Just wait for those opportunities to come a knockin'

I was told a few months back that when you take a step toward Christ, take a leap of faith in obedience to what He has called you to do, just wait for the doors to open. The opportunities to come knocking. I did not fully understand what he meant when he said that but now I am beginning to see it unfold.

Six months ago I applied for an internship position in Haiti that most of you know about. I did this because I felt a nudging to do so even though it was completely out of my comfort zone. I guess I shouldn't say completely but aspects of it, large aspects of it, are out of my comfort zone. But I finally surrendered to His will and applied. Then I got accepted and then came the above conversation. At the time when this conversation was happening I did not know what he was talking about. What doors would open, what opportunities, because to be honest I have now lived in this town for a few years and not much has changed. Not many opportunities have come a knockin.

Well as they say hindsight is 20/20. Because over the past 6 months opportunities have come a knockin. But not in the way that I would have thought. I feel as though we invision the doors to be these huge endeavors, these opportunities that are out of this world. And not to say they they may not be, but I think we miss the little things that God is doing, the smaller doors that He is opening for us. God is doing things around us and in us everyday, we just do not take time to notice it. And these doors are nothing miraculous but they are opportunities I do not think I would have had if I had not taken that first leap.

I had already been working with the high school ministry at my church, but I began working with the college age as well starting in January. One of my fellow leaders encouraged, our forced whichever way you want to look at it, me to teach some of our get togethers. Now I had not ever done something like this before, but as he said, "You will be doing this in Haiti." I decided to take a leap of faith and do it. So I have now taught three times there and each time it gets a little easier. Each time I learn something new about sharing with a group of people. I learn that success is not gauged by what I can necessarily see, what change I see in them, but by listening to the Spirit and being obedient to what He has laid on my heart to say. I have also learned that you do not need to know everything or have taken a lot of classes on the Bible in order to teach something that God has taught you. This has taken some of the pressure off. Not that I take this lightly at all, but I also feel like I can put too much pressure on making it sound good, or right, or being truth. I just need to listen to the Spirit and follow what I feel He is requiring of me. That has been awesome to watch unfold, seeing maybe a skill I necessarily did not know I had. I know I went to school to teach, and I love teaching, but I guess I always thought teaching God's word was too lofty for me to attain. And maybe on my own it was. But I have to understand that if God desires it for me, then He will make me able because He is never wrong and truly He doesn't fail.

For my Haiti trip I have to teach a few 5 minute lessons in front of a crowd and video tape them. (Ugh not my favorite thing in the world, I have actually not even watched them.) I did one in February and because of that I was asked to do a lesson on our youth's spring break trip to Myrtle Beach. Now this trip I went on all four years of high school and it impacted my life greatly, so I was very excited to go, but also very nervous to have the same impact that the leaders did when I went. I quickly dismissed some of those pressures because I know it will be different. But this was still a huge step of faith. It was not leading small group discussions, as my college group lessons had been. It was going to be me, just me, speaking what I felt God had laid on my heart to say. One of the first daunting tasks was simply writing the lesson. Where do I start, what do I say? But I found that things start to just flow. Read and read and read some more and then listen. And see what He says. It was kind of crazy how easy thoughts came together and how even after I had created my outline I went over a few more times and He made things clear to me, things to focus on and things to narrow in on. Even my application point, had not been developed until the night before, seriously while I could not sleep at midnight or one in the morning it started to take shape. But I did not worry or stress about it, because I have come to realize that all things are made known in their own time. Ecclesiastes 3.

I am very excited to see what other doors may open and what other talents/abilities God is going to develop in me. I am by no means puffing myself up, I am simply making myself available to whatever He would have me do/be. I am a small part in His grand plan and am thankful to play whatever part He has for me.