It's more Fun in the Philippines!

How do I summarize two months in foreign nations where nothing is familiar, in just one post? That's been my struggle and why I am just now getting to this.

Week one began as we arrived in Singapore. The YWAM base there hosted us and held teachings to introduce us to Asia. Most of my team had a lot to learn because only two of our members had ever been to Asia! Our time in Singapore lasted for a week as we had team bonding times, lectures, evangelism practice, and getting over culture shock! We discussed things like how to respect Asian culture, how to remain safe, and some history on the Philippines. The YWAM base was located near the red-light district.  This was apart of why I had culture shock. It was the first time I had seen women being sold right in front of my eyes. This district screamed bondage. Bondage to man, bondage to jobs, and bondage to our enemy. I couldn’t find a piece of home anywhere and was completely out of my comfort zone. I needed Jesus like never before…

On the plane ride over to the Philippines I mostly prayed. I prayed I wouldn’t have as hard of a time in the Philippines for the rest of the two months.  

Praise God that my experience was quite the opposite of Singapore!

Although nothing is familiar, they are amazing at loving people and making us feel welcome through hospitality. Possibly because we are white! (Filipinos buy whitening lotion, while we buy tanning lotion! Crazy, right?!) 

We were welcomed on jeepnees, which is their main mode of transportation. They adopted them from the American military and decked them out wired with lights and great stereos! We could get a one way ride somewhere for 8 pesos (about 10 cents US) The streets were filled with karaoke, vendors selling all sorts of things, and you would see a countless number of dogs and roosters. (Rooster fighting is a national sport!) 

When we get down to it, the Philippines was absolutely where I needed to go for my first outreach! In some places like Turkey, you could possibly be shot for talking about Jesus. In the Philippines, it was actually a requirement that we preach, every Sunday, if not more!

One thing that I dealt with during my lecture phase of Discipleship Training School was some insecurities that I had with my fear of speaking. When it came down to it, the night before my first teaching in the church, I was scared. Reason being, I hadn’t actually put action to what I “dealt” with.

God graciously gave me a clear topic to teach on. And, He informed me that it wouldn’t be an obligation to preach, but an opportunity to share His truth with these people! So, with that in mind, I stepped out in faith! The teaching went better than I could have ever imagined. The message was like a flaming arrow straight to their hearts. Each one stood up after I was done and shared a personal testimony of how they had been struggling but that my message brought encouragement and revelation of God’s love towards them. My translator whispered what they were sharing as I watched tears stream down their faces. Then my tears started flowing from realizing that God actually used ME!

I had another opportunity to speak that week at a home bible study. Late one night, we found ourselves at a village, hiking up a mountain with our flashlights. When we arrived to the home, it was actually a 5’ by 5’ hut. So, we ended up gathering outside. It was a very dark night with only one light bulb. My friend Irene and I could barely see who we were teaching to! From what I could see, Mothers were weaving baskets, children were running around, and no one seemed to really be paying attention! My head was running wild as I thought that it was going to be a failure because of the circumstances and conditions. Sadly, to my lack of faith, I was surprised that the Holy Spirit actually showed up and was moving in their hearts. Just about all that was gathered in that village came around us for our invitation. Two women were healed, one of a UTI and the other was healed of pain in the ribs causing her legs to go numb! Again, God blew my mind. He is who He says He is. He is healer! He’s not only a spiritual healer, but a Physical healer too!

My faith was increased and set for the rest of our outreach!

Some other ministry looked like: House to house evangelism, kids feeding ministry, and running a youth camp!

I can’t even begin to count how many people our team came in contact with that encountered the Lord. We now have new brothers and sisters that chose to truly follow Jesus, and that were encouraged to continue on in their faith. From God’s work through us, the Filipinos had physical needs met, they experienced the love of God for the very first time, and they broke out of the oppression of foreign rule. For the first time in a few generations, they believed that they had a voice in their nation.

