"A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went to him, saying, "Master, Master, we're going to drown!" He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. "Where is your faith?" He asked the disciples." - Luke 8:23-25
Storms and tempests come every single day. We were not guaranteed an easy life when we asked Christ to be our Lord and Savior. We were however promised peace. These storms come in so many ways. They can be big or small. They can they can be weather related and cause disasters, but they can also be metaphorical and cause great stress. The thing is, sometimes God calms them and brings circumstantial peace. There are times though when he allows them to rage and the only peace to be found is in Him. His peace surpasses understanding and can bring rest and joy to the weary despite the craziness surrounding. Instead of demanding ease and comfort, what if I found my calm in the shadow of His wings. What if His presence was my refuge? What if His presence was the calm in my storm?
There are disasters all over the world every day. In one of my small groups, we have been praying for many of these including slavery today, sex trafficking, the persecuted church, Ebola in West Africa, unrest in the Middle East, complacency in the U.S., orphans around the globe, the desperate need for clean water and food, and diseases that take so many lives. These only name a few of the tragedies that need our prayer. Good and bad things happen all the time. My desire is for people to find the peace that only comes from Christ even in the midst of suffering. According to 2 Peter, He wants all to find Him. He uses even the strongest storms to bring us closer to Him. Hope is seeing God take unlikely people and events that Satan meant for bad and redeeming them for good. Hope is seeing His presence through the storm.
As you may know, Malawi has been my home for the past two years. I have been blessed by how God is working here even in the storms that have hit. According to World Bank, Malawi is now the poorest country in the world. Although I don't know for sure, I imagine this has to do with the recent government corruption scandal and loss of money as well as the massive storms and flooding that have destroyed much of the southern part of this country. Malawi doesn't export much, and is very dependent on the crops that it produces. We may be heading towards a food crisis with all of the land destroyed. Besides that, there are thousands and thousands of people displaced and without homes. They have nothing. What good can come out of the disaster and of these people who have been devastated? It's hard to imagine anything. Somehow though, God is working and the amount of people and churches who have generously given to help the hurting has blown my mind. The disaster has brought the country together for a single cause of helping others. Another thing that God has worked through in the government despite the political corruption of last year is a campaign that my church called "Let Girls Be Girls." For years, young girls have been abused and forced into marriage at ages as young as 8. They are taken out of school and told that they will never become anything. These young girls soon become mothers and the cycle continues. Last year, my church started a petition to stop child marriage and raise the legal age to 18. We thought it would take long time before hitting the government, but last week the bill was passed! These are just a few examples of major problems that God has worked in this year.
Despite some of the "storms" that Malawi has faced, I'm still amazed at God's hand in it all. I've met so many people here who run orphanages, schools, out reaches, and ministries. It's clear that God has good planned even for such a small place in the world. It's been cool to see how our school ABC Christian Academy has come together to help those in need this year by taking trips to help with relief aid. I've said it a million times, but teaching at a privileged school where so many of this country's future leaders, pastors, teachers, politicians, business owners and the like attend is an honor that I don't take lightly. God has brought kids and families of many religions to our door and every day is a chance to live out the gospel. It's also been cool to see how much my church Flood has grown. When I started teaching kids church, we had 5 little ones. Now, the class is split in half with up to 19 in my class! We are also sending a group to start a church plant in Blantyre a few hours south as well as add another service because we don't have enough chairs! It's pretty awesome to see God bringing so many people into a small room to worship Him together. Another area that you can see the Lord working in is the music industry in Malawi. Carrie and I have been able to perform with or take our girls to perform with local artists and music groups who have a passion for spreading the gospel in relevant ways for young kids. Our students have been able to collaborate with other ministries to take Jesus all over Lilongwe. Living on a campus that has people running so many different missions is amazing and I love being able to help out sometimes. I guess my point is that God is opening up my eyes to see His presence even in the poorest country in the world.
The ballet studio really is my biggest mission field and though I fail often, my prayer is that my students will come to know my love for them as well as Christ and the grace of His redemption. This year marks the 21st anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide and we are introducing a full length story ballet based on a true story from the tragedy. Think African version of "The Hiding Place." It's centered on two people Alice and Emmanuel who grew up together but because of their different tribes ended up as enemies. After killing her family and almost killing her, Emmanuel left Alice to die. She survived and joined a refugee camp to help those without families or homes. Consumed with guilt, he turned himself into jail and confessed to the Lord. Upon his release, he went to a refugee camp to help those he had once hurt. Alice happened to be there as well and he begged her for forgiveness. After two weeks of prayer, she did the unthinkable and forgave him as Christ had forgiven her. This unbelievable story can only be credited to Christ and is yet another example of how God can take horrible things that Satan meant for harm and redeem them for good. We are expecting a turn out of 1,500 people in our audience. This is our biggest outreach of the year. Please pray that the Lord will use it for His glory. Our date is May 29th and there is much to be done. This will also be Carrie and I's final production here and we really want the message to be clear. Our God's grace, forgiveness, and redemption know no end.
The past two weeks have been a bit stormy for me. Though in comparison to many, I guess it would be more of a slight breeze. Recognizing things that are difficult is important though and is something I am learning. There has been much to do in preparation for our show and work stress has been heavy. I pour myself into my job and it can become draining at times. Preparing to leave my home of two years to head into an unwritten chapter is scary. There are so many emotions involved. Excitement to see what's next, joy in being near family, fear of the unknown, and sadness in leaving are but a few. Weighing options of schools, jobs, financials, and future plans is hard. According to "Global Rich List" even living on less than minimum wage, puts you in the top 15% of the world. I have a pretty comfortable life even living in Africa. My storms or breezes are slight. However, when I'm having a bad day and the things mentioned above are weighing me down, little things suddenly seem very big. Our house has been having issues and for months we have not had a working washer, dryer, refrigerator, or hot water. Our Internet is finally working and power cuts aren't as bad, but freezing showers can be enough to ruin your day. It's like doing the hokey pokey in the shower. :) Its actually quite funny. I've gotten used to a lot and most bugs don't really bother me as long as they stay out of my bed. However, when the ants look like poured coffee grounds on the floor or you find a foot long nest in your closet, it's not OK. :) Cockroaches of abnormal size do not deserve to live and getting out of bed at night shouldn't feel like a minefield. Sometimes those things happen though. Last week they just seemed to all happen and when I had to ship my only way of communicating with my family back to the states to be fixed, I was feeling like my "breeze" had at least turned into a "gust." My God cares about the little, silly stresses of my day. I don't know why, and I can't comprehend His love, but He always sends exactly what I need. So, despite the small frustrations that have caused me to have a "bad" couple of weeks, I had some wonderful things that He also sent. A couple of letters from friends, a package from my grand parents with coffee creamer, and a sweet friend who loaned me her Ipad to use while my phone is getting fixed. Its the little things that can make your day and He knows and cares. I was also reminded of a valuable lesson when I freaked out about not being able to talk to friends and family. I am so dependent on communication. I cannot go without picking up a phone or I feel like something is missing. I want to be more dependent on communication with Christ than people. I want to run to Him in my "storm" instead of to comforts in this world. Friends and family are huge blessings, but I don't want to run to them before I run to Christ. I want to seek His presence above all else.
"God is good all the time. All the time, God is good." This is a common phrase that we are greeted with at school and church. Whether its a big storm, a tiny breeze, or what ever else, our God cares and He is there. Whether or not He calms it immediately or not, He is our calm in the midst. He wants us to run to Him and sit in His presence.
*Side note. Our hot water heater got fixed and it was one of the best days ever :)
Oceans by Hillsong
So I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise
My soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
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