Holy Spirit, Move

I was meeting with a Pastor friend at a Mexican restaurant near her residence in Austin, Texas. We were multi-tasking: eating lunch and talking about spiritual matters. Guiding me through a spiritual growth process, she had asked me a series of questions provided in a manual.

One particular question asked if I had ever seen the Holy Spirit at work anywhere; and if so, to discuss. I began to talk about the work that God is doing in Uganda, telling of the things that I had written in a previous blog, A God-incident. This is about how God is working mightily in Uganda, using people like Katie Davis, Rev. Kimberly Burke, Amber Watney and some others that I know. I was sharing this story with the Pastor, when I was interrupted by the Waitress.

“Excuse me,” she said. “Could you please tell me what church you attend? I couldn’t help but to overhear your conversation. You both seem really nice and really cool, and I have been looking for a church. I think that whatever church you two attend would be a good one.”

I was so stunned that I just stared at my friend. Weren’t we just talking about seeing the Holy Spirit working? Wow! My friend wasted no time telling about the church where she is the pastor, where it is, what time they meet, what the congregation is like, etc. While she talked, I just stared with my mouth hanging open.

She conversed with the waitress about the worship preferences and opportunities; then she wrote down the address on something like a napkin.

I really didn’t say anything much. We were in Austin and I attend church in Buda, which is a good 10 minutes away. When I related this story to my pastor, he chastised me teasingly for not giving her every detail about our church. I explained to him that this lady lived in Austin, and seemed to be searching locally.

After the waitress departed, the Pastor commented briefly that we didn’t have to go all the way to Africa to see the work of the Holy Spirit. He meets us in restaurants in Austin, Texas and other unlikely places when we least expect it.

Then, she said, “in view of what just happened, I feel a little silly about asking you any more of the related questions. I think it is safe to say that we can just turn the page and move on.”

Several months later, she told me that the waitress indeed did visit, started bringing her boyfriend, and made that church her church home. She was not only a waitress; she is also an artist. My friend was praying for God to send them an artist. Then she asked in church one day if anyone knew of an artist who could do a project for the church. The waitress stepped up and accepted the project.

Have I seen the movement of the Holy Spirit indeed!

Amen.

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Thanksgiving Challenge and Joy Dare:

Today, I am Thankful for:

266. Artistic God-lovers disguised as waitresses.
267. Unexpected movement of the Holy Spirit.
268. Mexican food.
Linking up with Jennifer Dukes Lee at:

copyright 2012 by Kathy Robbins

A God-incident

You have heard of a co-incidence? What about a God-incident? A friend of mine recently explained to me that a God-incident is what some would label a coincidence, except that God is at the center of the event. It is not a coincidence at all. For God has purposefully made it happen. Is it from divine providence? Not necessarily. More often, it is through a cluster of people living in relationship with him and being obedient to his voice. 


I have found that the more I pay attention, the more of the God-incidences I have. The one that I had this week involves several friends who do not even know one another, and a stranger I encountered in a book. 


Earlier in the year, Rev. Kimberly Burke wrote a series of four guest posts for this blog about her experiences in Uganda, Africa, while on a mission trip. It was a wonderful, enlightening series. Later, she told me about a book entitled Kisses from Katie: a Story of Relentless Love, about a high school girl who visited Uganda on a mission trip, fell in love with the people there, saw the incredible need and decided to return after high school to teach and continue ministering to help to meet needs. She ultimately began a non-profit organization called Amazima, to help children in Uganda with basic school necessities and sponsorship.

I bought the book, and as I was reading it, I noticed that both Katie and Rev. Burke described Uganda with almost the exact same words. Both talked about the beauty of the lush land being host to some of the most intense poverty in the world. They both also talked about the spirit of the people who know how to truly depend on God for their needs and to be thankful for the smallest, simplest items in life. They experience this thankfulness in a way that we in the United States frequently do not, because of our abundance.

