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Slight change of plans…

My flight was scheduled to arrive in Toronto on the 26th of this month.  As the title says, my plans have changed…

About a month ago, my teammate Lauren told us that she felt like God was telling her to stay in Thailand for the month of December. She also said she knew she would not be staying by herself. She asked us to be praying for her.  We did.  I did.  Not a big deal, right? Well, the more she talked about it, the more I felt in my gut that I would be the one staying with her. But I didn't say anything, to anyone. I don't know why, but I was fighting the idea.  I don't have a job or school waiting for me at home, so why not stay…? Honestly, I didn't know, but I wanted to go home anyway.

And I still didn't say anything. Then one night during worship I felt God telling me I was supposed to tell Lauren. So I did, and I phrased it something like, "I have a sinking feeling that I'm the one that will be staying with you".

Probably not quite how she wanted to hear it, but it was done. I told the team, prayed about it, and didn't feel God telling me to either stay or go. So I stopped praying and forgot about it. When Lauren asked me later, I said I wasn't staying. And that was the end of it, or so I thought.

Then last week I had a very strong feeling that I wanted to stay. So I prayed about it, and felt like God was saying stay, but I wasn't sure. I continued to pray, and asked my team to pray, as well as someone at home. I wanted to stay, but was it just me, or was it God? After talking about it I received confirmation in different forms that it's not just me, but God too. 

So I'm planning to stay in Chiang Mai, working with the same ministry I have been for the last three months – Lighthouse in Action.   I love the people here, the ministry, my contact, all of it. 

So instead of coming home in two weeks, I'll be home February 7th – 73 days later than planned. That means I'll be in a foreign country during Christmas with my family half way around the world. It'll be hard, but I'm excited for what the next three months have in store. I know that God will show up in big ways!

Please continue to pray for me. The enemy doesn't like my being here, and I'll likely experience more spiritual warfare than ever before. But I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13). Another area of need is financial. Please pray that I can raise money for my living expenses as I don't have enough money to stay. I know that if God called me to stay, he will provide. 

Love and miss everyone,

Maria

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