New Territory

   Yesterday, God spoke to me. It was so loud and so clear that chills shot through my body. When God speaks and you feel the Holy Spirit's presence you can't help but sit still and soak it all in. There have been a few times when God has spoken to me and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was God, no question, but there have been other times where I was not so sure. One thing that I have noticed is that typically the easy way out or the easy solution is probably not from God. God has not called ME to live an easy, comfortable life. When you choose God above all else, your life becomes about what HE wants for you, not what you think would be good for yourself. This is what God told me...

"Paris, your calling is greater than you can imagine. You are entering a new territory. You will conquer new ground. When declaring territory in MY name there will be persecution and suffering, but do not be afraid. For the things I have called you, I have equipped you. Prepare for battle knowing that I am with you. You can do this! Love, God." 

   I never imagined that at 21 years old I would be living in Africa, taking care of orphans, being a mom to the motherless, or building a baby's home, in fact, for a quick minute, I wanted to be an actress. HA! If you would have told me when I was 15 years old that I was going to be spending a lot of my life in Africa taking care of orphans I would have thought you were crazy.

   When I was 15 years old, I lost my best friend to Leukemia. It was a really rough time for me, but through it all God was preparing me for the battles that I would have to face in the future that I had no idea about. I was so devastated that had you told me that God was going to use my pain to help bring healing to other people, I wouldn't have listened. But that is exactly what happened. When we are going through a hard time, we usually can't see what God is doing in us or through us. It's not until we use our testimony to help bring someone out of their suffering, that we realize the work that God was doing all along.

   In other news...I talked to Bogere on the phone the other day. It was the most amazing conversation. When I heard his voice, tears began to fall down my cheeks. He told me that he was doing well and that he missed me. Bogere said that he couldn't wait to see me again soon and that he loved me. I tried to hold myself together as I listened to my boy tell me about his day and school and all that he had planned. Bogere is speaking english so much better. I am so proud of him. Our conversation was in both english and swahili...it was a nice mixture of the two languages and we communicated perfectly.

   As far as the baby's home is concerned, we still needs more funds. We are slowly but surely reaching our goal but there are babies NOW that are waiting to come into City of Lights Baby Home. We still need, roughly, $25,000 for TOTAL COMPLETION. That means EVERYTHING, including cribs, bottles, formula, diapers, etc. With that number, we will have a completed baby home where babies can be rescued, loved, cherished and shown what the love of Jesus looks like. If you want to rescue a baby and save a life, go to www.smileafrica.org. Please just give what you can. Every amount matters toward reaching the goal.

"Thank you Jesus for blessing us. We have been blessed to be a blessing. I pray, God, that you will open our hearts to your Holy Spirit. I pray that you will speak to us clearly and guide our steps. Protect us and keep us safe as we live of lives for you! We love you! Amen."