And immediately they left their nets and followed Him. (Mark 1:18 ESV)
Life is a journey, and every one of us journeys through life uniquely. The Creator of life invites us to personally journey with Him as our Leader. Unfortunately, many of us leave the invitation unanswered and we do not reply. We do not accept because it seems safer and more realistic to journey through life being our own leaders, carving our own path.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Prov. 3:5-6 ESV)
I have made the choice to accept God’s invitation, leave my (safety) nets, and follow Jesus. I am on a faith journey with Jesus as my Guide. Among other things, this is a journey of faith and sacrifice. God has been teaching me to trust Him like never before in order that I could be used to accomplish what He created me for. This faith journey can be challenging and even frightening, but it is exciting, satisfying, and purposeful.
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matt. 6:33 NLT)
God has given me a vision to position my life in such a way so that I am truly able to follow Jesus and say yes to the ministry opportunities that He brings my way. This means having faith to say no to other enticing things. For me, this meant taking a leap of faith by leaving my comfortable salary and saying no to a job that had a stranglehold on my mind, time and energy.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Rom. 12:2 NASB)
As I follow Jesus and trust Him to meet my needs and the needs of my family, He graciously provides opportunities for me to be able to use my talents to serve Him by serving others. One of these very real opportunities is a Saddleback Men’s PEACE Trip to Rwanda in June. I have been asked to serve on a team of men who will be going to Rwanda June 14th-24th in order to assist and equip churches to help with the PEACE Plan Orphan Care Initiative.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:27 ESV)
The Rwandan genocide in 1994 took the lives of one million people and left one million children orphaned. The PEACE trip goal is not to just visit orphans and make better orphanages. Rather, the goal is to help accomplish the ultimate goal of emptying all orphanages by making sure that every child is adopted into a family. Zero orphanages is the goal! By God’s grace, Rwanda has come a long way over the past 23 years and is one of the worlds fastest developing countries and is also one of the cleanest countries in the world. The PEACE plan has been a huge factor in the successful rebuilding of this nation.
- Promote reconciliation
- Equip leaders
- Assist the poor
- Care for the sick
- Educate the next generation
God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. (Eph. 1:5 NLT)
God has given me the desire, the time, and the energy to go to Rwanda, my wife has given me encouragement and emotional support, and I am seeking prayers support from you. Would you please partner with me by praying with me for this trip? Please pray for health, safety, wisdom, patience, discernment, and unity among the team that is being sent out. Please pray for courage and boldness to minister God’s love in real and tangible ways that would bring the hope of Jesus to the people of Rwanda.
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. (Rom. 12:12-13 ESV)
It is an honor to be able to partner with God, to be His hands and feet, to do kingdom work, and invest in eternity. We are all part of God’s grand story and each of us serves God uniquely. Some plant, others water, but ultimately God gives the growth (1 Cor. 3:6). God gives unique gifts and resources to all of us and it is awesome to see how He intertwines people’s time, talents, finances, encouragement, and prayers to accomplish His perfect will. We are all part of one body, the body of Christ. We journey uniquely, but as we journey with Jesus, we journey together.
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. (1 Cor. 12:4-7 ESV)
Thank you for partnering with me as we cumulatively partner with God. Thank you for investing in eternity. I look forward to sharing with you all the miraculous things that God is going to do through this mission trip.
Recommended sites below for more detailed information about Rwanda, The PEACE Plan, and The Orphan Care Initiative that we will be working on:
TRENT ARMSTRONG BLOG 