Why is it with every weekend getting closer and closer to my exit from China, it just keeps getting better and better? I thought I would be going through the motions of feeling more and more ready to leave this country, but with every weekend brings a great anticipation for the next.

Over the past 2 months, I've grown very close to people in my church community here. Being a foreigner in China really causes people to come together and support one another in a really powerful way. As we have moved around quite a bit this past year because of the government, I've begun to realize how important this community is to me.

As we have grown closer, God has increased our faith in Him. Through this, I've learned that I can never take God's love or power for granted. His love is surprising, unsettling and it sweeps you off your feet when you least expect it.

I’ve heard that verse from the bible before about “Lord my ears have heard of you, but now my eyes have seen.” I feel like somehow I’ve been given both a new set of ears and eyes. As if I’m seeing and hearing familiar sights and sounds for the first time.

The previous week leading up to our Saturday night service at my international church here in Beijing a few weeks ago, I was left restless most nights. I couldn’t sleep and I felt like something was keeping me up. A prayer on my heart was asking God to move me to a new place, new atmosphere. I feel like my whole journey of traveling and living abroad has been about these themes. In worship, I wanted to move beyond just singing songs to pressing into God’s heart. One night I was even at my keyboard, singing and finding myself with new melodies I had never heard of. Hours went by in minutes, and I felt like I needed to get out and produce the worship in my heart.

Saturday came for our church service. Something was brewing. I felt a sense of peace come over me. As our congregation began to enter into worship, what happened next made my knees shake. As my fingers touched the keyboard and my lips began to sing "Worthy is the Lamb" - I heard a new sound. Above the congregation. Like a beautiful violin. The sweetest, most majestic melody from heaven. I looked around the congregation attempting to find the person who was producing the sound...but I couldn't find anyone. The more I sang, the more I wanted God to be glorified. We continued to play and sing as the sound seemingly "danced" over us. If sound had a colour, this sound was filled with golds, blues, greens, reds...Everyone one of my hairs stood on end. Like, the congregation, our worship team and this violin were all one symphony to glorify our beautiful Savior.

I felt like a daughter, dressed in white, singing before my Creator. I never spoken like this before. Then again, I've never experienced worship like this before. I could always feel God's calling on my life when I play for him, but I never knew that He moves in such a powerful way so as to create an audible sound for our ears to hear. There is a whole other spiritual level that, I believe the Holy Spirit is just itching to share with us.

Since then, I have felt my ears have become more attune to what God is trying to communicate with me. All I want to do now is hear God's voice. Learn to recognize it and follow it, purely just for the joy of being in His presence. He is so beautiful and worthy to be worshiped. When we seek Him with our whole heart, He gives us incredible gifts.

This has really increased my faith. He reveals himself to us in so many ways, even when we don't even know it. His Holy Spirit is dynamic, and moves like a strong wind and a gentle breeze at the same time. I just wonder when He is going to speak next...