It was a long and hard day, but overall full of joy and goodness.
Today my group evangelized in a village about 20 minutes away from the Mole. Ryan, Cheryl, and I first went to a hut with a woman and her neighbor. We shared the gospel with the two ladies then the woman I was speaking with, got on her knees and asked us to pray for her and her eight kids. I got on my knees with her and prayed a very Spirit led prayer (definitely God's words and not mine); it was a beautiful moment. After 30 minutes at that hut, we went to another hut and spent 30 minutes conversing with the family, (a man and his wife plus two kids) sharing the good news that is the gospel and praying with them. At both houses I saw the Spirit moving so much and speak through Ryan, Cheryl, and I, giving us words to say and specific Scripture to use. The presence of God was everywhere during the time of evangelism; it gave me so much joy. It satisfies my soul to share the good news that has transformed mine and many of my close friends' lives. Growing up in church, I felt like sharing the gospel was an obligation rather than the great joy that it is. It may be awkward and uncomfortable at times and you will probably face much rejection, but when the gospel is truly internalized in you, it is an excitement and joy to preach the great message that saved your wretched life. Sharing the gospel is not even just about words (although that is an important part), but it is about displaying it in all of your life. It is also never a forced thing to try and exhibit the gospel played out in your life, but rather a natural display of what God has done and is doing in your heart. In John 7:38 Jesus said, "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" This "living water," as described in John 4 by Jesus to the Samaritan woman, is only water that he himself can give you. What I'm getting at is, when Holy Spirit lives inside of you, He will pour out of you like living water. It is not a forced thing. Another thing I wanted to mention is that I am pretty bad with oral words, and I definitely saw the Spirit give me clarity in my words. Before this trip, I was praying specifically that God would allow me to communicate the gospel effectively in an organized and clear manner, and I definitely saw God answer this prayer.
We ate lunch after we got back then went to the beach - beautiful as ever. Later during the teen conference, we broke up into two small groups, ages 10-15 and 16-20's.
This is a picture of my wonderful group that I've been mentioned, so now you can put names with faces. (From left to right) Me (Victoria Holloway), Marybeth Morrice, Chris Brooks, Abbey Smith, Cheryl Aguas, Maddux Martin, and Ryan Gregory
The rest of this journal entry will be in the following post. I am splitting it up because the second half is long and full of heavy, tear-jerking, passion-filled content.
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