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God Provides the Way
August 9 2007 / ShareHim in Kalimantan (Borneo), Jul. 13 - Jul. 28 '07 #178by Amanda Moore
Personal Testimony of Amanda Moore.
When I first signed up to go on a mission trip, I was assigned to Africa. As I was preparing to go, several issues came up. But through this whole situation, I prayed, “Lord, if you want me to go, then you are going to have to provide the way, and make things work” He prepared the way.
Being a college student, I don’t even have enough money for school, let alone enough money to travel half way around the world. So I prayed, “Lord, if you want me to go, then you are going to have to provide the money” I wrote up a letter explaining my intentions and sent it out to about 200 or more people. Everyone I knew. Four churches, all my friends, family, and even people I go to school with.
As I handed out these letters to person after person, I felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere. I felt as though I was spending more money on stamps and envelopes than I was getting in. But then slowly and surely, I kept counting, and sure enough…God was raising money. I needed a lot of money for this trip and graphics equipment too, and God provided it—in 2 months! I thought it was impossible.
As the trip started drawing nearer, I still had not received my passport, and I only had a short amount of time to get my visa. I prayed, “Lord, if you want me to go, then you are going to have to make my passport come.” Well, it was getting down to the time to leave, and I still had not received it. I had about a week left when finally it came in the mail. But that was not enough time to send in to get my business visa. So I was going to have to get a tourist visa on entrance. When I got to Balikpapan, they gave me my visa no questions asked. Praise God. He provided.
On the way to Balikpapan, we were delayed a day because we missed a flight. At first I was really upset about it—being alone in a foreign country and only knowing one other person there. I started to cry, not because I didn’t think that God would provide, but because I was homesick and being delayed in another country was still a little scary. We got things settled though, and the airport put us up in a hotel for a day. We were able to see Singapore, which is another very beautiful country.
This whole time though I was stressed. Our orientation was going to begin on Thursday morning, and as it was we were going to get in on Wednesday night, and then being delayed a day, we weren’t going to be able to get in until Thursday late morning. Afraid that we were going to miss our orientation I just kept praying. “Lord, please help them to understand that we are going to be late, and that we can’t help it.”
Then, not only being scared that we were missing our orientation, I was more scared that we weren’t going to have a ride from the airport once we arrived. We tried calling the Mission to tell them that we wouldn’t be in until the next day, but with a language barrier between us, we weren’t sure that they even understood us. So I prayed the whole way there, “Lord, please have someone there at the airport to pick us up!”
When we arrived at the airport we were greeted with warm smiles and loving kindness. We were also greeted with some good news. They had delayed orientation for us, so we wouldn’t have to miss any of it. AMEN! God is good, all of the time.
I had never attended an evangelistic series before. I’d tried to go, but I just never could attend all the nights, so the first evangelistic series I attended was the one I preached halfway around the world. I learned so much. I had never known about the 2,300 year prophecy, so when I was preparing that sermon it was difficult, but I got through with God’s help and with many other people’s help. I learned so much more about the Bible than I thought possible.
Going on this trip has taught me a lot. There were many obstacles and I’ve learned to just place them in God’s hands. There is nothing I can do about the situation that God can’t handle better. So it’s best to just leave things up to Him. This trip was an amazing opportunity and I wish to thank everyone who helped in allowing me to go. It was an eye opening experience that will change me for the rest of my life. An experience that I hope one day I’ll have again. So I’m praying, “Lord if you want me to go, you have to prepare the way.”
Being a college student, I don’t even have enough money for school, let alone enough money to travel half way around the world. So I prayed, “Lord, if you want me to go, then you are going to have to provide the money” I wrote up a letter explaining my intentions and sent it out to about 200 or more people. Everyone I knew. Four churches, all my friends, family, and even people I go to school with.
As I handed out these letters to person after person, I felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere. I felt as though I was spending more money on stamps and envelopes than I was getting in. But then slowly and surely, I kept counting, and sure enough…God was raising money. I needed a lot of money for this trip and graphics equipment too, and God provided it—in 2 months! I thought it was impossible.
As the trip started drawing nearer, I still had not received my passport, and I only had a short amount of time to get my visa. I prayed, “Lord, if you want me to go, then you are going to have to make my passport come.” Well, it was getting down to the time to leave, and I still had not received it. I had about a week left when finally it came in the mail. But that was not enough time to send in to get my business visa. So I was going to have to get a tourist visa on entrance. When I got to Balikpapan, they gave me my visa no questions asked. Praise God. He provided.
On the way to Balikpapan, we were delayed a day because we missed a flight. At first I was really upset about it—being alone in a foreign country and only knowing one other person there. I started to cry, not because I didn’t think that God would provide, but because I was homesick and being delayed in another country was still a little scary. We got things settled though, and the airport put us up in a hotel for a day. We were able to see Singapore, which is another very beautiful country.
This whole time though I was stressed. Our orientation was going to begin on Thursday morning, and as it was we were going to get in on Wednesday night, and then being delayed a day, we weren’t going to be able to get in until Thursday late morning. Afraid that we were going to miss our orientation I just kept praying. “Lord, please help them to understand that we are going to be late, and that we can’t help it.”
Then, not only being scared that we were missing our orientation, I was more scared that we weren’t going to have a ride from the airport once we arrived. We tried calling the Mission to tell them that we wouldn’t be in until the next day, but with a language barrier between us, we weren’t sure that they even understood us. So I prayed the whole way there, “Lord, please have someone there at the airport to pick us up!”
When we arrived at the airport we were greeted with warm smiles and loving kindness. We were also greeted with some good news. They had delayed orientation for us, so we wouldn’t have to miss any of it. AMEN! God is good, all of the time.
I had never attended an evangelistic series before. I’d tried to go, but I just never could attend all the nights, so the first evangelistic series I attended was the one I preached halfway around the world. I learned so much. I had never known about the 2,300 year prophecy, so when I was preparing that sermon it was difficult, but I got through with God’s help and with many other people’s help. I learned so much more about the Bible than I thought possible.
Going on this trip has taught me a lot. There were many obstacles and I’ve learned to just place them in God’s hands. There is nothing I can do about the situation that God can’t handle better. So it’s best to just leave things up to Him. This trip was an amazing opportunity and I wish to thank everyone who helped in allowing me to go. It was an eye opening experience that will change me for the rest of my life. An experience that I hope one day I’ll have again. So I’m praying, “Lord if you want me to go, you have to prepare the way.”