Adventures for the Lord

Back in Gunnison - Long Overdue Update

2010-11-21T19:53:00.003-07:00

God has been blowing me away lately. He has definitely been releasing His Spirit in Gunnison in a totally new way. My church, Community Church of Gunnison, put on a Big Tent Revival event for 4 consecutive nights in September. It was fantastic to see how many people came out for dinner, fellowship, and raw worship. I loved how free I felt (and sensed the same for many others) to praise and worship the Lord in a setting different than our standard pews.

Since then, I've felt God's Spirit move drastically in my small group. I feel that we are all coming more alive in Him and are sensing His presence and what He desires for our time together. This is so exciting for me because last year, before YWAM, our group never felt "deep." I loved the girls in it, but it was always very surface level conversation about what we were reading, but we never deepened our times together to Experience God.

I am also super excited for wonderful reunions with Sisi and Corlize (both friends from Kona) in the next couple of months. While I was out in Kona debriefing in June, I really felt that God wanted me to invite Sisi to Colorado for Christmas. She was very excited by the idea, so we went forward with plans. Now, we have extended our plan to include a trip to Kansas City for the OneThing Conference (hosted by IHOP - International House of Prayer) at the end of December. Ericka Smiley (also from my DTS) is going to meet us there and we already feel that God is preparing a time for us to be His princesses :) God even had a wonderful "royalty" coat at the front of the rack at the thrift store when I went to look for something warm for Sisi to wear while she is here visiting. I love Him so much!

My reunion with Corlize will come in January. She's invited me to come visit her in South Africa when she goes back home for awhile. God has spoken to both of us that this will be a time of healing and redemption of Africa in my heart. I am so blessed to have her open her life back home to me in part of the healing process that God desires in my heart! God has told me that He wants me to travel again and even confirmed it by providing a wonderful (nearly new) rolling suitcase set at the thrift store for an incredible price. I feel so loved and provided for!

AND God has been speaking to me more about Portraits of Papa, the children's book that He put in my heart last October during my DTS. I was praying fervently a couple of weeks ago that He would break down the wall that went up preventing me from hearing his guidance as I move forward with this dream. He brought my attention to an incredible "story" of scripture that I found online weeks before titled "The Best Dad in the Universe." I read the whole thing out loud and then was flooded with ideas of how God wants me to word parts of Portraits of Papa. While I was in Kona in June I felt inspired to create a set of paintings called "because He love me." I never painted them, but I feel that God is incorporating that idea into Portraits of Papa.

As of now, each page is going to start with "My Papa loves me so much that..." and then I describe some wonderful, incredible, beautiful way that Papa shows his love to me through His creation. I am so excited about this! The very next day I was meeting with one of my clients for work, and we got talking about my plans when my job is done in a few weeks. I shared about my book and he said, "Sounds great. Write it, bring it to me, I edit it for you, and my publishing company will publish it." WOW - thanks GOD!

So that is a quick update of my life in the past few weeks. I am so glad that God called me back to Gunnison to be part of this monumental time for our city. His Spirit is alive and moving big time! I am here offering myself to be used for His Glory and bringing His Kingdom to the heart of all those in the Gunnison valley :)

Life Update - Sunny Gunny Summer

2010-08-21T17:36:00.009-06:00

I have been really bad about updating my blog. So, here is a quick overview of my life since I last wrote in June.

I found a really cute alley house to rent in Gunnison and moved in the beginning of July. I am living by myself and it has been great! I was hesitant at first because I had been so lonely in Rwanda, and I didn't want to isolate myself from people when I was back in Gunnison. Instead it has been a place of rest and relaxation. AND I have some amazing quiet times here worshiping, reading my Bible, praying, and just resting in God's arms.

Then in mid-July, I hit the road with my wonderful friend, Gabby Rose, for a road trip through Utah, Nevada, Oregon, California, and then back home. We had a incredible time checking out more of God's great creation on our 10 day, 3,0000 mile adventure! Here are a couple of pictures from that trip:

Crater Lake National Park, Southern Oregon The coast off Northern California

Ready for a night out in Las Vegas Hanging out with John, a friend from college

When I got back from my trip with Gabby, I started working again with the Go To Guide Telephone Directory. I do advertisement sales for them here in Gunnison and in Montrose. I really love all the people I work with. My job also gives me great opportunities to meet new people in the Gunnison valley. I continue to pray that God opens doors for me during my work day to share His love and hope and encouragement with the people He places in front of me.

So a couple of days after I started, a dear friend of mine and her husband were heading to Lake Powell. They had invited me three years in a row and I had never been able to make it. I had already declined again for this year, and at the last minute, I called Mariah up and asked if I the invitation was still open. I was making an uncharacteristic decision taking days off of work my first week back, but I just couldn't pass this one up.

God blessed our time in Lake Powell. I was able to get to know Mariah's new husband, Christian, and spend an incredible weekend in awe of God's creation of the red rocks of Lake Powell (and their beautiful reflections on the water). The stars at night were one of my highlights - especially the night I woke up at 4am and sat in worship as the stars from the sky were mirrored off the still waters of the lake. That was one of the most beautiful things God has ever shown me.

When I got back home, I was ready to make my house more beautiful. Jessi, my sister, came over last week to help with some landscaping. We laid down weed-block, moved rocks, planted some hearty perennials, and made a little oasis in my alley. Since last weekend I planted a few more plants, put down more rocks, and brought 2 bright blue chairs from my parents house to use at my "spool" table. It is so great to have a place to sit outside for meals or sipping wine with friends.

So, God continues to reveal to me the beauty of His creation. Last week when I drove to Montrose for ad sales, God gave me an incredible show in the sky. It had just rained really hard when a saw a double rainbow in the sky. Then, it looked as if the clouds were on fire. The sun was just setting and casting incredible colors on the clouds just above the road. I was in such awe! I blasted the song "Indescribable" by Chris Tomlin over and over as I watched God's hand at work in the sky. WOW! Thank you, Lord!
So, here I am starting my fourth week back at work and loving life. God is also preparing me for my next big challenge - writing, illustrating and publishing one (at least) children's book. More on that in future blogs.

Thanks for reading : )

Rested and Ready...

2010-06-25T21:00:00.002-06:00

I have been home in the States for 5 weeks now. Time has flown by. I've spent some quality time at my parent's house in Montrose, CO (just an hour west of Gunnison), time in Longmont with my grandma and friends there, a few days with some college friends and their adorable kids in Pagosa Springs, and of course time visiting friends in Gunnison. Oh yeah, I also made a week-long trip to Kona, Hawaii to debrief with my school leaders and process my time in Rwanda.

So, after all of that, I feel comfortable declaring my next step. I will be moving back to Gunnison and taking up my old position with the Go To Guide Telephone Directory as a Sales Rep. I am excited to get to know some more people in Gunnison and am praying for meaningful time with my clients. Last year before I left for Hawaii, I sold ads for the Go To Guide to our Montrose clients. I had incredible conversations with several of our clients about my missions adventure which led to deeper conversations and even sharing of testimonies. I am praying that God will arrange similar meetings with my clients this year. It makes such a difference in my day when I can relate and discuss with people on a deeper level beyond the business talk.

I will also be committing time to my artwork again. I haven't painted at all since last summer and only did a couple small pastels while I was in Hawaii. So, I am hoping and praying for a great place to rent in Gunnison that has room for a full fledged art studio! God has been giving me ideas about the next pieces to create, so I am ready to jump in!

That's it for now. I am going to Gunnison tomorrow to look at a couple of rentals, so please pray with me that one will work for me :) Hopefully my next post will be from my new home.

I don't have any pictures to post from the last 5 weeks because my camera was malfunctioning and spending some time getting some TLC from the manufacturer in Connecticut (thank goodness I decided to purchase insurance when I bought the camera last year).

Good-bye Rwanda - Hello Colorado

2010-05-29T19:05:00.008-06:00

I've been back home in Colorado for two weeks now. It has been so great to see my friends and family again. So far I haven't experienced very much reverse culture shock, but I just read it usually doesn't set in for a couple of weeks after returning home. I will keep you updated on how and when the reverse culture shock affects me.

My time in Rwanda was very challenging in many ways. After my team went home in March, I struggled with loneliness and homesickness. The ministry time was good, but going back home in the afternoons I was often lonely and I found myself longing for friends and a social life outside my housemates.

A few weeks before returning home, I met Ruthie and her husband, Craig, a wonderful couple from Canada. Ruthie and I had many great conversations and adventures in Kigali. Here is a pic of Ruthie, Immaculee (my housemate and friend) and I after we went for a little pampering of manicures and pedicures. :)

My sister came to visit my final week in Rwanda. She and I had a great time hanging out. I loved taking her around to see what my life had been for the previous 4 months. We stayed up late each night talking and catching up on the nearly 9 months since I had seen her.

Here are some pictures from the final week I was in Rwanda. My sister and I chipped in (with some support from Community Church of Gunnison) to take my photography students on a safari - quite possibly the only one they will every go on.

Here is our class on the safari and also at their graduation celebration at our house the week I went home. The pictures on the wall are the students' work (my sister brought over a printer and frames for the ministry so we could display our students' peices)

This is Emanwel from the Mango Tree Church in Kanombe.

A couple days before I left, my housemates, my sister and I took a huge load of clothes out to a church in a village just outside the city. The people we so blessed and excited to receive this gift of clothing (thanks DTS students for leaving things behind so we could pass them on to others in need and thanks to my sister to bringing donations from family and friends back at home)!

Getting ready to head back to the States

2010-04-29T09:15:00.003-06:00

I got my return tickets back to the states two days ago. I can’t believe I will be going home in two short weeks. I am very excited to see all my family and friends again. I’ve had several dreams recently about being back in CO, so it will be nice to be there in reality. I am realizing that I am going to miss Rwanda. For nearly a month after the team left in March, I really didn’t enjoy my time here. I was very homesick and lonely. I found things to busy myself with, but life just wasn’t fun.

God helped me through that time, and now the sun shines brighter. He has given me a new appreciation for Rwanda, the people here, and my everyday experiences. Just in the last two weeks, I have made two new friends – one from Canada and the other from Rwanda. I have had wonderful conversations with both of these new friends! It has been so nice to have people with whom I can openly communicate. :) Hanging out with them has also gotten me out of the house and into new places.

