“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”
Romans 1:16 ESV
I have been procrastinating writing this update, not knowing what to write. So here I go. I pray that Jesus uses this post in someway for his glory. I just know that I need to write what is on my heart.
I have not been in Guatemala for over a month, so at the end of my rambling, I’ll link the blog post of other amazing ministry partners that Jesus is using and have updates about what’s going on down in Guatemala.
My journey starts on the 23rd of May. Eden and I started our 2-week journey and adventure from Ohio to California and back. To say that trip will forever be in my heart and have so many memories built in it, is the understatement of the century. God displayed through the thousands of miles of traveling through the deserts, mountains, backroads, city highways, coastal drives, and everything in between His power and handiwork. Even though I have been in the mountains and beaches and seen his creation many times, Christ revealed himself in a different and much more powerful way than he ever has to me on this trip and the weeks following it.
Have you ever just had the opportunity to sit back and marvel at Christ’s creation? The amazingness of how unique He made everything from the people He created in His image down to the smallest insect? Just take a moment and meditate on that.
Now on a deeper level, have you ever stepped back and completely surrendered everything and every loved one to Jesus? Have you truly whole-heartedly given what is precious and close to your heart over to Jesus?
Just recently, I realized I had with my words and head, but after digging deeper and reading books that illustrated what that truly meant and looked like, I knew I genuinely hadn't. I was still holding tight to a few of those wants and not surrendering them.
I'm not saying that having desires and dreams are wrong, not at all. God put them in our hearts for a reason. But, we need to make sure that we are holding them with open palms. We must ensure that we are open to the fact that Jesus may want to change or shift those hope, wishes, and dreams.
Jesus has been putting on my heart to cry out, "Lord, is my faith worthy enough to be persecuted and beat for if I were put in the circumstance? If not, where do I need to grow? Where are you trying to stretch me?"
A question that I have always had but close and never asked is this: "Why hasn't persecution entered America? Why hasn't Satan put his focus on us? A country where Jesus' name is free to flow? If his goal is to stop the spread of Jesus, why hasn't he come to a country where in whatever village, town, or city, there are churches on about every corner?"
I got a chilling answer and would love to hear your thoughts on it. Here it is: "Why would Satan want to wake us up when he has already shut us up?"___The Insanity of God pg.310.
That stopped me in my tracks: Is this true? And If so, why? Why aren't we shouting Jesus so loud that Satan sees us as a threat? Don't we want him to think, "I have to stop them. I can't let this keep going, or everyone will see the true power that HE has. And I Can Not allow that." I’m not saying that I’m not extremely grateful for the freedom we have to spread the word of Jesus in this country because I am. But I want to know; why aren’t we thriving to shout and spread his name so far and bold to put that fear in Satan?
"It is simply a matter of obedience. If He is our Lord, then we will obey Him. If we do not obey Him, then He is not our Lord.
Perhaps the question should not be. 'Why are others persecuted.'
Perhaps the better question is: 'Why are we not?"___The Insanity of God pg.311
"Is this really the way that God intends for his people to live? And am I certain about the resurrection that I would actually be willing to live that way ----and maybe even be willing to die that way?____The Insanity of God pg177
I want to leave you with that quote cause that’s what’s been weigh on my heart. Yes, I’ve said I’d live for Christ but I’m I willing to die for him also?
I want to ask you the same question: “If you are willing to live for Jesus are you also willing to die for Him? And if so, why aren’t we being so bold and radical in our faith as to put the fear of God on Satan’s heart, that he thinks he needs to shut us up?”
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As many of you know, I will be making a ministry change after Christ put it on my heart, and I found a lot of peace. But with that comes a lot of expenses, both upfront and later. If you feel led to give, I’ll put my Venmo and PayPal on here. If you would like to know more about what I’ll be doing, send me a message via Instagram or messenger, and we can chat through there, zoom, or meetup(since I’m in the country right now), and I will let you know more about what you'd be giving to if you feel led.
My Venmo: @Blessangle01
PayPal: @blessjA
To get more updates about ministry going on in Guatemala here are some links to those to subscribe to:
Katie Riley: rileykrn.blogpost.com
Kelsie Wester and Jeremiah Fulp: https://kgwester.wixsite.com/kelsiewester/post/june-updates
Daryl Fulp: http://hopeforhome.blogspot.com/
Wanda Fulp: http://wandafulp.blogspot.com/
Carissa Chapin: http://carissachapin.blogspot.com/
Stephanie; https://stephaniedkonrad.wordpress.com/
Taryn Fulp: https://tarynfulp.blogspot.com/
Trenton and Cassidy Griffith: https://tcgriffith.wordpress.com
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