Quick update

Alright Friends, Family, and who ever else gets there hands on this blog posting. It's been awhile since I've updated and I'm sorry about that, life has been insane! But I promise in the next week or so I'm going to put up a video blog, that way for those of you like me who hate reading can just sit and enjoy. :)
But a quick update, over the summer I took part in an internship with thebridge in Ottumwa. I had the privilege to get to know some of the students very well, and to go to Colorado Springs and Chicago with them for their summer trips. In both of the locations God met us in crazy ways right where we were at, and exactly how we needed. I spent the last few weeks of summer at home with my family, before partaking on my new journey I'm on. I'm now living in Alabama, I move into my apartment on Thursday, and trying to dive in as deep as I can get for this season here.
Now that your wondering what all is going on, you will just have to come back and check out my video post!  :)

Have a fantastic day!

Are you an orphan?

As I sit here in Hong Kong, reflecting on our time here in China, and sweating pools of course, I can’t help but realize my whole mind set has once again been changed for the better. God hasn’t only used us to be the light in such a dark self centered country, but he has again stepped in and said “Hey Beth, look at this walk this way.” From intersection to intersection he continues to show us where he is longing for us to go. This morning I was reminded of several times when I was in Xian, China when God told me to pray for the orphan spirited, as he told me this I was very confused what that really looked like, did he mean the literal orphans? So, I’m walking this morning I remembered that I have a podcast called orphan spirit, so I flip through my ipod and I begin to listen to this sermon and it begins giving the definition of what an orphan spirit is; “It’s not the absence of a human figure, it’s the absence of a loving God.”

This was a slap in my face, the whole time in China God had been asking me to pray for these people who didn’t have a loving God, and instead had a dictator father. I’m not sure what God laid it on my heart to put this in my blog, but if that’s you, if you don’t have a loving Father, and you see God as a dictator, a God that brings you fear, pain, and worry, man check this…

God wants YOU, in your scum, in your joy, he doesn’t care where you have been, or where you are going, he sees you blameless. He is standing before you with his hand out-stretched saying…. “_______ will YOU drop what is in your hand, and take hold of my hand, LET”S DO THIS TOGETHER!” Guys he desires for us to live in freedom and not some freedom we talk about on Sundays. We need to get our head out of the ground and look around, why do we keep filling ourselves with crap from this world that is going to make us feel even worse in a few hours or days? We need to stop, he is telling you that he will take it all, BUT to often we won’t fully give it all. So where are you? What are you holding back from God because you are scared? He isn’t going to fail you, He isn’t going to hurt you, He just wants to live life with you.

I don’t want it to sound like I have it all together, because that would be an out right lie, but this is something that God keeps showing me, and reminding me. And if you’re at a point where when you hear this, the words, “you don’t understand, I have given it up to him several times, and it keeps coming back.” My words to you are, “My Friend, just like an onion it sometimes takes many many layers to reach the middle, continue to peel back one layer at a time and you will one day see the last layer peeled back. And when that day comes…. CELEBRATE!”

Remember… Darkness can’t hold you; darkness can’t mold you, if you are in Jesus Christ. You have been given all authority on heaven and earth!

Gang member

Remember the gang member we befriended in Denver... Well I just got this email from him... Dang GOD IS SOOO GOOD!

Hey Beth,

 

Its Akillies! Do you remember me? Crazy guy from denver. I miss you guys very much and cant wait to see you again. Guess what? I totally quit drinking. I went to church last sunday and loved it. Im not homeless anymore either. Kind of involed in AA but dont like it as much as church support. I am so praying for a new and happy life with Christ. I pray my health is ok and I still have plenty of time to help people not to take the path I took. I am trying my best and will continue to keep asking Jesus for his wisdom and strength. I love you guys and tell everyone hello. Thank you for everything you have done for me. Thank you for your words of encouragement. E-mail soon. Let me know how EVERYTHINGS going.

 

                                                                                     LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!

                                                                                          Akillies

Update from Hong Kong

Alrighty friends and family,
Dang it feels so good to be in a nation again where I can say the name of Jesus where ever I want to, where I don't have to be always thinking through every word before I  say it even in our house hold.
So after a month of being on the road, and some interesting taxi drives, train rides, and street crossing, I can officially say Hong Kong is much more American feeling. Lets just say when there are lines in the roads here the try and stay in between the lines (shocker!) Alright so an update...
So the last few weeks have been super good, super practical, and amazing to see how God has called us to live as missionaries. We stayed with some friends and it was such an eye opener to see their goal was to do it as a family, not just the dad or the mom. Their kids are just as much a part of their life there as anyone else. While there we were able to go to an orphanage for children with special needs, this place truly changed my life. One story that continues to come up is, the last night we decieded we were going to worship with the kids, so we brought the guitar into a little room where there were beds and we started holding the children and doing art or dancing and just worshiping over them. It was such an amazing testimony of the Father's heart of God. As we were doing these activities one boy who is blind and cant really walk, (he is 7 and looks like a 2 year old) started clapping his hands and smiling, another boy who was also 7 I believe who also couldnt really walk stood there with his arms stretched out smiling. These are just a few stories of how we saw the love of the Father pour through these children and they never even knew.
Last week we spent our time in a smaller city (smaller meaning millionish i believe) and it was such a great time of refreshment. We went to a few prayer groups with our contacts, and we did some traditional tebiatan work out dances, we went into a school (got kicked out... not sure why), We went to a monestary and prayed through it, and we went to a mosque and were able to pray over the people and bless the baggers with some food.
(sorry if this is getting long and sloppy, if you saw the computer im typing on you would understand)
So now after a  hour train ride, a 2 hour bus ride, and some crazy taxi rides we have arrived in Hong Kong, where the weather is nice and muggy. We spent yesterday recouping from all the travel, and today we are begining our last home stretch. One thing we have really felt called as a group to do is pray from 10-midnight every night. Non-the-less with that being said last night the few of us that stayed to pray were wrecked a little more, and more healing was brought. We feel like God is really wanting to finish what he has started and to remove that last layer of onion skin as we call it here.
We are heading out in a few different areas of the city today, some went to do Bible stories at a refugee ministry, others are baking cookies to bring down to the prostitutes tonight, and my group will be doing some tutoring (hope that goes well, we all know how bad my math is :)  ) Then tonight we will be going down into a red light district/club/ and bar area to do a little treasure hunting prayer. It's cool because we are getting to try out new outreaches for this base (they are starting a Compassion DTS here in the fall) and we are being able to help them prepare, and street ministry is our specialty so we are all STOKED!
I think that's all for now, my hands are starting to hurt from typing, I guess that shows how much I don't use computers here... :)
Can't wait to see and here from you all, if you guys see my mom give her a big hug and if you see my dad punch him good in the arm they will enjoy that. Miss you all, 15 days...

