Straight away the answer came, I was so surprised that it was so clear and quick! I was also stunned because it was nowhere in Asia, I believed God said the UK. To be more precise it was England, Ireland and Scottland, Wales was not on His list.
Belive it or not I was a little dissapointed. I was so into things Asian at the time. I had done a mission preparation weekend and my destination was Vietnam. I loved reading stories about Asian mission like Jackie Pullingers chasing the dragon, Watchman Nee, and Open doors - smuggling Bibles into China. Above all I loved Asian food and Asian cooking. God would not budge though. Everytime I asked I got the same answer.
Now this was the first time God had asked me to go overseas and I was only a fairly new Christian (about 4 years). I didn't want to be presumptuous. I am no expert at hearing God so after confirming in prayer with God where I was going, when I was to go and how it was going to be paid for (I had no maney, I was living by faith at the time), I told God that I was going to ask someone else to pray about this for me. I thought it would be good if God would be able to confirm it was His idea by telling someone else about it.
So I went and found my friend Trish. She had been overseas on mission with YWAM and had more experince than I in hearing God on these matters. "I said to Trish, "I think God wants me to go overseas. I believe I have a destination, a time and an amount of money He will provide.. Could you please pray for me today and ask God to confirm this to you? If it is God I believe He will give you the same details."
The next day Trish came back and told me that God had told her I was going to the UK, it would be in June/July and He would give me enough money for the trip. Everything was confirmed. I had not told anyone the details of where or when. Since Trish had the same information I believed that it was what God wanted.
Someone handed me a cheque for one hundred dollars...
I went back to my room and chatted with God. "Ok God I will go to the UK. I don't know how you are going to pay for this, but I know that passports cost $101 and I have the one. If you can send the money then I will get my passport." Within 3 days a person came to my door, they handed me a cheque for $100 and told me that God had spoken to them and told them to give it to me.
This was the begining of the adventure. Over the next 6 months God sent in the money I needed for my ticket. The Army Reserve sent me on an extra training camp, that paid for half and the rest came in from people as God led. 2 weeks before I was due to leave, I had a passport, my ticket, a travelling companion (my 70 year old great Aunty heard about the trip and asked if I'd take her to her Son in Inverness) but not one bit of spending money. I was worried, would they let me in with no money? ....had I been wrong all this time...?
I began to pray hard, "what's happening God? Why no spending money? How will I live overthere...." The only answer I seemed to get was a verse of scripture in Matthew, actually what I felt God was saying was "read Matthew 10:9-11 'Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts, take no bag for the journey...Whatever towns or village you enter search for some worthy person ther and stay at his house....'.
Oh no! Was God saying to go in without cash? Oh how I would have loved to had the faith of the disciples in Jesus day, but I did not. I told God that while I was sure this trip was of Him and that I had the faith just to go from town to town as He led, I did not think I was yet upto travelling without some money. Jackie Pullinger was a person of greater faith than this Jackie. I so wanted to rise to the occaision, but I must confess I didn't. God is gracious though. He understands our short commigs. He knows as His children we need to grow in Faith. Two days before I left I was given $1000 in cash. Praise God for His mercy. However looking back I wonder what I missed by not having the faith to go without?
The time in the UK was amazing! .
After 1 week in Scottland staying with my Aunties family. I felt it was time to go to Ireland. I set off on my own on the ferry. When the Ferry docked in Northern Ireland I disembarked. It was early evening. I had no accomodation booked. I did not know where I was going. This was my first real test of direct and specific leading from God.
"Ok God where to from here?" At each cross roads I asked God which way. I turned left/right etc as He led. After about 15 minutes of doing this I felt God was saying stop!
I looked around, on my right was a B&B. Since it was getting late I thought maybe this is where He wants me to stay tonight. I knocked on the door. No answer. Oh great, my first test of trying to follow God's directions and I blow it. My faith was starting to shake. It was getting late. The impression came to try again. Still no answer. I didn't know what to do. As I was about to turn and leave and find my way back into town, someone came down the road.
"Are you looking for the owner?" they asked. "Yes, I was thinking of staying here tonight, but no-one is home." "I know where they are, they are down at the pub. If you like I can take you there." With no other leading from God at that moment, I decided to follow.
Everybody looked when she said "God sent you"
The owner of the B&B was there with her family. She greeted me warmly, introduced me to her sons and asked how had I found her place. I told her the truth - I prayed. At the top of her voice she said "God sent you!" Everyone went silent and turned to look at me. "Are you a Christian then", I replied. "No, but I know God sent you."