My relationships with the students in our photography classes are also growing. A couple of days ago we had such a wonderful time of laughter together! I taught them how to use the self-timer on their cameras, so we made a game out of it. Set the timer and everyone has to run across the room to sit on the couch before the picture is taken! I haven’t told them yet, but during the game, I had the video recording on my camera. :) It will be so fun to watch the video clip together and laugh all over again.

A few weeks ago I really struggled to think about what I would miss when I left Rwanda. But God has been working on my heart and I realize there are many things I will miss and many people too.

I will post a farewell Rwanda message in the next couple of weeks (complete with pics from my sister's visit).

Teaching Photography - Ministry

2010-04-09T04:09:00.006-06:00

Gabby and I started up our first arts ministry here in Rwanda a couple of weeks ago. We are teaching photography to 10 students (9 young adults ages 19 to 32 and one pastor who claimed his age to be "old").

We are having a great time together learning the basics of camera operation, how to hold a camera, different shooting modes, deleting pics, uploading pics to a computer, etc. Next week, I will teach the students some basics of photographic composition - this is where the real art comes in! I love teaching and seeing the excitement the students have for learning.

We meet every morning Monday through Friday from 8:30 to noon. Our classroom is the living room at a house that some young film makers use as their office/studio/home. Their business is called Almond Tree Films - you can check out their blog and see that our photography workshop is profiles on the main page!

Ok, back to talking about the photo classes. The first two days we each took a turn sharing about our life, family, and goals for the course. After getting to know each other a bit, we started teaching with the cameras. The first 30 -45 minutes are spent praying and discussing verses. Tuesday, we read Romans 12 which sparked a wonderful discussion about forgiveness. It was very fitting because Wednesday started the 100 days of remembrance of the genocide that took place in Rwanda 16 years ago.

We began watching a film documentary, Long Coat, directed by one of the men working with Almond Tree Films Rwanda. After watching the film, Eduarad (Edward) shared his testimony with us and how he lived through the genocide and later had to deal with the shame of being of the tribe who did the killing.

Here is an excerpt of the film that I found online:

Long Coat (dir. Edourad Bamporiki) is the tale of a genocide survivor and the son of a killer, and the problems and pressures they face in the attempt to put the past behind them. The narrative is simple, but cleverly constructed around an old coat and its mysterious, ominous presence.

We are taking a one week break from the classes, to observe the remembrance period (many people take the first week off of work to spend with family, attend memorial events, etc). On Wednesday there was an event in the main soccer stadium here in Kigali. I would estimate about 20,000 people showed up for the evening of remembering the lives of the people who lost their lives, listening to music with messages of God's hope through the death and despair.

The end of the evening we watched a film called "We are all Rwandans." Here is info from a blog dedicated to this short film based on a true story.

"In 1997, three years after the Rwandan genocide, a large refugee camp was disbanded over the border between Rwanda and Zaire (now the Congo), causing a mass repatriation of genocide refugees and rebels back into Rwanda.

A group of rebels bent on destabilizing the new government infiltrated the north, an area called Kibuye, and carried out massacres, mostly against Tutsis.

On the night of 18th March 1997 they raided Nyange Secondary school in the North West of the country. The rebels surrounded the school dining hall and classes when all students were doing their night studies. Students in class 6 were made to lie down and asked to separate themselves into two groups: Hutu and Tutsi.

They refused.

This is the story of those students - whose refusal to separate cost many of them their lives, and who have recently been honoured as national heroes ten years after their deaths."

Anyway, I recommend anyone to watch these films because I believe they truly represent the aftermath of the genocide 16 years ago. It looks like there are other films made which have similar story lines - As We Forgive is another documentary. It was meant to be shown on Wednesday, but technical difficulties prevented its showing.

The remembrance gathering on Wednesday was a somber event. So many people in attendance lived through the genocide and many witnessed their own family members brutal killings. Various sounds and images throughout the triggered serious trauma in several of the people in the stadium. This was expected and first aid teams were on site to care for the people reliving the past. Their screams brought tears to my eyes as I thought how much it still hurts God seeing his children in the agony of reliving the times during the genocide. I can't even fathom how many screams God listened to during the 100 days of killing. Thankfully, my mind is unable to comprehend such pain and grief. I praise God for that. And at the same time I have compassion for the people who lived through such an incredibly ugly time in Rwanda's history.

Well, that is it for now. I need to get home for lunch. Too much internet time makes my brain hurt :)

Thank you to everyone who is reading these blogs. I pray that my experiences teach you more of how you can trust God in a wonderful adventure in your own life.

Love you!

Official Graduation Video

2010-03-22T02:50:00.001-06:00

This is my official Graduation Video from Compassion DTS 2009 - 2010! With wonderful words of encouragement from some of my friends. :) Click on the link to check out the video posted on YouTube :)

DTS Graduate!

2010-03-19T07:27:00.002-06:00

Well, I have officially been done with my DTS for one week! The six month program was wonderful - I definitely had challenges along the way. The time here in Rwanda was especially difficult for me (I hadn't anticipated community living would be so hard), but I have learned tons and am grateful that God brought me through that season.

Since I stayed here in Rwanda, I wasn't present at the school graduation back in Kona yesterday. I missed seeing all the other students from my school, but have been looking through my pics from the lecture phase so I feel like I just saw them recently.

It has been nice to take some time to rest in the past week. I've been able to sleep in, spend some time sorting through tons of pictures on my computer, and best of all, read, read, read. The house is so much quieter now that there are only 5 of us instead of the previous 19. One of my housemates is a 2 1/2 year old, so I can't say that it is entirely full of peace and quiet. Hero, the little guy, is really cute though. He is at the stage where he wants everyone to see what he is doing. I love hearing, "Logan, look. Look, Logan." So cute!

The next 3 1/2 months for me are still somewhat unplanned. Gabby and I will be teaching art and photography so people without jobs and little hope can have a skill to help them earn money. We are still praying and looking for a location to hold the training sessions. Margret and Gabby have a long term goal of having a center with lots of buildings, gardens, prayer rooms, etc. The steps in the meantime will unfold in God's time.

We are also looking for funding for the Compassion Tranformation Center ministry. We have money to pay for rent for the house we will all be living in and will be responsible for paying for the rest of our own expenses. As far as ministry, we will be needing more money for supplies, and possibly renting a building to hold the training sessions. We also need money to help get a business started for the people once we train them so they can continue on.

The University of the Nations in Kona has set up a link for online donations. All donations are also tax deductible. Please consider helping out this ministry we will be starting to empower the people of Rwanda.
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=10564100

Next week, Gabby, Margret, Immaculee, Hero and I plan to head south for a few days to Burundi (the neighboring country). We all want a little vacation and can combine it with a wonderful ministry opportunity. There is a hospital prison there that Gabby and the DTS team last year visited. Apparently, it is a hospital that keeps its patients as "prisoners" if they can't pay their bill. We would like to visit them, praying for them, teaching them to paint, and taking their pictures. Right now I am brainstorming ways to sell the art they create to raise the money needed to get out of the hospital. I am sure there will be more about this in the future.

Here is a blurb from the team who visited last year:

We went to a hospital and were informed once we got there that the hospital is more of a prison for a lot of the people in there. In Burundi if you can’t afford to pay your hospital fees, you are not allowed to leave until you are able to pay or someone else pays for you. A lot of the people who are in that situation are kids who have no chance of raising that kind of money (many owe debts of over $200 US), so the situation is incredibly heavy and many of them are living without hope. We got to play and pray with some of those kids and our hearts were broken for them.

Well, I think that is all I have to update for now. Prayer requests: financial provision for the rest of the people I will be working with. God blessed me with a tax refund this year, so my needs for the next couple of months are met. Please pray for a facility that we can use to set up our ministry. On a more personal note, please pray for my parents back home in Colorado - their need is also a financial one.

Thank you for your support and prayers. God bless! Imana ibahe umugisha

Fun days in Rwanda! PREACHING and SAFARI

2010-03-01T08:06:00.003-07:00

Last week was great! We all packed overnight bags and headed Up Country to do ministry in a town a few hours north of Kigali. When we got to Nyagatare we found out that we were leading an all-day conference for a group of pastors and young people from the area. I had been preparing a sermon on how big God is, so I was asked to speak for the first 2 hours of the conference. It was great! Due to scheduling, it turned out that I only spoke for one hour, but I believe that even through the huge numbers and braining numbing information I shared, God was working in people's hearts. AND I had the best day of outreach so far. It was really wonderful teaching people about God in a way that I understand (mathematically). :)

Then, the next day, we all woke up early for a wonderful surprise! The taxi (18 passenger van) was taking our team on a safari! Wooohooo! Here are some of the pictures I took on the voyage. We saw such incredible creations, and I was continually in awe of how creative God was when we created all the animals of the earth. There were lots of zebras, hippos, giraffes, impala, gazelle, baboon, water buffalo, willdabeast, beautiful butterflies, and wart hogs. It was so incredible!

RWANDA! With Pics :)

2010-02-15T05:20:00.002-07:00

Hello my wonderful friends and family. I thank you for checking my blog on occasion to be involved with the wonderful adventure God has called me to. Here are some pictures from the last 7 weeks here in Rwanda. I have some videos that I will try to add to the blog another time - I just realized my uploading of videos has caused the internet connection at the whole internet cafe run really slow for the last 30 minutes. Ooops :)

OK, so here is a very fun story from last week :)

The team woke up early to leave the house at 6:30 ready for an adventure. We all walked up the hill to catch a taxi - God was watching over us. A few people even climbed out of the taxi to make room for our whole group to travel in the same one (side note - the taxis here are vans with seats for 18 people plus the driver). We rode in the taxi for about 40 minutes out into the country side. It was so beautiful to see all of the hills outside of the city.

So when we got out of the taxi, we each hopped on to the back of a bicycle and went for a ride - well, they were actually taxis. Talk about a rough job - I can't imagine riding a bike with a person on the back of it. It was really fun for me as I didn't have to do any work pedaling the bike - so I just laughed the whole time :)

After the bike ride, we started walking to the church. We were told it was a bit of a hike. When I was totally sweaty and getting tired (about 30 minutes in) I found out the church was still a ways away. It took us an hour and a half to walk (up a mountain) to the church. So, more laughter as we drenched all of our Sunday church clothes during the hike.

