Parting the Sea

Today was interesting going to a new church. It was actually a lot like Courts of Praise back in Saskatoon, so I kind of felt at home in a way. (Mom, they even had a box of tambourines and flags and ribbons by the door! aha) It was quite old fashioned - the songs were mostly hymns or super oldies (which for me is like, the early 1990's.) Surprisingly, I actually knew half of them though! The congregation was small - maybe 30 people including our students and 2 leaders. It's the church we will be doing outreach with on Friday nights, though, so it was nice to meet some of the pastors. I know this friday we are serving dinner and spending time ministering to some homeless people and abused women.
We are still waiting for the remaining 4 students to get here. Today at 3pm we all met outside and had a prayer circle for those who havent been able to make it due to the ash cloud right now. One of them is stranded in Madrid, one of them is from South America so is not sure when she can arrive, one of them needs to come from Switzerland and the other is stuck in Boston right now. We had an amazing prayer time as a group and I ask that you would all believe and stand with us in faith that God will provide a way.
It was really cool because God gave a word to one of the staff, one of the directors, and to me that all kind of tied into one another. The staff lady said she just was given a picture of Moses and the Israelites when God parted the Red Sea for them just when it looked like there was no where else to go - that he provided a way for them. One of the directors said that even before the school started, he had been given a vision of Moses and his staff, and how God used that staff to part the waters. The staff was just what was in Moses' hand at the time - that God wants to use us where we're at with what we've got. That really stood out to me. Then today, when I was doing my devotions about an hour before all that, it was funny because I was reading in Deuteronomy about the Israelites and how they weren't allowed to enter the Promised Land. Here's an excerpt from my journal:

"Deut. 2:32-37
Sometimes a battle is a means of achieving a higher glory. The people of Israel were afraid to enter the Promised Land because they were focused on how big the enemy was, not how powerful God is. As a result of their lack of faith, they were denied the ability to enter the land and share in the blessings and prosperity that came with it. I dont' want to miss out on God's blessings because I didnt' have the faith to step out in an opportunity.
Sometimes when an opportunity arises but looks challenging or presents opposition it's easier to back down or 'wait for new opportunity'. But without a battle to fight, how can we experience victory in our lives? how can we expect our faith to grow if there's no reason to exercise it? When the Israelites DID walk in obedience, they were given a land 'flowing with milk and honey'. The reward and blessing in the end of the ight will far outweigh the struggles of the fight itself."
So we are all in that place where it is taking complete faith that things will work out. We believe that this is something God is using to test us and our reliance on Him. We aren't sure what we're going to do yet - the airports may be closed for another 2 weeks possibly, if the winds dont change, and if the students dont get here by a week from friday, it will be too late for them to join the school. So please remember them in your prayers. As a school, we are looking at different options on how to proceed, as a lot of the schedule has been set back. One possibility is that we may need to take a large van and drive to Paris to pick two of the students up, which would mean we would have to do a week of lectures on the road. Nothing is set in stone, but we are just believing for a miracle and supernatural intervention at this point.

Cheerio!