II Timothy 1:7 from the KJV and then from the NIV.
God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love.
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power,
of love, and of self-discipline.
Joyce Meyer wrote in THE CONFIDENT WOMAN:
The only way we can ever reach our final destination and succeed at being true to ourselves is to take many, many steps of faith. Stepping out into the unknown--into something we have never done before--can leave us shaking in our boots. Because of the feeling of fear, many people never "step out". Therefore they never "find out" what they are capable of. . . . God asks us to take risks.
Many times I am asked, "How can you be so courageous to go to a foreign country alone?" It really does not take courage--it just takes faith in our loving heavenly father. Sometimes I falter but I always try to get up and try again. Let me share with you how God took care of me during this last trip.
Tom and Sara took me to the Miami airport and made sure that I was in the right place with all of my luggage. Tom had to get back to Ft. Myers so they had to leave. Now, here I am, waiting outside the line maze for the Taca Airline Counter to become active. The time comes and, low and behold, something is new. All the luggage has to weighed before you go through the line maze to the counter. Try to picture this: I have two carts of luggage on which are
2 seventy pound suitcases, 2 fifty pound suitcases, and a 20 pound carryon. Plus over my shoulder was slung a very heavy purse. I see that I am supposed to take all those suitcases off of the carts, place each one on the scale, and then back on the cart before proceeding to the checkout counter. Oh my, my poor back, I thought. But, God had everything in control. As soon as I started unloading the suitcases, a wonderful young man behind me in line asked if he could help me. He put all the suitcases onto the scale and back onto the cart. Thank you, young many - a gentleman, for sure. And thank you, Jesus, for having him there for me.
Then I thought, "Can I really guide all this luggage through this maze up to the counter by myself. But the attendant pointed to another line for me. It was straight ahead - no maze. Another sigh of relief. Finally at the counter I had the luggage there ready to be tagged.
A Taca Airline employee was standing behind the clerk who was taking care of my ticket. He
looks at me and says, "Would you like to fly business class to Lima, Peru (five and half hour flight)?" Silly question. Who wouldn´t like to fly business free? More space, better food, quieter. Thanks again, Jesus.
When a person returns from the US, sometimes the customs officials are a little skeptical about luggage contents, especially 4 heavy suitcases. After putting the suitcases through the scanner, the official asked me to open one suitcase (having many boxes in a suitcase is not good). Mine were mostly filled with shells for my students. He pointed to one box and asked, "What´s in that box?" I happened to remember that that particular box was shells. I took it out, opened it, showed him (remember Paraguay is a landlocked country and shells show up a little odd on the scanner). He looked through the suitcase a little and then said, "OK". Thanks again because he could have made me open all four.
God knows our hearts and our motives. He goes ahead and prepares the way. But we must take the first step and move out in faith.
I do thank all of you who prayed for my trip back to Paraguay. Another school year begins next week and I would appreciate your prayers that I would allow God to use me in any way he wants.
May God bless each of you. Remember to pray for the children of Paraguay.
