Hi there, my name is Rachel! If you are reading this, you may be expecting a story about a trip to London that I have been on before, but I have never actually been to London, or anywhere outside of the US for that matter! But, this past Summer, God asked me to take a step of faith that I could not say no to.
I have felt God tugging me towards missions and church planting for several years now, but every time I heard His question of "Will you go?" I would respond in fear with, "There's no way I can move that far away, it's too scary." This past Summer, I worked at a Summer Camp, and the speaker one of the weeks asked if we were holding onto something that was keeping us from obeying what God was asking of us. I immediately knew that I was holding on to my own comfort and that God had been asking me for years to trust Him in the uncomfortable and until this point, I had just been denying it.
Fast forward a few weeks later when I came back to Moscow to start school again. I was telling my discipleship group about what I felt God was asking of me (to go on a church plant) and my leader, Chelsy, who is moving to Reading, England to plant a church, presented the idea of moving to the England church plant. My initial response was an immediate no. That was too far, too scary, too hard, too big of an ask. But as much as I did not want to consider this as an option, the reality was that if I wasn't even open to this option, I was continuing to let fear rule my life instead of the God who created me. As I continued to think, pray, and talk to people about this decision, I realized that this was what God was asking me to do, and I had two options of how to respond. 1. Continue to run from what God was asking of me, or 2. step out in faith and trust that He will provide and still be good, even when I am completely out of my comfort zone.
It has not been an easy decision, and I have wrestled with God about it countless times, but I have decided to join the team that is planting a church in Reading, England, and as hard as this decision was, I am truly so excited to see how God uses this church for His glory! Since making this decision, God has shown me His heart for the lost in so many ways. In the last several weeks, He has shown me just how broken the world is, and how much we are in need of a Savior. He has opened the door to several conversations with people who have similar beliefs to many people in the UK (from what I have heard), and He has provided the opportunity to go to London this Summer to see the place He is leading me to. Praise God for His abundant grace and kindness! I can't wait to share more of what God does this Summer and in the future!!
I have felt God tugging me towards missions and church planting for several years now, but every time I heard His question of "Will you go?" I would respond in fear with, "There's no way I can move that far away, it's too scary." This past Summer, I worked at a Summer Camp, and the speaker one of the weeks asked if we were holding onto something that was keeping us from obeying what God was asking of us. I immediately knew that I was holding on to my own comfort and that God had been asking me for years to trust Him in the uncomfortable and until this point, I had just been denying it.
Fast forward a few weeks later when I came back to Moscow to start school again. I was telling my discipleship group about what I felt God was asking of me (to go on a church plant) and my leader, Chelsy, who is moving to Reading, England to plant a church, presented the idea of moving to the England church plant. My initial response was an immediate no. That was too far, too scary, too hard, too big of an ask. But as much as I did not want to consider this as an option, the reality was that if I wasn't even open to this option, I was continuing to let fear rule my life instead of the God who created me. As I continued to think, pray, and talk to people about this decision, I realized that this was what God was asking me to do, and I had two options of how to respond. 1. Continue to run from what God was asking of me, or 2. step out in faith and trust that He will provide and still be good, even when I am completely out of my comfort zone.
It has not been an easy decision, and I have wrestled with God about it countless times, but I have decided to join the team that is planting a church in Reading, England, and as hard as this decision was, I am truly so excited to see how God uses this church for His glory! Since making this decision, God has shown me His heart for the lost in so many ways. In the last several weeks, He has shown me just how broken the world is, and how much we are in need of a Savior. He has opened the door to several conversations with people who have similar beliefs to many people in the UK (from what I have heard), and He has provided the opportunity to go to London this Summer to see the place He is leading me to. Praise God for His abundant grace and kindness! I can't wait to share more of what God does this Summer and in the future!!