I was amazed she was not a believer but she believed God sent me to her. She grabbed my stuff and said come on lets get you settled in. We went to her place and while she was settling me in to my room she said. "As long as God tells you to stay in this town, you are to stay here, free of charge, including your food." I asked again if she was a christian but she denied being one. It was then I realized that God meant what He said in Matt. 10:9-11. Even though I didn't have the faith to come without spending money God still could prove that He is more than able to take care of me. I learned that day if God asks you to do something for Him he provides the means for you to do it.
I stayed a couple of days there and shared about Jesus with the owner. I had a book that I felt led to pack and gave it to her. It was a testimony of a Christian which had impacted on my life. Then it was time to leave. She even took me to the train station.
From here I travelled into Belfast. I got such a shock! There were armed guards at shop doors, a new experience for me. Overall though I did not feel scared everyone was pleasant, however I did not feel to stay the night. So I hopped on the train again. I would head to Dublin.
I was standing in the train departure area and I must have had confused written on my face, because as I was about to board the train in front of me, a stranger came up and said that it was the wrong train. I don't know how they knew where I was supposed to go? But they pointed out that the Train to Dublin was on the other platform. Who told them where I was going?
When I was boarding the train I remember telling God that it would be nice to have a fellow Christian to chat with sometime soon, I then just picked the first seat that looked Ok. It was no real surprise when the lady sitting there shared with me that she was a Christian. We had a lovely time sharing all the way to Dublin.
I spent two days and night in Dublin, taking in the scenery, enjoying the locals and their culture. I went to a church there and met a lady called Sheila who had been to Australia. In the evening of that Sunday I was walking in the middle of town and thinking wouldn't it be nice to have dinner with company, when out of the huge crowded mall the same lady I had met at Church that morning appears. She came straight upto me and said how about joining us for dinner - I did.
From Dublin I travelled to Cork. On the train ride I felt as if God was wanting to talk about my 'tithe'. I had not yet parted with it, but I felt God was saying that soon He would be requiring it and that I should be ready when He prompts me next.
I arrived in Cork and since I didn't have any accomodation booked prior I asked God to lead me to somewhere. Once again I found a lovely little B&B, this time the owner was home! After getting settled in an idea to find a "Christian book shop" occured to me, so not knowing my way around I asked God if He would lead me to one. In ten minutes walking through the back streets of Dublin I came to a little Christian bookshop. I had a great time picking out some books to take with me and as I was paying for them a Canadian man introduced himself to me.
He was doing mission work in Ireland, "a grass roots" mission outreach with Kids. We chated about my journey so far and then he asked if I would care to join him for lunch at a cafe nearby. Lunch was great and while he was up getting a second cuppa God said "get out your tithe and give it to him'. Oh oh, I had not even checked if I had the right amount of money in Irish currency. I should have because God had told me He would need it soon. I quickly grabbed my purse and would you believe it the exact amount I needed was there. When he returned to our table I handed him the money and he cried.
Now I don't usually react this way when someone gives me money (lol), so I was quite surprised at the reaction. But I soon discovered that they were tears of relief and joy. It turns out that this was just the amount he needed to fulfill a debt. He was getting anxious about it and was begining to wonder if he was somehow not doing what God wanted. Looking back it was obvious to see that God was just testing his resolve and faith, by letting his situation get right up to the 'zero hour'.
It was such a blessing to be a small part of God's plan in this man's life. I couldn't boast about it though because God had given me all this money in the frist place. I was just the lucky bringer of the gift, the messenger so to speak.
It would take too long to tell you about my whole journey, on a day by day or even event by event basis. So much happened. Each time I travelled it was a walk of faith, "where to from here God, left or right, this town or the next. Some days where just spent playing tourist, enjoying the sites. Other days had 'divine appointments' where God lead me to people who were ready to hear the gospel. I was surprised at the openness of the Irish to hearing about Jesus becasue I guess I had an opinion about the 'religious situation' in Ireland - you know Catholics against Protestants. It was never an issue. I just always presented myself as a believer in Jesus and not a representative of a Church.
I lost my way so a life could be saved...................
One more story from this trip bears telling though because I believe God saved a life, by letting me loose my way!
I had returned to England from Ireland, (to escape the rain, oh the rain in Ireland), and had made my way to the most beautiful Lakeland district. Wow the scenery was fantastic. Blue lakes, boat houses, clean clear creeks (you don't see that much in the Ausssie bush. I planned to spend a day exploring on foot the countryside. I got myself a map and out I set. I wondered through villages, I found where they make lakeland pencils. I picked my way through paddocks and splashed in streams. I spent about 5 hours walking and wondering and decided to take a rest for a bite to eat near the most delightful creek I had ever seen. The water was crystal clear, and bubbling and gurgling its way over smooth round brown rocks.