Update From Beth

Well hello from China! I will try and give you a bigger update and more specific when I get to a real computer in hong knog but for now my phone will do. So we have been here for 3 weeks in the 3 weeks we have done a ton of stuff, we have taught some english, played with lots of kids, went to the great wall, visited a few english cornors, went to the taracatta warriors, saw the biggest water show in all of asia while eating some amazing duck, road low rider 2 person bikes, played ping pong and basketball at the campus, hung out with bew friends we met, and last but not least we have enjoyed some crazy taxi rides. Let's just say all these things become very hard/ funny when you don't no any chinese. Oh wait did I mention crossing the street? Well when you step up to cross what is supposed to be 4 lanes of trafic its like turning on your TV screen and starting the game frogger. You cross one lane at a time,. In hopes of making it across with all your limbs attached.


I'm doing well, we have just arrived in our second home we will be here for a week before jumping back on a train for 30 hours to get to hong kong. Sorry for any weird sayings or spellings I'm on my phone and if you've ever tried to update on your phone its interesting. Love you all thanks for all your thoughts

The Past Few Weeks..

Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long. Here is an overview of what the team has been up to these past few weeks. During the second week the boys made a trip up the mountain to a camp where children are addicted to the internet. I don't really know much else about that, except one of the members fell and dislocated his shoulder, but he was taken care of and kept a good attitude about it. But you can be praying for healing for him and that it won't be a hinderance the rest of the trip. They also played some basketball and soccer, and have taught some English to people as well as working on their Chinese. "Dove's Wings" is a home for disabled kids that they visited. They painted a mural while they were there, as well as just loving on the kids.

Last week the team visted a home for kids with HIV and got to enjoy some tourist attractions. They visited the Taracata Warriors, I googled them (cause I wasn't sure what they were) and they are pictured on the right. They went to a market on Friday, and Sunday they traveled up to an orphanage where they will be staying for a few days. Wednesday (yesterday) they were going to be in Beijing to see the Great Wall and then head to Xining, which is a village, for a few days. That's kind of the scoop for right now. I know Beth misses you all and loves you all. Continue praying for God to provide opportunities to minister and spread his Kingdom, and for trust in the power of the Holy Spirit to move without words because the language barrier has been hard. Thanks!

We have arrived!

Hey everyone! So we are officially in china! All our traveling went well and we arrived safe. The place we are staying at is super nice. We are all doing good thus far and we will be adjusting to the time and kind of settling in our first day here. Thanks for your prayers!

Last Post Before That Good Old Ride

Alright friends,
So I'm done with my lecture phase now, what the heck. I feel like I was just in the mountains with my parents, falling down snowboarding and seeing my dad say why would you snowboard its so dumb, and my mom saying "ELIZABETH, SLOW DOWN, I need water" or the famous one my dad hates, "Erv, Beth and I need knew socks lets go to the shop, and then hit sits there and makes fun of us cause our feet are purple in places." Yes that's my family if your not getting made fun of or picked on your not really a part of the family yet, and anyone who knows my wonderful family would agree 100%. But back to the update.
While being here I've experienced some amazing things, I've gone through a ton of "heart surgery" and then being able to see God be complete restoration has been amazing! I have gone through classes on, the fear of the Lord, Father heart of God, Holy Spirit, Spiritual Warfare, Relationships, Life in the Spirit, and Missions just to name a few. Through these classes it's amazing how much God really teaches you through these courses, some stuff we may not agree with, but other stuff God has really challenged us to look at it through a different pair of eye glasses. Its been very refreshing to look over all the foundation with my perspectives and other peoples.
Alright so this leaves me with my last blog update before I get back from overseas, I'll be heading overseas (if you want more info call my mom), I'm so sure how I feel about going. Because this place was always the place where I would tell God anywhere but there! So I'm excited but in a different way than when I was going to Africa. I believe God is really going to teach us how to love with out words, and how to worship with out music. I will have email but there are some rules you will have to follow if you are going to email me, so if so call my mom and ask her what the rules all are then you can go ahead and email me. And PLEASE, follow ALL the rules, for our safety. Thank you!
Well I will be on a plane in less than 24 hours, I feel a little mind boggled right now, but I know it will be a trip of a lifetime that will go by very fast. I love you all, and I can't wait to see all your faces when I get home. Thanks for everything!

