Goodness. There's just so much to say. Welp, here's post number 1 of many...
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (before Thanksgiving Thursday) we had Steve Schallert speaking to us on World View. Steve and his wife are the co-leaders of my DTS. Steve thinks so differently and has an interesting mind. He's one of those people who is always thinking and you can tell he's thinking. While he was speaking to us, and I've noticed this in the few conversations I've had with him, every word was coated with passion. He has lived and he has experienced and he just embodies what passionate living looks like. A few years ago the word "Passion" was placed on my heart, a word to describe how I'm supposed to live. Steve is that picture for me. No, I'm not going to try and be him, because that's not what God wants, but he's a picture of passion. He puts his heart and soul into everything he does and says. He's by far the best worship leader on campus, he sings old hymns and songs from the Civil Rights Movement in America. Gah, I could go on about the person he is, but that's not the point of this post! I'm thankful for his leadership in this DTS, he and his wife make a great team with John and Jenni (the other leaders).
On Monday, Steve started off the class by reading the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), I think he had the majority of it memorized. Then he told about a man from Germany who asked this question, "What if Jesus is serious?" What if Jesus is serious about the words He spoke in the Bible to his followers, to Pharisees, to others around Him? What if He was serious about keeping His command, love God and love others, and the consequences of not following His commands? Doesn't that make you think a little? We're just called to love. When we're obeying God, we're loving Him and showing His love to those around us. We're just called to love. Why is that so hard?? That's the question in my mind! Why is it so hard to love the homeless man on the corner of the street? Or the man who just cut us off in traffic? Or students in our classes, our co-workers, fellow church members? The girl at Starbucks who now knows my order before I even say it? Why is it hard to see Jesus in them and just love them? The world has skewed our vision of others. The world says it's ok not to love others. Don't be of this world, just be in it. Live by a different culture. We watched this video in class. I encourage you to watch it, it's like 15 minutes long, so watch it on a lunch break :) But what's your single story? What's your view of the world? What we're after is a Jesus World View. Not one pushed on us by the world or those around us, but one formed by Jesus. In class Steve said, "We shouldn't be vampire Christians, those who just want Jesus for His blood, but we should be Christians who act through His love." Goodness gracious, the class went crazy. Don't be a vampire Christian. When you're a Christian who is just grateful for Jesus' blood that has washed away your sins, you are just a believer. You aren't a participator. If we had churches full of participators, think of the change that could be made in the world. Put legs to your prayers of change and action.
Tuesday, we started off the class by listening to U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name" and we were given a little history of Ireland and how prophetic that song was. It was a side note to class, but it was interesting to hear how that song moved a nation, and the world. So we crucified our single story world views. We each spoke over the microphone our single story and what was the main mechanism that made us think that way. We had these written on paper, so we then nailed them to a door and declared, "Long Live The Slaughtered Lamb!" When you have personal transformation, you then have the authority to transform society. (Romans 12) I just want to transform societies. Don't fall into the pattern of this world, create a new pattern of loving everyone! Be abnormal, it's cool :) And another quote from Tuesday's teaching, "Maybe we don't have martyrs in the West, not because society is so tolerant, but because the church has become too quiet." Mmm, if that doesn't get you acting, I don't know what will...
Wednesday, we put on a new world view. "The minute you fall in love with people is the minute that your life isn't yours anymore." Have you fallen in love with people? Not just your spouse or children, but those around you and in the world. We talked about how every new movement of thinking was accompanied or spurred on by music. Music has such an ability to move people, more than words just spoken. Music has passion, has heart, has soul behind the lyrics and the flows of phrases in the music. Why do you think music has been so big in history's movements? An answer we talked about is that it can't be taken away from us. You can lock me up, but you can't take my voice. You can take my rights from me, but you can't take my voice. You can me move to a new land, but you can't take my voice. We spent the first half of class learning about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his role in the Civil Rights Movement. Do you see people equally? Did you know that hate is a heavy burden to bear? Soul Force is greater than Physical Force.. MLK is quoted to have said, "We will wear you down by our love." Put on a new world view of love. It wins over everything. And hold fast to hope. Always have a positive outlook, things will change and things will get better. Only have hope in your heart/mind, don't let despair enter in. "Faith, hope, and Love..."
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Thank God I Found You
So today is THANKSGIVING!!! AAHH!!
We had a yummy breakfast, then a service at O'hana court for the whole campus, then dinner as a school together.
The O'hana court gathering was just simple singing and worship and then Darlene Cunningham spoke about being thankful. We wrote on pieces of paper things that we were thankful, characteristics of God that we were thankful for, and people in our lives we were thankful for. Then we took an offering of thankfulness and we turned in our sheets we wrote things on.
