that’s great, but what if the Lord wants to use me to encourage someone who needs it? Because the lord has his plans and I’m not the center of it, but just a piece in a mosaic. And really I’m just being selfish keeping to myself because I’m not meeting the lord work in my life. The lord is also showing me that there are people who care for me, that my brothers are there, and they want to see me grow and not struggle with my the cares of this world alone. God placed my brothers in my life, at this time for a reason, and I need to get past my insecurities and trust in His promise of brotherly companionship. 

Application

Throughout this week I will go to one of my brothers every night and fellowship and pray with them. 

IBS Matthew 9:37-38

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

Through my time in Uganda, I have seen much harvest. The Lord every day gives us, individually and as a team, opportunities for ministry with those around us. But even with everything we do, there is still more. There is still so much work. But the Lord knows what he is doing. My time here is sadly winding down, and there’s always more I’d like to do, but for this season in my life he has called me to six months in Uganda, and He wants me to be faithful in the little things, like serving the wonderful Ugandan people. With all the work and the little time left it could be discouraging, but I know God has called and equipped more faithful laborers to continue in the work He started. The Lord knows just when the crops are going to be ready and He calls the right laborers for that season, for the good of the harvest and the laborers themselves. And the laborers are not tasked with the whole field, but with a section that’s just there own, that they were assigned to for a specific reason. I am very thankful for this season of my life, but I’m still more thankful that the Lord will not forget His people, and that the helpless sheep will find their Shepherd 

Application

This week Put a note by my bed that says “Harvest”, to remind me to pray for the laborers, those here and on their way, and the great harvest that’s coming. 

Psalms 32:8-9

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;

I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,

which must be curbed with bit and bridle,

or it will not stay near you.

This last week has been very eventful, but I can see God through it all. Every day was had a challenge He set before us, as a team and individually. But for me personally, I can say God has just been drawing me closer. Even when I felt like I was doing great, I was shown my efforts weren’t growing and teaching me, and that only the lord can do that in my heart. All the great things I could do won’t draw me closer to knowing God more. God moves in the heart and molds the character of a man. And even “my best” isn’t His best, and and the opportunity to grow closer to this team He has put me on is still present. But God, He promises me He will instruct me. Sometimes I get distracted by all the promises He makes us, and I lose sight of everything He wants for me. And awhile back I was encouraged with this verse but now the Lord has presented it to me again, and now with fresh eyes, it means so much more. He won’t guide me if I’m not submitted and wanting to be in His presence if I’m not seeking Him constantly. He won’t force me either, it’s all a choice, my choice to be instructed by the Lord. 

Application

This week I will devote a time In the morning and evening to reading and praying for further fellowship and devotion to my savior 

IBS Romans 15: 5-6

May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

These first four months of field time have been incredible. But as our time draws closer, I’m seeing how myself and my team can improve, finish the race strong. One thing that has been hard for me is truly being one unit, of being open with my brothers and encouraging them when moved too. But the Lord has granted me and moved me to make more opportunities like that, of late nights, fellowshipping and praying in the lord. And even though it’s been great there always still more. When we get out of sync you can tell, when one part is off it’s easy to follow in that way. But it’s encouraged when I read this verse, as some of us are tired, the God of endurance is there for us. He encourages and strengthens us. He brings us closer, through thick and thin, to finish our race strong. When we allow ourselves to be in the center of His will is when we glorify Him as one. My prayer is that for those who may feel distant, that the Lord shows them that this relay race isn’t over, and everyone needs to be in it to win it. And that we aren’t just a team, but a family brought together by the lord. 

Application 

I will write in my bookmark family as a reminder to pray for the next two months

IBS ROMANS 5:3-4

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope 

In my time in Uganda I have gone through some suffering, not a lot, but some. Some of it was physical, but most was a suffering I brought on my self, torturing my mind to dark places. When my heart was in the wrong place my mind and my thoughts into a place of spiritual punishment. But God, in His incomprehensible ways was always there when I needed Him, just waiting for a cry of help. And after escaping the suffering the Lord has allowed my spirit to soar. I have made things right with my team and with God, and am depending more on Him. And recently with my newfound trust in Him, He has convicted me to step up and do more, as much as I can, and draw closer to this team he has chosen for me to serve with. And through it all I can see many benefits, an operation He used to make me trust Him more. Everything He does is for my benefit, I just need to see the dark valleys as an opportunity to let God shine. 

Application 

Today I will write this verse in my bible bookmark, as a reminder for those days

1 Chronicles 22:19

Now devote your heart and soul to seeking the Lord your God. Begin to build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the sacred articles belonging to God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the Lord. 

I read this verse the other day In my devotional and it stuck with me the rest of the day. What caught my attention was the first part. And I started to think about the second half, and what it meant to me.  After spending some thought I moved on, but the verse stuck with me. Yesterday I got the opportunity to go to a high hook and share something for their chapel. And as I was thinking about what I should share, I was thinking about what I would have wanted to hear when I was younger. And lord reminded me of this verse, and what I should share. That our bodies are temples for the lord and a dwelling place for Him (like the ark). I shared with the students the importance of keeping the Lord's temple pure by devoting our hearts to the lord, something He has really been showing me, and by being careful of what we let enter our minds. In the past, I let things like this slide thinking that it didn’t really matter, been the lord has been showing me that I need to be careful with what I watch, listen, and dwell on. Before I would have denied any effect on me, but he has been showing me I have been lying to myself been and have been distracted and dissatisfied. My prayer for those students was that the Lord would speak to them. After I shared Colin shared about the power of the spirit and tied his message into mine, and after prayed a baptism over the students. I know that growing up can be hard, and my hope is that those young people truly knew what they were praying for and that it was a real thing for them. 

Application 

This week I will pray for those students this week, that the Lord would remind them of His will for them.