mini update

Hello friends
First off I'd like to say sorry for the lack of updates, and with that know this one is being written on my phone because our internet is still down. So as soon as I get a good connection ill send out a more full report but I didn't want to wait any longer because God has been doing some amazing stuff here. Okay so let's start in LA, while in LA we had the opprotunity to work with the Dream Center which was so amazing cause before coming to YWAM I was really considering there program so in a way I was able to do both. While working with them we went out on food distribution into some of the poorest areas in LA, we also got to do a mini Bible camp one morning and it was so fun to put my spanish into work and talk with the children and parents at these locations.

The next night we jumped in our vans and headed down to skid row (3rd worst neighborhood in the US) and we walked around just talking to people if you have seen the soloiest it was filmed there and looks pretty well the same as in the movie. While there the one man that really stands out to me is Little Ceaser he was this funny little Guatemalan man who had been through a ton but we were able to talk with him about guatemala and his life and pray with him and it was one of the best conversations I've had he wanted to live right so bad but his addictions were controlling him so badly. He was heading to court the next day and I hope and pray he was shown mercy because even though he had his struggles he was still a light in those streets, he would hand out blankets and open up his apartment to people he was a true blessing and God truly broke my heart for this little man, through tears shed and laughs poured out he will be a man ill not soon forget.

 While in Cali I also had the privilege of getting baptized in the ocean on Venice beach it was such a blessing to be baptized in the ocean like I always wanted and not do it with 4 others that I have watched God totally transform.

After LA we headed home for a week of outreach prep, this consists of learning dramas, puppets, skits, dances, balloon animals, and for a few of us juggling. Non the less this was a tiring week but also very refreshing.
Okay now let's head back to some stories, so on wednesday nights we head downtown to 16th street mall and we do street evangelism and this particular night we ran into a few people who were just chatting with some of our other students. So we began chatting with them and we ended up making arangments to go out for breakfast on the upcoming sat. So we picked up my friend from home at the train station and headed up the road to meet our new homeless friends for breakfast. Just a side note we were planning on meeting 3 and we ended up taking out 6 I believe! So we all get together and head down to this nice dinner and we slpit up so its more of a one on two convo instead of trying to fight for talking time.
 So now where to start... Okay so we will start with my friend from home, she was sitting with this guy in a wheel chair who we will call denny. Denny would hardly even speak his spirit was so crushed and Hali just kept pressing trying to get to know him, but frankly I think if you would ask her she would of never thought what I'm going to tell you next would of happened. So in the next following days some more YWAMers were down there finishing up on some projects and got a chance to say hi to all our homeless friends then lastnight we headed back down for our weekly outreach and we felt like God was asking us to bring our guitars, drums, and paint. So we headed dwon with such anticipation of what God was about to do. And as we started to lead worship people gathered around and began asking what we were doing people were drawn to us, it wasn't like we were the only music out there cause that was not the case at all but the Holy Spirit was so at move people couldn't stay away. So back to denny he and his friends who ill share about later all showed up and denny was talking to our leader jacob and said "what is this because I want it" and began to cry. Our leader began to explain to him and then prayed for him and with him and then denny started to push people back so he could get into the middle of the circle and he began pounding on the drum and he was laughing and crying so our leader asked him man what are you feeling and all he could say was delightful!
 So at the same breakfast I sat next to this man with long hair and arms full of tattoos, which is always helpful for a conversation starter, but when I asked he said oh you don't want to know and we went back and forth saying yes man I want to know and so he said its from my gang, and so once again we went back and forth can I hear about it... You don't want to no body has ever wanted... Yes I do so he begins sharing with me that he is a member of the Bloods gang in LA and that he has been in and out of prission because of all the crimes. So I began pouring into him at one point he shared with me that when he was in prission he became a minister and he really loved Jesus but with being on the streets he has had a really hard time. So I felt like I was supposed to show him the everything skit so I pulled it up online and as he began to watch it you could see every time a new character came out he would totally relate to that person and when the suicide part came on he got very serious then during the fighting you could see all these emotions rag up inside of him and then Jesus steps in and he just begins to cry. This gang member who had killed several people began to cry because he saw that hey Jesus does love me. So I was able to continue to encourage him and walk beside him although he is still struggling we are not giving up. We saw him lastnight and he was so drunk but the moment I put my finger in his chest and told him to look me in the eyes he was able to listen. When we began to talk about Jesus it was like no chemicals had even been placed into his body. Break...

Update coming soon I promise!

I would like to say sorry for a lack of updates lately, life has been very busy and our internet here on base has been working off and on. But I promise I'll be updating it soon. Some things I'll update you on are...
Our trip to LA
Our local outreaches (Wheelchair Lady)
Love Action (Gang member)
Personal Life

Thanks for understanding I'll post on facebook when I get it up!
Thanks for prayers and support!

1 Corinthians 13 (msg)

On a day where love sometimes seems forced upon us, remember what love is really supposed to look like, not a cupid and a arrow through a heart.

1 Corinthians 13

The Way of Love

 ¹ If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. ²If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. ^3-7If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love. 