We went to the classroom as a class and had about an hour of saying prayers of thankfulness and singing songs. I recorded our class singing Amazing Grace, but I can't get it off my phone to share with you all. Some one, message me and help me! haha Then we had a time of blessing each other, either monetary or with words of encouragement or things we had and God told us to give it to someone. So that was good. Then we went and got in line for food :) YUM! I had turkey, sweet potatoes, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and green bean casserole (but I didn't eat that, it was weird) and pumpkin pie. I was super full after all that! I need to go run 5 miles now. Ok, maybe just one a day, but I need to do some type of physical activity now. So here are some pictures from today :)
I'm so thankful to God that I am here in Hawaii at this Discipleship Training School. I'm thankful for my family back at home (all of you reading this, basically), and I'm thankful for my new family here at DTS. I'm thankful for the support I've received from you all, having the funds to go to DTS and on outreach is a major blessing, thank you for being apart of this journey!! I'm thankful for the real friends that I have from college and from high school (scarce, but there are some) and I'm really glad that the girls I still talk to are ones that make me want to be a better Kathryn. I'm thankful for the acceptance and love they extend to me everyday and that they're just a text or phone call away when I need them! I'm thankful for the roommates I have here, they are women that push me to be better and they are women that allow me to be myself. I'm thankful for the little things in life, I have clothes to wear everyday, I have a bed (here and at home in Texas), I have clean water to drink and food to eat, I'm thankful for the shoes on my feet. I'm thankful I opened my heart to Jesus, that He's living in me and working on me each and every day. I'm thankful that God never gives up on those He loves, that His love is everlasting and His work in us is never finished. I think the biggest thing I'm thankful for, that I've taken for granted for a while, is my family. My parents are amazing, my brothers and sisters-in-law are wonderful, all my cousins, uncles and aunts, my grandparents, just everyone. Family is super important and I'm thankful that ours is still attached and functioning together. And not to single anyone out, but I've realized while I'm here that my Aunt Bonnie is someone that I could never live without. She's the picture of a strong woman, rooted in her faith, and I want to be like her when I grow up! I love you, Aunt B! :) I haven't been too great about relationships in the past, I've taken people for granted, and here I've realized that the people around you are ones that God placed in your life for a reason. I'm thankful for relationships and what people mean to me. God is so good, all the time!! All the time God is good!!
Tell me what you're thankful for :)
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!!!!!
p.s. i'm also thankful that the Cowboys have won 2 games in a row!
We had a yummy breakfast, then a service at O'hana court for the whole campus, then dinner as a school together.
The O'hana court gathering was just simple singing and worship and then Darlene Cunningham spoke about being thankful. We wrote on pieces of paper things that we were thankful, characteristics of God that we were thankful for, and people in our lives we were thankful for. Then we took an offering of thankfulness and we turned in our sheets we wrote things on.
We went to the classroom as a class and had about an hour of saying prayers of thankfulness and singing songs. I recorded our class singing Amazing Grace, but I can't get it off my phone to share with you all. Some one, message me and help me! haha Then we had a time of blessing each other, either monetary or with words of encouragement or things we had and God told us to give it to someone. So that was good. Then we went and got in line for food :) YUM! I had turkey, sweet potatoes, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and green bean casserole (but I didn't eat that, it was weird) and pumpkin pie. I was super full after all that! I need to go run 5 miles now. Ok, maybe just one a day, but I need to do some type of physical activity now. So here are some pictures from today :)
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| our room, super dark, sorry! but that's us eating!! |
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| my friends, whom I'm very thankful for here, Kate and Lexx |
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| My outreach leaders, Stephanie and Kristina |
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| Last night's sunset, I'm thankful for sunsets |
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!!!!!
p.s. i'm also thankful that the Cowboys have won 2 games in a row!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
I Won't Leave, Promise I'll be Here til the Very End
In John, Jesus says that He won't lose one child that God gives to Him (John 5). Our speaker said that when we become a believer it's like a covenant is formed between the Father and the Son that we benefit from. God gives us to Jesus to watch over and Jesus commits to God that He won't lose us, not a one of us. That's security in salvation if I've ever heard it. Jesus isn't going to leave you, He isn't going to desert you. We aren't promised an easy life after we become Christians, but we are promised that God is always going to be helping us and protecting us. I just want to soak in that for a bit. Some people think that believing God wipes away the struggles of life and makes things beautiful. Not true, not true at all. We're going to keep having things thrown our way, but we have to persevere through them, we have to keep fighting until the end. I believe you can't experience joy without the experience of pain. Like you won't know real happiness until you've overcome some sort of pain. Make sense? Give thanks in everything, in every good and bad situation. Be appreciative of the seasons you're going through. In each season you're growing and learning even though it may not feel like you are. I'm just so thankful that Jesus is always with me. He wants to be with us in the small things and in the big things in life. I'm thankful we have a Father who isn't unreachable, who is involved in our lives, who actually cares about us, each and every one of us. I'm thankful for that. Did you know that God is easy to please? Yup, He sure is! In John, the 5000 ask Jesus "What must we do to do the works God requires?" and Jesus replies, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." Believing in Jesus makes God happy. :) In that belief though, we are called to do deeds that back up our faith-- "faith without deeds is dead"-- so make God happy by believing in Jesus and then just simply obey Him every day! It's simple, but trust me, I'm gonna be working on obedience for the rest of my life!
