Photo by Amy Wallen Photography
For 12 years, I spent summers on short-term mission trips, serving with a ministry in the mountains of Kentucky. One year I was in charge of planning a short-term mission trip to the area in July for a group at our church. I had been praying for God to show me how He wanted our group to serve—what we were to do on the mission trip—but I wasn’t sensing any direction. It was June and the group was set to go to the mountains in July.
I was already at the ministry where we were going to serve in the mountains. I was desperate to know how I was going to lead this group. I started praying, “God, You have to help me. The people from our church have taken vacation days and will be spending their time to come here. I don’t have a clue what You want us to do.” And then I waited.
Not long after this I received a text message from a number I didn’t recognize. Now, I am not very tech savvy and don’t typically send or receive text messages. And it was a miracle that I even received a text message because I had no cell service in that region of the mountains. The text message read, “God answers prayer.” This gave me an immediate peace. I knew God heard my prayer and would answer.
Then next morning I ran into the man that runs the housing for the volunteers who come to serve with the ministry in the mountains. He said, “I don’t know what I’m going to do. There is so much work that needs to be done on this building.” Shortly after this I talked with another fellow who needed help that our group could provide. Not even 24 hours after my prayer, God had provided the answer I needed. I knew how to lead the volunteers and what we were to do to help the ministry and the community.
Since this experience, my wife and I felt called to join the ministry full-time. A little over a year ago, we left the security of the world to follow God. We moved to the mountains of Kentucky to serve as missionaries. We have learned to live a life of response to God. We pray. We wait. We watch for God to show up. And God shows up. He is trustworthy and faithful to answer our prayers.
He who forms the mountains, who creates the wind, and who reveals his thoughts to mankind, who turns dawn to darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth— the Lord God Almighty is his name.
Amos 4:13
A Million God Stories is a Christ-centered ministry which offers a platform for Christians from all streams of Christian faith to give praise for how God has worked in their lives. Christ heals in infinitely creative ways and we acknowledge that His way of helping may differ from person to person.
