Nature and Character of God along with earthy issues

Before I begin writing I would like to apologize to my readers for not spending more time on my entries. I realize that there are so many people at home who are supporting me prayerfully and financially and I feel convicted that I have not been putting in as much effort as I should. I have been trying to rationalize in my mind that we have been so busy, there isn’t much time to write but it doesn’t matter how much time I have I need to give my all in everything I do no matter how limited on time I am. So with that being said from here on out I want to make a promise that I will put my heart into this blog just as I did in the beginning. I hope you can all forgive me.

CHARACTER AND NATURE OF GOD

The character and nature of God is a huge topic to try to cover in just a week especially with only human knowledge. God is way bigger than we could ever comprehend.

Our speakers were the YWAM base leaders in Nicaragua and their style was much different then the previous teachers but I enjoyed the change.

At the beginning of the week my body began to feel a bit weak and my throat was scratchy. By Wednesday I was on bed rest. It was only a common cold but boy did it hit hard! A few people caught a cold a few weeks ago and I was so happy that it skipped right over me and then out of no where I caught a bug even worse than the one before! It slowly got better after that but while I was getting better I began to hear other people talking about the symptoms they were experiencing- the same ones I got, uh oh. Right now we have two people trying to get over the sickness I passed aroundJ ooops.

So last week was a bit difficult for me to focus but luckily a lot of it was scriptural reference so I got to go back and learn on my own. One part of last week that I really enjoyed was when they opened up a time we had for us to be completely honest and express our doubts that we struggled with about God. I hopped right on that opportunity. I am not the type of person to accept everything I hear just because someone says it’s right I like to experience and research on my own just as C.S. Lewis did- maybe I’ll become a world renowned author one day! Wouldn’t that be nice? So I explained how I had a hard time with accepting that the Bible is even a reliable source. I had read a book in the past that explained my question but I hadn’t kept a tight grip on that information and it slipped away from me. The speakers were electrified by that question and told me that they had a paper with a bunch scientific and historical evidence to prove that the Bible is true and not a complete different message from when it was first written. If you are interested in hearing about it let me know! I am so excited that I have that information I don’t want to just keep it to myself so please don’t hesitate to ask if you’re curious.

I knew that I was still fighting off the sickness so we didn’t do too much on the weekend. We watched a few movies and took a few walks but other than that nothing too exciting. Sunday night we had a few people from El Salvador make a typical Salvadorian food dish- pupusas they are like a thick tortilla with beans and cheese in the middle, it is delicious! I can’t wait to go out to other Central American countries and try their food. Speaking of other Central American countries…

Originally the plan was to do a mini outreach in Panama and we would leave this Friday, the 27^th but due to logistical things we will be going to Nicaragua instead. The reason behind this is because Panama is 16 hours away and we only had 7 days to be with the tribe and that travel time right there takes up 2 days of being with them. Plus it would take about a day to get to the actual tribe so we would only have 3 days to be with them, build relationships, meet their needs, and learn their culture- it just wasn’t practical. So what the new plan is, is going to Nicaragua on Thursday morning and staying until next Wednesday. We have a ton of connections in Nicaragua and if you guys know anything about Nicaragua it is a war zone so they need as much help as they can get.

Nicaragua is the second poorest Central American country with a huge unemployment rate and violence is very prevalent. We are all so excited to go! We will be staying at the YWAM base in Diriamba. This would have been a disappointment if we didn’t know that we would still be going to Panama. The way it is all going to happen is that we go on the mini outreach to Nicaragua which is 6 hours away. Then we come back finish the remaining lecture phase classes and on October 4^th we are going to go to NIKO camp. We don’t know anything about NIKO all we are allowed to know is that its 4 days in the jungle where you are challenged more than ever before! I’M EXCITED. Many hate it and many love it. Once you go to Niko you have to sign a contract saying that you cannot talk about NIKO to anyone that could potentially do it. The surprise is what makes it so good. From NIKO, which is located in the southern part of the Costa Rican jungle, we will be going to Panama for a week. After that we will be traveling up to the main base again for a few days and heading to Honduras. I can’t wait but I guess that’s not for several weeks so I will focus on Nicaragua for now.

