I Am NOT In Control – God Is… Germany Day 2 Of Ministry

I had no clue where I was when I woke up this morning. I slept so hard that I don’t think I moved. I had creases and fold from the sheets on my face and body. Haha

We had a great breakfast and fueled up on coffee then headed out to catch a train for Jesus Haus church in the light rain overcast.

We got on the train and all got off at our stop about 45 minutes later. As the train started to leave Lauren realized that my easel was still on the train!! It was too late to stop it and the train left. I was immediately sick to my stomach and very upset… But things happen. After a few minutes I was able to pray and calm myself down and resolved to the fact that everything happens for a reason. I don’t understand why but I trust in God’s plan. That’s all I need to know. The show must go on and my brothers and sisters are here to help me.

We walked through the rain to get to the church for Sunday service. I had to wrap my tarp around the canvas to keep it from getting wet.  When we arrived we were met by the preacher who is originally from Australia. Great accent. We began to discuss the painting and he threw me a curve ball. He wanted me to paint on a canvas that they already had. This canvas was the oldest dirtiest canvas I’ve ever seen. It had old paint on it that was cracking and falling off. It had holes all in it as well. He wanted it painted in a vertical format but my design is horizontal. I would have to redesign how the painting would come together to make this work… I started to think to myself that nothing was going to go my way today and began to get very upset again…. After a few minutes I realized that it’s NOT ABOUT WHAT I WANT. It’s all a part of God’s plan and I needed to be obedient and willing to do WHATEVER I was asked to do. My goal should not always be something that pleases me… It’s about the people that see what I do through God that matter most. So I did what I was asked and the response from the church was overwhelmingly positive. They were very blessed by what I did. Amen.

We then headed back to the train and had lunch on the way back to the hotel. When we got back we had about 45 minutes to freshen up and then we were back on the street to do more ministry. We had to wrap the canvases in plastic trash bags to protect them from the rain.

As we approached the cathedral were we were scheduled to be we noticed a large demonstration/ protest with 2 groups waving their flags and yelling at each other. Riot police were everywhere. We were on the opposite side of the building so they didn’t really affect us.

The spot that we were in was in a wind tunnel formed by the buildings and there were 60 mile per hour gusts that threatened to blow all of our gear away. My canvases were acting like sails on a boat and flying everywhere and slamming into people around us. We had to lay them down and place back packs on them to hold them down. Yet another obstacle for us today… I wouldn’t have been able to use my easel in conditions like this anyway.

Our group gathered in a circle and broke out the guitars and began to worship and sing. People walking by stopped and some just watched as others sang along with us. When the crowd got a little bigger I started to paint and that’s when the crowd really started to grow. We had a loud speaker to play some music while I did my thing. I had two people hold the canvas from behind as I painted it on the ground so that it wouldn’t blow away.

When I finished and flipped the painting the people were amazed and our leader got on the microphone and told them about us and Jesus. Then we approached individuals and all had our own separate opportunities to connect and speak to them. Some were very interested and others walked away. I met a sweet family that were already Christians but they had been persecuted for their faith. I prayed over them and gave them a painting. It was a beautiful experience. I really enjoyed getting to give the paintings away.

It started to get cold and rainy so we packed up and walked over to a restaurant to have dinner which was followed by a trip to a frozen yogurt shop.

It was a crazy day and it really got the better of my emotions at times. It’s all worth it in the end when we see and hear stories of how we’ve blessed and and impacted the people we meet. One lady said she went into the cathedral to pray and it felt dead. No life around it whatsoever. But as she walked out she heard us singing and praising God and she immediately felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. Then after seeing me paint she said she experienced something wonderful. Jesus came out of the painting as she watched and hugged her and said he was with her always.

Incredible. That’s why I do this…. For moments like that. Moments that have eternal impact. Praise the Lord. It’s not about my ability, it’s about what He does through me.