We just got back from a mission trip to South America and something 'funny' happened while we were going to lunch at a mall. I was leading a group of young adults into the food court area. There must have been 10-15 different places to eat and everyone wanted to check out the local cuisine. As we passed by the first few eateries, I got a funny sense that I was to stop and wait on the Lord. By the time I obeyed we were all standing in the main aisle of the mall next to a large area filled with tables and people eating their lunch. I explained to my group that I had to wait upon the Lord and encouraged them to move on and get their food. They spread out and soon disappeared from sight.
Meanwhile I stood there asking God what He was trying to show me. No answer. No sense whatever why God would have me simply stand next to those tables. I looked up and down the aisle to see if there was someone He wanted me to run into. No one appeared. All my questions went unanswered but the sense that I should not move continued. I checked my watch. Time for lunch was running out.
Since I like to eat frequently and the next meal would not be for many, many hours, I was tempted to go and stand in line at one of the counters and come back with my food. But the impression that I was not to move never lifted. It made no sense. But then a lot of the Bible stories didn't make sense at the time. Take Gideon, for example. If you were facing an enemy army of several hundred thousand warriors, would you decrease your army to 300? That's what God asked Gideon to do - and he won! Of course, that was the only way God would get the credit for the victory. If Gideon's army had outnumbered the enemy's then Gideon and his army would have been patting themselves on the back. So just because it didn't make sense to me, didn't mean it wasn't God. God was teaching me to obey.
Romans 8:6 (Amplified translation) Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever].
This has been one of my life verses. If something isn't logical or immediately understandable I get a confirmation to be sure it's from God, and if it is confirmed, then the next step is obedience. I had to ignore the questioning looks from the youth who didn't understand why God would have me stop at that spot and do nothing but wait on Him. I had to give up the idea of having lunch that day.
But God. I'm not sure how long I stood there but it was probably 20 minutes. Long enough to use up the time needed to stand in line for my food at one of the 'fast' food places. Strangely enough I had peace about skipping lunch. I trusted God would sustain me.
But God. As I continued to wait and wonder along came some other team members with their lunch trays. Not the group I started out with, but another group from our bus. Five of them came right to where I was standing and sat down at the table next to me. They asked me to join them, so I did. The young woman sitting to my right had a large platter piled high with 8 different kinds of middle eastern 'pizzas'. "I don't know why I bought all this food," she said with wonder in her voice. She is petite and one would think when looking at her that one or two of those 'pizza's would suffice. But she had purchased eight. She began to offer them to everyone at the table. I took a small portion of one and ate it. By the time everyone else had finished their lunches, she still had two more 'pizzas' uneaten. She offered them to me. They were delicious. Then it was time to head back to our bus.
Interesting. As we waited in the lobby to load the bus, I met up with one of my original team members who asked me why I thought God had me stop and do nothing. When I told her what happened, she looked at me and said with authority, "God was showing you that He was providing your lunch today."
I felt the love of God when she said that. God had me obey something that didn't make sense just so He could bless me with lunch provided by someone else. I realized that it was His way of saying, "Be anxious in nothing...." {Philippians 4:6} It was His way of saying, "Do not be anxious or worried about what you will eat or drink...." {Matthew 6:25}
It's one thing to read the Word of God, and another to live it. God was giving me a practical application of His Word. As the trip continued I applied what I had learned that day in the mall and stayed peaceful regardless of what was going on around me. I knew in a deeper way that God would supply all my needs and direct my path. It was the most relaxed I have ever been on a mission trip. No need to worry or be anxious. It was a very pragmatic way to learn that God is our provision.