   Love never gives up. 
   Love cares more for others than for self. 
   Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. 
   Love doesn't strut, 
   Doesn't have a swelled head, 
   Doesn't force itself on others, 
   Isn't always "me first," 
   Doesn't fly off the handle, 
   Doesn't keep score of the sins of others, 
   Doesn't revel when others grovel, 
   Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, 
   Puts up with anything, 
   Trusts God always, 
   Always looks for the best, 
   Never looks back, 
   But keeps going to the end.

 ^8-10Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

 ¹¹When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

 ¹²We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

 ¹³But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love

Alvin

So first of all I would like to just say I'm sorry for taking so long to update this blog, life has been so busy here with outreach teams coming back, and classes being combined with the other schools in different locations. In other words we haven't had a normal week in 2 weeks and we won't have a normal week for 2 more weeks. :) Joy of ministry!  :)
Alright so if your still reading by this point, good work! :) I'll give you all a story then I'll update you on what's going on inside of me, sound good? Good I was going to tell you anyways. (lame I know, but I'm bored) Okay so a few weeks ago we went down into the city to do street ministry, and before we headed down we were praying and asking God for words, images, and guidance on where to go in the city. Well while praying I heard the words, 16th street, Wazzee st, red, and Inn. When I heard these I was kinda like okay well I'll go, but I'm pretty sure there aren't Inn's downtown on 16th street (super nice mall street). As we walked down to 16th and Wazzee I saw this red sign, and above the sign is a sign that reads Hotel, at this point I was like what the heck! So we start looking for people to talk to, the first people I'm pretty sure thought we were going to steal stuff from them, this is how our convo went. "Hello Mama, how are you? Can we pray for you? (Husband comes up) Sure you can....(while walking away)" All we could do was laugh and think of how self centred we can be. After this incidence we walked across the street and started talking to a homeless man named Alvin. We were able to buy him a burrito (homeless mans dream!) and then sit outside and eat it with him, because he was to ashamed to eat in inside. While talking to him and hearing his life story you could tell that his family didn't know that he was homeless and he didn't want them to know because he was afraid they would reject him. So while we were praying for him I felt 2 things, 1. that he was to know that his family will love him, and that Jesus delights in him even if he is homeless, and 2 that we were supposed to ask him where he lived and to go and see and sit in that place.
So we were saying our goodbyes and I couldn't stop thinking about where he lived so we asked if we could follow him to his home and he lead us down this alley. (I know what you all are thinking, YOU CRAZY why would you walk down an alley at night? At that point it didn't even matter to me, I knew I was supposed to go and experience some of what this man deals with daily, and that it was a huge way Jesus wanted to show him that people do care about him) So I didn't even ask the girls in my group they just followed, and we got to his spot in the alley after he had pointed out everyone else and he told us he lived underneath this oil heater when he can't get into the shelters. So I crawled back to feel the "heat" coming out from it and my whole worldview changed in an instant. Just think last week we had -30 degree temps here not even windchill just a temp! So as we were getting ready to leave he told us that he wanted to walk us to a main street so he knew we were safe. When we arrived at a safer area he shock our hands and left with such a bubbly joy inside of him. Alvin will be a man I will never forget, although he has nothing, God used him so much to teach me so much about humility.

Okay life update, life is really good, I found a church here I really enjoy and I'm super excited to start going and building relationships there. Our teachings we have had so far are, Fear of the Lord, Father heart of God, Character of God, Kingdom world view, and now spiritual warfare. They have all been good in there own unique ways and I feel like my whole view of God has been changed, and I'm so excited to see what he is doing in my life, my family, my friends, my roommates, and the world, its crazy how good he is to us. One thing that really hit me was this quote... "God is loving huh? Well then where was he when I was hurting, when I was being abused, when I felt abandoned? (you fill in your pain) He was sitting there weeping with you, he was hurting with you, he was feeling the pain of seeing his child being abused, and abandoned. Then why didn't he do anything? Because if he would control everything so that there would be no pain, then there would be no love. You can't have one without the other." So remember God is in your suffering and pain, and he WILL use that for His good one day, just have faith and believe He will! Love you all!

Update

Alright so I'm not sure what to update you all on, so I guess I'll update you on our classes, because we haven't done a ton out of the classroom this week.
Last week we had the amazing speaker Jeff Pratt, speaking on the "Father Heart of God"and non-the-less it was a very emotional week, and freeing week. We addressed all the blocks in our hearts that build up walls between us and God, and then we sat and reflected why those were there, what lies we were being spoken, and what names that had been claimed over us that weren't of God. Then the next day we all came together for a time of confession and healing prayer, and that began the journey to a week of freedom, worship, and rejoicing in who God has called us to be. God really showed me that he not only longs to be my friend, my father, my mother, but also my lover and husband. I have always known that, but never truly knew it deep inside of me until last week when I had this picture of a bride and a groom at their reception. The bride was sitting down on a chair wearing a dirty, grubby, ripped up dress, and the groom (aka Jesus) was standing in a pure white tux in front of me with arms stretched out to me. Then I heard the words, "I choose you, even in your grubbiness I choose you!" And as I grabbed his hand the chains around my ankles fell off as we danced away and my dress turned pure white as well. I was reminded of this during worship on Monday and I felt like God said are you just going to stand at our reception dance, or are you going to jump in and dance (worship) with me?
Then today we had a time of reflection in the afternoon and the topic that came up was what excesses are you using to not follow 100% after God? I felt like mine were lies from the enemy saying "How could you be set free of those chains?"  And then our leaders felt like we needed to do something to take a stand to show physically that we were done with that junk with those excesses in our lives, so we did a trust fall. (This is when you get up on a chair on our stage, and then people stand in front of the stage and you fall backward into their arms, trusting they will catch you.) So we all got up and out loud declared what we were laying down and what we were picking up instead, and I don't know if I've ever heard such a sound of freedom and joy flood a room at once! Walls were destroyed these past weeks, burdens were lifted, and our yokes have become easy in Christ.