We still need to raise $130 by Wednesday night but we saw $6,000 come in 30 minutes so we have absolutely no doubt that God will provide the resources! Yes we only have to raise $130 for the mini outreach but once we get back we really need to start fundraising for the outreach costs. I think right now we need a total of $14,000. If any of you feel in your heart that you are to donate our team would appreciate it so much. As much as we hate to admit it money is pretty important on the mission field. On the right side of my blog you will see a button that says donate if you are interested.

So that is where we are at right now. We are starting a new week on Evangelism which we are learning that Evangelism doesn’t mean standing on the side of the street shouting at people that they need to repent. I will tell you what it really is at the end of the week but until then you'll have to wait in suspense!

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

picturees

Heart of Worship

8/17/2010

So a lot has happened in this past week.

From Wednesday to Friday we had a local speak about Worship. He was really mellow and laid back. The class was interesting and we got to do a lot of worship, which was my favorite thing.

On Friday we all got together after class was over to write down what we believed God was speaking to us about our outreach location. When we all circled up the staff told us they had a surprise. They explained how the Panama base leader had asked if we would like to join with them for a European tour outreach. They had been praying about outreach locations and it had become very clear that their DTS was to go to Europe and do a performing arts show in 6 or 7 countries. There were mixed emotions about this new option. None of had planned on going to Europe and of course it would be an amazing experience but there were so man logistical things that needed to be done. We prayed about it and got back together in an hour 1/3 or the class wanted Europe 1/3 wanted to go to Central America and 1/3 didn’t hear anything and said they had an open heart to go anywhere. So that put much more stress on the staff’s part. We weren’t going to find out until Monday anyway because the staff needed to pray about it and make sure that it was God’s plan. Then they told us a bunch of details they believed would affect our decision if we knew before. They told us that we would be moving to Panama in 2 weeks and staying with them at their base. We would also have to change to their lecture phase, which was 2 weeks behind ours and the classes that they had, had already were ones that we had not. So we would be repeating classes and missing ones that we had planned on having. But they were willing to accommodate with us in any way they could. Anyway that’s where we left off on Friday. We had no idea where we were going to go and the leaders were going to pray about it over the weekend.

Saturday me, two girls from my team, and two girls from the Panama team all decided to go on an adventure. We did a little bit of research on different hikes we could do and the closest thing we found was outside of a town called Heredia. The girl who did the research forgot what the name of that little town outside of Heredia was so that ended up being a bit of an issue but from the beginning here is how the day went.

We left the base at about 6:30 or 7 and got on a bus to downtown San Jose. From there we got some coffee and a little pastel and started walking towards the bus station that would take us to Heredia. Mind you we didn’t know where it was. While we were walking some guy comes along side us and starts to try to sell us stickers and tells us how He was in a drug rehab and got kicked out so once he got kicked out he believed that was an excuse for him to do drugs and he was now trying to get back on his feet. The girls on my team know that my passion is to help street people who were involved in drugs, alcohol, prostitution, and pretty much any who have felt rejected. I just love them, God has given me such a huge heart for them there is no doubt that is the mission field I am called to go into. It intimidates most people but God sets all my fears aside and walks alongside me with his army of angels surrounding us. I can’t wait until I get to go out and do that. Anyway so the girls asked if I wanted to talk to him, since we are missionaries and he has had drug problems I explained to him a little bit about my past and about how I got healed. I told him how I got saved from that lifestyle and we began talking about God. This guy had lived in the states for 9 years so his English was great. He knew about God in his head but it was blatantly obvious he didn’t know Him in his heart. So we offered to by him breakfast but told him we wouldn’t support him financially, at least not until we saw him putting a huge effort to get clean and stay clean. We told him about how our base has a family night where we invite people from the streets to come and hang out with us for worship and just chill time. A few weeks ago a team met 2 transvestites and invited them to our family night. They have come to two of them and are trying to get all the help they can. We exchanged addresses but unfortunately we accidentally threw away his email so we are hoping he will find a way to contact us so unless he shows up we may not see him again L. I got to pray for him and it was such a great experience. I hope he is safe and sober wherever he is but we’re praying for him, he needs all the prayers he can get.

