Chicago: Moving Beyond?

Hello everyone,

So I am in Chicago now, and I am working on figuring out what my weeks will consist of.  As mentioned in the first email, I will be working with South Asian Friendship Center, and at different parks, but those are not all day by any means.  I have a lot of free time, and Bob just kind of wants me to hang out in the community and build new relationships.  I am trying to understand what that looks like as I sit in a coffee shop waiting for God to burden me, or let someone come to me.  This week I could really use prayer for who I am and who is God calling me to be.  I am not a super outgoing person, and more often than not, I don't want to bother people, but being here makes it seem like God is wanting me to step outside of myself and to meet and instigate more.  So I am having a hard time understanding if that is who I really am, or if that is what God wants from me.  I just am not your typical bubbly individual, and I don't even know if that's what I want to become, so I just need prayer to understand how God is using this time in my life.

On other notes, God has been faithful in allowing me to meet some different people who will be great contacts for me throughout the summer.  Hopefully I can get with some of them and do different out reach activities at the parks or something.  So prayer that God would develop those things also.

And for my theological push, on Sunday night the YWAM base that I am staying at has a fellowship gathering for people in the community to come to.  This past Sunday I went, and I got talking to a man from India and a graduate from Moody who wants to be a missionary.  The man from India, John, basically said that there is no need for Westerners to go overseas anymore.  There is a project called Gospel for Asia, where people invest money to train Indian people or whichever group to teach and disciple.  John says that it makes much more sense because someone like me cannot even drink the water nor speak the language, nor do I even know the customs.  He also said the governments are very suspicious of Westerners, and that it is best for them to just come for a week or two to train and then leave.  So, I am not sure I entirely agree with him, because if God calls anyone to go somewhere, they need to go; however, it really made me think about my life and if I should go overseas or if I should just stick around in the states where I understand the culture and know the language.  I am not sure how God is calling me exactly, but I do feel like being in the US for my mission work is good.  I'd still like to go abroad, but I do see a lot of needs in the states, and I want to use what God is giving me to give to them.

So yes, so far I've been challenged and am growing.  I have a lot of time during the morning and afternoon because a lot of places do not even open up until after 11.  So God is doing some cool things as I offer up my time and energy to him.

So I would just ask for continued prayer in how I should live and work, and how I should use my days.  Thank again everyone!