Kingdom Outreach (downtown Denver)

1/12/2011 Kingdom Outreach

Beth, Casey, Branden, Kate, Kylie

As we got off the bus to do street ministry the Lord led Branden over to a homeless man walking across the street. This man was pretty short, scruffy beard, smoking a cigarette, and everything he said was brought back to music. So as the guys were talking to him I felt like the Lord told me to sing him a song worthy of God, but I just kinda pushed it off. So we went and bought this guy, Bob, a meal at mcdonalds and got him a warm cup of coffee. He was so nice and welcoming till we got him food, then he was angry at Christian people and thought we were judging him and that he knows the “games” we play. We told him we weren’t playing games, and that we just wanted to bless him in what ever way he would let us. Back up a little bit, as we were walking into Mcdonalds a man was standing outside opening the door for us to try and earn tips to get a meal. This guy on the other hand was well rounded and such a light of God in his eyes. So we invited him in as well to get a meal. His name was Ricky, then as we sat down a lady named Michelle came running over to our table and asked if we were here to pray so she sat down and joined us and we prayed for her. When we got done praying one of the guys in our group had an image of a bird flying, and another girl had a picture of a rainbow and i believe a bird also with the verse about running and not growing weary and flying on eagles wings in Isaiah. Later that night I was laying in bed and then Lord reminded me of my quite time a few days earlier and how I felt led to pray on behalf of a lady named Michelle for renewal and that God would send someone to pick up his wounded soldier. DANG RIGHT?!?  

Okay so back to Mcdonalds the man named Ricky was a sold man of God, and of amazing character. One day a lady dropped a few $20 bills on the ground and instead of not telling her and getting them for himself he stopped her and picked up her money and gave it back, as he was telling us that story a still small voice told me to go get him that $20 so I got up but the ATM was broken, so I sat back down. We started praying for healing in his stomach, because he had been having some serious problems with it, and was in and out of the hospital, so half of our team kept praying for him and I started talking to the first guy Bob again with one of the other girls on our team. He was still so bitter towards Christians, so we just kept trying to press in and love him. And the whole time I kept feeling like I needed to sing, so... I told my friend girl we are supposed to sing, she looked at me like NO YOU CAN SING THATS CRAZY! So we started singing a song we have been singing a lot here on base that goes, “I called you answered you came to my rescue and I want to be where you are... My life, be lifted high, and our world, be lifted high, and our love, be lifted high” and that was all I sang and I felt like the moment I allowed God to sing through me a wall was broken down, he started to open up. 

About that time I look over to Ricky (christian homeless man) and he pulls out this yellow ticket for begging for change on the corner. At that moment I asked him Ricky how much is that for? He said I think its $30 but he couldn’t find the price, so I told him that when I just left I went to go get you money. So I gave my friend my debit card and told them to go get the money for that ticket. As we were walking back to the buses that night my friend stopped me and said dude I felt like I was supposed to give him $10 so his $10 and my $20 paid for his $30 ticket!!! The Lord will provide!

So back to Bob, after everyone else left we just kept trying to find away into his heart to pray for him and finally as we were about ready to leave we asked him one more time, Bod can we pray for you? This time he said I suppose, and so we began to pray for him and healing over his legs and mind, and as we did this old bitter hateful man, began to cry, and reached over to put his hand on top of the girls hand that was praying, and he began shifting in his seat like something inside of him was changing. After we got done praying he looked up and this man was TOTALLY different, he now wanted a hug and love from us, not just a meal and cigarettes. THE LORD IS AT WORK IN LIVES! He just wants to love people, and He wants us to be apart of that love. Thank you Jesus!

Here I am

So I've arrived, and my first week is done it was a very long week of getting to know everyone and getting through our bonding sessions. Tomorrow classes start officially and our subject this week is the fear of the Lord. I'm so ready to get the teaching coming and to begin being wrecked to pieces and restored. A few nights ago a group of us girls went out for the night and then decided we all had a passion to go do some ministry, so we drove around praying till we felt like we should stop. When we stopped we got out and played hacky sack with 3 high school guys. None of them were Christians, so we were well God how do we share with them your truths we were at a stand still. So as we are just talking about life our hacky sack gets stuck in the rafters, and the guys didn't want to get it out, so we decided this could be our chance to help and then share. So we lifted each other up, and got the hacky down. Then we were able to just open up and share about the real love of Jesus and how he loves and provides for us no matter what. After we got done sharing we prayed for them and their families. Before we prayed they were so against us, and after you could tell a door in them had opened, a seed had been planted, a light had been turned on. The oldest kid was really curious about what Christianity is all about, and we found out they live us around the corner from us. God is good!

Colorado Here I am!

