If you are like me(Cristi) sometimes you find yourself wanting to do something that is different from what God wants you to do. Too often I think we as Christians get caught up in our own desires/wants and end up just staying in our comfort zone and doing what we want to do instead of listening to God and following Him where He leads us doing what He has planned for us. God has plans for us that will bless us and others in ways we can't even imagine when we follow Him and let Him lead our life. As Christians we must be willing and ready to say these words to God,
"Where You go, I'll go
Where You stay, I'll stay
When You move, I'll move
I will follow You."
We need to always be in prayer seeking God's direction and asking Him to show us whether we are just doing what we want to do or are following what He wants for us to do and be ready to go a different direction, if that is what He calls us to, even if where He leads us takes us out of our comfort zone, even if it is different than what we had planned.
It was while singing this song in church one Sunday about 7 years ago, that I surrendered to God my own desires and plans for our family's future and committed to go wherever He led our family. Before my husband had told me that He believed God was calling us to serve as missionaries in South America, it wasn't even something I had thought about. And it wasn't that my wants/plans were bad; they were good things, ministry in our church and in the community, foster care, being close to family.... But just because what we are doing is good, doesn't mean it is necessarily God's plan for us. And His plan is so much better.
Now as I look back on our first term as missionaries in South America, I feel so blessed to have been part of God's plan to spread the gospel throughout Riohacha. I am filled with awe and gratitude as I watch this video and see the faces of some of the people we grew to love and who became like family in Colombia, the city and landscape that became so familiar to us and became home, the ministries we were privileged to be part of and do in Riohacha, the ministry God is leading us to join in Armenia, the Riohachan ladies soccer team that our daughter was able to play on which was both an answer to prayer for her and an opportunity to share the love of Christ, and even the difficult time of our son getting a life threatening infection that God used for His glory as He led me to minister to and pray with the other moms while we spent 12 days in the hospital during James' recovery. Oh how good God is! Surrender to His plan, where He leads. Trust me, it is far better than anything you could plan on your own and the blessings are incredible!
This video is a glimpse of our time in Colombia the first three years and a few slides of where we are going next.
Join us as we serve here in Colombia by becoming a part of our financial partnership team. You can sign up to partner with us at our missions page that has been updated to tell where we are heading and what we will be doing there -
or you can call South America Mission at 803.802.8580 and tell them you want to join Chris and Cristi Haylett's financial partnership team.
Be a part of what God is doing in Colombia!
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