The service was more laughter as we danced and worshiped God with some new found friends in a village church on the top of a mountain. After service the pastor invited our team to his house for a wonderful lunch. He fed us sooooo well because he knew how much energy it takes to walk up and down the mountain. I think my plate was 5 whole potatoes, 3 cups of beans and 3 cups of rice with 2 pieces of meat (maybe goat). I did my best but left 3 uneaten potatoes on my plate. The pastor is also a farmer, so the beans and potatoes he served us were from his own garden. Delicious :)

After church our team leader decided to have some fun with us. He picked leaves off a plant that we were walking by and told us each to eat a piece of it. I was one of the first and must have had a funny look on my face because some of the other students didn't even want to try it. I tried to tell them that it just tasted minty, but it really wasn't very good. The joke came a few seconds later with the super spicy aftertaste. A few of the students ran for water jugs and spit the remainder of the leaf on the ground attempting to save themselves from the fiery flavor. The locals on the side of the road just laughed at the muzungu (white people) eating the spicy leaves. Ahh, nothing like laughter to bring people together.

So, we continued walking. It was much quicker down the mountain that on our trip up. Unfortunately, it wasn't quick enough. The clouds opened and poured rain on our heads. Lots of rain plus dirt trails equal, yep, you guessed it, MUD. hahaha. So, more laughter as I watched my teammates slip and slide down the mountain with a few of them ending up on the butts. :)

Oh, what a wonderful day of joy and laughter!

Half Way Point in DTS Outreach

2010-01-25T08:57:00.002-07:00

It has been 6 weeks since my team stepped foot on foreign soil. It is hard for me to believe so much time has gone by.

We have been living in Rwanda for 4 weeks already and it is beginning to feel more like home. We have a local shop where we buy our milk, eggs, and bread each day. We also have an internet cafe that we use every Monday on our day off. We are learning which taxis (buses) take us to ministry, certain restaurants and into the downtown area. I have also learned how to count to 10 in kinyarwanda and I have learned a few other words that are helpful in everyday conversations with people we meet along the way. I am very excited to continue learning and picking up more of the language.

As far as the ministries we've been doing here, things are going well. Our team of 15 people is divided into three teams of 5. Each team goes to one ministry for three days each week and then we rotate the ministry locations the next week. The two ministies we've been working with so far is a group of street kids in the downtown area. They go to an organization run by the Catholic church during the day and we go teach them English and do a Bible study time with them. They love when we come! They start up school next week, so this will be our last week working with them. It has been such a joy. :) The other group we work with is a church on the outskirts of Kigali. We are helping them build a new church - so we carry amatafari (bricks) and cement (cement). I have even learned how to carry containers of wet cement on my head. I still have to balance it with one hand, but I am hoping to gain better balance and be handsfree soon:)

Living in one house with 19 people has been wonderful and challenging at the same time. It is never boring to be home, but it is rarely quiet either. It reminds me of when I would have dinner parties at my house back in Gunnison. The difference is that the "guests" never go home.

I will write more another week. It is time to head out to dinner. We are going back to the authentic Italian restaurant for more delicious pizza. It's our day off and so we are going to live it up.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support. :)

Outreach Overview Update - First three weeks

2010-01-11T03:11:00.001-07:00

Update written Jan 4, 2010

Wow, it has been a whirlwind of three weeks since I left Kona, Hawaii. My team and I have experienced several trials already and are becoming much stronger through it. We hold on to the belief that God has everything in control even if we can’t or don’t recognize it at times. We have also shared incredible times of closeness with the Lord through prayer, worship, and experiencing more of the world that He created.

To start, our leaders, a married couple from Rwanda, did not receive their visas to go to Belgium and France. Two other students, one from Russia and the other from the Marshall Islands, also didn’t receive their visas and would follow us to Europe two days later.

So, with news for our leaders unable to enter Europe meant the day before our team left Wes, the other student leader, and myself, were told that we were going to be leading the team until our “real” leaders could meet us. At that point they really thought they would only be one week behind us and would meet us in France. The short notice was very difficult for me, because as you may know, I definitely am a girl with a plan. So, now to be responsible for 13 other students was very nerve-wracking for me. I spent the entire last day in Hawaii preparing as best as I could, though I couldn’t foresee the challenges ahead.

After a bit of a mix-up of flights, the initial team made it safely to Belgium and was greeted at the airport by two of the wonderful staff from the YWAM Brussels base. Frankwin and Richt were very patient with us as we stumbled through buses and metros jet-lagged and carrying 2 big checked bags each plus all of our pillows carry-on bags and even a few blankets. We were quite a site, I am sure :)

We settled into our apartment (3 bedrooms) and 1 bathroom on the 4th floor of the YWAM building. Mikaela, one of the other students, and I actually stayed at a family’s home about 15 minutes walk away. We were saving the third bedroom in the apartment for Gabby and Margret assuming they would get their visas soon and come meet us.

I enjoyed staying separate from the team because it gave me a chance to rest and have more quiet time. The down side is that I really didn’t feel like I was connecting with the team on a personal level. Much of their hanging out and getting to know each other took place after Mikaela and I left to go to bed at night.

The first night in Brussels we had the opportunity to go to an English speaking church’s fundraiser dinner just down the street. So the team decided to push our jet-lag aside (11hour difference) and head out for an evening of new experiences. This was the beginning of outreach! We had a great time though we all left before it was over – some of us were literally about to fall asleep on the tables.

The first week in Belgium consisted of times of open worship – singing, dancing, painting – in public plazas and in the metro station. We also attended a few church services where we did our skits (very rough as we hadn’t practiced them much yet) and a few of the team members shared their testimonies. We experienced an African church, Pilipino church, and a Brazilian church all in one day. It was such a fun, multi-cultural experience that I hadn’t even anticipated.

The second week we had planned to go to the south of France and join a different YWAM base and do outreach for the poor people in the area. Unfortunately, when we went to buy train tickets, they were twice as much as we had planned for ($450 per person). So, we went to God in prayer to find out what He wanted us to do.

We all felt that He was asking us to stay in Brussels and use the café area on the first floor of the building as a 24-hour prayer and worship room. I felt that God was asking the team to pray and worship all through Christmas day, so it was decided that we would start at midnight on Christmas Eve and continue until 8am the following Monday. We had big plans - eighty straight hours of prayer for Belgium and worship to the God. We signed up for 2-hour shift to lead the intercession and worship times, and each person committed to be in the room at least 10 hours for each 24-hour period. It was incredible to feel the presence of God so heavy on our souls!

We finished out the time with lots of sniffles and hoarse voices. I guess the cold weather took its toll on our bodies that had grown so used to the warm weather of Hawaii. Overall, we were so rewarded for listening to the voice of God and staying in Belgium for a time of intense prayer and worship. In our discussion after the final hour, the majority of the team voiced how much more faith they have in prayer after such a wonderful time. I had experienced God in a very intimate way and enjoyed a wonderful time of resting in His presence.

My time in Belgium was like a crazy rollercoaster ride. I was on a high one minute praising God and plummeting out of control the next – unable to bear making one more decision for the team. I realize that I haven been operating on my own strength. I really don’t think I know, what it means to have God carry me, or my burdens. Maybe I’ve been there in the past, but right now I can’t remember how to do it.

So, one prayer request would be that I would learn to operate in God’s strength and not out of my own. I was crumbling under the stress of being the leader of the group and having all of the students come to me for answers to questions that I didn’t know. I don’t even feel like a student most of the time because I am always worrying about something or taking care of details that the rest of the team is totally unaware of. Things are getting better now because of a Word our leaders back in Hawaii received from God.

Right before we left Belgium, our school leaders and team leaders decided it would be wise to have one more student step up as a leader until our leaders can meet us. This transition has helped me a lot in my stress levels. I still have a lot to learn in how to operate as a team of leaders.

Unfortunately in this role of leader, I have become aware of my control-freak-ness. Yuck! I want people to do things my way and am not as open to other people’s thoughts and ideas as I thought I would be. Well, I guess that is another prayer request - no more control-freak-ness. :)

So, I guess that brings me to Rwanda! This is really where our hearts have longed to be the whole time. When we stepped off the plane and were greeted with smiling faces we were so relieved and felt at home. One of Margret’s best friends, Immaculee, is staying with us here in Rwanda in a 5-bedroom house that we are renting. It is a great house and very homey! We are all learning how to adjust to the high water pressure, which causes leaky faucets and toilets if we aren’t careful. Sleeping on thin mattresses on the floor just a few inches from the next person is also a bit of an adjustment from my huge bedroom back in Gunnison.

Kigali, the capital city is absolutely beautiful. After visiting Sierra Leone a year and a half ago, I anticipated Rwanda to look much the same – trash everywhere, very run down, and overtaken by poverty. Kigali, is anything but that. The city is well manicured with trees and plants along the side of the road, there are sidewalks along the main roads (which are paved), there are signs on the side of the road for taxi stops, and there are even metal trash cans permanently placed along the sidewalks and streets. Needless to say, the Rwandans know how to make their city beautiful. Now, there are still areas of poverty where the children are wearing filthy clothing and look as though they haven’t bathed in a week. Overall, though, the people of Kigali, take pride in making their city safe and beautiful.

On the down side of things, nearly the whole team came down with a stomach flu – one girl got it in Belgium before we left and so we think it was passed to the rest of the team. It may have also been increased by the change of water and food here. Though we are taking precautions to boil the water we drink and wash dishes with, Immaculee said that most people still get sick when they come. I was struck down on Friday afternoon and spent some time in the bathroom that evening. Not much fun. But now we are all healthy and well.

Yesterday all of the team was feeling better and made it to church at the Zion Temple. It was great to get out and enjoy our first African church service! The mayor of Kigali and one of the ladies on the parliament were at the service and spoke a bit about the politics of Kigali and Rwanda. It was so amazing to hear them praying that all they want is for God to have his will within the governmental sector. We also found out that this is an election year, so we will spend some more time praying for the next set of people to step into the political seats here.

This afternoon we are all heading to the Memorial for the Genocide. I am sure it will be a very emotional time the rest of the team and me. Immaculee will also be going with us, and though she is Rwandan, she has never been to the memorial. I suppose when you live through something so tragic, you don’t want to relive it all at a memorial. We will all be praying for her through such a difficult time.