Alright Friends, quick update, So I'm here I'm in Colorado with my parents till Monday and then they will jump on a train and come home, and I'll begin my training in Denver. The last few days have been very refreshing, and reminding of who God really is. We are up in the mountains (I kinda feel like a monk right now, or I guess a nun, being away from the city on a mountain top) just relaxing and skiing in the beauty of God's creation. As we pulled in Wednesday night I was reminded of how BIG GOD IS! and how small we are! As we drove in I looked up at the stars, and the huge mountain standing beside me, and my breath was taken back a bit. DANG! If I feel this small against this mountain, then GOD IS HUGE! Considering he holds the world in the palm of his hand and its just like a drop in a bucket. Wow reality check huh? And looking at the mountain all I could think of was, its huge AND how BEAUTIFUL it was. If God spent that much time to make the mountains, the sun set, the (whatever you find beautiful) how much more time did he spend on us, living humans made in HIS IMAGE! DUDE GUYS WAKE UP THIS JESUS IS IN LOVE WITH YOU, AND IS WAITING WITH OPEN ARMS FOR YOU TO RUN TO HIM! Its so simple just ask him to live in you, and to be in charge of your life, and to take way all the crap from your past. Then the adventure begins, is the adventure easy... haha... NO!
BUT is it worth it YES!!!!!


I pray that this will hit home to those of you who need to hear it, and that you will share it with those people in your life who need a reminder of how BIG GOD TRULY IS, and how much he LOVES us NO MATTER WHAT! Don't fill up that desire inside of you with CRAP from this world that are instant ANYMORE! Guys go to the one who says drink from me and you will NEVER thirst AGAIN!

Love you all!

Here we go ready or not!

Wow... so I sit here at my computer and look at the countdown that says 5 days 7 hours and 9 minutes till I leave, and the thought of leaving still flies over my head like the wind blowing through the trees. Am I excited? Yes! Do I have any doubt this is where I'm supposed to be? NOPE not at all! I know the Lord has called me to Ywam and made it so clear in the past few months. The Lord is opening some new doors that I'm very excited about, and shutting some old doors that I thought would never be shut. It's all new and exciting, its like watching a movie... WHAT'S NEXT!?! Even though I have no clue where I will be in the next days, weeks, months, and years, I do know that no matter what I try to plan, God's plans are going to go way, WAY beyond what I can dream. His bar and standards are higher than my eyes can see, higher than my dreams can fly. He is the almighty creator and wants to create a new work in each one of us. So I will try and keep you all updated on my life in these next few months, but if you ever want to know more please feel free to email me vanwyk20@gmail.com or facebook me. Thanks for all your support and prayers!

Life Update

From the streets of Pella, to the streets of Kampala, ONLY God knows where these feet will go next. I've been in a season of stepping back and observing those around me that are leading, and finding things that I would change to better reach our generation. It's been very interesting to see how much we revolve around time and how much we don't revolve around the Spirit. When in reality if we kick the Spirit out the door and don't move in his time then we have kicked our church out the door as well.
    You ask why? Well it says that our words will mean nothing to people when we teach if the Spirit doesn't translate it for them. "okay well the Spirit can translate, but what does that have to do with time?" Well if you are more concerned about the amount of time each member of the service takes up, instead of seeing how the Spirit wants to meet us, we MISS THE SPIRIT! And if we don't invite the Spirit to speak then frankly our words mean NOTHING, and it's only time until our church will mean nothing as well.
     Not yet convinced, well try this look. When are students the most ready to fight the fight, when are they 100% surrendered to God? When they have been at a retreat, conference, or mission trip that was focused on seeing the Spirit move. So if we take the movement of the Spirit out of our youth groups, then they to will also die.

That's a clip of what I have been wrestling with, in a world where we much please everyone and not step on peoples toes, well Jesus stepped on toes so I think its okay if we tell it how it is too.

Parylized from a stroke 6 months earlier, after much prayer, she slowly began to move again!

South Africa Slums

Lion Park

VBS Kids in the Slums of South Africa

Photo Shoot!

Itani

South Africa

Over 75,000 people living in a 3 mile radius

South Africa Slums

My "Twin" Robby and I with Zimbabwe Refugees

My Yellow Eagle Zambian Camp Home Group

Relay Race

All the Zambian Camp Hope Children 

Africa

7/25/2010

You know you’ve been in Africa to long when you…

1. Have open convos about your body functions with both girls and guys in public
2. When you see a bug in your drink and you still drink it
3. When you look for a stick to get the rest of the peanut butter out of its jar
4. When you touch the bottom of your shoe, then pick up your apple and eat it
5. When you look into your coffee cup and see stuff floating and still drink it
6. When you find yourself journaling about being here to long!!!

South Africa

7/13/2010

God you are my ROCK, my REFUGE, my STRONG FORTRESS, you are my LEADER, you set me FREE, I COMMIT myself to you, you’re my REDEEMER, God I will TRUST in you all my days, because your LOVE goes beyond all pain, hurts, fears, doubts, lies, lust and borders. You are MERCIFUL, you are my STRENGTH!

7/25/2010

I know I’m forgiven for all I’ve done, but why do I keep going back to my past. Thoughts about… God I rebelled against this or I shouldn’t have done that? But the Lord says NO IT IS FINISHED! It’s time to flip our minds, hearts and addictions inside out we ARE forgiven we can live FREE! When you ask for forgiveness Jesus FORGIVES and FORGETS! So stop holding on to your sing and accusing others, because if the God of the universe can forget about it, I think you can too!

South Africa- Spoken Word

Spoken Word

This is just a fun piece of work, my friends wanted to see if I could really “rap”.

