I've made it through one year here! August 28th was my Utah anniversary. I've been so thankful for the blessings of the Lord when I reflect on the past twelve months...
PROVISION. 1) The welcoming hearts and hands of Marcia and Ken Hornok to let me live with them. 2) The connections with my job at the Wellness Center, my first job last August. 3) Girls to live with...Cat Ryono and Robyn Thomas, who not only needed roomates as well, but moved here to Utah to minister to the Mormons. 4) The timing of the nanny position for Bellah being OFFERED to me last December, the very same day that the Wellness Center closed business. The previous week of being offered that position her parents were praying specifically for my availability to watch her. So it was seven days after they started praying that I told Bellah's mom about the Wellness Center closing down...she saw it as an answer to prayer and I saw it as provision! 5) The opportunities of ministry at Whole Foods Market....the many ex-LDS individuals there (the counter-culture of Utah), and God teaching me how to love in situations way out of my comfort zone...homosexuals! Thank you God, for your goodness to me. Thank you for seeing my needs Jesus, and for meeting them fully.
HEALTH. He has sustained my health and kept me strong. I've had excellent treatments for the Lyme out here. I haven't needed treatments as often, either, though I cannot be without them. I know that when my joints do ache a little more than normal that it is just the twinge of a reminder to the suffering my body has gone through, and how far it has come. The symptoms of Lyme Disease has been the thorn in my side that has caused me to be thankful for what I have. I've been able to go on some amazing hikes in Mill Creek Canyon, Sundance, and around Salt Lake City such as Ensign Peak. When I get to the top, I have so much joy! Thank you God, for sustaining my health and for keeping me strong enough to not only stay on my feet, but to be active in life.
NEED. Over this past year, I have learned that Salt Lake City is one of the most opportune places for a Christian to live. The reason why I believe this is because conversation of faith is not uncommon, and sometimes is even expected, such as at Temple Square. It doesn't surprise me anymore when I sit somewhere public here, and overhear talk of religion. It is not uncomfortable, but rather is in context of the culture. It is awesome! Salt Lake City is a place of religious discussion because of the foundations of the LDS church settling here. The city has an amazing preset for interfaith dialogue. For the Christian, it a gold mine to live here. It seems that the Holy Spirit has been active in bringing Christ-followers specifically to Salt Lake to share truth. It has been evident! The Christians here have a bond because we are the minority. We are a small, but mighty group! I've found that living here has sharpened my knowledge of the Word.
EVANGELIZING. There are too many stories to share in a blog. My perspective when moving to Salt Lake did not have clear and specific action. It was to share with them what the Lord says in matters of truth. The people who live in this culture weigh on my heart. I was open to whoever God brought into my path, and He has increased my trust in Him as He has proven Himself through the people He has brought to me.
Story: This last July I flew to Seattle for Sarah and Josh's wedding. Seating myself on the plane, I opened up a book to read until two travelers sat next to me. Right away the young woman and her husband introduced themselves to me. She was extremely friendly and outgoing in conversation, so I closed my book. As we got to talking, we shared similarities such as both growing up in the Bay Area and struggling with similar health issues (Lyme Disease and Lupus) for a majority of our life. So let me sum that up: both from the bay, around the same age, and battling similar diagnosis. At this point I started to wonder if God might be up to something. Hmmmm. I found that her and her husband had gone to BYU and had only been married three weeks...they lived in Provo, and were flying to Seattle for their reception. She asked me why I moved to Salt Lake from the Bay Area. I told her it was because it was where God called me to live. She asked me what I was doing in Salt Lake. I told her I was talking to people that God brought into my path, but specifically moved for the LDS culture....then I winked at her. It rolled into an interfaith for the rest of the flight. I found that her entire family was evangelical, but that she joined the LDS church on her own. Interesting. We exchanged contact and she actually e-mailed me a couple weeks later. I plan to keep in touch with her. Her name is Danielle, so you could be in prayer for her.
Another more recent story: My friend Jessica and I have been meeting with three young LDS women for the past five weeks. Two of them are serving as missionaries in Salt Lake. The third girl coming along with them is not a missionary, but is coming along with them to observe our dialogue. Interestingly, this third girl coming was raised evangelical and is the only one in her family who has joined the LDS religion, just eleven months ago. Her and I have common ground: she grew up playing softball and she is a nanny. God's been breaking my heart for her. Her name is Jessica. Her mom will not join the LDS church, and my hope is that her mom has been praying for her! It is evident that I am supposed to be talking with her. Pray for Jessica to see truth, and encouragement to pull away from what she had involved herself in. One of the missionaries, sister Lilly also grew up evangelical, and is the only one in her family to have joined the LDS church. She is intelligent, as she graduated from Stanford and also studied at Oxford. The only answer I have for her being dumb enough to be a Mormon is blindness. She is very intelligent. Pray that the Spirit unveils her eyes.
These are just a FEW, a FEW, a FEW examples of how the Lord's been faithful to bring specific people for me to talk to. It is so clear that He wants to use me here, the way he's used both believers and non-believers to speak powerfully into my life. God, I thank you for opportunities to share truth and I ask that my eyes constantly be opened to how your spirit is nudging me! I would like to share more stories, and plan to write more this week. I look forward to coming home for the holidays!
Sincerely,
Jill
"Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one." Isaiah 44:8
