SIGNS OF GOD'S SPIRIT LEADING

Amazing things have begun to happen since the last update as travel planning continues and the departure date to head to Europe is now less than a week away. Plans have been committed for weeks already to travel with a friend in Europe; we met in September 2009 in New Zealand at the same missions training school we were at - he was a school leader, and I was one of the guest speakers and general staff for the base. We have only been in touch via emails and skype for the past few months as we are over 1000 km apart in distance here in North America.

During this planning process, I've been in touch with a good friend in the UK, and as things were shared about coming, she mentioned there was a large Christian conference scheduled a couple days after our planned arrival there. She was already booked in and invited us to join her and her church group to attend. So, I booked us in (via internet) and received the confirmation papers over a week ago.

A few days later, I received an email from G., the one traveling to Europe with me - he had been working in a restaurant in the state of Colorado in the US, and happened to meet a man from the UK. As a result of conversing with him, G. discovered that he was a Christian and had been a speaker at the exact same conference a year ago! And this man's friend is scheduled to be speaking there at the conference we are now booked into!

France has also been a destination we have been planning for - and on my list to try to contact and visit, was a French university student I had met back in early December 2008 while I was volunteering at a Christian hostel in Amsterdam. I could not remember her name or email address, and doing a search in my address book yielded nothing. BUT I had purchased an Apple iPod Touch a few days ago, and did a sample 'Mail' transfer from my laptop to it. Only just 8 mailboxes out of dozens were transferred ...and an email of this student 'happened' to be in one of these! How it got there, I have no idea.

After accessing my email on the web account and searching for the emails between A. and myself, I was SURPRISED in discovering that in a couple of G's newsletters to me months ago, A's name and email address also popped up in the cc list of his contacts!!! Same name, same email address!! How did G. know of this same person? I emailed G. about this and his reply: Back in December 2008, he was in France doing his Christian training and had a short break and traveled from the school with 2 staff members to the French city where A lived. One of these staff members was a friend of A's and the group wound up staying at A's place! And this is how G. met A!

So...are these two events just 'random' coincidences, or are they part of some divine (God) connections and leadings? Are we beginning to experience something of God's guidance here?
What will happen at the conference in the UK? And what about A? I have not been in touch with A. for almost 1 1/2 years. Will we meet A. in Europe, and if so, where and when, and what will result of that? And there have been a couple of other similar things that have already occurred.

Our heart is that this journey would bear witness to the God of the Bible, the one who does promise to lead and guide people into His plans and purposes. He is our 'travel' guide. The adventure is in stepping out in faith with these 'sign posts', and in seeing what happens.

For a great story on this kind of God's 'guidance' or sovereignty, you need to read the entire story of Ruth from the book of Ruth in the Old Testament of the Bible. Here one gets to see the big picture and outcome of events that just 'happen'. In Ruth Chapter 2 Verse 3 (Ruth 2:3): "So she [Ruth] went out and began to glean in the fields....AS IT TURNED OUT, she found herself working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelech." Search out the answers to these questions: Who was Boaz? What eventually happened between Boaz and Ruth? Ruth became the grandmother of King David who 'happened' to be part of the 'genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David' (Book of Matthew, ch.1 v.1 and v. 5-6). As a result of things 'just turning happening' - things were being prepared for events generations into the future.

So, will there be some kind of significant outcome as we head to Europe with these 'God-incidents' in mind? Time will tell, but we pray that there will be something amazing to share.

Another awesome example of this kind of guidance is with Peter in the book of Acts in the New Testament of the Bible between him and the centurion named Cornelius (Acts 10:1 - 11:18).
Read the story in context, look for the timing of things, the supernatural, and the outcome.

Over the past 2 weeks I have been encouraged through reading a book called Empowered Church leadership and it finishes off with a section entitled 'Hearing God's Direction for Your Ministry'. The author explains the importance of gaining a sense of what God is doing, where things just 'flow'. We need to find out what God is doing and join him in it. There is a difference between following through on our good ideas and plans versus coming into line with God's ideas.

We really don't have much of a clue what will happen as we begin this journey together, but we have a strong sense that God is orchestrating something. So with this in mind, we put our faith in this aspect of what God is like:

For my [God's] thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Book of Isaiah ch. 55 v. 8-9, Old Testament, Bible - New Revised Standard Version)


Join us as we travel the road 'unknown' and discover what God is doing and our role in it.