“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”  Jeremiah 33:3

 We sing that well known hymn by John Sammis, “Trust and obey for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”  But sometimes we find ourselves obeying and then trusting!  It can be a frightening thing to be in a difficult situation for the first time, not completely sure of yourself or the next step to take.  I found myself in such a situation just two weeks ago.

I had been encouraged to step out in faith and be the leader of a mission trip to a Central American country.  Yes, I had been on trips before, but never as the leader, but I felt the Lord was speaking to me to go ahead.  He gave me several verses confirming my plans, but at that point I only had 3 people who were definitely joining the team.  One of them was a 16 year old girl!  I continued to pray and God kept confirming the go ahead.  Then 2 more joined the team, then 2 more, then a family of 5, then 2 doctors!  We had enough for a medical mission trip!  Praise the Lord!  We were encouraged by 3 missionaries and two native pastors.  They said, “Stick to the plan and God will be glorified!”  The verse, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know” kept popping up in my head.  I wasn’t sure about the “great and mighty things,” after all, what could a group of 12 do that would qualify for the “great and mighty” works of God?  And I certainly didn’t know what the Lord knew, since He knows the end from the beginning!

As we were driving to the destination of the first clinic, the pastor who spoke English and was to be our guide, had a stroke and had to be rushed to the hospital.  It was a life and death matter as he was taken by ambulance to a hospital 3 hours away.   He was to be our guide and helper!  Now what to do?  But God had other plans for us.  For myself, I believe God was showing us that we needed to rely on Him and not the pastor!  We read the story of King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20 and prayed his prayer.  “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you,” verse 12.  The Lord’s answer is the same today as it was then!  “Do not be afraid or discouraged…..for the battle is not yours, but God’s!”  As the people of Israel sang and praised the Lord, He fought for them and a mighty army was defeated!

So our little group of 12, prayed and trusted.  We set up our medical clinics as we had planned and the Lord took care of the details!  What a wonderful time we had helping the sick get well, being Jesus hands and feet to the precious people of that country!  Young people worked as translators, church members came with food and helped with the children……..there was a party atmosphere and Jesus Christ got the glory!!  He did it all!  We were privileged to be a part of it!  Best of all, the Body of Christ prayed, the pastor recovered and there was great rejoicing!!

Don’t be afraid to obey God’s direction, then trust!  It’s a fascinating life to be in the center of His will!!

Your friend, Jean