God is Love

Since my DTS last year I’ve been craving deeper intimacy with God. I want it all the time. On my DTS I think the characteristic I really understood deeply was God’s faithfulness. He is so faithful. He’s always there. Always dependable, always loving, always has a plan. I saw his faithfulness everywhere… you can trace it thru my life. He has blessed me in so many ways.

For the past 7 months God has been teaching me a new part of his character. I have been so captivated by his love. During the January DTS I really began to understand more of the fatherheart of God. He loves us so much as his children. I’ve felt God’s heart break when a student says they don’t feel his love, or don’t want him. He loves us so much that we honestly can’t understand it… to understand his love would be too much for us to handle. It’s so incomprehensibly huge. As I see evidence of it all around, I am so blown away. What a blessing to have a God that loves us… who wants relationship with us more than anything else… we don’t have to strive for his love… he reaches out and gives freely. It’s hard to feel worthy of that kind of love. I know I’m not deserving of love from such a powerful God and creator, yet he wants to love me!!!! The more I understand this, the more I want to share it with anyone and everyone. God craves that relationship with each person! As I began to understand more of the fatherheart of God… I began to see my worth through his eyes. His is the only opinion that matters! As I look through the Bible… it’s easy to see what he thinks of me… to see his love. It’s so much more powerful than any other kind of love I’ve ever felt!

When I was traveling in East Asia, I was having a few really tough weeks. I was so discouraged. I know eventually I am to move to Asia, and the thought of going by myself was so scary. I want someone else there with me to encourage me and push me when I’m ready to quit… who I can verbally process everything with. I asked God to speak to me about this… to give me assurance or direction. He not only confirmed that I would be moving to Asia, but he also gave me something so much better than I could ever have imagined. For the next few days I saw God’s love for me in a whole new way. He was romancing me. As I went about my day, things would happen that brought so much joy to my heart. For example: we went to a university and there was a beautiful little overgrown courtyard tucked away but somehow I found it. It was something I’d seen in my dreams but this was real! Everyone else thought it was cool, but I literally started crying. It’s hard to explain exactly what it meant to me, but it showed me that God knows me better than anyone else ever could. He knows my hopes and dreams, and he will provide. It was such a tangible reality of his love. As we continued walking, there were many more things like that. It was honestly overwhelming. I realized that God has so much more to offer than anyone on this earth. He will always give me what I need, but He’ll also give me that joy. I know it may not make sense… writing it is so difficult to describe, but I KNOW beyond a shadow of a doubt that God loves me more than anyone on this earth ever could. Later on that day, we walked down this small path that was literally covered with my favorite flower, daphne. It was planted all around us and even draped over us like a canopy. It was beautiful, it smelled like heaven, and I knew once again that it was God. I picked a small bouquet of them and still have them pressed in my journal to this day. It’s such a beautiful picture of God’s love.

Now as I read 1 John, I love his words. Everything he says is dripping with love. He experienced God’s love! I feel like I have had that happy experience also. I could never explain it in words, but I pray that more people will seek that love. God gives it so freely and it is the most joy I’ve ever felt in my life.

Song of Songs has also captured my heart. It's a love message… “All beautiful you are my darling, there is no flaw in you.” God loves us so much that he looks past all of our flaws. His view of us is so much better than anything we could ever imagine!!!

I'm so in awe of His love, his grace, the hope he brings. His love endures forever.

Sunny days :)

Things are taking a turn for the better here at the Sunshine Coast... the clouds and the rain are less frequent and the skies are finally the most beautiful color of blue. As the winter fades away, my life is also becoming more sunny. It's been a long, cold few months. God has felt distant. I've felt tired and discouraged, but this is just another season in my life. I'm grateful for it because it makes sunny days like today so much more wonderful, so much more appreciated. God has taught me many things in the past few months. Not all of them have been fun lessons, but my relationship with him was definitely strengthened during this time. There were many days when life felt hopeless. All I could do was cry out to him... for encouragement, for reassurance of his love for me and his plan for my life. I wanted so badly to be home, to be in China, anywhere but Australia. But God is so good. He's given me awesome friends during this time to encourage me and keep me sane. I have learned so much being involved with the July DTS. I have taken all sorts of new roles such as managing the school budget and taking on the role of house leader. It's been so stretching. I think the biggest thing I've learned this winter is to be content in the in-between periods. I don't always get to travel and keep moving. There are times when I simply have to be still before God. To be with him in the highs and the lows.

