“Praise be to you, O
Lord, God of our father Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power
and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and
earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over
all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your
hands are strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your
glorious name. But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to
give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you
only what comes from your hand.”
-1 Chronicles 29:
10-14
As you may or may not
know, there is a tavern here in Jeffrey’s Bay that has been placed on the
hearts of a few of the girls on my team; namely the house ministries team. There
was a vision given to us last semester to bring the Tavern to Kingdom of God.
This vision has given us fire and passion like nothing before. Over Christmas
break Amber raised around $2,500 (U.S.) in order for use to be able
to talk to the owners about purchasing the Tavern. As of now, money is not the
concern we have. If we need financial support we know God will provide
abundantly; there is no doubt in our minds about that. The above verse in
Chronicles even reminds me that the tavern is already His. I just yearn to see
His spirit reign down with fire upon that place and in the hearts of the people
there. Right now I am asking you to partner with Me, Amber, Sarah, Jenny, and
the rest of the J-Bay team in praying and fasting for a clear path. We are
really seeking the Lord with our whole hearts right now. This week we are
fasting and praying during our lunch hour in order for God to give us words and
a purposeful day.
On Monday, our first
day of fasting, the owners of the tavern actually invited us into their house
and sat and talked to us about what we were doing there. Peela and Joel ( the
tavern owners) at least seemed interested in what we had to say. We bolded laid
before them our hearts and our passion for their building. Peela and Joel both
go to the ZedCC church which practices ancestor worship. After talking with the
owners a few times I know that the Lord wants them for his Kingdom. It’s not
even so much about the Tavern at this moment. As a group we feel the Lord
pulling us to really focus on having a heart for these people like he does. I
truly want my heart to break for these individuals like the Lord’s does. I want
to see them as precious children who can do immeasurably more for the Kingdom.
Our leader Christian said something to me that plays constantly in my head when
I think about the tavern. She said, “Bring them Jesus and they are going to
jump on board with His vision.” Ah, what a sweet truth.
Today, Aaryn and
Chelsea both joined us in prayer and spoke so much truth into the four of us. I
really feel like the Lord is showing up in massive ways during our fast and
prayers. Aaryn really felt the Lord telling her that we are going to have to be
very persistent in our efforts at the tavern. She said God may be calling us to
go and petition often and several times before we see any change, much like
Moses and Aaron in Exodus. Chelsea
felt the Lord wanting to protect our hearts. As a ministry team we are totally
in this with our full hearts. But at the same time we really need to seek the
Lord’s heart and make that become our desire. I am so blessed to have people on
my team that are willing to fight alongside me. It makes working for the
kingdom such a sweet life.
I ask of you to be in
prayer and/or fasting with us about vision for the tavern, Joel, and Peela. If
you hear a word from God or just feel the need to encourage us then we would
love to hear from you. I praise God daily for the opportunity to really pour my
heart and soul into these three months I have left in Jeffrey’s. Thank you for
all of your support. We appreciate everything!