Keep persevering and keep choosing to love those around you! Choose God in every situation and you'll be blessed just like those around you are blessed. Be secure in your salvation, don't waiver in it! Believing in Jesus is you way to eternal life, why not believe in Him?
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Keep persevering and keep choosing to love those around you! Choose God in every situation and you'll be blessed just like those around you are blessed. Be secure in your salvation, don't waiver in it! Believing in Jesus is you way to eternal life, why not believe in Him?
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
"The Present is a Gift....
And I just wanna Be."
I love nature, don't you? God really is the ultimate artist.
So Friday, Matt Beasley was with us again sharing more of his story and how he got to where he is today. Basically, walking in the Spirit. Learning how to hear the voice of the Lord and following what He has asked you to do. By listening and acting on His word you become a Revolutionary. I really enjoyed having Matt speak to us because he was a living example of: you don't have to go to a third world country to make a difference, you don't have to be successful and established to start making a difference, you can change your environment instead of letting your environment change you. Simply listening to God results in a life that changes those around you. You have an impact on each person you come in contact with, big or small, why not share God with them and leave them changed for the better?
As many of you know, my birthday was Friday :) It was probably one of the best birthdays I've had in a while. I was surrounded by people who love me (which happens every year) and had fun with them! Class went well, lunch was TACOS (one of the best lunches we've had here), prayer room was great (read Habbakuk 1, it's GOOD), and then my roommates treated me to dinner at Bubba Gumps! We had plans to go somewhere else a little farther down the pier, but we left late so we didn't have time to get there. We had to be back on campus at 7 for a Ladies Night, organized entirely by 3 boys from my CommTrans school (it wasn't for the whole campus, just for the girls in my school). All the guys in the school and staff participated in this event. We were dressed up "like we were going on a date with Jesus" and the room was decorated with lights and balloons and tables with tablecloths and flowers on the tables. So precious. The boys escorted us in and sat us down at tables. Then they started the night with taking our order for dessert: ice cream with different toppings. The boys served us and then one of the MCs spoke to us about how we were all so awesome and how when we get home we shouldn't settle and that we deserve the best man in the world. The boys had written words of encouragement to us, so we got to read those (like one boy had 2 or 3 girls to write a note to) and then the MCs prayed for us! Then we ended the night with a dance party! So awesome. Totally restores my faith in men, that there are still men in the word who are pursuing God and have a heart for serving the women in their lives.
I also got the best gifts from my parents, my Aunt Bonnie, my brothers and their wives, my cousin Bridgit, and my roommates. Seriously, thank you for blessing me with your gifts! And thank you all for calling, texting, and facebooking me! I felt the love on my birthday :) couldn't ask for better people in my life!
Saturday, I had work duty in the kitchen, so I hung out when I wasn't in the kitchen and wrote thank you notes. Very relaxing day!
Sunday I spent with Becky and the boys. Such a great time being with "family" out here! The boys are soo funny! It's good to spend time with Becky and talk to her about the week and and things I'm going through during school. She has great insight and advice! I'm thankful for the Fernandez family :)
This week, week 6 by the way, is the Holy Spirit week. We're having a different speaker every day. Monday we had Matthew Toller speak to us. He is the leader of the Fire & Fragrance DTS going on now. Matthew is a Rabbi, he is a Messianic Jew and by far one of the best speakers I've heard about the history of the Bible and the Holy Spirit. He spoke at the school of worship going on this term earlier and his week is on iTunes if you would like to download the podcast. (They're free right here) He talked a good bit about the translation of the Bible from Hebrew to English and the influence of Greek, also, on the dialect in the Bible. For instance, in Deuteronomy 6 it says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." In Mark 12 it says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Old Testament, New Testament. The Greek separate the mind and soul, but the Hebrew don't. Did you know that Jesus' brother was actually named Jacob? When the Bible was translated into English, King James wanted to be in the Bible, so he changed Jacob's name to James (ever notice that James isn't a name in the Old Testament?) The Bible was meant to be whole, that's why we tore out the New Testament page, it's an editor's note. Interesting, huh? The Holy Spirit is inside of us. Moses, Noah, Abraham all could not step into the glory of God because it was so powerful. WE HAVE THE GLORY OF GOD INSIDE OF US (because the Holy Spirit is inside of us). We can do greater things than Moses, than Noah, than Abraham, even Jesus. There is a reason airplanes were created, technology was created. Jesus walked everywhere to share his testimony, we can fly everywhere and cover more ground :) I'm not saying we're going to die for the world's sins, but do you understand what I'm saying? We can share more about Jesus than Jesus himself shared because of advancement in society. So Jesus lived a perfect life, sinless, He was an example of what humans are supposed to live like. When do you think Jesus defeated the devil? Think about it........ We are tempted by the devil and we lose to the devil every time we sin. We haven't defeated the devil if we still have sin in our life. Most people think Jesus defeated the devil when He died on the cross. Jesus defeated the devil then for us, for our sins. But Jesus, himself, defeated the devil in the desert after 40 days. The devil tempted him in every way and Jesus never fell. Jesus commanded the devil to "flee" after the last temptation. The devil then had to leave Jesus and not tempt Him again. That's when Jesus defeated the devil. And went on to continue living a perfect life. Are you defeating the devil? I know I still fall prey to him, but with God's help, I know I can defeat him! There is so much more that Matthew shared and it totally rocked me. My burning desire to learn Hebrew was solidified yesterday. I want to understand the Bible as it was meant to be read, not through translation. So if anyone wants to learn Hebrew with me when I get home, let me know!!!
