goodbye ordinary

Dearest Brothers and Sisters,


I am overwhelmed with joy at how much the Lord has blessed me since I returned home from Annapolis in December. I have found a great church and become friends with wonderful people. Everyday I thank the Lord, and I cannot believe what he is doing in my life. Day to day I struggle to put my trust in him, but he is always faithful. Everyday my hope is renewed and I am reminded of the power of his grace. He always provides. Even in the little things.


I received a word from the Lord yesterday at church through my friend, Amara. She wrote to me during service:
"God said about you while I was praying:
'My Word of Truth will come from your lips. It will set you apart from your peers but I will be your comfort.


"The word of the Lord came to me saying, 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.' 'Ah sovereign Lord,' I said, ' I do not know how to speak; I am only a child. But the Lord said to me, ' Dont not say, "I am only a child." You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,' declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 1:4-8


Ministry has been in the back of my mind lately, as I have been wondering how the Lord wants to use the gifts he has given me. He has blessed us with a wonderful gym and a great set of clients, and I delight in serving them. But I know that I serve the higher power in everything I do. I feel like this gift and delight I have in coaching is without worth if I don't use it for the Lord's good work. I was mulling these thoughts around between the time I received this word from the Lord and the end of church.


As service was closing and various people were giving announcements a guy named Dave Stalsbroten stood up to speak about "Urban Impact", a youth ministry program in the south Seattle area. He attends a church up north of Seattle and just happened to be at my church that day. His focus is in teaching youth in strength and conditioning using the CrossFit methodology, and he is currently in the process of affiliating. He has begun a mentoring program where he goes around to local schools and teaches highschool students about the CF movements and about nutrition. I was sort of appalled at the timing of this considering the Lord had just spoken to me minutes before.

The Lord gave me the courage to speak to him after the service, and I expressed my interest in getting involved. I told him my family's been doing CrossFit for a while and we own a gym about a mile away. He seemed very excited to have me on board. We exchanged contacts and he said he will get back to me very soon.


I've been struggling lately to put my complete trust in the Lord and I know that I need to learn to put his desires before mine. I want to let go of my worries and fears in being young and inexperienced so he can work in me, but I don't always know how. I've been reading a lot lately and have realized that the Lord doesn't always use the strong ones for his work. He picks out the ones that are especially broken and weak, have speaking problems, are downers, etc. As long as they have an ear to hear his words and are willing to say "Here I am" whenever He calls, He can use them. I really don't know what to expect, and perhaps that is a good thing. I just really need prayer. I want to trust in him and delight in him and do his good work. Please pray that I have an ear to hear what he has to say, and the courage to express it to the world.


Your prayers are heard. There is much evidence of that. thank you so much.


In Christ,
Kalli



Since I sent this out earlier this week, I have spoken to Dave again. He visited our gym last night to check out what we had going on, and he and Papa discussed youth mentoring in conjunction with CrossFit. After I had finished my workout for the evening and Dave had crushed the "Tabata Something else" we had a good talk about things. He wanted to know more about my heart for ministry (which I didn't know I had till Sunday, mind you) and my story. I told him I really don't know what to expect out of this, and I'm still seeking insight from the Lord. We agree that if I am to be working with kids of the Rainier Valley (which is where things are pointing at this time, but nothing is really clear and must keep an open mind), I will need to familiarize myself with their history and lifestyle. Both of which I am very much detached from, being white and homeschooled. He has been immersed in this culture for 3 years and said he is going to give me some good reading to do that he believes reflects what goes on in their culture. Just like every other topic, the greatest way to learn isn't by reading about the subject, but by immersing oneself in it and becoming part of its world. I don't know when exactly I will be immersed, but I do wish to make the most of what I have right now. God seems to be showing me only what the next step is, and telling me to trust in him fully to take care of everything.