On July 6th, our host, Gracie, called me in after devotions and told me she had a word for me. She told me that during devotions she just kept seeing a black, dark spot in my near future. She didn’t know anymore about it besides that it would be the hardest thing that I have had to face. She told me I needed to prepare and if I didn’t I would have a really rough time making it through. But if I prepared well, God would take me through with ease and I would be able to turn to him during the trial. That day I finally had a passion to dig into the Bible because I was able to see the power of it and not just see it as a book of boring words that didn’t apply to my life.
On Tuesday, July 14th, only 8 days later, my grandad passed away. Immediately I knew it was the trial Gracie was talking about. My first reaction was devastation. I didn’t get to say goodbye and I was selfishly sad for myself. But within an hour I could see many positives in the situation. My grandad was finally home with his Father, pain free. That night during worship we sang the lyrics “I’m trading my sorrow, I’m trading my shame, I’m laying it down for the joy of the Lord.” While we were singing, I kept proclaiming joy over myself.
On Wednesday, I woke up and prayed for joy. And the weirdest thing happened, I was joyful. In the face of death God gave me so much faith, hope and peace. Philippians 4:7 says, “Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” I was just that, unexplainably peaceful and knew that my grandad was proud of me for being here and that everything was going to be okay. I gave my sorrows to God, believed he had a plan, and decided I should stay here in Honduras and continue to serve others instead of going home to be with my family.
God is so great, He has a plan for every life, and His timing is perfect. Glory to God even in our toughest trials. I know my grandad was welcomed to heaven with open arms and God saying, “You did well my son. You served me and everyone around you and I now welcome you home.