Tuesday, the Holy Spirit kept moving and shaking! We had Joseph Avakian speak to us. Joseph is a Graphic Designer in missions. He knows 7 languages! Ah, so crazy! But anyways, Joseph is an artist, a creative man because God is creative and involves Joseph in His creating :) Joseph says that he Co-creates things because the Holy Spirit tells him what to design, so they're both creating. By saying, "God help me with this" you get to accomplish great things because you have God working through you. --Sidenote-- Joseph never went to college, never studied graphic design. He said this today, "Did God hold up a piece of paper for your value? NO!! God put up a Cross to show your value." That's how he feels about his value and how he can still do great work even though he doesn't have a diploma stating that-- Co-Creating with God is a Journey of: Intimacy, Brokenness, Love, Faith, Discovery, Hope, Servant hood, Adventure, and Maturity. I really liked his point about being broken. You have to be vulnerable in order for God to work through you. Forget what you did yesterday and how you did it, start each day new, ready for a new way of doing something, a new thought-process. Each day is NEW! Do you think you can do things better with your way of doing things and your thought process or do you think you can do things better using God's thought process? This is definitely something I have to work on. Being completely open to what God wants me to do and doing how He wants me to. Joseph had great stories about meeting with clients, reviewing the meeting with the Holy Spirit and then waiting on Him to tell him what to draw/create. He only presented his clients with one idea because that's the idea the Holy Spirit gave him and he was confident in it. 97.5% of his ideas have been taken when someone needs website design, logos, or anything creative. Isn't that impressive? I want to go into the business world, specifically the hospitality industry, so this statement about servant hood really struck me, "What can I do to serve you? not to prove myself" I want to serve my clients. By meeting their needs I'll be able to speak about how I got there (with the help of the Holy Spirit). "When you meet someone's needs you have room to speak about God." If you're serving someone, think about them and be a true servant, don't think about how you can prove yourself to them. I really enjoyed hearing about his journey with the Lord and hearing daily in every task. Even when he's brushing his teeth! Are you co-creating with God?? I want to be, so that's what I'm going to be working on :)
This is something important from Matthew's talk on Monday. When you think of God, what do you imagine? Do you think of the Michelangelo's painting with God in the clouds with long white hair and a big beard, with a chiseled body reaching down to us? What do you think of? Do you know the 2nd commandment of the 10 commandments? "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image..." meaning, we shouldn't put God in a picture. Once we have an image of God we limit His abilities to do things. "It isn't about how big your brain is, it's about how big your God is and how much you believe in Him!" Don't put God in a box and don't put yourself in a box either :) you can do ALL things with HIM!
LOVE LOVE LOVE
I love nature, don't you? God really is the ultimate artist.
So Friday, Matt Beasley was with us again sharing more of his story and how he got to where he is today. Basically, walking in the Spirit. Learning how to hear the voice of the Lord and following what He has asked you to do. By listening and acting on His word you become a Revolutionary. I really enjoyed having Matt speak to us because he was a living example of: you don't have to go to a third world country to make a difference, you don't have to be successful and established to start making a difference, you can change your environment instead of letting your environment change you. Simply listening to God results in a life that changes those around you. You have an impact on each person you come in contact with, big or small, why not share God with them and leave them changed for the better?
