God Makes the Impossible, Possible

With this trip, just like any other missions trip, I was really worried about the money coming in, especially with this being the first missions trip I've been on. I mean $4,250 in 3 months sounds like an absolutely crazy task! But sitting down with my mom today, we've concluded that I only need $968.50 to pay for the rest of this trip! I'm so incredibly close to the final goal, and I still would appreciate anything you would be willing to donate to this trip, whether it be financially or even just prayer! I heard from so many people that this task was an impossible one, but if there is anything I've learned from this whole adventure, it's that God makes the impossible, possible.

Thank you all so much.

Trip Status Update

Many of you know that I'm diligently preparing for a missions trip to Uganda, Africa to take place this June. I'm fully relying on God to prepare the way and provide the means for me to make this dream a reality. In order to be able to continue planning, I need to raise $2,725 in additional funds. $1,350 of that needs to be in by April 20th, with the balance being due the first of May. I'm really reaching out and asking everyone that I know to please prayerfully consider giving to this ministry to help make this trip happen. I'm also asking you to please join me in prayer. Pray that God provides as only He can. Pray that lives will be won for Him through our mission. Pray that our parents rely on God to keep us safe in the palm of His hand. To keep updated on the trip and our progress, please visit my blog: kaylabethhess.blogspot.com and to make a financial donation, you can send a check to Rebel Ministries. (You can message me on Facebook for the address) Please be sure to add a sticky note that it is for my trip. Thank you so much!

Reassurance

Sometimes I question if this is what God really has in store for me. It's easy to feel that way when you feel like the money just isn't coming in the way you want it to, but today I got another reminder that this is the path I need to be taking.

My after-school plans changed, so I called my grandpa and asked if he would be willing to come pick me up from school. He said he could, but it would be about ten minutes. Well, after about half an hour of sitting in the parking lot waiting for him, one of the Lakewood employees came up to me and asked me if I was still going on the trip. I told her I was, and she proceeded to write a check for $50 towards my trip.

I was in amazement. The whole day before that, I sat in my bed, completely awake when I should've been sleeping, wondering if this was actually what God has planned for me. I was starting to question everything about this trip. If my after-school plans hadn't changed or if my grandpa did pick me up in ten minutes instead of thirty, who knows if I would've gotten that check. It's that kind of thing that just reassures me that this is what I'm supposed to be doing. God restores my confidence in Him more and more each day.

Silly Putty

We've all played with silly putty at least once in our lives, right? (If you haven't...I'm sorry. You should. It's super fun.) If you've played with silly putty, you know that it's not like play dough or clay. You see, you can stretch silly putty. You can stretch it a lot; but if you stretch it too much...what happens? It snaps. It doesn't slowly pull apart - it snaps. And after it snaps, it's not that easy putting the two pieces back together again.

Since the start of this process, I've felt like silly putty. I was being stretched. I was being stretched to do things that I never thought I would be able to do. You see, when I was a pre-schooler and someone would ask me, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" 5-year-old me would respond with, "Princess-Ballerina-Chef." Not once did I say, "I want to go on a missions trip."

God is stretching me to do things I never thought possible; and until today, I was patiently waiting for the moment that I was going to snap. I thought it was inevitable that eventually this is going to become too stressful for me and I'm just going to give up on it, but I am not silly putty. I am clay.

You see, clay can't exactly be "stretched", but it can be molded into many different shapes. It can go from a square block to a beautiful masterpiece. It might take a lot of time and patience to get to that beautiful masterpiece, but it will happen. And clay? It doesn't snap. It may crack, but that's okay, because every art piece has it's imperfections. I am only a block of clay, being molded by God's hands.

Isaiah 64:8 says:

"Yet you, Lord, are our Father.
    We are the clay, you are the potter;
    we are all the work of your hand."


I am undaunted. I will not snap when things get difficult. I might crack, but I know that I am being molded by God's hands. He does all things for our own good.

Undaunted

The Google definition of 'undaunted' is this:

"Not intimidated or discouraged by difficulty, danger, or disappointment."

As our group is entering this crazy journey, this is what we wanted to remember. To not be intimidated or discouraged by difficulty, danger, or disappointment, but instead, to work hard to prove all the people who said this trip would be impossible, wrong. We even got bracelets that say "undaunted" on them as a constant reminder that God makes the impossible possible, and He can help us do this, no matter what other people might think.

We are not intimidated by difficulty.

God's Timing vs. Mine

What does your calendar look like for the next week? You might have a few meetings, dinners with friends, and other things planned. That's typical. You're keeping track of what you will be doing, and when you will be doing it. It's normal. We all have calendars. They've become such a staple item in the human life, to the point where we have pre-installed calendar apps on our phones. But here's the thing: there's a huge difference between God's timing, and our timing.

One of the greatest lessons I've learned with this missions trip is just how much God's timing differs from mine. If you would've asked me a year ago if this is what I saw myself doing this summer, I honestly would've said no. I would've told you I was going to get a summer job, go camping with my cousins and spend time with friends; but God had other plans; bigger plans. Now, instead of doing all of those things this summer, I will be on a plane to Africa. I will be spending two weeks in June counseling girls at a maternity home in Jinja, Uganda. 

Do I think this is a crazy task? Yes. Do I think we might be jumping into this too fast? Yes. Do I doubt being able to raise the $50,000 needed for all twelve people to go on this trip? YES. But it's not my timing that matters, it's God's. He holds our futures, not us. 

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11