I ate my lunch and then I couldn't help myself I had to get in the creek. Were there tadpoles there? How about some fish. I looked under rocks, examined the water plants and tried catching taddies. I don't know how long I was so absorbed in play, when I suddenly stopped to look at the time.
Comming from Australia I was used to 'Day light saving', but here in UK in the height of summer - they had the never ending evening. The light levels at 9pm in the North of England were more like the light levels at 7pm at home. When I looked at my watch I realized I had left my return trip a little late. It was about 8pm and I had no idea how long it would take to return to my lodgings. I got out, put my shoes on, grabbed my back pack and looked for my map. I couldn't find my map. It must have blown away. I looked around to see which way I sould go but frankly no one path looked more promising than the other. One thing in my favour though is that the UK is small. It's not like loosing your map when you are in the middle of the Strezlecki.
Surely a village couldn't be too far away. So I did the most rational thing and said 'help God, I need to get home before it's too late at night. Could you show me the way home'? So we set off and sure enough I came across a hostel. They assured me I was going in the right direction and I continued on. It took about an hour of walking when I reached the outskirts of Keswick.
Still just because I had found the town didn't mean I new how to find the street I needed without my map. I turned down a little lane that seemed to lead into town towards the streetlights that were just coming on, but to my dismay this lane deviated away again. I stopped and thought 'what's up God' So far so good and now this. I didn't feel like I got any response. I was growing tired, it was late, my feet hurt and it was all my fault for not securing the map. I turned around, I would just have to walk back up the lane. It was then that I noticed the Church. Don't know how I missed it? Funny I thought out loud to myself, I asked God to lead me home and I find myself at church. Maybe I should have been more specific, and said please lead me to my motel.
In my experiences so far on this trip God had not let me down or led me somewhere for no reason, so maybe He brought me here to show me something........?
The Church was dark and locked. No-one home and no manse was attached. I decided to wonder around the back. The light was starting to darken but I could still see to find my way without artifical lighting. Around the back I found the usual attached cemetry. Lucky for me I had grown up living next to one and we used to play hide and seek at night amongst the grave stones, so I felt at home. At the entrance to the cemetry section was a park bench and that is when I saw him!
........He looked so dejected!
Head between hands, downward looking and dejected is what his posture spoke to me. He wouldn't look up, didn't want to acknowledge that someone was there. I was not sure what to do, it was getting late.....he was a stranger........ I nearly snuck away and then he looked up. He had tear tracks down his cheeks, he looked so miserable I couldn't leave.
My greeting was lame to say the least, "Hi, what's wrong?" Not a great converstation starter at all. It didn't seem to matter though because he was in no mood to talk. He shook his head, I gave him a hankey. I would have to start again. "You seem very troubled, is something wrong, do you need some help?" It was suddenly as if somone had turned on a tap, his words came pouring out.
He was at the cemetry because he felt that his life was futile, lacking a reason to go. He shared with me how he had travelled extensively overseas looking for the truth. He had been to Asia, to Tibet, to India....looking. Nowhere though could he find an answer. What was truth? Was there a God and if so which one was Him? Did God even care or notice him? After he had come to the end of his story, I began mine.
"God does care, He does notice you and knows just how you feel right now. In fact I believe that He has heard and answered you prayer to know the truth by using events in my day to lead me here right now." I told him of my days journey and how I believed that God purposed me to find him here so that I could tell him the simple message 'God loves you'.
We talked a little about the Gospel message, he had read the Bible. I shared with him how Jesus was a living reality in my life. The last remaining light was going, and I thought it best to make our way into town. I was worried though about leaving this man in his present state of mind. He needed someone who was local to watch overhim. I had only been in the area less than 48 hours, I didn't know anyone. Didn't know of anywhere that could take him in.
As we walked to town I prayed ....HARD! God I need someone, somewhere to be with this man, please lead us to the place you have in mind. As we came down a lane I noticed a shop and there was a light on. Good maybe the owner knows of a pastor I could call. When we got to the front of the shop I was excited, it was a Christian bookshop and the owners were there after 10pm at night even. They opened the door and before I could fully explain the situation they saw the man and recognized him. They had not seen him for over a year, but had been praying for him, knowing that he was looking for answers. They took him in rejoicing at what God had done. They showed me how to find my Motel, (it was just around the block). I left feeling tired but joyful. How God goes ahead and perfectly lays his plans out before us. How blessed are we when God lets us share His work of saving the lost. There is no better way to live than to just follow His lead, even when we are playing God can direct our steps for His Glory. Do you have a testimony to share? Send it in to jackie@outbackjack.info Encourage us with what God is doing in your life.
Continued from Outback Christians