So after that we asked where the bus station was to get to Heredia, several times, and finally got there. The bus ride was about 30 minutes long. Once we arrived we looked around the central market a little bit and began to ask people where the waterfalls and hiking trails were. Tico’s must not go hiking because they looked at us like we were CRAZy. We finally asked a taxi driver where the nearest ones and he told us they were about 30 minutes away. We asked how much the taxi ride would be and he told us 8,000 colones ($16) we told him we were broke missionaries and asked if he could do it for 5,000 colones ($10) he agreed and pretty much dropped us off in the middle of the jungle. He was really cool he told us all about everything we were passing and we saw a ton of coffee plantations. So he agreed to pick us up at 2:30 because he got off work at 3 and he wanted to make sure we had a way back down.

We got dropped off at this house in the jungle pretty much. So we walk up because it is supposedly a canopy tour house and we wanted to check it out and see how much it cost and ask about tours/hikes. The sign said- stand at gate BEWARE OF DOGS. We were a little frightened but continued on. After a few times of saying “hello?” someone came out. She told us that it was a canopy tour place and that it was $42 we said that was too much and asked about hikes and waterfalls. She told us we could get a tour guide for $5 and we were good with that. Then we somehow got back on the topic of the canopy tour and she asked us if we were student because student get a discount we told her we were missionaries and she lowered the price to $35 eventually without us even asking she lowered it to $25 and we decided that we probably wont get another chance to go on a zipline in the Costa Rican jungle for $25. Then she told us that her mom and her were going to go on a hike and if we wanted to go with them she could show us where the waterfalls were. So she took us out with 5 of her dogs, her mom, and her baby daughter strapped to her front and showed us where a few waterfalls were. They were beautiful! We wore our bathing suits expecting to go swimming but none of us wanted to get pneumonia. So we hung out there for a little bit but had to go back in about 45 minutes because the canopy tour was starting then and we needed to be back at that time. We found out that that womens family owned the entire plantation. She was born and raised in Costa Rica but she knew 5 languages. Spanish, English, Scottish, German and something else. Anyway we ended up doing the zipline with a missionary group from SAN DIEGO! How crazy is that! We had a great time and the people were all so great. We got a bunch of pictures which I will put up here as soon as I can.

Then we went back to Heredia and caught a bus to San Jose went to a few market there and got on a bus back to the base. We got back right in time for dinner it was great! Then one of the girls comes up to us and tells us that she is going to visit her fiancé in Jaco the following morning and asked if we wanted to go with her. Sara and I jumped right on that opportunity! We woke up at 5:30 and went to downtown San Jose and caught a bus to Jaco. Once we got there her fiancé took us to his house and him and his roommate who are doing the Children at Risk YWAM school made us breakfast! Then we went to their English speaking church- first one since we’ve been here, and went out to a Costa Rican Soda buffet for 2,000 colones which is 4 dollars. Yum Yum Yum.

A few months ago one of the staff members on the base who is originally from Escondido felt called to go to Jaco with his family. They are now working with the Children at Risk School. Him, his wife, and 4 little boys live in Jaco. We went to his house and pick up 3 surfboards and he took us to the beach to surf. A few mishaps happened there, one of my friends who leads worship at the base knocked his elbow on the fin and sliced it up. Luckily the girl who asked if we wanted to go with her to Jaco was a registered nurse and she did some kind of stitches thing and then I got stung by a jelly fish J hahah. So we went back to that guy and his families house and went swimming then got dropped back off at the bus station. It was great weekend and I’m so happy we got to have such a great adventure!

We found out that we will be going to Panama at the end of the month for a week and in October we’re going to go to the Caribbean side of Costa Rica then Honduras, and El Salvador!!!!

Yaya!!!!

outreach announcement

WE ARE GOING TO PANAMA, HONDURAS, AND EL SALVADOR!

We're going to panama for a week and the end of August and then a month in Costa Rica in October and the rest of DTS in Honduras/El Salvador!!

I am SO excited! Can't wait!

PLEASE PRAY FOR US

URGENT:We are now looking into another option for our outreach location.