As many of you know, my birthday was Friday :) It was probably one of the best birthdays I've had in a while. I was surrounded by people who love me (which happens every year) and had fun with them! Class went well, lunch was TACOS (one of the best lunches we've had here), prayer room was great (read Habbakuk 1, it's GOOD), and then my roommates treated me to dinner at Bubba Gumps! We had plans to go somewhere else a little farther down the pier, but we left late so we didn't have time to get there. We had to be back on campus at 7 for a Ladies Night, organized entirely by 3 boys from my CommTrans school (it wasn't for the whole campus, just for the girls in my school). All the guys in the school and staff participated in this event. We were dressed up "like we were going on a date with Jesus" and the room was decorated with lights and balloons and tables with tablecloths and flowers on the tables. So precious. The boys escorted us in and sat us down at tables. Then they started the night with taking our order for dessert: ice cream with different toppings. The boys served us and then one of the MCs spoke to us about how we were all so awesome and how when we get home we shouldn't settle and that we deserve the best man in the world. The boys had written words of encouragement to us, so we got to read those (like one boy had 2 or 3 girls to write a note to) and then the MCs prayed for us! Then we ended the night with a dance party! So awesome. Totally restores my faith in men, that there are still men in the word who are pursuing God and have a heart for serving the women in their lives.
I also got the best gifts from my parents, my Aunt Bonnie, my brothers and their wives, my cousin Bridgit, and my roommates. Seriously, thank you for blessing me with your gifts! And thank you all for calling, texting, and facebooking me! I felt the love on my birthday :) couldn't ask for better people in my life!
Saturday, I had work duty in the kitchen, so I hung out when I wasn't in the kitchen and wrote thank you notes. Very relaxing day!
Sunday I spent with Becky and the boys. Such a great time being with "family" out here! The boys are soo funny! It's good to spend time with Becky and talk to her about the week and and things I'm going through during school. She has great insight and advice! I'm thankful for the Fernandez family :)
This week, week 6 by the way, is the Holy Spirit week. We're having a different speaker every day. Monday we had Matthew Toller speak to us. He is the leader of the Fire & Fragrance DTS going on now. Matthew is a Rabbi, he is a Messianic Jew and by far one of the best speakers I've heard about the history of the Bible and the Holy Spirit. He spoke at the school of worship going on this term earlier and his week is on iTunes if you would like to download the podcast. (They're free right here) He talked a good bit about the translation of the Bible from Hebrew to English and the influence of Greek, also, on the dialect in the Bible. For instance, in Deuteronomy 6 it says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." In Mark 12 it says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Old Testament, New Testament. The Greek separate the mind and soul, but the Hebrew don't. Did you know that Jesus' brother was actually named Jacob? When the Bible was translated into English, King James wanted to be in the Bible, so he changed Jacob's name to James (ever notice that James isn't a name in the Old Testament?) The Bible was meant to be whole, that's why we tore out the New Testament page, it's an editor's note. Interesting, huh? The Holy Spirit is inside of us. Moses, Noah, Abraham all could not step into the glory of God because it was so powerful. WE HAVE THE GLORY OF GOD INSIDE OF US (because the Holy Spirit is inside of us). We can do greater things than Moses, than Noah, than Abraham, even Jesus. There is a reason airplanes were created, technology was created. Jesus walked everywhere to share his testimony, we can fly everywhere and cover more ground :) I'm not saying we're going to die for the world's sins, but do you understand what I'm saying? We can share more about Jesus than Jesus himself shared because of advancement in society. So Jesus lived a perfect life, sinless, He was an example of what humans are supposed to live like. When do you think Jesus defeated the devil? Think about it........ We are tempted by the devil and we lose to the devil every time we sin. We haven't defeated the devil if we still have sin in our life. Most people think Jesus defeated the devil when He died on the cross. Jesus defeated the devil then for us, for our sins. But Jesus, himself, defeated the devil in the desert after 40 days. The devil tempted him in every way and Jesus never fell. Jesus commanded the devil to "flee" after the last temptation. The devil then had to leave Jesus and not tempt Him again. That's when Jesus defeated the devil. And went on to continue living a perfect life. Are you defeating the devil? I know I still fall prey to him, but with God's help, I know I can defeat him! There is so much more that Matthew shared and it totally rocked me. My burning desire to learn Hebrew was solidified yesterday. I want to understand the Bible as it was meant to be read, not through translation. So if anyone wants to learn Hebrew with me when I get home, let me know!!!