It is finished

John 19:30

It is finished

I’m not talken about a race

To the rugged strip of tape

I’m talken about your faith

And the pain that it will take

To become a warrior of the Lord

Never doubting what’s at stake

Many people have come and gone

But God, your love it still remains

Everybody askin what it means

To become a servant of a King

In laying down my pride

To help bring new life to the blind

And by sitting on my knees to worship the king of all kings

Through love, worship, prayer, and service

Were taken back the broken betrayed and deserted

Faith without actions

Has no meaning

Faith full of action

Keeps your heart beating

Love is the act

Of holy sacrifice

Worship is the beat

Of laying down your life

Prayer is the cry

Of the broken hearted child

Whose life’s about to end

If we don’t step up to run the extra mile

And service isn’t giving to any earthly matter

Instead service is the act of laying down your life to take that extra step to help heal that broken cry

For it’s not by us God

But by your power

To reach the broken hearted

To the point of being a martyr

So God I give you my life

Let it be all that you please

To reach the world

Through serving from my knees.

South Africa

6/19/2010

Just as each sunrise brings a different picture, so should each of our lives. Each way we serve should paint a new picture of God’s love. Just as the sun rises it sets and brings the blessings of that day. You won’t know your blessings in advance but you know it will be different every night, but you also know it will be a beautiful picture. (Kind of confusing but super good once you understand it, ask if you want an explanation)

Revelations

In all honesty I feel like I just got back from Africa, the memories are still as impacting today, if not more, as they were almost a year ago when they were happening. I still find myself praying for the little girls who were being abused by their parents, and wondering if they are okay, if they are still alive, and if God truly cares for them and if he does why isn't he doing anything. Then I find myself pausing and remember HE IS DOING SOMETHING, I was a little part of the big picture in saving those children. Maybe my team were the only people who ever loved them or showed our love, and in that case I pray we did the best we could to show the love of God though our imperfections. I also pray that it wasn't just some Americans speaking to them, I pray it was the voice of God speaking to the cries of their hearts. 

As I prepare my heart, mind, and body (sleeping in a cold dirty tent on the floor isn't quite normal) to go back I find myself asking some questions... What does love look like? How do I show Christ's love in a way that will truly mean something to them? How do you explain to them how to keep the "fire" going? And that there WILL be hard seasons?

So I was kinda frustrated I woke up on Thursday and felt free to be me in Christ, then I woke up of Friday feeling like a ton was sitting on my head weighing me down. I was asking God how is this even possible? Then I saw this image of a fire burning, and then leaves sitting on top of it (they weren't burning just over top of it) Then a wind came and blew the leaves off and the fire shot up and burned even stronger, but when the wind stopped the leaves returned and the fire dwindled. In the same sense when we speak (wind) about the love, joy, and grace of Christ in the good times and even more in the bad times, we will remove the junk (fear, doubt, pressure, pain, worry) (leaves) in our lives, and the love of Christ (fire) will shine through. 

And in seeing that image and understanding that the Lord wants me to rejoice in good and bad times and that's how to show my love and dedication to him, and when I rejoice he will be near. (when you draw near to God he will draw near to you) So if your in a place of fear, confusion, chaos, pain, doubt, or ____(insert your problem here). Rejoice! And let the love of Christ overcome you and take way your _______(insert junk here).

Take heart!

Over the past few weeks, maybe even months, I have found myself at a place of being discouraged very fast and easy. Which for anyone who really knows me, knows I don't normally get discouraged very easy at all. So in this season of what seems like a roller coaster of emotions regarding faith, life, and relationships I find myself seeing the end of the tunnel... well maybe not the end but I have gotten a new breath of life.
In the past week I have heard these two lines several times from different sources randomly not trying to seek them out. I would be sitting on the couch watching tv, driving in my car listening to the radio, or reading this random book my grandma gave me to read, and every time a bell went off in my head and I didn't know why. The 2 quotes are: "Be faithful in the small things." and "If you can't stand up under discouragement then you probably shouldn't be in ministry"
So as I was sitting there reading the book, listening to the radio, and watching TV, the Lord was sending me "winds" of hope. The wind comes and goes, but certain winds leave a mark... Wind can move the sand covering your heart, it can uproot the trees we have planted thinking they were good, it opens our ears to the mighty powerful sound is makes, and it can make us shut our eyes because sometimes it hurts to look into the storm. But the good news is God won't let you down.
As your walking through this storm, or dry season of life the Lord is right beside us, using us when we ask to be used, and sending us "signs" to let us know he is right beside us and understands. So whether your like me and find yourself in a season of "fear","doubt", and discouragement in only doing the small things, or if your in a season of Joy, Peace, and are a water fountain of love. Remember to be faithful in the small things, and trust that HIS plans over rule all discouragement
Have a blessed week!

What's Next???

What's next? I've been hearing this question a lot lately for several reasons, one being I'm the one to always have a crazy vision for what I want to do next with my life, and two because that's the question every Junior and senior in high school gets.
As many of you know the past year or so I have been checking out several different types of schools, from missions to photojournalism, and in the past few months I have felt very overwhelmed and almost discouraged and not wanting to seek for schools anymore because when I felt like a a door was opened it would then slam in my face. Well this past weekend I decided to make one more stop and check out YWAM Denver (missions training school). The night before I was sitting in my hotel room praying, and asking God that if I was supposed to go here that he would show me in a way that I couldn't deny.
So Friday morning my parents and I woke up and headed over to the base to get a tour and join them for worship, and as we were worshiping an intense peace fell upon me, and for the first time in a long time it didn't matter who was beside me, what the songs were, or where I was... I was able to sit at the feet of Jesus and be filled and praise him for who he was. They started playing a song that I had heard only a few times, (one of those songs that you "know" the song and when you finally see the lyrics you feel dumb cause you were singing the totally wrong words) and as I was crying out with the rest of the school for the first time I read the words of the song and began to weep. (BETH DOESN'T NORMALLY CRY) The chorus went like this...