This week we will jump into some ministry time. I don’t know exactly what we will be doing, but I do think that a visit to an orphanage is planned for sometime this week. I am very anxious to get the ministry started that I emailed about in the last letter, the Compassion Transformation Center. We are praying that our leaders will be able to join us soon. This CTC is really their dream received from God, so we will follow God’s guidance for other ministry opportunities until they can join us.

I do have one more thing to tell you all about. As I mentioned in an earlier update, I have accepted the opportunity to stay here in Rwanda with our leaders until July working to further establish the CTC ministry. I am very excited about this and really feel that this is where God is calling me.

When July rolls around and I head back to the States, I plan make Hawaii my home for a more permanent time. I am going to be making a two-year commitment to the campus in Kona. The leaders of my school, Dawn and Pieter Heres, have asked me to come and be a staff member with them. This opportunity is what I have been dreaming of since last April. Even before I knew where I was going to do my DTS, I knew that I wanted to be in Hawaii staffing after my DTS finished.

As a staff member, I will work with the DTS schools for 3 months in Kona, then lead a team somewhere in the world for three months. The other 6 months of the year, I will be staffing on the Kona, Hawaii base in some other aspect. I have been asked by the couple who oversees the Mission Builders Program (the volunteer program I worked with last March) to staff with her. In addition to staffing, I would also be receiving continued discipleship training through bible studies, small groups, etc. So, I will be serving and learning at the same time – two of my favorite things!

One of the amazing aspects of Youth with a Mission is that no one within the organization receives salary. This keeps the fees down for the students who come in for training and keeps more money going out into the mission field. In addition, financial support is a great way for other people to get involved in the mission field even if they do not feel that is their direct calling.

As I mentioned in a previous email, I am looking for a support team to make all of this possible for me. I have figured my monthly expenses starting in March to be $900. Those expenses include everything: lodging, food, personal expenses, health insurance, cell phone bill, and student loan repayment. I don’t have any specific number of supporters I need, but let’s say people felt called to give $75. That would mean 12 wonderful people could join this experience with me.

I envision my supporters as the group of people who get to share in the victories and cry with me during the hard times. Equally, I want to share in the victories of my supporters lives and cry with them. I will personally communicate with my supporters at least one time per month catching up on their life and filling them in on events in my life. I truly envision the relationship as a team effort – and I just happened to be the hand out doing God’s work during this time.

So, now I request that you take this idea to God and ask if He wants you to join my support team and if so how much He wants you to give each month. I am looking to build relationships with my supporters so a commitment of at least one year would be great! If you receive a “thumbs up” from God, please email me back so I can share more about the support team and you can share how I can support you.

It is such a joy to include you all in this journey that God has called me to! I can’t wait to tell you about all the adventures of the next few weeks. Stay tuned to the long email novels from Logan. More are surely to come :)

Thank you for your prayers and support!

Christmas in Belgium

2009-12-25T08:51:00.004-07:00

Our team had a great Christmas Eve Celebration last night! We had a wonderful dinner of pineapple baked ham, mashed potatoes, Russian casserole, rolls and lots of delicious deserts. We even had a homemade birthday cake for Jesus!

At midnight we started our newest outreach activity - a team prayed and prepared event of 80 hours of worship and intercession. We are using the cafe space on the floor level of the base here for ongoing worship and prayer. Each person on the team has committed to spend at least 10 hours of every 24 hour period in the room loving on the Lord and praying for the people of Belgium. I stayed last night for the first four hours - it was amazing. When I went to bed my voice was going hoarse from so much singing and praying! And that was just the beginning!!!

Here is one more pic from our time here in Brussels:
yummmmmy... I finally had a real Belgian Waffles. The problem (or maybe it wasn't) was that once I had one, I couldn't stop. So, I remembered that my dad asked me to eat one for him... and I did. Two delicious sugary warm Belgian waffles sitting in a metro station with a couple of friends. What more could I ask for on a day off?

Snuggling in Cold Brussels, Belgium

2009-12-18T06:28:00.002-07:00

My team made it safely here on Monday and we are enjoying a day of rest from our busy schedule. We have done creative worship (painting, singing, dancing) on the streets, in the metro, and in the train station. It has been very fun and rewarding.

There were some technical difficulties with the visas for our leaders, Margret and Gabby, so the 15 of us students went on ahead without them.We are having a great time here serving the people and worshiping on the streets.

I gotta run to do some laundry now and enjoy a cup of tea with the woman hosting a couple of us in her home from the team.

I will post more stories and pictures another time.

Take care!

Departure Day! Belgium, France and Rwanda... Here I Come

2009-12-12T18:17:00.003-07:00

Hi everyone!

It is departure day! My bags are packed, my room check is completed and I am finishing the last few details before my team leaves the island of Hawaii tonight.

A few technical difficulties with passports and visa have caused the team to not be able to travel all together today. The first group of us - me and 12 other students will go today. Two other students will follow on Monday. And our team leaders will hopefully be set to go in a week.

So, with that said, Wes and I, the two student-leaders for the team, will be leading our team to Belgium for a week, then to the south of France, and finally to Rwanda. Hopefully Gabby, Margret and Hero will be approved to come to Europe to meet us for some of our time there and then the flight down to Rwanda. As student leaders, there are a lot of things that we will be learning and praying about as we go. Your prayers for widsom, confidence in Christ, and unity for the team are greatly appreciated.

I hope to be able to post something on the blog every couple of weeks while I am out of the country for the next seven months.

Here is a little taste of what the language sounds like. The Rwandans speak kinyarwanda (or sometimes called Rwandan). I would love to learn this song as a team to sing while we are there. We have another song that Margret taught us also. The team also learned some dance moves to

http://blog.speakrwanda.com/category/music/

Thanks! I love you all!

Less than a Week...

2009-12-06T10:41:00.003-07:00

Time flies by! I have been in Hawaii for 11 weeks already and will only be in this paradise for 5 more day. I already started packing for my 7 month journey that will take me to Belgium, France and then Rwanda.

Our team is doing a lot of preparations right now. Yesterday we started to learn the dance moves to a worship song called "Above All" by Michael W. Smith. We are also learning the lyrics to a Rwandan song. Tomorrow we are going to practice 3 skits that we can perform for people we meet along the way.

Here is a bit about a wonderful day about 3 weeks ago. Sorry I am so slow to post about it :(

A couple of weeks ago, three of my roommates and I borrowed a car and drove to a couple places around the island. My favorite part was at the end of the day. We drove to Mauna Kea which is a 13,000 ft inactive volcano with an incredible star observatory near the top. As we set out, God blessed us over and over again with beautiful sights:

an incredible sunset,

a rainbow so close we could almost touch it,

and then a night sky without a cloud in sight. They had telescopes set up for the visitors to check out the best star gazing on earth. I took this picture through one of the telescopes with my own camera. WOW God is amazing.

So, the part I didn't share yet, was a little blip in our plan. Exactly as we reached the driveway of the visitor center at 9,200 feet on Mauna Kea, steam/smoke started coming from the hood of our borrowed car. Ericka pulled over and a couple men from the visitor center came over to check things out. Turned out we had totally blew the radiator - cracked right up the side. Well, with a van that couldn't be driven we had to trust God for a different way to get back to campus - a 2 hour drive away. One of the men looking at the car offered to take us back to town. He didn't have any room inside his car, but there was space for the 4 of us in the back of his pickup truck. We were in the mood for adventure and had brought lots of warm clothes and blankets with us for the trip, so we gladly accepted. God gave us 2 more hours to enjoy his beautiful stars singing praises to him from the back of the truck. WOW!

DTS Update - 7 weeks in

2009-11-12T00:34:00.010-07:00

Aloha! I want to start this update by thanking the Lord. He is gently revealins so many new things to me personally and through our speakers. I am slowly beginning to learn who He is. Tankey Papa God.

Now I turn my gratitude to all of you – my family, friends, church family, former employers, teachers, professors, and more. Thank you for your prayers, your encouraging words and for financially making it possible for me to come to Hawaii for this incredible time of learning, devotion, and intimacy with God. These past six weeks I have been soaking in every bit of wisdom and revelation from our speakers. I know it will absolutely change the way I walk with Christ for the rest of my life.

Our lecture phase here in Kona is more than halfway over. We leave for outreach in 4 weeks and 3 days. I am so excited!!!!! I can’t believe how quickly this time has flown by. Though I am leaps and bounds further than where I was two months ago, I can see more of what I need to know that I don’t know yet. I guess that is the continual excitement of learning. The more I know and experience, the more I realize I don’t know yet and haven’t yet experienced. There is still so much more that I don’t even know that I don’t know. Think your way through that one. :)

Here is a little promotional video we made last week. Each student on campus starred in his or her own video and I was selected to do the voice over for the whole thing – for all the videos. It is only 2 minutes long and shows the campus here in Kona, Hawaii. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxZiO9k_1xk

God is becoming so much more real to me each day. I am much more aware of his presence – often I will feel a warm sensation in my stomach and though I originally thought it was just too much delicious food I have since recognized it as the presence of the Lord. I am stepping out in prayer and have been baptized by water and in the Holy Spirit. My first experience with filled with the Holy Spirit revealed to me that He is fun! I was literally on the floor laughing for at least an hour. This stuff is real! AND God can have a good time!

I am recognizing that God speaks to me in the languages I understand – pictures and mathematical equations. How cool is that! Just this weekend God showed me that His love for me is eternal. Therefore the domain of God’s love for me is (-∞,∞). That means God has loved me forever in the past, totally loves me now, and He will love me forever into the future. Forever is a long time, so God must have a lot of Love! An infinite capacity to love! WOW! I can’t even wrap my mind around that one.

I am also seeing that God is calling me for more than just this 6-month honeymoon. The 15 students in my outreach team were presented with an opportunity to stay in Rwanda for 4 extra months. Myself and four other students have committed to stay in Kigali, Rwanda with our two leaders and their 2-year old son, Hero. We will rent a house until July 7^th and continue with the ministries that we start in December. AMAZING! I knew that I wasn’t going back to Colorado when my school was done, but I had no idea that God would keep me in Rwanda sharing his love with a war torn nation for 4 extra months. This is so much better and more exciting than what I could have ever dreamed myself!

