In honor of the anniversary of the publishing of my first book, I thought I would share a story from the mission field. There is a link on the side of this blog if you are interested in learning more about Turning Mountains into Molehills.
Several years back, my husband and I were visiting our orphanage in Kenya. It was just the two of us on this trip. This trip included many meetings for strategic planning purposes. It was the rainy season, and we had to visit a rural village to pick up some handmade baskets for a project. As the vehicle bounced down the narrow lane, the mud grew deeper and deeper. I started to get a little worried as we slowly bobbed along the rugged path.
Proverbs 18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe.
Soon, the tires sunk in and just spun and spun. We were stuck in the middle of rural Kenya without the benefit of cell service. We got out of the truck and looked at our situation, and it appeared dire. I had no idea how we would get out of this one. My AAA service would not be able to help us here.
As we stood looking at the van, I noticed a man walking towards us. He stared at the wazungu (Swahili for white people) stuck in the mud. He left as quickly as he came, and my heart sank a little. The three of us sat down in a dry grassy patch to try to figure out what to do. I felt so alone and isolated at that moment even though the others were with me. With only three of us, we had no good options for splitting up to go get help since any plan would require someone to be alone in the bush. I prayed for God to rescue us.
Psalm 9:9-10 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble
After a while, I detected a rustling in the bushes down the lane. My heart pounded, and my palms grew damp as visions of roaming lions popped into my head. Then, the man I saw earlier stepped out. I concluded he was returning from his errand. But, then I noticed several other men standing behind him. I must admit I felt apprehensive as they approached us. As they gathered around us, I prayed for God’s protection.
1 Chronicles 16:11 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!
I noticed one man raised his hand, and I ducked for cover. Then, I realized he was motioning for one of us to get behind the wheel. The entire group started pushing the vehicle. Bill and I jumped in to help. I sank to my ankles in the muck. It took a while, but finally, our little truck was freed from its mud shackles. We cheered and hooted with our rescuers. And I offered thanks to God for sending these strangers to help.
How often is life like my story? We are driving along, and everything is going well. Suddenly, a mud puddle of sin entraps us, and we are stuck. We can feel alone and abandoned as we wrestle with the situation. At first, no one comes to help us. Then, we start to push and pull against the weight of the sin, but nothing moves. We feel unsure of what other evil is lurking in the bushes around us. The sins impede us from moving forward.
Just like in my story, God is only a prayer away. He can rescue us no matter our circumstances. He is able. Throughout the Bible we see example of God helping His people. David asks God to save him as seen in Psalm 71:4, “Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.” God promises to hear our prayers and answer them. Our job is just to reach out to Him in faith, and He will be there to help. He is only a breathe prayer away. Luke 1:37, “For nothing is impossible with God.”
[bctt tweet=”God is only a breathe prayer away.”]
Blessings,
Yvonne – #blogger, #speaker, and #author
Matthew 28:19 “Therefore, GO and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
100% of the proceeds from sales of my book, Turning Mountains Into Molehills, go to help the orphans at Orphan Relief Effort, Inc
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