Tuesday, the Holy Spirit kept moving and shaking! We had Joseph Avakian speak to us. Joseph is a Graphic Designer in missions. He knows 7 languages! Ah, so crazy! But anyways, Joseph is an artist, a creative man because God is creative and involves Joseph in His creating :) Joseph says that he Co-creates things because the Holy Spirit tells him what to design, so they're both creating. By saying, "God help me with this" you get to accomplish great things because you have God working through you. --Sidenote-- Joseph never went to college, never studied graphic design. He said this today, "Did God hold up a piece of paper for your value? NO!! God put up a Cross to show your value." That's how he feels about his value and how he can still do great work even though he doesn't have a diploma stating that-- Co-Creating with God is a Journey of: Intimacy, Brokenness, Love, Faith, Discovery, Hope, Servant hood, Adventure, and Maturity. I really liked his point about being broken. You have to be vulnerable in order for God to work through you. Forget what you did yesterday and how you did it, start each day new, ready for a new way of doing something, a new thought-process. Each day is NEW! Do you think you can do things better with your way of doing things and your thought process or do you think you can do things better using God's thought process? This is definitely something I have to work on. Being completely open to what God wants me to do and doing how He wants me to. Joseph had great stories about meeting with clients, reviewing the meeting with the Holy Spirit and then waiting on Him to tell him what to draw/create. He only presented his clients with one idea because that's the idea the Holy Spirit gave him and he was confident in it. 97.5% of his ideas have been taken when someone needs website design, logos, or anything creative. Isn't that impressive? I want to go into the business world, specifically the hospitality industry, so this statement about servant hood really struck me, "What can I do to serve you? not to prove myself" I want to serve my clients. By meeting their needs I'll be able to speak about how I got there (with the help of the Holy Spirit). "When you meet someone's needs you have room to speak about God." If you're serving someone, think about them and be a true servant, don't think about how you can prove yourself to them. I really enjoyed hearing about his journey with the Lord and hearing daily in every task. Even when he's brushing his teeth! Are you co-creating with God?? I want to be, so that's what I'm going to be working on :)
This is something important from Matthew's talk on Monday. When you think of God, what do you imagine? Do you think of the Michelangelo's painting with God in the clouds with long white hair and a big beard, with a chiseled body reaching down to us? What do you think of? Do you know the 2nd commandment of the 10 commandments? "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image..." meaning, we shouldn't put God in a picture. Once we have an image of God we limit His abilities to do things. "It isn't about how big your brain is, it's about how big your God is and how much you believe in Him!" Don't put God in a box and don't put yourself in a box either :) you can do ALL things with HIM!
LOVE LOVE LOVE
Friday, November 4, 2011
I'm Singing in the Rain
Currently, it's 8:15 pm and it's raining. And thundering. And lightening. I'm sitting outside on my porch getting scared every time I hear the roar of the thunder. I love storms. They're calming (even though I get scared), they're so musical, and they bring a smell of rain that I love. I also have Kari Jobe radio playing on Pandora. Can the night get better? Um, probably not.
I just came back from our Thursday night O'hana gathering that we have weekly on Thursday nights. Tonight was just worship, no speaker. I love nights of just worship. Tonight, one of the leaders sang a song he had written about 2 Moravian missionaries who cried out to the slaves from the bow of a ship "May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering." The worship leader is a part of the School of Worship this quarter, so he sang the first part by himself (with band) then the rest of the school came and sang with him, like a choir. Immediately tears came down my face. Nothing sounds better than choirs of voices coming together to sing praise to such a worthy God. Voices are so beautiful when they come together and even on their own. God knew what He was doing when He gave us the gift of singing. He was giving Himself a gift too :) He loves hearing our songs, our praises, our voices just lifted to Him. Even the angels sing constantly, I bet they sound beautiful harmonizing together. (Sidenote: I may not have the best voice, but I do regret that I haven't been using it the past 4 years...) Music speaks so much to me, does it speak to you? We have been singing "Were You There?" in class and ah it sounds so wonderful. Same with "Amazing Grace" -- I think I get new revelations about grace every time we sing that song. Or listening to "Joyful, Joyful" from the movie Sister Act 2, goodness I could listen to that song all day long! "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" speaks so much to me!! It says "I sing because I'm happy, I sing because I'm free!" I'm so happy that I'm free, aren't you?? Or have you heard "There Is Power In the Blood"? I suggest listening to that song. There is wonder working power in the precious blood of the lamb! Amen! Thank you, God, for blessing so many people with the ability to sing and lift others with their songs to you!
