A little more encouragement :) and a bit of humility for me

His hope always comes. Things may seem to be at their worst, there may seem like no way out, but His hope comes. He paves us a way through the desert, through the storm, through the forests, through the lush green meadows. His love abounds unfailingly, unconditionally, and without measure. He seeks to make us the best we can be, He plans our lives and brings purpose to them, He comforts us when we fail, when we are tired, when we are on our last grain of energy. When the tears well up inside, He is there. He is a good God. He is powerful, we can never hope to understand His ways or His thoughts. He could take us out in the flash of a second, and He can restore us from our darkest moments. We can never pay Him back. But we can accept His grace and His call to discipleship. He payed a great price to bring us grace. He loved us while we were still far from Him. Trust Him, be still, and talk to Him. He will guide you and give you wisdom when you ask, believing that He can do miracles and change your life. Sometimes I need to write this sort of thing out. I know God's promises but sometimes I get so caught up in what I THINK should happen now, or what I'M FEELING. I need to express myself and remind myself what a GREAT God I serve. For Christians who come from middle class families in the U.S., including ME, it is so easy to fall into the feeling of entitlement of God's good gifts. I feel so ashamed to admit it. We think, I go to church, I read my Bible, I, I, I,..... UGH!! NOTHING I AM ABLE TO DO IS BY MY POWER. Can I repeat that again?? NOTHING I AM ABLE TO DO IS BY MY POWER. I KNOW that I am NOT entitled to anything, mentally I realize it, but I slip into having thoughts like, "Why am I not doing this right now? Aren't I doing everything that I am SUPPOSED to do, God?" There we go again .. I.. Aren't I doing everything... God doesn't OWE me anything. He has blessed me way beyond my desert. You know why?? I DON'T DESERVE ANYTHING!! ZIP. ZILCH. NADA. NOTHING! Why does God even think about me? In the Bible there is a verse that says Psalm 8:4 KJV 4 What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him? and.... James 4:13-14 (NIV) Boasting About Tomorrow 13 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. It is a bit of a reality check for me. I have always been amazed at how God has a purpose FOR EVERY HUMAN BEING. There are BILLIONS of people alive on this planet, not to mention those in centuries past. Man is a MIST to God, and yet He has a plan for each and everyone, He cares for each and everyone. Can we please give Him some credit? How about ALL of the credit and glory, and HONOR!!! All is due to Him, nothing to us. It certainly helps you to have some humility and gain patience, knowing that God is going to take care of you. I hope that this helps someone, someday, as a witness of Christ and not me. I want humility, not fame.

You are a missionary

I feel like many people think that they are not are missionary if they are not ACTUALLY on a mission trip, or if they don't 'feel' the calling to be a missionary. I know that I have fallen for the first one. I have been thinking about it lately, and I've come to the conclusion that all of God's children are missionaries. What IS a missionary exactly? Psalm 96:1-3(NIV) 1 Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. 2 Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. (bold type added by myself) Matthew 28:18-20(NIV) 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” When people read this second set of verses, what do they hear? GO, ALL NATIONS. But this doesn't mean you have to leave YOUR nation to be a missionary. Yes, God DOES call missionaries to go to other nations, but you can be a missionary RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE.Your nation is included in ALL NATIONS. Go, get off of your couch and MAKE DISCIPLES, TEACH PEOPLE, GET DOWN ON YOUR KNEES AND PRAY FOR THEM, PROCLAIM HIS SALVATION DAY AFTER DAY, RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE!! Just because I believe that God has called me to a different country doesn't mean that while I'm waiting to go there I should just sit around. God calls us to be ACTIVE. To GO. There are people here that are hurting. I tend to get sad about being far from Honduras and I just sit. Yes I read my Bible, yes I go to church, but a lot of times I just sit, stagnant. I believe that there is nothing worse than a stagnant Christian. Revelation 3:14-16 (NIV) To the Church in Laodicea 14 “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. Yesterday I went to a Food Pantry and served bagging cucumbers, preparing hot dogs, and passing them out to cars as they collected their free groceries. I was dripping with sweat, and the people who came to get food weren't always the cleanest. But they are GOD'S CREATION! Their Father in Heaven cares about them and wants them to know HIM. I am a witness, caring for God's people who need food. I was able to give them a hot (lol) hot dog that could fill their hungry bellies. To tell you the truth, I LOVE THAT SORT OF WORK. Where you drip sweat and you help people in Jesus' name. I get to go there a second time next week! So please don't sit around like I have done. Get up with me, and serve God's people right where you are. If you feel called to a different nation, that is AWESOME!! Pray to God for Him reveal to you if that is really God's plan for you. Then wait patiently for His answer, but GO. Work right where God has you NOW, in the ways He provides for you. and His answer WILL COME. But not in your time, but in His time, which is always the BEST! May God bless you always!

I AM

Sometimes I feel so bipolar. I wonder if other missionaries do. You try to be upbeat, smile for the people around you, and live life to the fullest while you are at home. Yet, you never lose the aching in your heart, the sharp pains that come every once and again. The longing to be with the people you fell in love with, impacting their lives by God's grace and wisdom. Your heart has been doubled. Half of its here at home, and the other, furiously beating half, is back in, well in my case, Honduras. It seems to go from a trusting God all the way to a "What is going on Lord? I know You have me in Your hands, but I'm worried." WELL, there's my mistake. Three letters, b-u-t. BUT Lord, I think I know better than You. BUT Lord, I think this time is better than Yours. BUT Lord, I think I'd better try to do it on my own than depend solely on You. I can just imagine Him replying, "BUT WHAT DELANEY? WHO formed your body out of trillions of tiny cells that all contain your DNA? WHO created the entire world and the millions of people in it? WHO brought you to Honduras and eased your anxiety about leaving home? WHO designed you for your specific unique life? WHO knows you better than you even know YOURSELF?? WHO DELANEY, WHO IS THIS? .... I AM .... Not I WAS A GREAT GOD IN THE PAST TOO LATE NOW, NOT I WILL BE A GREAT GOD LATER WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT, I AM. I WAS, I WILL BE, BUT I AM RIGHT NOW!! I FORMED THE EARTH, I KEEP THE HEAVENS, THE PLANETS, EVEN THE TINY MOLECULES IN YOUR BODY, ALL RUNNING THE RIGHT WAY THEY SHOULD FOR THEM TO SURVIVE AND THRIVE. I SET THE WHOLE WORLD IN A CERTAIN BALANCE THAT IF ALTERED WOULD COLLAPSE ALTOGETHER. I AM" Can we just step back and listen to Him whisper that? Genesis 28:13-15 New International Version (NIV) 13 There above it[a] stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.[b] 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. ”