God in This City!

Hey, it's Heather. I did not get a chance to blog while we were in New Orleans, so I need to write a few things now that I have a few moments to sit and reflect.

First of all, I cannot stop playing and singing this Chris Tomlin song in the title. This song was written for the city of Belfast, but I think it reflects our hearts' cry for the city of New Orleans after our time meeting, serving and praying with and for the people we met there.

You're the God of this city/You're the king of these people/You're the Lord of this nation/You Are!

You're the light in this darkness/You're the hope to the hopeless/You're the peace to the restless/You Are!

There is no one like our God!/There is no one like our God!
For greater things have yet to come/And greater things are still to be done in this city!

I am amazed that every time I go on a mission trip God gives me a heart for the people and the city where He has called me. God has really reminded me again over the past week that I need to make missions such a part of my life that eventually I am a missionary 365 days a year no matter where I am. It is easier to go somewhere else to do missions because we can be 100% focused on it . . . everyday life is not distracting us from our goal. I have been trying to stay focused now that we are home . . . engaging people in lines, at restaurants and stores, being a more courteous driver (that is probably normal for most people:) and thinking of ways our family can bless other people the way God has blessed us. I pray I can continue to be obedient and GO as God calls me and come back changed every time. If I “GO” more often and develop a heart for His people each time I GO, then I pray I will eventually have His heart for all people and become that focused, mission-minded woman God wants me to be every day I walk this earth. My world view gets BIGGER every time I “GO”!

One thing that is particularly difficult for me, but one that will speak volumes to the world around us, is not exercising our assumed rights and entitlements. I know in my head that I gave those up when I asked Jesus to be the Lord of my life, but my heart has a hard time letting those things go in a world where we are supposed to stand up for ourselves –because “we deserve it, right?”

A few of the highlights for me that I will not forget:

• Praying for the homeless people living in the “tent city” under the highway during the Street Car Prayer Ride with my daughter
• Praying with Pat and Urcel the day we passed out flyers after listening to their stories about surviving Hurricane Katrina. What hope and thankfulness they had in their hearts after enduring such adversity!
•Sitting on the steps in Jackson Square singing God In This City amongst the crowds, the bars, and everything else that goes on down there. Knowing what Satan meant for harm God has used for good.
• Driving through the 9th Ward and seeing the remains (actually, there was nothing but cinder blocks where houses once stood) of what was once a thriving neighborhood before the levy broke after Katrina came through.
• Spending time with Bob and Linda Jackson from Mission Lab and listening to their stories of how God is rebuilding the city of New Orleans one stud at a time! Every word that came out of their mouth was pure gold!
• Watching our kids play with the children at the Block Party – just a bunch of kids playing and having fun. They were focused on the similarities, not the differences. I realize I need to help my children maintain that focus. How do we connect with people? We find what we have in common and TALK about it. I think our kids learn to see differences in people from us.

I am so proud of my Hope! She only recently asked Jesus into her heart to be her Lord and Savior last November. I saw God speak to her heart in amazing ways for a 7 year old girl. She has such a sensitive heart – it was so sweet listening to her prayers for the people. I am so excited to see where God takes her from here! What a blessing it was to go with my daughter on her first mission trip – I will never forget it!

Thanks to John Aaron for leading our group and taking on such a task with 14 children and 9 bossy moms! What a blessing Lindsey, Jay, Kirk, Hatesh, John Aaron and Emily were to us and our children. I considered it a privilege to go and serve with each one of you, my fellow travelers. I appreciate your servant heart and willingness to go and be available to be used by God. I am so excited about the way in which God called us – mothers, children, students, young singles – the BODY, serving together.

Heather