"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we have in Christ, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23

The church that I have been attending for the past two weeks in Swaziland has encouraged me more than I have been at any church or by any speaker for the past 6 months.  It has been such a blessing to find a place where I am spiritually revived each Sunday.  Last week the sermon concerned Psalm 23:6 and this week we started a series on the life of Abraham.  

One of the things that Pastor Ken emphasized this week is the fact that God keeps His promises and that He never fails.  God may tells us to do things that do not make sense and ask us to give more than we can give.  The thing we should lean on is the promise that God has made us through His Son.  Many times in our lives things do not look the way that we think they should, but God has not asked us to sign a contract with the details spelled out.  He calls us to a life of faith and a reliance on His promises.

We experienced the death of a little boy in the hospital this past weekend, one that some of the girls had come to know and care for in the past week.  They were devastated and it is a sad reality for the people we meet and build relationships with.  Statistically one out of every two people will die in Swaziland. God has called us here to pour ourselves out…there is an urgency for His Word to be preached throughout this Kingdom.  By 2050, Swaziland is supposed to be nonexistent.  We have come to bring news of a Kingdom that will not be shaken.  With this comes a complete reliance on who God is and what He has promised us.

It is hard to love others day in and day out, because it is so draining.  While I am teaching, it is hard to make ministry my first priority and teaching my second. I want the kids to learn English so that they will have more opportunities open to them in the future. More importantly, I want them to know Christ and the power that He can have in their lives.  It is challenging to think that I might be the only love these kids will ever know, because many of them are orphans, and that I might be the only witness to who Jesus is.

Despite our circumstances and the daily situation that I find myself in, God is still God.  He has the power to heal and He has the power to take away.  He has promised life abundantly, but I know that every breath I take comes from Him alone.  He has promised me eternal life through His son, and each day I have to bring glory to His name is a gift from Him.  

I hope that each of you is coming alive through the life of faith that God calls us to live.  The God of Abraham who allows a barren woman to bear a son is the same God who raised Christ from the dead and is the same God who wants to bring His power to our lives.  Live in the fullness of who He is and rely on the promises that He has given us despite your circumstances.  Let go of those things that hinder us and let God be the God of the impossible in your life!