You Are For Me

So faithful
So constant
So loving and so true
So powerful in all You do

"The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works." ~Psalm 145:13
"The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty." ~Psalm 29:4

So patient
So gracious
So merciful and true
So wonderful in all You do 

"...Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life." ~1Timothy 1:16
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved--and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." ~Ephesians 2:4-6

I know that You are FOR me 
I know that You are FOR me
I know that You will NEVER forsake me in my weakness

I know that You have come now
Even if to write upon my heart
To REMIND me who You are

The Lord is FOR us. He is on our side and he will never leave us or forsake us. 
In the midst of chaos and confusion 
Through the good days and the bad days
When you feel like the world is pulling you away from Him
When you are homesick
Distracted
Feeling unloved or unwanted
Tired
Upset
Sad
Lonley
Scared
Unworthy
Unhappy
Mad
Frustrated
Hurt
Broken-hearted
Unfixable
Concerned
Worried
Anxious
Stressed
Overwhelmed
Depressed
Doubtful
Weary
Drained
Dissapointed
Ignored
Embarrassed 
Jealous
When life just isn't fair
When you are just done with everyone and everything

My friend, know this....

You have a God who is for YOU!
He loves YOU
He cares for YOU
He will provide for YOU
He protects YOU
He will heal YOU
He carries YOU through good and bad
He is powerful
He is faithful
He is merciful
He never changes
He is patient
He is forgiving
He wants YOU to feel important and worthy
YOU are beautiful and created for a purpose
He has a plan for YOUR life
He is all YOU need

I am so thankful for this opportunity to be in Mozambique. I have learned so much about the Lord and myself. I just want to encourage you and tell you that our God is FOR us. I have struggled with knowing this and actually believing it. Kari Jobe sings a song called You Are For Me and this has become the song I rely on when I feel like no one is on my side. When I'm feeling homesick or scared, I sing this and remember that the Lord is the only one who will always be on my side, lifting me up and guiding me back to Him. My prayer is that I continue to believe that He is on my side and worship Him with all that I am. 

Know that while I am on the other side of the world, I am praying for you. Whoever you are, the Lord has laid this on my heart so I can share it with you.  Turn to Him and rely on Him and know that He can and will carry you through whatever you are going through.

HE IS FOR YOU! 

(Listen to the song....you will fall in love!) 

His Servant,
Sheldon 

My First Market Experience

This morning we went to the market. There was a lot to see, smell, hear, taste, and touch!

My goal was to buy a capulana. A capulana is a piece of fabric that almost all African women wear around their waist on top of their pants or skirt. They also use them to carry babies on their back.

                              They don't ever match what they are wearing and they are very useful.

           This is my first capulana...there were too many to choose from so I will have to buy more.


After I bought my capulana, we continued to walk around and look at all the things they sell. We went through the food market, the clothes store, the Payless shoe store, and the Pier 1 store. There was so much to see. The last market area we went through was the fish market...let me tell you...so SMELLY! I do not know how people stay in there all day everyday. Too much for this nose to handle! haha!

My mom is sending a care package so if you would like to send something or help her with some of the things I need, email her and let her know!
wsmith37@bellsouth.net

Thank you for continually praying for me and this amazing opportunity God has placed in my life.

His servant,
Sheldon

First Sunday In The Bush

After about 3 days of traveling, I am finally in my new home with my new family. I had extremely long flights and layovers but I am here. Thank you for praying me through that.

                                                             I fit in perfectly....right?

Let me tell you a little bit about my first full day in Mozambique. Hold on tight because it's going to be a bumpy ride...literally!

We left at 7am on Sunday morning to go to church. It took us about 2 hours to get there from our house. We drove on a paved road for an hour then on sand for another hour...we were in the bush. I am so sore from all the bumps and dips in the road but it was a blast just trying to get to the church.

Once we got to the church we played with kids and threw frisbees. Church started a few minutes later and went on for 4 hours. There was a ton of singing and dancing, a sunday school time for the children and a sermon for the adults, and we also had the Lord's Supper (which consisted of fresh bread and fresh juice mixed with water). After church, the nationals prepared us a meal while we painted fingernails and threw frisbees. The lunch was a basic meal of chicken and rice. It was very delicious! 

                                              Sunday School with all the children under 12.

                                          The Lord's Supper with "orange juice" and bread.

                                 Painting fingernails...even the boys want their nails painted.

                     I found my baby I wanted to take home and I really stood out with all the kids.

When we left the church, we went even further into the bush to a village that didn't have access to  clean well water. Our path was blocked by a huge tree so we had to make a new path to get around it.

A church from the states raised money for a well to be built for this village. We visited the well site and prayed over it. We also dropped off concrete so they could begin building the well. The natives cooked us another meal of chicken and rice...2 times in less than 4 hours of each other...but it was still delicious! After that we packed up and made our long journey back home. 

                                  Please pray for this community as a new well is being built.

Stay tuned for another update with more crazy adventures!

Much love, Sheldon

Less Than One Week

In less than one week, I will be leaving Charlotte, NC.

This past Sunday, I had a reception at my church and I was commissioned by my pastor, Clint Pressley. The reception was a time for me to say goodbye to friends and family before I leave. It was a sweet time of food, fellowship, worship, and prayer. Thank you to all who helped plan and attended.

Monday through Wednesday was Operation Charlotte. A week of doing mission outreach projects here in Charlotte. Our student ministry served Queens Grant High School, Inspiration Station, Little Flower Nursing Home, Hickory Grove Elementary, HG Latin American Campus Food Bank, Jackson Park, and did VBS for the day camp children at Hickory Grove Baptist Church. It was such a blessing to serve the community and give back. Visit Hickory Grove Student Ministry – Main on FB to look at pictures.

Monday and Tuesday night we had a worship service with the students. This was an incredible time for me as I am preparing to leave for Africa. I was so encouraged by how many of our students are on fire for the Lord and I am blessed to be apart of the student ministry. I sat in the back and just took in the worship. I stood in awe of how loving and powerful our God is. I savored every moment I had to just WORSHIP the King.

I will look back on those moments when I am feeling home sick or scared and I will remember the feeling I had. I will cherish those moments forever. The moments of PURE WORSHIP!

“Worship is a posture of life that takes as its primary purpose the understanding of what it really means to love and revere God.” – Ravi Zacharias

 

As I am preparing these next few days, will you pray for me? There is still a lot of things left to do and not a lot of time left. Please pray for clarity and wisdom. Safety and health, as well as rest. Pray for my parents and especially my sister. (She is having a difficult time with me leaving.) Thank you for praying for me and supporting me on this new journey.