Just today, our leaders shared with our team and incredible opportunity that has come up. They feel God is calling our team to a special role of praying and intercession within two countries that have had a negative influence on Rwanda in the past. Belgium reigned over Rwanda from 1918 to 1962 and caused the previously united people groups to turn against each other. To learn more about the skew of ethnic relations during that time, please see http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/articles/pages/5918/Africa-Belgian-Colonies.html#ixzz0Wce96MTD

France has also been involved in Rwanda’s history. There is speculation and belief among many Rwandans and others worldwide that the French were involved and possibly financed the genocide that took place in 1994. Check out this article written 4 years ago for more details.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article782536.ece

So the surprise that our leaders finally shared with us today, is that our team will be spending a week in each France and Belgium prior to landing in Rwanda around the 29^th of December. I don’t know details of what our time in Europe will look like, but I know we will definitely be praying for the healing of the relationships between the nations of Rwanda and Belgium and that between France and Rwanda.

We are not entirely sure what we will be doing while we are in Rwanda either. Our team is praying about different skills or trades that we can teach to the people to help them start their own businesses in some way. God is reminding me continually of the African inspired paintings that I did last year and how they touched so many people’s lives. So, though I am not certain, I may be teaching the local Rwandans to make greeting cards with a similar look to my painting series and then selling the cards back in The States. Also, African patterns are very beautiful (and mathematical) so there may be some cards or paintings coming out of Rwanda too! God is that Good!

As I am writing this and recognizing how much God is speaking to me mathematically lately, I wonder if God will present an opportunity for me to tutor others in math. I am in awe of how God wants to use each of the gifts he has given me. God made me just the way he wanted. That is incredible. It is even more incredible when I think about how hugely enourmous the universe is and how he is even bigger than that. I am just a speck on a speck on a speck, and yet God chose to create me and continually chooses to love me. Check out my blog today for a reminder of how HUGELY ENOURMOUS God made the Universe - it is the posting previous to this one.

So, as I look forward to these wonderful plans God is revealing, I am recognizing my need and desire to have a team backing me. My immediate need is for financial support. I am about $1,800 shy for the final payment of my outreach fees (due next Friday the 20^th. I know God is good and he is BIG, so this is not a problem for him. I request that you ask God if He wants you to help in this manner. Because of the short timeline, I don’t think mailing a check is the best option. I have set up a PayPal account for my supporters to use conveniently online. I think you have to create an account, but it only takes a couple of minutes. If you would rather give a different way, please email me and I can explain other options. The Donate button is on the right side of this blog.

Another need I have is for art supplies. I would love to bring some supplies with me to Rwanda so I can jump right in with the artistic activities and lessons. If you have paints, brushes, art paper, etc, please email me so we can discuss details and how you can send them to me here in Hawaii before I leave.

Of course my greatest need and desire is to have a support team backing my venture. Just like any other adventure I have taken through the world, it is so much more exciting when I am able to share it with others. My support team would be the group with whom I have a continual relationship, sharing stories, struggles, prayer requests and praises. I am still praying about what this God desires for this group. I would like you to pray about how God may want you involved. Look for details about the future support team in another email.

This update shows just a glimpse of how God has been working in my life. As you can see I have a lot of exciting stories and new revelations to share. I will cut myself off here as it is already the longest email I have ever written. If you have any questions, comments, encouraging words, or prayers for me, please send ‘em my way. I miss all of you and am greatly looking forward to adventures God has in store. I am still in awe that He has called me to live such an exciting, outside-the-box life!

Thank you God! Thank you friends and family!

Much love, Logan

God is BIG!

2009-11-11T23:37:00.004-07:00

Today we dove into the difference between the nature and character of God. In order to understand the character of God (Intimacy with God) we need to get a grasp on the Nature of God (Reverence). Why are we to bow down to God, trust God, respect Him fully, etc? What makes him deserving? So, to start, we looked at how BIG God is.

Here is an article I found online that gives a great summary of what I learned in class today. WOW! At the end of my "tour" of the universe I felt very small and insignificant in the grand scheme of the universe. And yet, God still created me and knows the number of hairs on my head (Matthew 10:29-31). He chose me when He planned creation (Ephesians 1:11-12). He created each of us with specific plans, hopes, and dreams. God must be VERY BIG!

How Big Is God? by David F. Coppedge

http://www.icr.org/article/2821/

Most people know the universe is "vast," but until we visualize it, we shortchange ourselves of some healthy awe. The heavens glorify God, but should also humble us—as should become apparent in the following mental journey.

Recently, the New Horizons spacecraft blasted off on a ten-year express flight to Pluto. (A manned flight to Pluto, at the maximum speed of the Apollo astronauts, would take about 17 years.) Since Mars (1/26 the distance to Pluto) seems at the limit of our reach, human travel to the stars beyond must remain a dream for now. But Pluto is very near compared to the stars; if the Sun-Pluto distance were represented by a one-foot ruler, the nearest star would be over a mile away.

Movies mislead us with their talk of warp speeds; real interstellar travel is limited by the speed of light—186,282 miles per second. In our imagination (and ignoring relativistic effects) let's aim for the nearest star at light speed. First, we would be disappointed at how slowly the scenery changes. Only after 4.3 years would Alpha Centauri appear larger than a pinpoint of light. Star-hopping within our galaxy, we would be amazed at how much is empty space.

Turning up out of the plane of the Milky Way, it would take 100,000 years for the full spiral of our galaxy to become visible. Though stars at our sun's radius orbit the center at nearly 500,000 mph, the galaxy would appear motionless. A whole human lifetime would pass with no apparent change except for the rare supernova. As for the earth—if the galaxy were represented as the size of North America, our entire solar system would fit in a coffee cup somewhere in Idaho.

Astronomers estimate that there are as many galaxies outside the Milky Way as there are stars in it. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field, taken in 2004, imaged 10,000 galaxies in a cone of space so slim you could cover it with a grain of sand held at arm's length. Integrated over the entire sky, that would mean there are more than 100 billion galaxies in the visible universe, many with more than 100 billion stars each. According to Psalm 147:4, God calls them all by name.

Contemplating such things is humbling, but also raises questions. Can a God of such a vast domain really care about us? It's important to understand the Biblical doctrine of omnipresence in answering this question. Learning that God is everywhere does not mean that part of Him is here, part there, and part in a distant galaxy, as if His love were spread thinly across all of space. No; omnipresence means that all of God is present at every place, at the same time.

This means that no matter how large the universe, and how many beings reside within His kingdom, each of us can have His full and undivided attention in our own hearts. Let us pray with the spirit and with the understanding also (I Corinthians 14:15). As the country song insightfully claims, "How big is God? He's big enough to rule His mighty universe, yet small enough to live within my heart."

* David F. Coppedge works in the Cassini program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

2009-11-09T10:40:00.001-07:00

I am experiencing more of how real God is. I hope to have time on tuesday to catch up on blogging. Thank you for your continued support and prayers

Week 4: Glory, Worldview, and the Kingdom of God

2009-10-24T20:14:00.012-06:00

Last week was another exciting week with lots of new information and revelations. So, be warned, this blog is longer than my previous weeks. I truly believe the information I learned last week is vital to living as a follower of Christ. I pray that you take the time to read over some of my notes and if you have questions, I am happy to attempt to expand on my understanding or I can put you in touch with the speaker.

Last week our speaker was Don Stephens (the Kingdom Don, not the Mercy Ships Don for all you YWAMers). He shared incredible insight on God's Glory, worldviews as well as the Kingdom. I am going to focus most of my blog this week on the Kingdom, because it is a totally new concept to me.

I will start with the Glory of God. This is a Christian phrase that is used constantly in conversation, prayers, songs, etc, but I have never really understood what the Glory of God is. My NIV concordance defines glory as: the grandeur and majesty of God. That definition feels like more arm waving and not a whole lot of substance.

Don summed it up as "God's glory is His invisible character made visible." citing Romans 1:20

Everything is about God's Glory! Don explained a Circle of Glory.

God creates man for his glory. "... those whom I have created for my glory." Isaiah 43.7
Man discovers God's creation to the glory of God. "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; but the glory of kings to search it out." Proverbs 25.2
Man imitates God through creative activity (for the glory of God.) "Make tunics, sashes, and hats for Aaron's sons to express glory and beauty." Exodus 28.40
Man's creative activity fills the earth with more of God's glory. "Whether you ear, or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." I Corinthians 10:31

As a visual person, the diagram helped me to understand it better.

The Glory of God is written on our hearts. That is why we enjoy the things we do: children playing, fairy tale endings, beautiful sunsets, loving relationships, etc. They all reflect the Glory of God.

Suddenly it everything matters. When I make my bed in the morning, it's aesthetic nature will reflects the Glory of God's beauty. When I help the elderly woman over the rocks into the ocean, that loving interaction of community reflects the Glory of God's relationships. WOW! Our role is to restore and reflect the Glory of God.

Now, I understand also, why I cry during the love scene in a movie, or at a beautiful orchestra concert, or am stopped in my tracks at the sight of the sun setting over the ocean. All of these things reflect God's Glory. And the most fantastic part is that when we recognize and respond to beauty, then we see more beauty. And seeing more beauty is recognizing more of God's Glory all around us! INCREDIBLE!

Here is an example of a loving relationship that entirely reflects Jesus' love for us and his constant desire to bring us back to his loving arms and relationship. This clip is taken from the movie Blood Diamond with Leonardo DiCaprio. Warning: you may need a Kleenex for the next two minutes; I definitely did.

OK - I could go on for pages more, but I want to get to the other gems from the week:

WORLDVIEWS: Why are worldviews important? Because ideas have consequences. Worldviews are formed without us even knowing it, so we are often unaware of the ideas we believe and therefore also unaware of the consequences we are heading toward.

Jesus wants us to see the world as it truly is. Don used a great visual to help us understand. As a person who grew up attending Buddhist Meditations, I received a tint of New Age Worldview to my glasses. I also am part of the Post-Modern Generation, so I have an additional tint to my glasses. All of the media, books, newspapers, church, school, family and friends that I am exposed to through my life tint my glasses too. So, what I am left with is a skewed vision of the world. Jesus want me to remove my glasses and when I refocus my eyes, I will see the world as he desires: the Kingdom worldview.

