In His Hands . . .

I absolutely love this picture . . . the beautiful flowers in the backdrop . . . with my beautiful wife by my side.  God is a God of beauty . . . this picture proves it for me!!!!

I'm not a flower type guy (I could really care less), but flowers like these amazed me when we were in Bukavu.  As we would walk and see the beauty around us, it was hard to believe we were in such a poverish country, which has been affected so deeply by war.  Yet through it all, God's beauty is all around, it's everywhere you walk.


The beauty of Congo assured me that the DRC is still in God's hands.  God never turned His back on Congo, unfortunately they've turned their backs on Him.  As for those who believe in Jesus, their hearts and smiles are as beautiful as the flowers of Bukavu, more proof and assurance that God is moving in the DRC. 

God brings hope . . . and the Congolese people of faith have clung to that hope.  They see past the war . . . they see past the poverty . . . and they understand that God is a God of blessing, they understand He is a God of hope . . . they are in His hands.

I remember preaching in a church one Sunday morning in Bukavu.  I had a message prepared, not knowing the night before the service the Holy Spirit would lay something totally different on my heart.  I ended up changing my whole message because I knew in my heart that the Lord needed them to hear what He had to say. 

The next morning I stepped into a non english speaking church . . . with Laura by my side and our translator by my other side!!  Wow, talk about having to trust in God . . . knowing that He's laid a word on my heart to share with these wonderful people.  My message . . . going verse by verse through Psalm 91.  Sharing with our Congolese brothers and sisters God's promise of protection for those who are faithful to Him.  Guess what?  It's exactly what they wanted to hear . . .

They are in His hands . . . they abide in the shadow of the almighty . . . and God is their protector.  The Congolese people are created as beautiful as the flowers in the garden's of Bukavu.  Their heart and passion to serve God is unlike anything I've ever seen . . .

We look forward to what God has in store for us . . . we look forward to the day we see our Congolese brothers and sisters again.  God is so good . . .