The Fingerprints of God

"You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you." (John 15:16)

VOICE-- Desiring God's Stamp of Approval

"How can we tell God is still leading us?"

My Rhumba was melting and my Italian chicken bread growing cold. I knew what Dad was about to say.

"How many applications do we need to continue with plans for VOICE*?"

'Twas the eve of our VOICE application deadline, and we were having the dreaded father - daughter, director - event coordinator talk. I had heard that exact same question in 2002, when he canceled because of post-9/11 terrorist threats and then in 2003, when SARS hit Taiwan. He wanted to put out the same fleece again-- asking God to confirm His will by giving us a certain number of applications. He wanted 32. I talked him down to 26 (for logistical purposes), yet I knew we only had 5 in hand. My mind reeled with the implications of canceling... again.

It was a refining moment... for VOICE and for me. Was the Lord testing my willingness to yield to His lordship or was He testing my faith?

On one hand, I knew that while I was event coordinator for VOICE, God was calling the shots. That is perhaps the trickiest aspect of my work-- relinquishing control again and again and again. No matter what I'm doing and how good it might be, Jesus is still Lord. He must have ultimate control.

On the other hand, I could not deny God's leading for VOICE up till that point. He had given us the support of IBLP's International Department. The King Car Education Foundation was advertising the conference across Taiwan. Rowan and Zach had prayed about (agonized over) and finally committed to helping us. Doug was already adapting his TESOL course to the ins and outs of our program. How could I possibly tell them that the God who led them to help with VOICE was now canceling?

Through the cloud of doubts surfaced a single question: Why not pray that God would confirm His will by bringing in 26 applications? Did I not believe He was able? And so I found myself crying out, "Lord, I want to see 26 applications. I want Your will, but my faith is small. Help Thou my unbelief!"

As my feeble prayer rose to Heaven, God continued the work He had begun. Student after student filled out and faxed in their application. Michelle received our staff invitation the day she asked God to confirm whether or not she should go to Africa for the summer. Guy after guy turned down our staff invitation, until we tracked down Anthony in Malaysia. He hadn't given Taiwan much thought until he joined us for VOICE... and now he's in Taiwan teaching English for a year.

And so it was, that when Dad arrived in Detroit, Michigan on Tuesday, July 27, with no more and no less than 26 people, we were absolutely certain it was God's will.

And there in God's will we found assurance and confidence to embark on our next great adventure.

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VOICE (Visualizing Opportunities in Character and English) was a month-long conference in Michigan. Conference participants included (1) ATI students taking TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and interested in using it for missions, (2) English teachers from Taiwan, mostly unbelievers, also taking TESOL, and (3) high school and college-aged students from Taiwan, primarily from Christian families, receiving training in discipleship and English.

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"If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)

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Soul Lemonade, No. 15
Taipei, Taiwan