About two weeks after I finished reading this book, I walked into a grocery store owned by a friend and noticed that she had some new newspaper articles on display. They were about her oldest daughter. I walked over to the display to read these new articles and saw the name of the charity started by Katie Davis: Amazima. I was amazed. Here I had one friend who had done mission work in the same country under a different umbrella organization. She had written for this blog and told me about the book.

I read the book and touch bases with another friend who does not know the first and find out that her daughter was doing volunteer work for the organization in the book. I talked to this friend and she explained to me that her daughter had participated in a study on the book Kisses from Katie. She said that she had been so touched, that she decided to go on a mission trip for the Amazima organization. I was so touched, that I took my copy of the book to the store to be added to the display.

I shared the background with my new friend and she couldn’t wait to share the story with her daughter. Now, I am hearing that Rev. Burke will be returning to Uganda in about six months. God is definitely at work there. 


Is this a coincidence? Can’t be! This is my God-incidence for the week. What is yours?

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Thanksgiving Challenge and Joy Dare
Today, I am thankful for:


74. My oldest son's birthday.
75. All of my sons.
76. God-incidents-How he works through his saints, piercing one heart at a time.


Linking up with my pal Jennifer today at:

             and with Ann at:
copyright 2012 by Kathy Robbins

Joy, Joy, Joy

Rev. Kimberly Burke

I am once again honored to feature a guest post by  Rev. Kimberly Burke, Associate Pastor of First United Methodist Church in Boerne, Texas. Rev. Burke is a recent honors graduate of  Southern Methodist University/Perkins School of Theology, where she received her Masters Degree. This post is Part 2 of her impressions of her experience as a missionary to Uganda, participating with the Tree of Life Ministries.  Click here to read Part 1 of this four part series. Part 3 is here.

I was overwhelmed the day of my first visit with the women’s ministry.  I was greeted with singing and dancing, clapping and praising God.  I had never experienced such raw joy, such unabashed gratitude.  I began thinking these women had no problems.  So in an attempt to get to know them, actually in an attempt to get over my nervousness of not knowing how to express such joy, I asked if they had prayer requests.  It now seems like such a typical Methodist thing to do.  But in the very back of the room a hand shot up and a beautiful glowing woman stood up and said please pray that I might be empowered to spread the gospel and the wisdom to do so.  In that moment God’s words came flowing back to me…there are women there who want to spread the gospel.  I was so thankful that perhaps I did have a reason for being here at this time and at this place and with tears streaming down my face I asked her to come forward and all 26 women gathered around. Those who could reach her laid hands on her and everyone another gathered in a grand spirit filled circle.  I prayed with a power that was not my own, for God to anoint and consecrate this woman to service, to give her courage and wisdom, guidance and authority and the tears began to stream down her face as this white woman from the other planet with no real power other than to say the words she had longed to hear by the power of the Holy Spirit, flowed over her.  And one by one their hands waved in the air to be prayed over and I realized in the midst of all of the joy I had just witnessed there was such suffering as I had never witnessed in one place.  Women who had babies die in their arms, husbands addicted to alcohol (demons they called them), women who had lost husbands, one woman whose Muslim family had abandoned her because she was a born again Christian.  Yet 17 women came forward to profess their yearning to spread the good news of Jesus Christ and to be anointed. To go forth on bare feet, down dirt roads, to places where the gospel has never been heard, facing danger of persecution and isolation.  After confessing all of these horrible tragedies, many of which I realized could be cured by simple, ordinary things like clean water, antibiotics…simple ordinary things.  These women yet again leaped to their feet to praise God! To sing praises, to dance and to laugh together.  Their worries were seemingly carried away like a wisp of smoke from the very real conclusion that in the midst of it all God was there. They laid their burdens down and refused to pick them back up for tomorrow there would be more.  This moment was fresh with joy.

I wonder if you have ever experienced this kind of joy. What was the catalyst?  Can you imagine how perspectives could be changed if we actively looked for reasons to be joyful? 


(Go here to read Part 3.....) 




Linking to Jen at Finding Heaven Today