God so graciously used me, although I was of little faith, and allowed me be apart of Him changing lives. We are one step closer into Him releasing Jesus to finish the injustices here for the last time!

Although this was the toughest thing I have done thus far in my life, He is worth it.

He is worth leaving my family, He is worth the cultural barrier, He is worth the being worn out on a daily basis. He is worth being in uncomfortable places and situations of seeing complete poverty, begging, and even being stolen from.

I will never regret these things; loving the Lord with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength!

As He calls, I must go! 

A Journey of Faith

Since I wasn't able to update on our Faith Journey I'd like to do that now! Towards the end of April, 70 of us loaded up in our cars and vans and headed out to 8 different cities around the Bay of Plenty area in New Zealand!
We were sent out with the clothes on our backs, our water bottle, and a sleeping bag and pillow! Things not allowed to start out were food, money, or accomidations! We embark on this two day journey 'Matthew 10 style' to see how the Lord works through us and provides for our needs!
Nine fellow radicals and I loaded up in two cars early in the morning and headed about 40 minutes up the road to Kati Kati. This town is known for its artistic murals painted throughout the town along with its kiwi fruit factory. This town is less than half the size of Perry, GA so we were able to work the main strip quite a bit!
Day one we arrived, prayed together, split into 3 groups and walked and talked. We did a lot of street evangelizing, encouraging through prayer and my favorite...serving! After offering our service to several businesses, my team ended up settling down at a rotary club and was able to serve the youthful elders tea! This was our first 'meal' of the day, let me tell you, that was the best slice of fruitcake I have ever had!!  After serving there, we continued to drive through the country and a particular home caught our eye mostly because of the ripe and juicy manderines that looked oh so good to our tummys! We decided to stop and ask if we could try some! The couple gladly let us take as many as our two plastic bags could hold and listened to our story and what we were doing. The wife ended up having to leave, but the holy spirit led the husband to continue to talk with us and he shared his broken heart of his previous' wifes death and how he was hurt by this and couldn't fully believe in a good God. We were able to speak truth over this man, pray for him and encourage him to seek the God of Love! At this time we recieved a call from our other team members saying we had a place to sleep and food to eat! Praise the Lord! A local church received us with arms wide open! They had a newly built sanctuary and kitchen, we felt like roalty staying here! We enjoyed a delicous dinner provided by two guys who worked in a bakery for $20! The rest of the evening was spent with some Maori (native) children who loved to sing and dance! The church had some recent easter things still layed out so we had an easter story lesson for them! After getting the kids home safetly and sharing stories of how God spread his love through us and met our needs, we played a round of hide and seek and then got some shut eye all throughout the church to prepare for the next day!
Day two: Us girls awoke the guys to some coffee and a nice breakfast. We split up into two groups this morning! Some guys wanted to stay in town to work the strip and some of us planed to work at a Ukelele event at the local grade school. The team that stayed in town ended up helping at the church with a kids music group to start then they gave prophetic words to the church. They were so blessed by us coming in and being the 'talk of the town' by spreading the good news. The church welcomed us back anytime! (PS. we had an outreach team for the months of May and June stay in the Bay of Plenty area. This same church welcomed our outreach team back to work a youth event that they had!! How neat!!)
My team ended up only staying at the Uke event for and hour and we didnt have any other arrangements.... so here comes my favorite part of the trip!!
