Tuesday, June 03, 2008

In the Bronx

I'm sitting in the airport at Kansas City waiting for my connecting flight to New York City, and the Lord is already blessing me with conversation. We had a pretty empty flight, and it was at 6:25AM so everyone was asleep, except me and Malloi (it means butterfly). She was a 25 year old refugee from the Congo who works in the George Bush Tollway. Their country has been at war for many years. Her mom took her and her siblings to the US out of fear for their lives in 2002. We talked about families, my brothers wedding, her recent wedding, the war in Congo, and the book of Revelation. Trust me, I didn't bring that up! Haha. I'm not big on "end times evangelism." But apparently that's what God wanted us to talk about this morning. She asked why I was going to NYC so I told her about my internship with the house churches. She seemed very interested but was personally more into the TV evangelist thing. We talked for a while about some of those guys and our disappointments with how they have represented Christians. We talked about Jesus and she told me how important prayer had been in her life, living in a country under attack. We only had an hour together in the plane, but it was a great start to the summer. Many more conversations to come. Time to hop on the next plane!

Sooooo... I typed that and then forgot to send it off. It is now Tuesday...

The first two days (Sunday and Monday) I was feeling very overwhelmed. I've been told a million times, "there are people every where in NYC." Well, they were right! I think its kind of a mix of the massive amounts of people, the huge culture shift, the non-stop city, family, friends, and Sara being back home, and the fact that its hard to be alone that have really shaken me the past couple of days. But today was so much better. I talked to Heath (one of the guys on my team) and called Sara to talked to her about it and let her pray for me.

Today was much better. I started to get a better picture of what I would be doing. I got to visit Bronx Community College for the first time (it was a short visit) but it still helped me get a little bit of a feel for the campus. So I am very excited about some ministry opportunities there. I am going to go explore and prayer walk the rest of the campus and Lehman College tomorrow afternoon to see where the Lord is leading me and where their might be some opportunities to break into some of the smaller communities within the campuses.

Pray for my awareness to the Spirits movings that He would lead me to the place He is already at work. Pray that I would be bold with my faith and that the harvest would be ripe. Most of all, pray for more workers.

Much Love.

7 comments:

Phil said...

Hey JB, good to hear from you. Hope the NY deal is a great experience and gives you some hands on insight.

You might check with Todd about Christian Massamba and getting him in touch with the refugee from Congo. That was part of his journey and he might have some cool faith things to share.

Hey, SB is doing a fantastic job with the youth internship.

Grace bro & I love your signature script on your emails.

Phil

Frank said...

You are in my prayers.

I think I know what you are talking about when you write about the lack of privacy. Actually you made me think of Practicing the Presence of God by Bro. Lawrence. Being aware of God's presence even in the middle of conversations and events and the the daily roar of life is such a blessing - it feels like rest! So why do I let myself get so distracted???

I love what you are doing in the Bronx. Thanks for keeping us posted.

Vann said...

I'm praying the following for you:

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships so that He may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, starvation, and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them.

And may God bless you with a faith to believe that He can use you to make a difference in this world, so that you can do what some claim cannot be done.

Steve said...

Hey brother,

God is going to open doors and hearts. I pray for the journey you are on. Keep the faith.

steve

Anonymous said...

Jordan,
Your experience in NY is going to be so different from your TX life, which is why it's going to be a great growing time. Enjoy the times of discomfort and disorientation - know that you will learn from them.

I noticed in your note - "so many people" and feeling alone at the same time. I will pray for you that you find peace in being away from your family, friends, church, and Sarah. I'll also pray that God provides you with a ministry partner in NY.

Keep the eyes of your heart open to possibilities to be used by our Father.

Blessings,
Frances

Anonymous said...

definitely praying, bro! blessings!

Anonymous said...

Well, bro. I think you found all of the people that are not in Samoa in NYC. We are having fun so far, learning Samoan and all...We will be praying for you and your team as you continue to work up there. Our locations and internships are very different!