I could go on and on about music, but I won't...... This week we have 2 speakers; the first 3 days we heard from Andy Byrd and today and tomorrow we will hear from Matt Beasley. Andy is on staff with YWAM and is in charge of DTSs run here at UofN. He started the Fire and Fragrance DTS here and has written books about being on fire for God and being a fragrance to the world for Him. He talked about the Heart of a Revolutionary. Our classroom is filled with 82 revolutionaries! We are all going to change the world in same way for the better. We have really been interceding a lot lately for this generation, that we wouldn't be passive anymore, that we would turn our society (and the world) back to God. By simply living out the gospel everyday, we can be ordinary revolutionaries. Andy talked about the Heart of a Revolutionary; five things that a revolutionary lives by. The first is that a revolutionary has Initiative, always the first to do something and start something, not scared to pioneer, to start from the ground and build up. A revolutionary is Presence-centered (addicted to Eden); living a life that is in habitual fellowship with God. Living a life that always chooses God and listens to Him for the next move. A revolutionary has Eternal Perspective. We only have 50-90 years (a lifespan) to react to circumstances with an eternal perspective. For instance, Andy said that when he was married he said he'd only have 2 children, because it was convenient, easy on a missionaries budget. His wife is now pregnant with their 4th child. He said when his 3rd child was born he heard God say, "Why would you want to limit your chance at co-creating something that will be able to glorify me for the rest of eternity? Why would you put a limit on how many creations you can be involved in that will be glory to me in their lifetime?" Andy has a goal of seeing 100 great-grandchildren before he dies. What we do on Earth is so short compared to living for FOREVER with God. So short. So stinkin' short. Why do we respond to things with an earthly perspective? We need to respond with an Eternal Perspective!! A Revolutionary knows the Authority of the Word in a believer's life. God's word is still alive! There is still power in praying prayers of the Bible, prayers that David wrote, that Paul wrote, prayers throughout the Bible are still applicable to our lives! There is power in the Word of God. The Bible isn't boring! The Bible isn't too long to read, isn't too hard to understand, isn't dead to nowaday living. Did you know that the Bible is the only book with an author who never dies? God is waiting for you to sit down and ask him questions about this passage and this king and this parable, He's ready to explain His word to you! Truth is ABSOLUTE not relative, it's in the Word of God. A Revolutionary lives in Happy Holiness. Philippians 1:9-10 "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ," Basically, as you love, you gain more knowledge, then you get more revelations of God, then you have more love. Holiness comes from loving God, not trying to be perfect. Holiness is the absence of false gods or replacements. Holiness if from love, pursue God and holiness comes from that. Andy brought such good words to class and encouraged us to be more revolutionary. We can and will change the world. Have you ever heard of Circuit Riders? They are Methodist ministers during the Revolutionary War in America. Francis Asbury came from England to rise up a methodology of simply following God. One circuit rider, Jesse Walker said, "By the grace of God I have come to (city's name) and by the grace of God I will take this place!" I'm gonna start saying that wherever I go :)
Matt Beasley shared his testimony this morning and we will hear more from him tomorrow. Matt is from Greenville, South Carolina. He attended Southern Wesleyan in Central and attended NewSpring Church in Anderson. Matt, while there, started the LOT Project in Anderson and has made such an impact in that community. I was soo homesick while he was talking about the church I used to go to, the city I used to frequent, and the area I lived in for 4 years. I really wish I gotten more involved in the community around me while I was in Clemson. I can do that when I go back to wherever city God places me in after DTS. But Matt did the CommTrans DTS last year and then did the Circuit Riders school that was put on this summer in Kona. The outreach was to Orange County, CA so Matt is now living there working on college campuses and in churches and on the streets. I'm really excited to hear more from him tomorrow, he really is a perfect example of living a life for Christ to be a revolutionary.
I apologize to you all for being so slack on my postings :( It won't happen again!! I realized today that I feel much better after I write out things I've been learning because this time gives me time to process and soak in what I've been learning. I will be posting more this weekend about Brian Brennt's week and more about what activities I've been doing here in Hawaii. Postings will not be so spaced out anymore, for both of our sakes! I'm so thankful for those of you reading these and your support! I miss home, but I'm thankful for this opportunity to learn more about our great God :)
LOVE LOVE LOVE
P.S. Here is a song we have listened to a good bit about being a revolutionary. It's long BUT please listen to the whole thing, it will get you fired up to go set a nation on fire! It's by Jake Hamilton and it's called "New Song".
I just came back from our Thursday night O'hana gathering that we have weekly on Thursday nights. Tonight was just worship, no speaker. I love nights of just worship. Tonight, one of the leaders sang a song he had written about 2 Moravian missionaries who cried out to the slaves from the bow of a ship "May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering." The worship leader is a part of the School of Worship this quarter, so he sang the first part by himself (with band) then the rest of the school came and sang with him, like a choir. Immediately tears came down my face. Nothing sounds better than choirs of voices coming together to sing praise to such a worthy God. Voices are so beautiful when they come together and even on their own. God knew what He was doing when He gave us the gift of singing. He was giving Himself a gift too :) He loves hearing our songs, our praises, our voices just lifted to Him. Even the angels sing constantly, I bet they sound beautiful harmonizing together. (Sidenote: I may not have the best voice, but I do regret that I haven't been using it the past 4 years...) Music speaks so much to me, does it speak to you? We have been singing "Were You There?" in class and ah it sounds so wonderful. Same with "Amazing Grace" -- I think I get new revelations about grace every time we sing that song. Or listening to "Joyful, Joyful" from the movie Sister Act 2, goodness I could listen to that song all day long! "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" speaks so much to me!! It says "I sing because I'm happy, I sing because I'm free!" I'm so happy that I'm free, aren't you?? Or have you heard "There Is Power In the Blood"? I suggest listening to that song. There is wonder working power in the precious blood of the lamb! Amen! Thank you, God, for blessing so many people with the ability to sing and lift others with their songs to you!