The pancake House! This place had been in my mind for weeks. A local Kiwi told me this is a must go to before I leave New Zealand, just so happens that I love pancakes and have been craving them for over two months! Our driver Karen suggested that we ride 15 minutes outside of town to check this place out! When we arrive we meet a Mother and Son duo and co-owners of this restaurant! Karen propeses the guy a deal right away! She offers that we work manual labor, whatever it may be for two hours for a pancake each! Right away, He says, "why not"! He puts us to work right away clearing out an eye sore of theres for quite some time. He had tons of overgrowth that needed to be cleared out. We get to work right away loading up limbs after limbs upon a trailor and tractor along with dumping wheel barrow after wheel barrow! After countless trailor hauls,  a few dirty blistered hands, and two hours later our work is finished! We get the approval from the boss to come on up for a well desereved breakfast! Boy oh boy, were we in for a treat! They let us pick out whatever drinks we wanted, and Started out bringing us three pancakes! More than plenty for the five of us! These things were unlike anything I have ever laid my eyes on! Each of these pancakes were loaded with savory goodness like ham, onions, spinach! We put some aside for the boys back in town and chowed down on the rest. When we were almost finished, the owner comes over to our table and ask what two dessert pancakes do we want!!! Woah man, I immediately wanted chocolate and strawberries and the other we went for was a blueberries and cream! These things were a taste of heaven! After we ate to our hearts content we prayed blessings over these owners and their business and told them we would spread the word about their amazing food, business and hospitality. They were incredibly blessed and said that we had come to the right place at the right time because he just didn't have the time to take care of what needed to be done! >> This story goes deeper personally to me because I'd been talking about going here for weeks with my roomies. The one time I get the chance to even get close I was thinking 'Great, I don't even have money to eat there'. I told God that I knew He would provide if he wanted to. So personally He answered a physical craving and desire of my heart and I ate there for completely free! We were sereved over $200 worth of food that morning. What a sweet and personal God! Reminds me of Matthew 6:33. <<
After that amazing morning, we received a phone call of a disabled single woman who needed some yard work done and we were the crew that was just right for the job! We met back up with our other half and got to work! We did the whole nine yards along with choping some fire wood! After we got started I spoke with her about what we were doing in the town and at our YWAM base and she was just overwhelmingly blessed in return she gave us $40. After a hot afternoon in the sun we were all desiring a nice soak in the hot pools! We didn't have any money, but our fearless Karen decided to give them a call to see if all ten of us could have a free entry! After the owner called around town, He gave us a ring back and said that he had heard of the service we had done within the city and that we could have a free swim for as long as we would like! Our only stipulation was to not bring up God to other customers. Well, we followed the rules, but because of our culture of the kingdom that we take everywhere we go, we were approached about what we were up to! So we shared, they were all christians also that we were able to encourage! One lady gave her contact info, and joined us back at our base the following week at our community night! That night she was set on fire and encouraged us to keep following the Lords calling on our lives and dont settle for the one million souls we had been asking God for, because what if her children werent included in that. She encouraged us to dream bigger and to never stop! God's connections are just incredible! We drove to a beautiful lookout place along the beach and watched an amazing sunset. We felt God's favor on us as we had swept through the town with His love and walked by faith trusting his guidance and provision!
We drove back to Tauranga where we stopped and got 8 pizzas at $5 each with two soft drinks. We drove to a park and chowed down before returning to base after 10pm to complete our mission!
Just think this is only two days, one city, and 10 willing children of God. Multiply that by the 7 other cities that our school impacted. We are left all kinds of stories of salvations, healings, provisions, and just beholding the goodness, perfection, and truth of our Almighty God.
I am amazed at the vastness of our Creator of the Universe and intruigued by His fatherly ability to pay atention to each little detail and desire in our lives. To Him be all the Glory!