Don was great with sharing video clips to demonstrate the points we was making. They impacted me so strongly, I wanted to tell you about them too. I couldn't find this exact clip on youtube but maybe you will have better luck. Check out the scene in The Truman Show when Jim Carrey's character is on the boat and comes to the edge of his world. There is such a strong statement about our "reality" which can be said as the tinting on the glasses that we see the world through.

THE KINGDOM: During class one day, Don asked us what we believed was Jesus' main message was while He was on earth. What is the central theme to the four Gospel books in the Bible? My response - LOVE. Other responses varied from forgiveness to truth to repentance.

Then Don got out his stats and blew us all away.

These are some of the the typical responses Don hears from people when he asks them the same question. Each word is followed by the actual number of times Jesus used the word in the New American Standard version of the four Gospels.

• Born again: 2 times
• Salvation: 8 times
• Sin: 17 times
• Forgiveness: 24 times
• Truth: 28 times
• Satan/the Devil: 28 times
• Money: 29 times
• Love: 43 times
• Heaven: 71 times
• The Kingdom: 117 times - (The Father: 226 times!)

Jesus' first message preached is recorded in Matthew 4:17.

"From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."

Jesus is telling us to take off our "glasses" and smash them. Everything is changed (Jesus dying for our sins) - come see the world the way I see it!

The notes in my NIV study bible describe the Kingdom of Heaven = Kingdom of God as:

"the establishment of God's rule in the hearts and lives of his people, the overcoming of all the forces or evil, the removal from the world of all the consequences of sin - including death and all that diminished life - and the creation of a new order of righteousness and peace. The idea of God's Kingdom is central to Jesus' teaching and is mentioned 50 times in Matthew alone."

That description is still very abstract to me. Our speaker put it into words that my mind can grasp.

What is the Kingdom of God? “May thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.”

• It is every place where God’s will is being done.
• It is everything gone wrong in the fall being made right again in Christ.
• It is God’s dream for His creation.
• It is the Father, Son and Spirit extending His life into all of creation.
• It is the “perichoresis” the circle dance of the Trinity embracing the human
race.

The Ways of the Kingdom:

The purpose of the Kingdom is the glory of God.
The constitution of the Kingdom is the Word of God.
The ruling principle of the Kingdom is love.
The language of the Kingdom is story and picture.
The reach of the Kingdom includes all of the universe.

What was the “Gospel of the Kingdom” that Jesus preached?
(From Darrow Miller: Discipling the Nations.)

• The Kingdom of God is revealed in a person. Col. 1:19
• God's rule is here and now. Now, and "not yet." Matthew 6:10
• The kingdom is comprehensive, touching every area of life. Col. 1:20; Rom.
8:18-23
• The kingdom is open to all. John 3:16 Matt. 5:3-10
• The kingdom of God sanctifies the common. 1 Cor. 10:31; Zech. 14:20-21
• God's kingdom is unshakable. Heb. 11:10
• The kingdom of God is offensive. It assaults the gates of hell. Matt 16:18

A Different Kind of Fairy Tale
It is a world where terrible things happen
and wonderful things too.
It is a world where goodness is pitted against evil,
love against hate,
order against chaos in a great struggle
where often it is hard to be sure who belongs to which side
because appearances are endlessly deceptive.
Yet for all its confusion and wildness it is a world
where the battle goes ultimately to the good
who live happily ever after, and where in the long run everybody,
good and evil alike, becomes known by his true name.
This is a fairy tale of the gospel with, of course, one crucial difference
from all the other fairy tales,
which is that the claim made for it is that it is true,
that it not only happened once upon a time
but has kept on happening ever since
and is happening still.
~Frederick Beuchner

Week 3: The Reality of Walking with Jesus

2009-10-22T00:32:00.010-06:00

Ericka and I eating frozen yogurt - literally yogurt that I

put in the freezer - DELICIOUS and reading our assigned book.
I highly recommend it if you haven't read it yet.
Is That Really You, God? by Loren Cunningham, Founder of YWAM

Last week was week three of our lectures. I cannot believe how fast time is flying by here. Dave Gibbons was our speaker for the week. He was part of the Leadership Summit 2009 Speaker Line Up, so if the name sounds familiar, that may be where you heard it.

"Dave Gibbons is the founding pastor of Newsong Church, a multi-generational, multi-ethnic, multi-continental, multi-site church in Irvine, CA, named as one of the most innovative churches in America by Outreach Magazine. Gibbons also leads the Newsong Global Alliance, a catalytic church organization with expanding, worldwide reach into Asia, Central America, and Europe. The author of The Monkey and the Fish, Gibbons is a vision-oriented leader known for his insightful thinking on the future of the church. He brings expertise on “Third Culture” leadership and the top skills and experiences every leader will need to reach our global culture with the gospel." - Excerpt from http://www.willowcreek.com/events/leadership/2009/david-gibbons.asp

We did a very interesting activity one of the days of Dave's teachings. We were asked to complete 3 assessments. First, I was to draw a time line of my life. I could draw pics and/or use words to identify key people, places and events through my life. The second task was to create a 2x2 matrix. Each quadrant would contain info from one category. The four categories were who energizes me, who de-energizes me, what energizes me, what de-energizes me. The final assessment was to draw my home when I was ten years old. I then needed to draw my family members and myself where I saw us in the home at that age.

When reviewing the assessments, we were taught to look for patterns, reasons and places to confirm the cause of why someone currently has a certain thought pattern or belief, and most importantly the fingerprints of God's hand throughout the person's life. The assessments also revealed to many people the sources of deep pain and hurt that may have previously been undefined or buried so deep they were more or less unaware of its existence.

The principles to remember when reviewing the sssessments:

It's more about your weakness than your strength. We can see why and how God uses certain pains. Weakness becomes a gift if we allow grace to transform us.
It's more about pain than pleasure. Although we most likely won't understand that at the time, the pain in life will become each person's connection to the world. People won't connect to one's achievements through life, they will connect to one's pain.

Though it may not look like it from the notes I have included here, this was definitely a week of realizing deep hurt, forgiveness and healing. I became aware of hurts that I never had even recognized as problems. After lots of tears and headaches from crying, now I understand that God did not want certain events and relationships to take place the way they did. This week has also taught me that God can and will use pain and hurt from my life to benefit others. God gave me a gift that no one else has - my story. My suffering is a way that I can reach and relate to the rest of the world.

A few key phrases from the week that I am praying about deeper and allowing to sink in.

The purpose of a word is to catch an idea, once the idea is caught, the word is forgotten
Success in God's eyes is often a failure in man's eyes
The key task of a leader is to build trust and bear pain
As I better understand who I am, I'll be able to better flow with the Holy Spirit
The best leaders aren't even noticed by the people they are helping
God is my main entree, people are my dessert
Healing happens as we go

On Friday all the students and staff in our school declared it PINK day. So, we all searched our closets, friends' closets, Wal-Mart and raided the Boutique (the on-campus free thrift store) for Pink garments for the day. Wow! Some people got very creative! Here is a picture of our school with Dave Gibbons (center) and his friend, Mike Wang, who came with him to teach for the week.

The week was not all work and intense learning -

we did have wonderful fun too! Here are some other pics from the week:

Beautiful Sea Turtle at Kahalu'u Beach
a couple miles from campus

YAY Snorkeling time! Note to self - smiling
with a snorkel in your mouth is VERY awkward.

Ericka and I after we found out our locations for outreach
and had a celebratory dance party with the school.

Outreach Location Announced!

2009-10-21T01:19:00.004-06:00

I believe God has been calling me to Africa for a very long time. When I was blessed with the opportunity to travel to Sierra Leone in April of 2008 for a missions trip, the calling only got louder.

In choosing to come to the Compassion DTS here in Kona, I was not sure whether I would be able to spend my three month outreach phase of the school in Africa. Much of the information prior to me coming made it sound like I would be serving in South East Asia somewhere.

I can rejoice in saying that God hears our prayers and is faithful to the desires He places in us! Last week we prayed about our outreach locations and then the leaders placed us all in teams according to our preferences from our prayers. I am going to RWANDA!

My team is an incredible group of students from my school, plus our leaders, Gabi and Margaret and their son Hero, who are from Rwanda. When I got here to Kona, I saw Margaret and knew right away that I wanted to get to know this powerful woman. The second week I was here, I was put into her small group - TOTAL BLESSING - and now I am going with her to Rwanda to serve in her homeland. GOD IS GREAT! And, to top it all off - Gabi is an artist!

Though we don't know details of what works we will be doing in Rwanda, we know that we will be working with children, poor and needy in some capacity at some point in the three months. I am sure we will get more details as we get closer to departure, but for now, I desire to focus on the lectures and the work God is doing in me now.

Ironman World Championship

2009-10-20T23:52:00.003-06:00

Life has been crazy busy with all of the wonderful lectures, activities, praise times, etc. So, I have a bit of catching up to do.

Saturday the 10th of October was the World Championship Iron Man Triathlon here in Kona. Our school had the incredible opportunity to volunteer at this huge event. Our shift was the end of the race, which left my schedule free to watch the start of the race bright and early at 6:45am.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the race, here is a blip from the official race website:

To get to the starting line in Kona, you must either be very lucky and get yourself a spot through the lottery, or very talented, and win yourself a qualifying spot at one of the qualifying events held around the world.

Tens-of-thousands of triathletes try to get one of those coveted Ironman spots every year. Only 1,800 succeeded.

That means 1,800 "lucky" people get to test themselves on one of the biggest challenges the sports world has to offer ... 2.4-miles of swimming, 112-miles of biking, and a 26.2-mile marathon run through tough ocean waves, and challenging lava-covered terrain.

Our volunteer shift was at the end of the race - from 7pm till Midnight. I was hoping to be assigned to "security" using the term very loosely near the finish line. I love cheering people on, so I thought that would be the best place for me. Unfortunately, I volunteered for a different "security" assignment.

I was stationed after the finish line just outside the area where the athletes came to pick up their bike, swim equipment, and other race gear. The first couple of the hours were not very fun for me. I was a human traffic light telling athletes and their families a variety of instructions.

"Keep moving. Pick up gear straight ahead. Exit the way the bike race started. Blah Blah Blah."

I was rescued at one point when another security volunteer asked me to help me one particular athlete who didn't have any family here with her. My mission was to help her get on her shuttle back to her hotel. Thinking this was a simple 5 minute task I wandered from my traffic light position with my new Ironman friend.

