Building Monuments

A few more remembrances need to be erected before I move forward. The unforgettable events of my past are definitely sources of strength in the present.....

After I graduated from college, life took an unexpected turn. I went to school to become an interpreter but along the way God radically apprehended my life. I was in the midst of questioning why I didnt see the God of the Bible when unexplainable events began to unfold. I was given a free ticket to a conference at a local church so I figured I'd check it out. The presence of God in that place seemed more real to me than anything I had ever experienced. Shortly after the conference, I felt like God told me to go to Brazil on a short term trip. It seemed pretty overwhelming because in reality, I have no money, know no one with money, suck at salesmanship, and honestly wasn't motivated to do bake-sales or anything of the like. So, where is this $3000 going to come from? I had no clue, and to some extent I still have no clue where it came from. I sent out the usual support letters which returned probably $600 of the $3000. There was still a pretty large gap that I had no clue how to cover, but I knew that God told me to go on this trip and ultimately I was confident that He would make it possible somehow. About that same time, I was on a college ministry team and I got an email one day that a local apartment complex owner (non-Christian) wanted to give our leadership team free apartments in exchange for bringing other members of the college group to live in the complex. Long story short, I sublet the apartment I had been renting for $900 and that brought the total needed down to $1500. Let's just revisit the fact that a business person handed us free apartments! Yep, I just felt like we needed to stay there for a second. It was a pretty ridiculous thing that just happened to be perfectly timed. So what about the last $1500? The balance for the trip was given to me by an anonymous donor three days before the deadline. With all the money turned in, I was on my way.

While I was in Brazil, I saw incredible miracles, healings, and had experiences with God that I never thought possible. That being said, my questions about God moving today were answered, and I was on board with whatever He wanted to do!