God's Faithfulness

Transition:Projects:Travel

I picked out this scripture passage and rewrote it for the new Book of Hope I’m developing with a team of other missionaries and staff here at OneHope. We are creating it for a new program for children and youth affected by natural disasters and wars. Knowing that this book will be used in places like Haiti and other places in distress around the world, I didn’t want to just choose scripture verses that were popular. I wanted the Biblical text to be applicable to these children and be able to give them hope in the midst of their situations. It just so happens that God has recently made this verse come to life for me as well.

I’m amazed at how God provides for my every need. Granted, it may not be in the way I think that need should be met, but He has been faithful to provide for me. It’s the simple things that I see God’s provision: like building friendships, getting rides to and from the grocery store or church, hanging out with other missionaries. I’m learning over and over how God’s way is not my way BUT it’s certainly the BEST way!

As far as the missionary life transition goes, I moved down to Pompano Beach, FL in early April. My weeks of adjusting to the OneHope office have been eventful to say the least. In addition to working on the Book of Hope project I mentioned before, I’ve met with community partners in a nearby area part of OneHope’s Cultivate team. Cultivate is a new initiative of OneHope that uses the Word of God to bring about effective changes in a community through research, design, measuring effective outcomes, and partnering with local churches. So far, I’ve been using the statistic and survey skills from school to measure results and help make the programs as impactful as possible.

I will start traveling around the world beginning this summer. I’ll be leading a couple short-term trips, about 1 to 3 weeks long. So far, the plan is for me to go to South Africa with the fall intern team…but I’m taking it a day at a time. Like it says above, “Do not worry about tomorrow.”

Thanks for your continued prayers and support! It’s encouraging for me to have such a solid support network back home to make all of this possible J ~ Jessie

Start of Something New

I don’t like to think that the start of something new means the end of something else; it’s more like a changed continuation. Since last Thursday, I’ve started saying my good-byes – or as I prefer to call it my “see you later” - starting first with my Excel Students, then Friday’s Small Group Field Day, Saturday night with good/close friends, Sunday Morning Belmont A/G, and then Monday with family and my amazing friends for a girls night out filled with dinner and games (Boricua…Mmmm Jibarito).

It’s been a week filled with tears of joy and sadness as life is changing, BUT today – my first full day in Florida – as I began my morning devos and time of prayer, God gave me the understanding that there is no distance too great that prayer can’t fill! I began praying for my family, my friends, my students, my church, my leaders, my missions’ supporters…and God began to fill me to overflowing :)

I will always carry the memories that I made in Chicago and more importantly the people that have made and continue to make an impact on my life, but I look forward to what God has planned for me today and what He has for me in the future. I have a solid foundation to start off from, and God has instrumentally used everyone in my life to build that foundation! I don’t go out in this alone.

I look to this week with great hopes and anticipation of what God will do through me and through those back in Chicago. God is my Jehovah Jireh.

~ Praying daily ~