Passion, I have so many passions, so many things I love to do- so many things that I want to share with others and teach others. However over the course pf my life- childhood up until now (the age of 33) there are times when my passion has fizzled. In these instances, I sometimes go days, weeks, months or even longer without doing the things that I love to do. These times were very hard times in my life because it wasnt actually me that didn’t want to do the things that I love, it was the enemy attacking me and my mental health failing me as a result of the enemies attacks.
During this 11 month 11 country world race journey there are times when I have gotten to do the things I love and use my passions to further God’s Kingdom- and there were other times when I had to ask God to change my perspective on what he was asking me to do. In that, God has been teaching me so many lessons. He has been teaching me to embrace everything he asks me to do with a willing and open heart, even if its not something I am passionate about or love to do.
In month 10 of this journey in Serbia, we had what is called a “No Host Month” or “ATL” (ask the Lord) and during this time we find our own place to live, and pray and ask God to lead us and guide us to what he wants us to do. One of the things that God lead my teammate Katie to do was for all us as a team to come together and do a women’s appreciation day- where we hand out flowers with small notes of scripture in the park near the city center. Well one morning , my teammate Amanda was sitting at our dining table and she was beginning to work on the notes to go along with the flowers, and I was sitting in my bed thinking about how I could contribute to the notes. Then God nudged my heart and told me that I could watercolor the pieces of paper before the notes were written on them. Little did I know that in this God was brining my childhood passion of painting back! Ever since I was a small child I loved mixing colors and painting different masterpieces! I had so many people tell me that I had such an eye for color and not only that I really enjoyed painting, and then at one point I started selling them!
So my main ministry for No Host Month and ATL in Serbia was painting and using my passion to bring all those that received the notes joy! I loved every minute of painting and and contributing to ministry in the way that God guided me to!
In all of this, I am happy that God brought a passion that I thought I had lost- back! & at the same time I was able to use it to glorify God in ministry!