The woman I was helping was 21 year old Battig Rahel from the German part of Switzerland. She was here in Kona with another friend who also competed in the race. Battig finished the triathlon in 13 hours 15 minutes and 40 seconds and when I met her, she was entirely exhausted and deservedly desiring a shower and her bed.

The five minute expected walk turned into a much bigger adventure. It turned out there was not a shuttle from her hotel, so we would have to walk to the town's shuttle which was over a half a mile away. I welcomed the exercise, but my heart went out to Battig who put far too many miles on her legs that day and was now asked to keep going.

A slow walk through hordes of fans still watching athletes cross the finish line eventually brought us to the shuttle. Another road block in the plan. Shuttle policy says no bikes on the bus. Well, I thought a simple solution would be to call a taxi for my new friend. I could tell she would not think twice about paying for a ride if it meant she could be in bed sooner. Well... the taxis were all booked for the night.

The shuttle driver motioned to another athlete on his bike a few yards away and explained to me that he was riding his bike past Battig's hotel a couple miles down the road. I could ride with him and Battig could take the shuttle and we'd meet at her hotel. Inside I was jumping for joy - I could ride an Ironman's bike! However, knowing how my ultra-athlete friends can be about their equipment, I didn't want to expect Battig to allow me to ride her bike, especially because it was dark by this point and she didn't have a light. I shared that I wouldn't mind riding her bike and she was incredibly grateful that I would even consider helping her. She already felt overwhelmed that I carried her bags and walked with her to the shuttle.

So, as Battig climbed into the shuttle to finally sit and relax, I mounted the best bike I may ever ride in my life. As I was pedaling with incredible ease, I wished her hotel was 10 miles instead of only 2 miles away. My "chauffeur" and I chatted as we rode down the street.

God totally blessed me by giving me the chance to help Battig. I enjoy one-on-one interactions and small groups much more than large masses of people. It was incredible standing in as her support system even just to carry her bags and help her get back to her hotel after an incredible day of swimming, riding and running in the Hawaiian heat. WOW God. Thank You!

Bravo to all the athletes who work so hard to make it to the race whether they cross the finish line or not.

Week 2: Destiny by Design

2009-10-12T20:08:00.008-06:00

Last week was another incredible week. Our speaker, Gwen Bergquist, taught the lectures on Destiny by Design. Each day revealed new "secrets" to me and reassured me that God really has designed me for a specific purpose. The first day, Gwen asked us to draw a picture with crayons of what our dreams for our life look like. This is my picture:

It shows me in the mid-ground painting a picture of God's love. The yellow face behind me is God with Love in his eyes. The figures in the foreground are children whom I am teaching to also create art that reflects God's love.

This dream incorporates my loves of art, children, and teaching all while keeping my eyes fixed on Jesus. This is the first time I have really put this dream down on paper. It was so freeing and exciting for me to see what my heart really longed for.

A few days later I was able to share with the class my dream and the picture I drew. They then shared some words of encouragement and impressions God gave them.

Some examples were: No fear - God is my shield, gooey paint material(this one especially excited me because I love my gooey pastels!), prophetic, life giving, expression, where I step there will be land, I will know God's love, Africa, and multiplication of believers.

All of these words came with deeper meaning and revelation of how God is going to use my dream and how it aligns with the purpose He has set for my life.

In the two weeks that I have been here, I am already feeling a deep desire to learn and feel who God is as my Papa. I want to create a piece of artwork to represent each of His characteristics that I learn. So, as I was praying on Friday God gave me a new idea. I was totally ecstatic.

I feel that the Lord wants me to create these pieces of art and compile them into a book called Portraits of Papa. I will then use this book as a tool to teach children the nature of God as our Father. Then I will teach them basics of art and give them an opportunity to create their own Portraits! This is incredible and so much greater than anything I could have planned myself!

I am so excited to get started - and to think I almost didn't bring my art supplies with me. I was feeling that my love of art was entirely separate from my love from and for God. I really did not see how they could fit together. So, last week broke that lie and revealed to me not only do they fit together, but God has designed me so I can use my art to help teach others about Him.

God gave us all a very special gift last Thursday night. As I rounded a corner around a building, my friend, Corlize, and I both looked up simultaneously and shrieked with joy at the view of a brilliant, complete, double rainbow in the sky framing some of campus. It was incredible! Unfortunately, my camera doesn't do God's masterpiece justice.

We are still all having fun also. Here is a little clip of the "Pass the Cup" game at lunch one day.

This weekend our class helped with security at the Ironman World Championship race. I will post details sometime this week. I will also let you know where I will be going for the outreach portion of this school. :)

First Week:Setting the Foundation

2009-10-04T18:29:00.002-06:00

WOW WOW WOW!

It is amazing how quickly God is getting right to the meaningful, life changing stuff. Last week the students, staff and our leaders shared about how God brought us here is Kona, HI for the Compassion DTS. The three nights of sharing involved much more than canned answers. All 38 female students and 12 male students opened up to each other. Some told secrets they had been holding inside for years too afraid of the reactions she would receive. Others opened their souls to healing but were unsure how to awaken their hardened hearts.

Alright, let me start with a little more of the basics. When Ericka Smiley and I checked in last on the 24th, we found out that we had been roomed together. This was incredible because the housing department didn't even know that we knew each other! We live in a beautiful room that overlooks campus and the ocean! God truly blessed us and our 4 other roommates. The other girls are from South Korea and they quickly became our sisters! Here are a few pics of our roommates. You can click on the collage to see a larger version. Our roommates are Hyun Min, Yu Hyun, Eun Jung, & Ju Hyun. It took me the better part of the week to learn how to pronounce them, and I believe I've got it figured out now.

Before we had any actual class lectures, our whole school (50 students, 2 leaders, and 10 staff and their families) all loaded into vans and drove to Hapuna beach. We enjoyed an incredibly beautiful day in the sun and playing keep-away in the waves. Guys vs. Girls. Unfortunately, our numbers could not defeat the athleticism of the men. Victory was theirs.

So, as I said, last week was filled with incredible speakers, sermons, revelations and vulnerability. The intense nature and long hours of the first three days made us ready to let loose a bit on Thursday. WATER BALLOON FIGHT! Guys vs. Girls.

We also made human pyramids. The ladies made slight variation on the traditional pyramid. We were much wider that we were tall...

Dawn, one of our leaders, told the class first thing on Monday that she felt that some of us would be baptized this week. My first thoughts were: that's cool for others, but I am just coming up on my one year anniversary of my baptism. It isn't for me. However, after all of the huge changes during the week, by the time we were at the campus pool on Friday afternoon, I was praying about a baptism.

I had just learned that the Jews actually would baptize anytime a person was walking into a significant new chapter in their life. I had given up many past things that I'd been holding on to and had a new song in my heart from the Lord. So, I listened to the prompting in my heart and made a declaration of my desire to follow the Lord for the rest of my life. I give up my plans and my desires and want to follow his will for my life. Oct 2, 2009 marks a first day of my new life! CELEBRATE!!!

A few thoughts and verses that really sunk in this week include:

All of life is simply responding to God's Love. Life becomes the revelation of God's love for us and us responding to it. Somewhere along the line I missed the lesson on God's love for me. My entire foundation was built on my love for God rather than His love for me. Now, I desire to live my life from the God's love for me rather than from my love for God. God loves me. Therefore, I love God. Therefore, I love myself and others.
Zephaniah 3:17 - The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. The word rejoice originally means to spin around under violent emotion and the word sing means to scream in a shrill voice. This lecture gave me an entirely new picture of what God's love looks like.
I need to rest to experience God's love. Relax into his arms

I am learning amazing things already. At this pace, I will be an entirely different person after 5 months and 3 weeks more of this transformation process. Praise God!

Prayer Requests:

Allowing myself to rest
Believing and Receiving God's love for me
Getting to know God the Father. I know Him very well as the Creator, and want to learn his other characteristics.
Freedom to worship Him genuinely. Something is holding me back right now.
Safety for the class, leaders, and staff. We have had a couple of people get hurt already, so prayers in this area are much needed.

Thank you for your support and encouragement. Your prayers too are so much appreciated! Thank you!

2009-10-02T18:34:00.001-06:00

I had an incredible first week! Our class is very vulnerable to each other, and i can tell God has big plans of healing for all 50 of us. Details to follow...

Aloha! School Starts Tomorrow!

2009-09-24T00:27:00.006-06:00

Aloha my wonderful ohana and hoa makamaka (Hello my wonderful family and close friends)! I made it to Hawaii on Monday night. I had the opportunity to earn a free flight voucher on my way out here by giving up my seat on a flight. So, knowing that it I can use it to visit my family and friends next year , I decided to delay my arrival in Hawaii by a few hours. The cherry on top was that the later flight chased the sun. I watched incredible sunset colors out my window for two hours!

Exhausted from a long day of travelling, my senses were awakened when my friend, Ericka, picked me up from the airport with a lei in hand. It was all beautiful, white plumeria flowers! Fresh plumeria exude the most incredible, intoxicating smell :) Mmmmmmmm. We came back to Gordon and Kim Dong's home here in Kailua-Kona. They are a wonderful couple who invited us into their home for the few days before school starts. Thank you so much for your incredible hospitality and loving home.

Yesterday, Ericka and I woke up and enjoyed Kim's fantastic banana, macadamia nut pancakes with raspberry syrup. Wow, I am spoiled. After filling our bellies, Ericka and I went to the beach for a few hours of swimming, talking and enjoying God's glorious creation. So incredible! Running into the water was incredible - so I wanted to share the experience with you.

Today was also wonderful. We joined the woman's small group this morning at Kim's home and discussed the importance of interdependence versus independence and lessons in submission and following the lead of a husband. One of my continued prayers is for the Heavenly Father to prepare me and mold me for the day he brings me my husband.

After the woman's group, we went to the high school that Kim and Gordon's sons attend. They had chapel time today, so we listened to the sermon from the visiting pastor from India. The lessons there patience and obedience. Also incredible.

Tomorrow we check-in for the school. I am so excited to get started! I know that God has wonderful things to teach me. I am going to be in a very safe atmosphere for letting down my walls, showing my wounds, healing and growing.