I could go on and on about music, but I won't...... This week we have 2 speakers; the first 3 days we heard from Andy Byrd and today and tomorrow we will hear from Matt Beasley. Andy is on staff with YWAM and is in charge of DTSs run here at UofN. He started the Fire and Fragrance DTS here and has written books about being on fire for God and being a fragrance to the world for Him. He talked about the Heart of a Revolutionary. Our classroom is filled with 82 revolutionaries! We are all going to change the world in same way for the better. We have really been interceding a lot lately for this generation, that we wouldn't be passive anymore, that we would turn our society (and the world) back to God. By simply living out the gospel everyday, we can be ordinary revolutionaries. Andy talked about the Heart of a Revolutionary; five things that a revolutionary lives by. The first is that a revolutionary has Initiative, always the first to do something and start something, not scared to pioneer, to start from the ground and build up. A revolutionary is Presence-centered (addicted to Eden); living a life that is in habitual fellowship with God. Living a life that always chooses God and listens to Him for the next move. A revolutionary has Eternal Perspective. We only have 50-90 years (a lifespan) to react to circumstances with an eternal perspective. For instance, Andy said that when he was married he said he'd only have 2 children, because it was convenient, easy on a missionaries budget. His wife is now pregnant with their 4th child. He said when his 3rd child was born he heard God say, "Why would you want to limit your chance at co-creating something that will be able to glorify me for the rest of eternity? Why would you put a limit on how many creations you can be involved in that will be glory to me in their lifetime?" Andy has a goal of seeing 100 great-grandchildren before he dies. What we do on Earth is so short compared to living for FOREVER with God. So short. So stinkin' short. Why do we respond to things with an earthly perspective? We need to respond with an Eternal Perspective!! A Revolutionary knows the Authority of the Word in a believer's life. God's word is still alive! There is still power in praying prayers of the Bible, prayers that David wrote, that Paul wrote, prayers throughout the Bible are still applicable to our lives! There is power in the Word of God. The Bible isn't boring! The Bible isn't too long to read, isn't too hard to understand, isn't dead to nowaday living. Did you know that the Bible is the only book with an author who never dies? God is waiting for you to sit down and ask him questions about this passage and this king and this parable, He's ready to explain His word to you! Truth is ABSOLUTE not relative, it's in the Word of God. A Revolutionary lives in Happy Holiness. Philippians 1:9-10 "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ," Basically, as you love, you gain more knowledge, then you get more revelations of God, then you have more love. Holiness comes from loving God, not trying to be perfect. Holiness is the absence of false gods or replacements. Holiness if from love, pursue God and holiness comes from that. Andy brought such good words to class and encouraged us to be more revolutionary. We can and will change the world. Have you ever heard of Circuit Riders? They are Methodist ministers during the Revolutionary War in America. Francis Asbury came from England to rise up a methodology of simply following God. One circuit rider, Jesse Walker said, "By the grace of God I have come to (city's name) and by the grace of God I will take this place!" I'm gonna start saying that wherever I go :)
Matt Beasley shared his testimony this morning and we will hear more from him tomorrow. Matt is from Greenville, South Carolina. He attended Southern Wesleyan in Central and attended NewSpring Church in Anderson. Matt, while there, started the LOT Project in Anderson and has made such an impact in that community. I was soo homesick while he was talking about the church I used to go to, the city I used to frequent, and the area I lived in for 4 years. I really wish I gotten more involved in the community around me while I was in Clemson. I can do that when I go back to wherever city God places me in after DTS. But Matt did the CommTrans DTS last year and then did the Circuit Riders school that was put on this summer in Kona. The outreach was to Orange County, CA so Matt is now living there working on college campuses and in churches and on the streets. I'm really excited to hear more from him tomorrow, he really is a perfect example of living a life for Christ to be a revolutionary.
I apologize to you all for being so slack on my postings :( It won't happen again!! I realized today that I feel much better after I write out things I've been learning because this time gives me time to process and soak in what I've been learning. I will be posting more this weekend about Brian Brennt's week and more about what activities I've been doing here in Hawaii. Postings will not be so spaced out anymore, for both of our sakes! I'm so thankful for those of you reading these and your support! I miss home, but I'm thankful for this opportunity to learn more about our great God :)
LOVE LOVE LOVE
P.S. Here is a song we have listened to a good bit about being a revolutionary. It's long BUT please listen to the whole thing, it will get you fired up to go set a nation on fire! It's by Jake Hamilton and it's called "New Song".
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