Sorrow & Joy

Isaiah 55:8 "Your thoughts are not my thoughts and your ways are not my ways. Declares the Lord." 

I live in a community that has been through many hurts and much sorrow over the last 2 years. Within 18 months we have lost 6 youth - 4 to automobile accidents and 2 to suicide. It has been a tough several months and many times we have been left with the question 'WHY?' However, the Lord has been reminding me of the story of Moses, Moses walked in the wilderness and you see this is my communities' wilderness and through this wilderness we must learn to trust and cling to a the Savior who is the source of all comfort and strength. He is challenging and reminding me daily of the LOVE of the Savior who gave His all for me. 


So today we are still in the midst of the wilderness, or so it seems, but soon very soon we will be jumping for JOY - the Lord has the ability to do this....

And the Lord will walk us through the wilderness 

And give us JOY!

My Harvest Field...

Matthew 9:35-38 "Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few, Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'"

This passage of scripture has come up LOTS lately. We talked about it in church on Sunday and once again the Lord has brought it to mind. Over the last two years, my community has suffered great loss - teenager after teenager, dying untimely deaths. And I tell the Lord I don't understand, I beg Him to help me understand, to give me a glimpse into the bigger picture because I keep asking, "Lord, how much more can we take?" "What are you trying to do? get our attention? Lord, you have mine!" I don't even know many of these students but I know the Lord knew them and He weeps.


So I ask the Lord, Lord, what are you doing? What are you calling me to? What am I to do? And He lays this scripture on my heart - The harvest is plentiful, abundant, overflowing but the workers are few, little, scarce & my heart aches, it aches for God's children, it aches because their are simply some things i won't understand on this side of heaven. 


After my heart is done aching, God begins calling my heart to action. You see every Thursday night I've committed to teaching a High School Girl Small Group, at least for now. Where is this small group in all of this? What about the multitudes of teenagers I know? Who will remind them that they are cared about and loved? And the Lord reminds me that I can do that! I can't go back into the high school, my time has passed. Bu I can encourage the teenagers I know, I can be there for them. I can encourage them and love them and encourage them to make a difference. I can smile a little more, give a little more and ask the Lord to stretch and pull me just a little more. 


The Harvest is Plentiful, abundant and overflowing but the workers are few, scarce...


Lord, Please send workers into your harvest fields. Help us to daily put on your Armor (Ephesians 6:10-20) Help me to be bold in my walk, in my faith to stand strong and be courageous. Lord, allow me to be a worker in your harvest fields - to encourage, smile, pray and care! 

What is your Harvest Field?

The Fight....

My Testimony of what the Lord is doing in my Life….

During the summer of 2010 while working at Camp Pinnacle, I first heard of modern day slavery – Human Trafficking. I was shocked and it was the first time I had encountered this issue. Upon returning to school in the fall, I was then taking a public speaking class. My prayer for that class was that the Lord would grant me boldness in my speeches, that they would be meaningful. I mean really, these students were forced to listen to me speak – it was part of our grade. The Lord allowed me to later that semester go to a speech competition – even more people were hearing. In April of 2011, I attended a Missions Encounter Conference in Albany, Georgia. While at the conference we heard accounts of women and girls who had been caught in modern day slavery – Human Trafficking. Human Trafficking is where a person is sold for services or money. This is an illegal act yet everyday in the state of Georgia 200 girls are sold for sex. The statistics are sad but there is Hope. In 2001 a woman in the state of Georgia saw a need, a HUGE need and that was the need to reach out to victims of the second largest business in the world – the Human Trafficking Network. Mary Francis founded Wellspring Living, to help girls and women who had experienced abuse and advocate against  the illegal sex slave trade – Human Trafficking. While at Mission Encounter in April of 2011 I was able to hear Mary Francis  speak about her experiences and as she shared of the HOPE these girls now received. Although Mary Francis had an amazing story to tell the real story that needed to be told was by a friend, T. T is a woman who had been at Wellspring Living since December of 2010 – receiving therapy, Hope and spiritual renewal for 5 months. T shared her story and it is a story that I have committed to telling. Human Trafficking CAN be stopped. The number one way to fight Human Trafficking is to TALK about it. Sounds so easy, yet it’s a scary subject. So I’m committing to talking about it and seeing more stories like T’s come about.

As I was driving home from Albany that Saturday afternoon, God began calling me to more, to share more and love more. During that drive, God began planting a HUGE plan in my heart – His plan of how I was to share what He was teaching me. Upon arriving home, I didn’t share His vision with anyone for several weeks. During this time I was reading through Exodus in my daily JAM (Jesus and Me) times. Two days after returning home, I read Exodus 34:29 “When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken (met) with the Lord.”  You see this was T, the women that I had met who had been freed. T was radiant because she had encountered the LORD. I call this confirmation number 1 on the journey. About two days after this I had a vivid dream. The dream was that my sister had been caught in Human Trafficking and I was tearing apart the city in a frantic search to find her and set her free. I awoke, obviously disturbed by this dream. But it was then that the Lord said to my heart, “Stephanie, these are your sisters and they need someone to come looking for them.” I call that confirmation number 2 and the last one I needed. I soon contact my pastor and then Well Spring Living. Now, I am seeing God’s plans come to life! Everything that is happening and the testimony that you read is that of HIM. His plans are coming about because they were His in the first place.

Every life changing event begins with a small group of people. Mrs. Sandra Burns and I are that small group and we are asking you to join us on this journey of prevention, and action in the fight against Human Trafficking. We hope to only inspire you to search His Word and ask the Lord how He would have you be a part of the solution. Prayer, Education and action is all it takes to see real change begin to happen. Won’t you be apart of the solution and help end Human Trafficking?

Doing Something,

 Stephanie Deal 

Isaiah 61:1 "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound."

T is a real person, I have deleted her full name to protect her privacy. 

My prayer is that someone would come across and read of the injustice happening. That people would be called to action and that lives would be c hanged!