Enjoy some pictures of our journey!

PAST : PRESENT : FUTURE

It’s been a few days since I’ve last given an update!

I have had several inquire about donations. So, to start, I would like to answer by posting the donation website!

idts.co.nz/payments

Simply fill out all of the information asked and our head accountant will send a tax deduction to all who donate. If it doesn’t come right away, just know she has hundreds of other people that she is getting these for and will get it to you!

Thank you tremendously to those who have donated through one-time gifts or through monthly support! Be on the look out for a blessing in return, that’s what God enjoys doing for those who invest in what He is doing all over the world!

Now, on to some updates!

PAST:

As you know, we have had intense studies on several topics. All of which, I am excited to come back home to share with you all! A few have been The Character and Father heart of God, Cultivating intimacy with God, a life of Worship and many others. Through these lectures, we have been set free from bondage and set on fire for freedom.
I want to share one story of a friend that I met on the plane from LAX to Auckland, NZ. His name is Chris and He is from Texas! His story goes like this…he was raised in a Christian home but didn’t believe the truths for himself. He sought out love and acceptance through the thrills of the world. He became heavily involved in drugs and the party scene. During these struggles in his life, a friend of his and a staff member here at YWAM Bethlehem told him about this particular dts. Shortly after Chris left a rehab center, He decided to come here. My first impression of Chris was, Oh boy! I thought I was coming to a training place for Christians who have already dealt with all of their ‘junk’ and are ready to be sent out into the nations. Sadly, but surely, those were my first thoughts.  Within the first week, He was surely saved. He was set free from the bondage of sin that He was in. He got out of a sinful relationship with His girlfriend. He said yes to the Lord for the first time in His life and hasn’t turned back. I love His diligence in seeking what the Lord wants to do in His life. He has been so fast at growing and has made incredible progress as a new believer. On our third week, He became this wild evangelist that organized late night trips into town to share the love of Jesus. During these trips, we have been able to pray for people and see physical healings on the spot. God is moving in Tauranga! I believe He doesn’t want us just to impact this city, which leads me to the…

PRESENT:

Starting tomorrow, we are loading up in vans and heading out to eight different cities within the ‘Bay of Plenty’ here in the North Island of New Zealand. This mini outreach has been inspired by the Circuit Riders and Impact World Tour who have impacted this nation in the past. Over 20,000 souls were saved back in 2006. These people were between the ages of 13 and18, which makes them between the ages of 20 and 25 today. It just so happens to be around the ages that most of us are at here on this dts! We are excited to go back out to these cities to share the Love of Jesus by serving at local businesses, evangelizing, and listening to what God wants us to do by the hour. The fun thing about this trip is that it’s a total faith journey inspired by Matthew 10! We are only allowed to have one back pack each with a few toiletries and a water bottle! We can also take out pillow! Things we are not allowed to bring are money and food! We will literally have to depend on God to provide for us to eat, for us a place to sleep, and for ways to serve and love throughout our trip! We leave at 8am on Thursday morning and will return at 11pm on Friday evening! I cannot wait to share our journey with y’all! This mini outreach leads me into telling y’all about the….

FUTURE:

Apart of our two-day faith journey, the plan is to lay a foundation in these cities. We are paving the way for future YWAM teams to come in and build upon us. We are also laying a foundation for when Circuit Rider teams will come through in the fall of this year! The agenda for the Circuit Riders is to rally up those 20,000 saved and equip them to be sent out with the good news! This ride across the nation has been birthed out of our dts on the third week and is something that we as students have been invited to join in on! I personally do not know if God wants me involved, but if so, they are holding training for this in Fiji two weeks after I graduate, then from there will be back in New Zealand to get started! How exciting?!

More future news is the soon approaching outreach that my class has been preparing for over these last eight weeks! We, along with your help, are preparing to impact the nations of Thailand, Tahiti, Singapore, Philippines, Cambodia, Fiji, Turkey, Israel, and all of New Zealand! We all have specific goals in our different nations! We will mostly learn what we are doing when we arrive for our first few days of training. As of now, I know we will have many opportunities to preach and teach in many different churches! Prostitution is huge in the Philippines and we plan to show the women how worthy they are and that their identity comes from Christ.

We plan to have many updates for all of the ministry that we do on our Philippine blog as well, be sure to follow us at teamphilippinesywam.blogspot.co.nz J

Thank you for your partnership. Thank you for your faithfulness to walk with me!

Until this weekend, Kia Ora! (hello or goodbye in Native Language!)