The overflow of a brokenheart... a heart broken for Thailand.

Ever since the Lord ignited a spark in my heart for justice, when He gave me an immense love for Africa, I longed to go there and help create change. And when I arrived in Sierra Leone, it took everything within me to stay calm as we passed by orphanages and amputees, knowing that I was just there to visit family and didn't have any time or means to serve. After I left I dreamed of going to the orange dust streets of Uganda. Every shirt I saw with Africa, every espresso-colored face that passed by, and every movie or time Africa was mentioned, my heart skipped and I imagined myself there again. There I would sit on the porch of my grandpa's house watching the people pass by as I looked up from my sketchpad, where an outline of a lizard sat smudged with charcoal.

Now, I sit and watch as motorcycles drive through the streets of Bangkok. I remember joking with my friends about where my outreach might be when I first found out that I was going to discipleship training school and I never thought I would be going to Asia. Yet, as I stepped out into the airport there was such a joy and sense of peace that filled my heart. I don't think it is as much the land I am stepping on or the bit of air surrounding me that had an effect, but it was the people... the people and their sweet and gentle spirits... their kind hearts.
I don't know why, even at "home" (Sierra Leone), I didn't feel the way I do now. I do know one thing, it is the feeling of living in God's will... living out what He has called me to. It is the comfortability of fitting into that place that had been waiting for me; like a puzzle waiting for its last piece. Nothing could be more perfect than this. Already, fear has been washed away as I went to help teach English to over 200 Thai people. I had the joy of knowing that God was with me through it all and the love that overflowed from my heart that God had poured into me. This was months of prayer answered and played out in front of me. There was no feeling of trying in my own strength, it came simple and easy with the love that God gave me.

If this is only the beginning here in Thailand... I can't wait to see what God wants to do next here. He has soo much in store for the people here and I know that His light is going to flood through and pour into this place of spiritual darkness. His love and heart are so grand for these people. They have so much to contribute to the kingdom and I am praying for his children to be reconciled to Him.