I have finally found where I belong, I have finally found where I belong in Your presence I have finally found where I belong, To be with You, to be with You

And as the school sang this song the tears built up in my eyes, and it was like God was saying "Beth stop looking... give me your frustrations...this... THIS IS WHERE YOU BELONG!"

So with that I am planning on applying to YWAM Denver, it's a very neat base with a lot of young passion for the Lord. www.ywamdenver.com In that please be praying that I would get accepted, and if the Lord has different plans that the door to YWAM would be closed.

45 Days!

The thought of leaving in 45 days is exciting yet a little scary at the same time. I have really been learning that I can do nothing on my own strength, and it's all out of God's. There is this book called No Compromise, its written by Keith Green's wife after he died, and I found this prayer that totally fits what I'm feeling going into these next few months of my life.

"Can't sleep. An angel wants to burn my lips with the coal. I must count the cost. Isaiah 6:7-8 Here am I. Send me! Prayer is the key. Make me a man of prayer! Put power in my words. Your word is powerful! Make your word my word, make your power my power. I want to be God's voice, full of love, mercy and fire! But I must be dead! I am ready for Death! Kill me, destroy me, burn me beyond recognition. I know now that you would never hurt or harm me. You only want me dead! Let it be done! I don't want greatness. I want you to be great! Lower me down, humble me. Teach me to humble myself, O Lord! I love you so much, but not as you love the Father. I want to love you that way!"

"O God, I was frightened, but now I'm feeling better. This is God's revival. His will, his burden, not mine. Lord, let me pray! Help me prepare a message in the furnace with you! Not by power, not by might, but by my Spirit! Amen!"

Praise God Report!

So the Lord is so faithful to provide! I sent out fundraising letters a month or so ago, and my prayer through the whole month of Dec. and most of Jan. was that God would provide $2000, I got an email the other day, saying someone was willing to give me $500 PRAISE THE LORD or how we like to say it (PTL) I have reached the amount I felt like I needed to have by the end of Jan. to truly know God had called me there. When you ask you will receive! Praise the LORD!!!
Mukama Yebazebwi! Amina!

How it all started...

I know some of you are thinking, "What is this girl thinking, spending her whole summer in Africa, graduating high school early to dedicate a whole year to the Lord, and nothing else really, she is crazy." I know I feel the same way about my future sometimes, but the Lord keeps bringing me back to this saying, "because someone has to love them".

Let me give you a little back ground to help those of you who don't know me super well, I grew up in a family where ministry and missions were a normal part of life. My mom traveled around singing, so our family was always involved in that, and we began going down to Mexico when I was in first grade to do Christmas gift distribution with the children there. I have also had the amazing opportunity to serve in Guatemala, Mexico, Uganda, and the United States. But through all these trips let me tell you one thing that keeps amazing me every time. It doesn't matter where you go there are ALWAYS people who need to be loved.

So through all the good events in the past, and even the ones that challenged my faith, I stand here today to say "I WILL GO, BECAUSE SOME1 HAS 2 LOVE THEM!" It only takes 1 person to show love to the lost, broken, and hopeless brothers and sisters of mine across the world. In my mission statement because some1 has 2 love them, it's not only my mission statement, but my plan of action. Here it goes it doesn't get anymore simple, #1 It only takes 1 person and #2 to show someone the TRUE LOVE of Jesus. In the Bible we are commanded to love Jesus, and love others.

So what's the next few months look like?

-In the next few months I will be preparing to spend 2 months in Africa, doing all types of ministry from orphan relief to street ministry at the World Cup. I will also be taking a world missions class called Perspectives, and continuing leading a middle school small group at my church.

What countries will you be in?

- This summer I will be living in South Africa for 1 month, then flying up to meet the second half of my team in Zambia for our second month.

What are your future plans?

-As of now the future plans for after high school are still a little up in the air, but I'm planning on graduating at semester next year (Dec 2010) and dedicating a full year solely to seeking God's face, as of now I'm looking at a few "leadership academies" (Desperation Leadership Academy in Colorado, Honor Academy in Texas, 24 7 in Alabama/Arkansas, and The Movement in L.A)

So there is a little update on what's going on in my life, and the amazing yet a little scary journey that God is bringing me on, I'm super excited to be able to be the hands and feet to the lovely African people again this summer, but at the same time I can't do it alone. Would you prayerfully consider supporting me through prayer and finances, it has been very clear that God has called me to go this summer, and I know he will call those forward who are to be the senders of the goers. Its a chain, and the goers can't go if the senders don't respond to the call, and the prayers are being called to intercede for the goers. Would you consider donating to the cause, "because someone has to love them". If you are wanting to donate, please shoot me an email at, because.some1.has.2.love.them@gmail.com, and I can get you all the information you will need.

Thank you for joining with me on this journey, and this will be the spot to find updates on what's next, through out this journey.