As the spring comes, it brings hope. I have so many things to look forward to... SBS in September, possibly leading the Around the World DTS next year, then heading to China soon after to learn mandarin. It's going to be an insanely busy few years. I am so grateful for this time of rest and quiet with God. As things start to get busy again I don't ever want to forget to find that peace before God. I should never let my ministry or my life to get in the way of my time with God. I MUST be still before God.

I am so overwhelmed by the love and grace of my God. Of the hope he brings. All I want to do is be in his presence. He has blessed me so much here and to think that I have any excuse to be ungrateful is absolute rubbish. I truly feel as if my life here has become more established. I have made new friends, I feel ownership. Australia is home. :)

Praise God for all he's done. His love endures forever

Floating between schools

Sometimes I really hate the time between schools. As of right now, I'm trying my best to prepare for the School of Biblical Studies (SBS) which starts in Sept. It's going to be a very intensive training course as we'll read thru the Bible 5 times in 9 months. I'm excited, but also nervous. I don't feel like I'm a good enough student for this, but I know that God has called me to do it. I'm so excited to get to know God's word so much better! It's absolute truth. I'm so convinced that God wants each of us to dive deep into his word... I can't wait to know it better! I pray more than anything that this school won't be about knowledge tho... I want wisdom. I want a deeper relationship with my Lord. There's nothing better in life than Him.. than His love.

Currently I'm trying to find a job to help raise some extra money to support the SBS. I'm still helping with the July DTS but in a lower capacity. My biggest goal during this last month before the SBS is to spend time in God's presence.... to come in charging and refreshed. I also really want to help the DTS students discover their passions and callings before they head back home. I hope to be a resource for them... but that involves lots of reading and research myself. So... I'll be spending lots of time at starbucks reading... ha. such a rough life. But I'm so convinced that God has big plans for these students and I really want to help them so if it means reading the majority of the time... i'm ready to do it. Good prep for SBS anyway!

please be praying that this last month before SBS is refreshing and God works in and thru me. It's been tough being here this winter honestly. I've felt pretty discouraged and homesick. But God is so good. I believe He's preparing me for bigger trials in the future and I want to step up to the challenge. This can only be achieved by total dependence on God... something I still have much to learn about.

I know I kinda just rambled about a lot of things... there are so many things I've been learning that it's hard to consolidate them. As I get better at blogging regularly I think it should be easier to sort out these thoughts.

as for now, just pray. for the school, for a deeper friendship with God, for refreshment...

thanks for your prayers. :)

It's been WAY too long..

These past few months feel like they simply disappeared. There were many little things to do with the wrap up of the January DTS and preparation for things to come. For the past month I have been helping with the July DTS. It's been so different than the last DTS I staffed and I'm learning so many new things. It's definitely been a struggle at times... but I think it's been a lesson in dependence on God. Every day I've had to cry out for more of Him and less of me. Every day I've had to seek my strength in Him. Even though He was answering those prayers, I also felt like He had something different planned for me for this time. 2 Nights ago, He gave me a clear picture of His heart... why I'm here, and what to do about it. My passion working with DTS is to release transformational leaders... each student should leave knowing the passions God has given them or at least be confident that He'll reveal it in His time. After all, DTS isn't just a 5 month experience. It's a character school. It's a lifestyle change. Now I'll be taking a step back from some of the logistical aspects of DTS... such as lectures and attending all the events. Instead I will be studying up on different things the students might be passionate about. I want to be a resource for them. If they're interested in India, I want to be able to give them books to read, people to connect with, ministries to get involved with, that will get them more excited... that will stir up that passion inside them.

When I came to DTS I was a blank page. I wanted God to speak to me and to move me. God is so faithful. He gave me such a huge passion for East Asia... a part of the world I'd had no desire to go to... but now I KNOW that it's a passion from God, because I've never felt such a deep love for something... and 2 years ago I had absolutely no plans of ever visiting this country! God is such a awesome God! I can't help but praise Him when I think of all of the provision and blessing He's given me over all these years, but particularly in YWAM. I love my life here.

I want the students to see this side of God! To embrace the passions to further His kingdom that He's given each one of them. Please be praying for me in this time as I'll be meeting with each of the students in smaller groups or individually to discuss their interests and passions and as I research more materials for the students. I'm SO excited to see how God uses this time. I can't stop praising God!

Pray for the students that they'll embrace the great plans that God has for each of them!

Home in Australia :)

Sometimes it's difficult to be on the other side of the world from family and dear friends. There are so many amazing stories of things that have happened in the past 5 months that I don't even know where to start.