One last thing for today. I have a prayer request from all of you. Ericka and I were talking today and I realized that I am holding on to pain and need to forgive someone. I would like to ask for your prayers in my complete healing regarding this situation. I can sense that I have built up a wall and pretended that everything was okay. Pray with me that God will tear down my wall and heal the wounds in my heart.

My bags are packed and I am ready to go!!!

2009-09-21T04:43:00.002-06:00

Praise GOD. I am up before my alarm and filled with joy. I leave for the airport in 45 minutes. Praise GOD for this beautiful day and new adventure!

Leavin' on a Jet Plane, Don't Know When I'll Be Back Again

2009-09-20T14:04:00.006-06:00

The time is finally here! I have one more night in the beautiful state of Colorado before I head on an adventure with my Lord. My parents will wake up in the dark tomorrow to drive me to Grand Junction where I will catch my 8am flight to Kona, Hawaii (via Pheonix and Los Angeles). My wonderful friend, Ericka, who is going to be in the same DTS as me, is going to meet me at the airport. She flew out to Hawaii last week to spend a little time enjoying the island before we check in on Thursday. I too am hoping to enjoy Kona a bit before I dive in to life as a student again.

I am so excited to be part of such an amazing community of believers all stepping out in faith to grow closer to the Lord and to show His love to others. Our school is a very diverse group, which is something that I have been praying for. Last I heard we had 46 students accepted into the school. We come from around the world: USA, Canada, South Korea, China, Russia, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, India. This is going to be so incredible!

Here is a bit more info about campus life from the U of N Kona Website:
Typically, there are between 250 and 400 students living on campus each quarter. We often have another 100 to 200 on overseas field assignments plus an additional100 children enrolled in campus schools. We may have as many as five focus DTS programs each quarter. Each focus DTS could have between 20 and 80 students, sometimes more.
Other schools running at the University of the Nations Kona -- such as the School of Biblical Studies (SBS), Introduction to Biblical Counseling (IBC) and School of Digital Filmmaking -- typically have smaller classes ranging from about 15 for SDF to 35 for SBS.

I am so blessed! I am so thankful to the Lord that I was able to spend the last three weeks with my parents. We shared so many meals, conversations, and time together. I will miss them, and I am sure they will miss me too. Hopefully these last three weeks will make it easier when I am away. I think the hardest part for them is that I bought a one way ticket, and don't know when I will be back in Colorado. It is a little scary for me too, but I really feel the Lord calling me and I want to dive into His arms without anything pulling me back. WOW. What an incredible opportunity He is giving me. :)

The leaders feel the theme verse for the Compassion DTS comes from Micah 6:8. I love it!

"He has shown all you people what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

Art Festival with Mom

2009-09-16T22:23:00.004-06:00

Last weekend my mom and I participated in the "Render the Rock" Art Festival in Crawford, CO. We arrived Friday evening and set up our painting camp in a hay field with about 30 other artists where we would all spend the next few hours and most of the following day creating art inspired by Needle Rock and the surrounding landscape.

Saturday all of the entries would be judged and then auctioned off. My mom and I had a great time painting in beautiful Western Colorado and did our best to win a ribbon in the judging round. Unfortunately, our pieces didn't quite have what it took for the ribbons this year nor to be purchased. This is the painting that I did on Friday night - I love the late evening sun and the way the shadows and colors come to life.

I left one of my other paintings out to dry while we went to the artist reception and auction. Unfortunately while we were there, a huge storm went through town and when I got home, most of the paint had been washed off my canvas. Oh well! I guess I will just have to paint another one someday. Thanks for a very fun weekend, Momma Mia :)

Family Time in Montrose

2009-09-09T17:41:00.006-06:00

The countdown till my departure is 11 days 14 hours! I am super excited to meet the rest of the students in my DTS and to focus all of my time and energy on learning and growing closer to the LORD.

In the meantime, I have some wonderful time to spend with my family. I am staying at my parent's house in Montrose. This allows me to do advertisement sales here in Montrose for a couple of weeks for the Go To Guide Telephone Directory. The Lord has blessed me with fantastic clients down here. I wasn't ready to leave them yet, so my bosses agreed to keep me on for a few weeks of this selling season. I am also learning (when I tell my clients of my YWAM plans) that the high majority of them are fellow believers. So amazing! Thank you all for your prayers, support and encouragement

On the weekends, when I am not doing the 8 to 5, I am hanging out with my parents. For Labor Day the three of us went up to help my sister and her boyfriend build their cabin just outside Powderhorn, CO. It is in a beautiful location out in the woods away from everyone. Here are a few pictures from our construction day on Monday. When we got there, we had a few planks in for the foundation and when we left we were already placing in the third layer of logs. Way to go team!

Update on my finances for the DTS. I currently have raised $7,764 for my DTS. I have been drawn to Proverbs 13:5,6

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me.

God is so good! That means the entire tuition is taken care of, and I only need about $2,400 before November. If you are interested in supporting me financially, please mail a check to:
Logan Marlatt
7023 Old Relay Rd.
Ridgway, CO 81432

Also, thank you for your continued prayers. As I prepare for my DTS, please continue praying:

that I would rest in the Lord's arms, trusting Him fully with my life
that I will become more sensitive to the Holy Spirit and His promptings
that I will learn our Father's voice so that I may obey and live my life according to His will

Thank you all so much for joining me in serving our Lord. Your support and encouragement are appreciated more than I can express. Thank you!

Wonderful time with Family and Friends

2009-08-29T08:52:00.004-06:00

My two weeks in Longmont are almost over. I have had a wonderful time staying at my grandmother's house and am so thankful that I was able to come. My grandmother is 87 years old, and we accomplished all three things on her vacation wish list while I was here.

Our final adventure took place on Thursday. I drove my grandma and my cousins' daughter, 3 year old Maylea, up to Rocky Mountain National Park. What a beautiful drive! Grandma even treated us to McDonalds for lunch and a blizzard from DQ when we made it back to Longmont.

I am so blessed to have been able to spend time with several of my friends from high school and even catch up with my favorite teacher from middle school. Thanks for all of your support guys!

Monday I will drive back to the Western Slope to spend three weeks at my parents' house in Montrose while I do my final advertisement sales for the Go To Guide Telephone Book. I also have some wonderful paintings to complete! :) Then it is off to Hawaii :)

LIFE IS GREAT! TANKEY PAPA GOD :)

Details about Youth With a Mission (YWAM) and more

2009-08-21T21:43:00.002-06:00

Quick Facts about YWAM
-Founded by Loren and Darlene Cunningham in 1960
-Operates in more than 1,000 locations within 149 countries
-Current operating staff is more than 16,000 (the staff volunteers their time - no salaries)
-Nearly half the staff comes from non-Western Countries (Brazil, Korea, India, Indonesia, Nepal)
-Sends out 25,000 short-term missionaries each year

Here is a video of the history of the University of the Nations campus in Kona, Hawaii

This is a video put together by some of the students who did the Compassion DTS in Kona, Hawaii that finished in March, 2009

The leaders for my school, Pieter and Dawn Heres, have been involved with YWAM since 1984 and are doing amazing things. Their website explains more: www.heresfamily.com

I would be thrilled to go work with children in Cambodia or anywhere else God may call our team. We will pray about our missions outreach the first few weeks of school and should know where we will be going by the beginning of October.

Other websites you may want to look at: (just select, copy, and paste in a new browser window)
www.ywam.org/contents/abo_introduction.htm
www.uofnkona.edu
www.uofnkona.edu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=179&Itemid=128

Sing Praise from the Mountaintops

2009-08-19T20:50:00.002-06:00

Today was a glorious day - I believe the Lord made it especially beautiful for a convertible ride up Trail Ridge Road with my dear, dear friend, Joanna. With the top down and the sun warming our faces, we drove up to the top of Rocky Mountain National Park to spend some time praising the Lord. The whole time we were hiking (trying to stay on the rocks so we didn't kill the delicate plants of the tundra) the song of my heart was "You are Love, Love, Love, Love. Lord you are Love, Love, Love, Love."

I was praising the Lord for showing His love through all of my wonderful friends and family. Thank you all for loving me for who I am. I pray that you will see the Lord's love coming through your friends and family. I also pray that you will be so overflowing with the love of and for the Lord, that it spills into the lives of the ones around you. Lord, thank you for loving all of us, your precious children. God, thank you for being love.

I was reading in 1 John 4 today and learning more about God's love and how He showed his love. This phrase, the second half of verse 16, especially spoke to my heart. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him

Disclaimer - The photo above is from Trail Ridge Road, but I actually took it in mid June, not today. So, there was less snow today and also fewer clouds. It was beautiful!!!

The countdown is on... Departure day for Kona, HI is 4 weeks, 5 days away!

Farewell to Gunnison

2009-08-13T16:49:00.006-06:00

I have lived in Sunny Gunny for 8 wonderful years. When I first moved here for college in August 2001, I never thought I would be here so long. I came to Gunnison partly because I thought the people were so nice. I had no idea how many incredible souls I would cross paths with.

I've developed countless friendships and have too many memories to count. Sunday will be the day to say goodbye to my friends, roommates, and my church family. If you know me at all, you realize there will be many, many tears. (I tend to be marked as a "crier"). Thank you to everyone I know here for making Gunnison the wonderful place it is.

Last Monday our women's small group had a time of prophesy for me. I had heard of this before, but never been part of it. Thank you to Ali and Bistro for teaching us what you knew and guiding the evening.

The Lord spoke words of encouragement to my heart through the other women in the group. Any anxiety that I may have had was replaced with excitement and comfort through the Lord. A few of the scriptures shared during that time include: Psalm 13 (especially 5-6), Psalm 21 (especially 1-2), Exodus 14:14, Zephaniah 3:17 The passages are written out on the bar to the right.

You will notice a theme of rejoicing for the Lord and He for me as well as instruction for me to trust in the Lord and to find comfort and rest in Him. Please pray that I continue to praise our Father for the blessings and provisions he has given me. Also pray that I trust Him and let down my guard to allow Him to do his works through me.

I will be driving to Longmont on Sunday to spend two wonderful weeks at my Grandma's house then heading to Montrose for three weeks with my parents.

I am so grateful to have the opportunity to spend time with my family before I fly to Hawaii on the 21st. I am not sure where God will take me through this adventure or when I will find myself in Colorado again.

Thank you for your prayers, support and for joining me in this "Adventure for the Lord"