God is Really Neat

Today I was browsing through my facebook not because it is the new year and it makes sense to look back on the past year, but just because I was procrastinating. As I do my aimless reminiscing I began to see how much God loves me. All the things that just make my heart skip a beat, or maybe stop, and I just gotta crack a smile. At the time it is so easy to just take that gift that God has given for granted. I mean God deserves the credit and it was so Him just trying to bless me more, my Father wants me to be joyful and he does great things to make that happen! 

Today I am sitting alone trying to think of ways to continue fundraising in order to go to Latvia/Moldova so that's how I got to the procrastination, but I'm glad I did. I so easily forget all the amazing things God has done for me recently. For example on Dec 29th 2010 I posted "nothing like David Crowder band to make any day great!" because it is definitely my favorite worship band. Then on Oct 15th 2011 I got to go to the final Crowder Band concert, for free, and meet most of the artist including David Crowder Band. It happened by total luck. I know who was helping to put on their concert, so he asked if anyone wanted to work in merch. 

I got to high five them NBD..... I was too nervous to say words so I just creepily looked at them and held my hand up. I know, I have a way with words.

Later, when I got accepted to a DTS in Newcastle Australia, I felt how God wants to bless me with the desires of my heart in a big way. God had set going to a different country and doing a DTS on my heart for a long time and it was finally happening! God is great, thanks for being awesome! Well then I didn't go to do my DTS when I wanted to go and God was mean and spiteful. How easily I left all the amazing things God has done for me behind and just sat in self pity because I didn't get what I want when I wanted it. So I was in a really negative place for quite a while. But of course God had a way better plan than I ever did, but in the mean time he gave me a pick me up. At the time I didn't know it would be so influential for me, I thought it was just a job. 

I read another post that says " ahhhhhhhhhh i just got the best job ever!!!!! props God, props," and at the time I felt like I hit the job jackpot! I went from sales clerk at a regular kids store to a keyholder at a nice store on a quirky street mall. BLAM, hot dang was God good again. I had a job in a new town, making way better money than I ever had before, and actually working decent hours, and given real responsibility. All these things gave me some umph and I wasn't able to just pity myself all the time. Thank you God for getting me into a bit of the real world! Only a little bit, but still it was glorious! 


Later I read the day I totally committed to doing YWAM, I just deferred to another start time, I said "i feel like im bursting with joy and excitement with God! IM GOING TO AUSTRALIA." Before I was scared to committ because if I didn't let anyone know then they also wouldn't know when I failed. That could make things easier! On that day I was going to fund raise and work my butt off knowing that God had called me to do this!

This is when I bought my plane ticket. I feel like that was a big deal. Just soak that in. From this day forward I had to get my funds in. Kind of no turning back. 

This is me with my cousin in Australia. I never knew her and pretty much never met any of my extended family because they live all over the world. I spent a week with her and her family, and my other cousins, and some more family for a week before heading south to Newcastle for DTS. One of those days we had a lunch with my brother(stroke of luck he planned his vaca for the same time), my aunt, uncle(who I had yet to meet), and my two cousins and their families. I had been to a family gathering like that before and it was a wonderful miracle for my heart.

This is my school! October Compassion DTS, 21 girls and one guy. Great dynamics. Getting here was amazing and I totally freaked out when I got on the plane. At that point I realized I was leaving home to go to weird people and places. But how God provided was so cool to see. It mainly came from college age kids, people who don't have steady income, and heaps of debt. That makes you feel loved!

These are my roommates, and people who I treasure so much and will never forget. They will be world changers, guaranteed. 

We had 13 weeks of amazing lectures, and blessed with experienced and inspiring speakers who live book worthy lives! It has been hard to process all this, but I figure if I just write everything down then I can just do like a bible study for a long long time with them.

I had thanksgiving and Christmas with them. With a bunch of misfit nomads. On Christmas eve we all just sat around in the sticky heat just having fun. I personally sat and made fart noises for I don't know how long. No better way to spend the holidays. 

This is just a photo to show we have fun. Lots and lots of fun. 

I did go and hang out with oodles of kangaroos. Such a highlight!!!

I just throw this in to show how amazing it is here.

So I can't believe how ridiculously amazing God is. I didn't just get to come and start a DTS, I got to fulfill a life long dream of meeting and hanging out with family. Then God blessed me even more with friendships that I really could not have hoped for here. DTS friendships will be different from any other and it's amazing. I think that sometime in the future books will come out, become amazing sellers, and I will be able to think to myself "that person spoke during my school and prophesied over me." Pretty legit.

So recently I have been sad, worrying, and grumpy about needing money to go on my DTS outreach to Latvia and Moldova to minister to women in human trafficking. Today God totally steered me to look back on the past because how the heck can I doubt my God?! He has done everything I have asked for plus more. God has called me to this DTS and I know he make this last $1250 come in. 

So I would like to ask you please pray about supporting me on this trip. You can donate at YWAM Newcastle .