Again and Again...

Last Sunday a few people from the Kenya team talked in front of the whole church about their experiences in Kenya. And I just happened to be one of the few people who talked at Plum Creek Community Church. At first I REALLY DID NOT want to stand up in front of the entire church and totally embarrass myself! I've talked in front of a lot of adults before on a stage with a mic, but I had a friend with me so it wasn't so frightening. So, the team meeting before we had to speak, Joe, [my neighbor, great friend, and a guy who went on the trip with me. It was his second time to Kenya.] talked me into speaking by telling me what he was going to talk about. He reminded me of when we were sitting in the back of the bus in Kenya and I was looking out the window. Suddenly I saw a bright blue neon church. On the side of the church was painted the words "Knowing God and Making Him Known." I turned to Joe and told him of the bright blue neon church [which he had some how not seen!] and the cool phrase on the side. He told me to remember that. As we were driving to our Kenya meeting as Joe was helping me relive that moment. He said that the trip for him was exactly that phrase: "Knowing God and Making Him Known." I felt the Lord telling me that I was supposed to speak on Sunday and that He would give me His words so that He can use me as a tool so that someone may come to know Him.
As it turned out, God followed through. He did everything and more. So on Sunday I prayed with Charles and Erin [people who were speaking during the same service as me and had really impacted me during the trip.] that God would give us His words so that someone would come to know Him. After we finished praying, I walked into the church service and started worshiping. The first song was Here Is Our King and I just fell apart. Every time I sang the words Here is our God who's come to bring us back to Him, I just wept harder and harder. I continued to weep throughout all of the follow songs. Especially a song that goes Where the spirit of the Lord is, There is Freedom. Then again in that same song it would continually repeat Freedom reigns in this place, Showers of mercy and grace, Falling on every face, There is freedom. Those two songs really impacted me because I felt as though God was specifically talking to me. I had felt so different after visiting the Slums. I felt like there was a dark cloud hanging over me, but when I sang those songs to the Lord, and when I cried out to Him, He lifted that cloud away and set me free again. He is so full of love and mercy for us it simply amazes me!
First Erin went up to speak and of course I cried. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears as I got up and heard my dad introduce me to the church. I grabbed the mic and my heart was poured out to everyone as I cried and relive my short experience in the Slums. I don't need to say much I kept thinking. I didn't even remember the words I had spoken as soon as I stepped off the stage because they weren't MY words... No, they could NOT have been my words for not I alone can save a soul... Only Christ can bring someone to Him... So , those words were His. And that is something I can't take credit for... I'm only a twelve year old girl who God, the savior of the universe, used to to touch someones heart. I stepped off the stage, handed my dad the mic, gave him and Charles a hug as I walked back to my seat in tears. Luckily, I didn't say much because Charles finished the story without crying. His story was about how encouraging I was when he was in tears in the Slums. I was so happy Charles was on that trip because he impacted me in a way he can't even imagine, so I just want to thank him from the bottom of my heart for being there to listen to me in my time of need and for challenging me to be my full potential every day.
I relived every moment I spent in the Slums as I talked about my experiences and as I listened to Erin and Charles. God did a mighty work in me in the Slums, and He is continuing to work in me every day!