I don't want to tell you where it is but if you guys could please pray for our outreach location and let me know what God puts on your heart every one of us would greatly appreciate it. I would really love to see if He puts on your heart what our new option is. No boundaries it could be anywhere in the world. We are no longer limited to The America's so if you guys could please meditate and pray for our group I would love that more than you know!

LOVE

pictures of Punta de Leona

This is right before I got baptized at a beautiful Costa Rican beach.

Spiritual Warfare

IT’S ALREADY THE END OF WEEK 4! Wow does time fly when you are the happiest person EVER!

This last week’s topic was on Spiritual Warfare, it was my favorite week by far. Everything we learned was so real. Even on my journey to the base a lot of spiritual warfare was going on. The enemy did NOT want me to come down here because he is terrified of what we can do. But he didn’t succeed in bringing us down; we have such a strong team that won’t let anyone stand in our way. We are living our life for an audience of one, Jesus, He is the one who created us and He is the one we are going to live for.

Kenny Peavy from Los Angeles, California was our speaker. He has the gift of prophesy and is so in tune with the Holy Spirit that the first night he spoke to us he affected so many people that the pastor with a team from San Francisco actually came up to him later that night and asked Kenny questions about the Holy Spirit. The pastor said that his church did not believe in what Kenny was talking about but he could feel the Holy Spirit’s presence so much that he had to figure out what the truth is even if it meant loosing his job at the church.

Kenny also felt the Lord telling him to relay a word to another person from that group. He told a guy that he is going to make a huge impact with people on school campuses all over the world. That is what the guy felt called to do but had no conformation that it was the right thing, Kenny had never met nor talked to him before and he got this word spot on. There are so many incredible testimonies like this one and way greater ones that I have witnessed so far that makes me wonder why people would not want to believe in a God that wants to heal, love, and send out others. He doesn’t need us to do His work but He wants to include us! How awesome is that, our God- who is so big He uses the universe as His footstool- wants ME AND YOU to change the world! The world wasn’t supposed to be this messed up, but Satan uses every opportunity he can from the beginning of time to bring us down. His main tactic is using the people we love and respect the most to speak words of death over us. Sound familiar to you? Have the people who “love” you let you down so bad before? It’s not them, we have honest and genuinely good hearts but when they are infused with lies and the enemies message we become a carrier of evil whether we know it or not. So next time you begin to speak a negative word take a step back and realize that it’s not God’s intention to bring others down. Yes there is a difference between constructive criticism and negative words but there is a fine line and you must be very careful when criticizing someone it could leave painful scars you could be cutting into scar tissue. Think before you speak. Love your neighbors as yourself but first of all love God and all of this will be so much easier.

Thursday August 5, 2010 I was made new again. Like an animal shedding it’s old skin and becoming a brand new creature were we who got baptized last week. It was such an amazing experience, we went to a gorgeous beach and were pretty much the only ones there. The sun came out and two of the Costa Rican tropical birds flew into the tree right in front of us. That day was incredible so much had happened; I think I took about 93 pictures. It takes forever to upload pictures onto the blog and we have to pay for our internet time which is why I don’t have more pictures on here but I will for sure put some up because the internet is free for a few days due to the 50^th anniversary.

Since Saturday night we had people arriving to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of YWAM at our base in San Jose, Costa Rica, which was actually representing all of central America. We had teams, schools, staff members, and directors come in from all over Central America. We also had the founders of YWAM, Lauren Cunningham and his wife Darlene Cunningham, come and speak with us. It was actually set up like a seminar so from Sunday evening to Tuesday morning 5 sessions for crammed it and we got to hear Lauren, Darlene, and their song David, who is actually a movie director in Hollywood, all speak along with representatives from each of the bases in other nations. It has been such a privilege to be able to be here during this celebration. It shows what obeying Him one step at a time can do to change the world. Loren Cunningham had a vision when he was a young man and it was a map of the world with waves of youth coming all across the nations growing larger and larger every time the wave receded. 50 years later the vision is still expanding and the flame is moving forward.

Oh by the way we were all assigned trabajitos for this celebration and guess what mine was… cleaning the portapotties luckily the only thing I had to do was look inside them and make sure they weren’t dirty and that they had toilet paper. Luckily I didn’t have to do anything with the toilet bowl!