seeds vs trees, and bummed knees

I was listening to a sermon today by TD Jakes. This was the scripture he used:

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

²⁴ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; ²⁵ but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. ²⁶ But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. ²⁷ So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ ²⁸ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ ²⁹ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

Matthew 13:24-30

I've never really heard anyone preach just on this passage, but the sermon really gave me insight. Of course He preached for over an hour, so there were lots of good points he made, but one of the phrases he said about this was that often God's people ask for big things to happen. Asking God to stand big trees in our lives so that we see an abundance of fruit.  And in those moments God's response is, here are some seeds. And in response we question God, and wonder why our lives are the way they are, and again we ask God to give us big trees, and God says, you dummy, look at the seeds in your pocket. Plant them and watch them grow. Often God entrusts us with small things-seeds, to see how faithful we will be. From there those seeds grow, and as we grow in the Lord as well, he blesses and grows ares of our lives into trees, revealing lots of fruit and blessings. And as we grow or areas in our lives grow, Satan is coming behind our planting of seeds, and planting weeds. He attacks, deceives and manipulates in order to mess with our crop. It would be so much easier if we could just pray and have those weeds permanently removed, but that is not how life works. There are always going to be trails and temptations, but in the end, if we keep our eyes on Christ, Satan and his weeds will burn, and we will have rejoicing over the victories that come with having a personal relationship with Jesus. Be encouraged to be faithful in the small things and patient in trials and when you ask God for big trees, make sure you check your pockets for the seeds- plant them, and grow in the Lord!

In other News: 

The internship is going well. There is only a week and half left for us four interns to work together. Two of them will leave, leaving me and one other (the Scot) for the month of July. I'm sad to see this internship time come to end, but I am looking forward to this month of July and all the things God has planned for me and the Scot.

I have had some really interesting conversations these past few weeks on suffering and pain. Often my heart just breaks and I'm left wondering what in the world can I say to make a difference-in those moments God speaks to me, and says just point them to me. So that is all I do, over and over, God loves you, God loves you, God loves you. Please pray for the women at FH, both staff and residents. Pray for their journeys in coming to know God as a loving father, pray for their lives to continued to be made new, and they would all have the strength and encouragement they need to make a difference in their own lives as well in those around them! 

Personal Note: 

So thursday I hurt my knee. I am not 100% sure what is wrong with it, but I am going back to the hospital tomorrow (Monday) for an MRI. Please pray for me that the pain gets better, and that nothing serious is wrong. I will keep everyone updated- just another adventure in the life of Chelsey. 

Lately the idea of coming to the states for a visit has been weighing heavy on my mind. I do not know if it will be this fall or next spring, but after being two years overseas, I think it would do my head good to have a short break, see friends, and share my heart with all of you in person. So with that, if you feel led, I will be raising funds to take a trip back to the US, if I get the money by Aug, I will come then, if not, then whenever I have the funds I will make the trip across the "big pond"... Just pray for me and the process of raising support for this trip, as well as praying for prepared hearts to host me:-) One thing I've been learning this month is that it is important to keep your cup filled, so that you can continue to pour into others, so I'm hoping that a trip "home" will do just that! Of course if you have questions on how you can give, or if you are wanting to host me, just send me a message, or contact me via Facebook. I'd be glad to answer your questions. Above is a link about on how you can give to make this trip possible- thank you in advance for your support and care for me! 

Thank you to all of you who have made it possible for me to be in Moldova right now. Thank you for all your prayers concerning my knee. Thank you in general for your prayers for me, the interns and Freedom Home. And thank you for being a part of my life. 

Us interns hiked around a Monastery Friday, view was amazing!