Dodging Bullets

I had shared in previous posts about our trip to Liberia, Africa. This trip has hurled us into a much larger plan that God has faithfully been revealing to us little bits and pieces at a time. We recently  found ourselves packing our bags for a whirlwind trip to Florida for an interview that would directly affect our ability to raise funds more on a full time bases for Liberia. I can only figure that satan felt directly threatened by this because he desperately tried all he could to distract us from the greater picture. He was shooting bullets at us left and right and all we could do was dodge them as they came and try to keep a good attitude while it was all happening. I wanted to share with you the events that took place surrounding trip so that you could see just how hard satan will work in our lives in hopes that things will go his way, as well as share with you a heart lesson that was learned in the process of being shot at.

The attack begins

Two days before our flight my husband was in a car accident. Praise God it was nothing too serious, but enough that caused us to recognize the attacks of the enemy when we saw them. That same night someone smashed our mailbox with a baseball bat, while this may seem unimportant and unrelated, we recognized that satan was kicking into high gear in hopes to distract us from the plans and purposes of the Lord. Unfortunately for him, we had already made up our minds, so we towed the car to our mechanic and straightened up the mailbox and headed for Florida. Once we got there, the attacks did not stop. I ended up leaving my purse on a chair in the airport, of which we quickly had to run back and snatch up before someone else did. By this point I was starting to get weary in the attempts to derail what God has already orchestrated. Once we landed in Florida we got a taxi from the airport to our hotel. While in the taxi, my purse fell off the seat onto the floor and I did not realize until several hours later that my phone had fallen out and was riding around in the taxi for the remainder of the afternoon. Upon discovery, we called my mother in law who was able to locate my phone using a simple app. We were even able to set an alarm off on my phone which then alerted the driver to call my husband's cell phone. We were able to reconnect with the driver and my phone was back in my hands by the next morning.

Round two

The interview came and went and you would think that by now satan would have given up. Nope, he was stubborn enough to keep shooting the bullets right at us. Our return flight was canceled due of a major snowstorm on the east coast. This forced us to reschedule our return flight and stay another night in Florida. But instead of being able to stay in the hotel that we were currently staying in, we were forced to find other accommodations because along with our flight, over 1,000 other flights were also grounded, so needless to say we were in a race with many other passengers to find a place to stay. We decided to book a room closer to the airport. Now, we just so happened to be in Florida over spring break, and the closer we got to the airport, the closer we got to the beach. And the closer we got to the beach the closer we were to unsupervised college students who were foot loose and fancy free to say it kindly. Now, I was a college student at one time. I did not enjoy the party scene then, and I have found that I enjoy it a whole lot less now that I am older. However, our new accommodations found us smack dab in the middle of a party we did not want to be in. I guess satan figured that by now, the interview was over and decisions had been made so now he was just going to torture us. We lay in bed listening to screaming and yelling college kids until about 3:00 a.m. At 1:30 a.m. one guy actually tried quite vigorously to get in our room, by pounding on the door and yanking on the door handle. I guess he thought it was his room. My husband forcibly reminded him without opening the door that he had the wrong room. (My hero).

The REAL Battle

As I laid in bed that night, all I could do was think about all of the emptiness that these young people were more than likely experiencing. They probably would not be able to remember what they had done that night or whom they had done it with. One guy walked past our room yelling “I don’t know where in the world I’m at. I don’t know how I got here.” That young man had drank himself right out of his cognizant mind and was left wondering around unable to navigate life in the slightest. My heart hurt for these young people who will more than likely spend eternity separated from the saving grace of our loving heavenly father. I prayed earnestly for their eyes to be open, for their hearts to be broken and for their lives to be transformed in the name of Jesus. As I lay there, I knew there was nothing I could do to save them from the choices they were making. My heart ached for them. I wondered if this is how our heavenly father must feel as He looks upon us when we make the conscious choice to choose sin over Him. Oh, how his heart must break as He watches his creation choosing the worldly idols to worship over their own loving creator. Yet, despite the scorn, rejection, and scrutiny the Lord still loves and desires that one day each one will look at Him with adoring eyes rather than eyes of disdain. I can’t even begin to imagine how bad that must hurt Him.

Our battles truly are not against flesh and blood, but the battles we face are in the spirit realm. We are called to battle for the hearts and souls of this generation, for a lost and dying world, a world that does not even realize they are lost and ding.  Our Lord does not want any to perish, but all to come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:9). We are to stand in the gap in prayer for these people!

While this trip started out causing me to dodge one bullet after another, it ended up with me learning so much more about the heart of my Heavenly Father. This trip allowed me to see a world full of brokenness, hurt, and emptiness, a world desperate for the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. My heart will forever be impacted by the faces that I saw bowing the knee to their own selfish ambitions. My heart was broken as I realized that the path these young people were on will never satisfy them, in fact it will do just the opposite. It will leave them more tormented than ever before.

Father God, I am so thankful that you allow us to have trials and hurdles come into our lives so  we can see the things of your heart. Thank you for showing me just how much this world needs you. Please continue to deepen my heart of compassion for those who do not know you.  I pray that each of us learns what it means to have your heart of compassion. Fill us with your love for the lost because we know it is not our desire that anyone should perish. In the precious name of Jesus Christ we pray.