Faith Trees and Mustard Seeds

I had to share something short and sweet with you, hopefully this little bit of encouragement can speak to you in some way. 

So...There are some amazing trees here in Africa. Right now, most of them are dead and leafless, but randomly there are some beautiful, lush, green trees. I asked our director what kind of tree it was and he told me it was a Faith Tree. He described how all the other trees wait until the rains come before they begin to blossom and bud, but the Faith trees take a chance and bud early, in anticipation of the rain.

What a great example of our lives as Christians. In His word, God tells us to have Faith, to trust His promises, and to GO. So many times we wait until the blessings come, or we wait until we are 100% positive that everything will be taken care of and we have a definite plan before we want to trust God and follow His commands. What a waste... we are called to be people of Faith, to follow without asking questions, to trust without needing proof, and to step out in obedience- show our leaves to the world and GO. 

Faith trees... what a beautiful concept. 

Blossom and bloom. Show your faith without hesitation. Trust in your Heavenly Father and believe that when he says he has plans to prosper and not to harm you He means it. But also remember that He means it when He tells us to obey and to share the Gospel with all who will hear. 

Have Faith in God, He's on His throne. Have faith in God He watches o'er His own. He cannot Fail, He must prevail. Have Faith in God- Have Faith in God. 

Our classes are getting tough, but we are doing our best and working hard. We are officially Wilderness First Responders and know how to weld and cut metal. Our leadership and Culture classes start next week and we've already been given homework assignments. 

We are steadily losing the cool nights, so please pray for us as we will be roasting here pretty soon :) 

We love you all and hope everything is well! 

It hasn't even been 2 weeks???

I can't believe we haven't even been here for 2 weeks! The old saying 'time flies when you're having fun' certainly is not the case here in Zambia. We are having a blast and are so thankful that God is stretching out the days so we can experience him in fullness! The worst thing in the world would be to get to the end of these three months and say 'where did the time go?'.

God has been doing amazing things in us and through us this last week and a half. Our new AMT family is wonderful. After sharing our testimonies this week around the campfire, it was unreal to see how intertwined our pasts are and how perfectly God put this team together. We are blessed with beautiful, kind and sweet friends to spend this time with!

Our tent, that seemed small and hot when we first got here seems like a haven after sleeping in a smaller tent in the bush for a week! We are so grateful for the mattress and enough space to be able to stand up in the mornings! And after squatting over a 'long drop' all week... a toilet is the most luxurious item you could imagine! (Especially after my last night in the bush - I threw up all night and my back, knees, and hips were killing me from being on the ground in the cold night!) We were all waiting in line for showers after we returned on Friday. Bush baths just don't quite cut it :) (bathing with 1 liter of water with a bucket and a cup... it's that or baby wipes!) It is truly inspiring how much God can change you and equip you in just 1 week.

Today has been a beautifully restful day. Brandon hiked down to the Gorge again and I've done some laundry and caught up my journal. I also cut his hair this morning because he was getting too hot with the cute little beiber haircut :) We visited the Martin's house this morning and borrowed their clippers and gave him a little faux hawk! Their home is stunning... she is a master crafter and has glass and tile mosaic all over their 2 story african home! It looks like a Caribbean resort! The colorful windows and floors are a drastic change from the brown dirt that surrounds the home. What beautiful and encouraging artistry, and wonderfully encouraging people.

 The breeze coming off the gorge almost cools you down if you're sitting in the shade and the view up here is awe-inspiring. I'm sitting in the 2nd floor living room area of the Main Building on base. I'm procrastinating writing my 1 page testimony of our expedition (haha...some things never change!) but do need to get started on it fairly soon!

The expedition was incredible. God showed himself in so many ways, and I learned even more how to rely on him. I am no preacher, and no evangelist. But when you realize that NO one is fully equipped with out the holy spirit, your prospective changes. When you hear a woman tell you that she has never seen a bible and doesn't know who Jesus is, your prospective changes. When you hear her say through tears, 'but I don't think even a God that big can forgive me for everything I've done', your heart breaks and for the first time you understand why sharing the Gospel is so important. People are dying every day without hope. A hope I have been blessed with from DAY 1 because of my family and circumstance, and a hope that most people around the world would never even dream existed. God gave me a love in that moment and my heart poured out for this woman and the others there in a way I never imagined. He spoke through me for an hour and a half and gave me answers to all of their questions. You can tell the difference between someone repeating the sinners prayer and turning back to their life, and when someone's heart is truly touched by God. That difference makes ALL the difference. Evangelism without love and true compassion for the lost is a waste. Every second of every day we should be broken hearted for those who don't know Jesus. We should live in a constant state of love and compassion so that others might know Him through us. I have honestly never experienced brokenhearted compassion like I did on Wednesday morning in that village hut. From creation to redemption God shared his love story through me and reached into their despairing souls and pulled them from the darkness. It was an experience I will never forget. I walked away from their village 100% confident that they were filled with God's Holy Spirit and that even if they didn't have a bible or a church nearby, that God would make himself known to them and that those people would spur a change in their village and beyond. What an amazing opportunity.

God's timing is always right. I had no clue that Shannon would ask me to preach, and I hadn't prepared anything to share. But God doesn't let us get in the way. We are a vessel for His message, and when we trust in Him, He pulls out everything from within us - things we didn't even know were there. NEVER be discouraged to share your faith. I hid my light under a 'bushel' until now, and I pray that by this experience I never hide it again. When you understand the depths of darkness - you see how imperative the light truly is.

So much... and in less than 2 weeks! We have another restful Sabbath day tomorrow and then Monday morning starts our Wilderness First Responder course.

Thank you so much for all of your prayers. We think about you often but God isn't letting us be homesick! We love you all so much and hope that we can share often what God is doing in and through us, but with so much going on, I feel we will only be scratching the surface! We pray for your health and safety as you pray for us. We love you!

Sally and Brandon

Click here to see Some photos from the expedition this past week