God is SO cool!!!

So I don't mean to be irreverent or too familiar by saying God is so cool, but there are just times when He blows my mind and I can't help but think how cool He is... This story is one of those stories...

I said a few weeks ago that I was going back to Africa, on a mission trip, with my mom... Well, you might be familiar with raising support, where you send out letters and ask people, if their hearts are so inclined to partner with you on your short term mission trip, by praying for you and/or contributing money to your trip... The money goes straight to Heart For Africa and is just designated to a particular trip, through a participant's code, but when you get down to it, it feels like asking for money...

Hence, my struggle this last week... The support letters are all written and ready to go, but I haven't sent them out, I have been wrestling with my pride... God calls some to go, and He calls others to 'help go,' but it is just hard sometimes to send these letters.

Just yesterday morning, I was praying again, asking God if He was absolutely certain I was supposed to go on this trip? Had I really heard Him correctly? Why were these support letters so hard?

And then last night, I received the most unexpected e-mail... A bloggy friend, who is in full time ministry, e-mailed me and asked if I was raising support for my trip. If so, she and her husband wanted to contribute... Wait a minute... this should be the other way around... they are in full time ministry, they should be receiving support, not sending it...they already give their lives, their time, their money, their everything to Him...

So I e-mailed her back and told her my struggle, I wasn't going to argue with how God was leading them, but I wanted them to pray and be absolutely sure.

Well, I need to back up for a minute... When you travel with Heart For Africa, you typically have a couple of funding deadlines... My next deadline is Monday and my account was short by a significant amount of money...

So back to my friend... This morning I received an e-mail from her explaining how even though they are in full time ministry, they don't believe they are exempt from giving, and then she said, "You can't out give God." She went on to tell me two beautiful stories of His amazing provision and she ended the e-mail telling me that she had already made a deposit to my trip account.

It was the exact amount I was due to deposit by Monday! She had no idea that I had a funding deadline coming up and she definitely didn't know the amount I needed... she and her husband simply followed God's leading! And I was humbled beyond words... Any doubts I had about whether or not I was supposed to go TOTALLY diappeared and I will send out my support letters on Monday.

God has an amazing ability to say, "I love you," in the most beautiful ways and to gently rebuke us when our faith is falling so far short... He did both in that one beautiful act of obedience by my sweet friend!

Thank you sweet friend for being such a beautiful and willing vessel of grace...