I'll catch up writing some stories about outreach later, but for now, I need to settle into Australia. That is one of the biggest things God is teaching me. It's not always about moving around... it's learning to stay put and build a life in this new country. And a lot of the time it's really difficult... missing the comfort of home. The family, the friends, the food, the coffee, the right side of the road... as the DTS came to an end and everyone started talking about returning home, I was definitely jealous. It's easy to fall into "the grass is greener" mentality. For a few days I wallowed in self-pity and home-sickness, missing my family and friends terribly. But I quickly realized that this is going to be the toughest time of my transition into Australia. I have to just rest and wait for the next school to start. I have to make friends and get more plugged in here. So that's what I'll be doing... spending this time being refreshed by God as well as getting more connected to my local church and the base. I'm hoping this time will be a time of true growth. The last thing I want is to just sit around. I'm excited to have hours each day to devote to God alone. Nothing else. I want my relationship with Him to become so much deeper during this time. I can't get enough of His perfect love.

Surrendering Self...

I’ve heard many people say over the years that they are working on an area of their life… and they fail miserably each day, but they’re growing. I always brushed that off… I never really got it. I have had to work through things in my life for sure… but I never felt like I failed so much, so often as I do here. God’s been teaching me patience, grace and flexibility this past month. I have been living in a spirit of selfishness… wanting to do what I want, my way, when I want to do it. But that’s not YWAM or living in a community. It’s a life of constant compromise and sacrifice. It’s about learning to respond with love, even when you’re so exhausted you don’t know what to do with yourself… or being graceful even when you don’t have an inch of patience left. As I said before, now I understand why people say they fail miserably everyday. I have a breakdown at some point each day… I snap, I pout, I become bitter. I get so angry at myself at the end of the day because once again, I didn’t show enough love, enough grace, I didn’t humble myself enough. But instead of beating myself up, I have been learning to lay it all down at God’s feet… asking Him for forgiveness and to fill me up with His love. God knows I’m trying, He knows I’m frustrated… that’s why He’s put me here… to stretch me. Although I may still be failing each day, I am striving to do better… I am surviving on God’s strength alone… and I know this period of my life is going to make me so much stronger, more loving and patient. I’m asking for God’s help with all of these and am positive that He’ll continue to work in me. I am excited that God is molding me more into His likeness… I want His love to shine through me… nothing else, just Jesus and His love. I mean, really… what’s better than that. One of my favorite passages of scripture is Philippians 2: 3-8, 14— “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but laid aside His privileges, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in the appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross…. Do all things without grumbling or disputing”

I’m still learning to do this each and every day, but God is so faithful… and I am excited that He’s working in my life… that He is helping me strive to be more like Him. He is the potter, I am the clay. Let God’s will be done in my life each and every moment of each and every day. I want each breath to be for Jesus… not for me.

Prayer Requests:

· For God to continue to teach me how to be more patient, loving

· For Me and my outreach co-leader, Ben, as we plan our outreach to China… that God will bless us with multiple ministries and contacts.

· For my outreach team, that they will each develop a heart for the Chinese people

· For this upcoming week: prayer week… 24/7 prayer… for God to work in huge ways…

· For finances to come in… airfare is due in 2 weeks!

Hudson Taylor

In preparation for China I have been reading as many books about China and missionaries as I can get my hands on. I've read two different accounts of the life of Hudson Taylor and it's truly inspired me. Hudson Taylor had such amazing faith and focus. God gave Him a real passion for China... and such an amazing faith in God's provision... it has really given me the courage to step out and trust in God more than ever. Some of his accounts of God's provision in his life have really encouraged me that I should never ever doubt God... He has awesome plans for me and will provide each step of the way. I never need to be worried about it. I have heard this for years, but now I'm really living it... and challenged to take it to a new extreme... I have been learning to be generous even with my limited resources... after all, it's God's money not mine. Matthew 6 talks about how the lilies of the field don't worry about what they wear... and they are more perfectly dressed than King Soloman! What am I worried about? Why am I worried? I must put all my faith in Him and He will bless me!!!

Here are a few of the awesome Hudson Taylor quotes that really challenged me... If you haven't read the story of his life, I'd highly encourage it... His stories are amazing!

• "As I put myself, my life, my friends, my all upon the altar, the deep solemnity that come over my soul with the assurance that my offering was accepted. The presence of God became unutterably real and blessed, and I remember, stretching myself on the ground and lying there before Him with unspeakable awe and unspeakable joy. For what service I was accepted I knew not, but a deep consciousness that I was not my own took possession of me which has never since been effaced."
• "I had more than 2/3 of my income available for other purposes, and my experience was that the less I spent on myself and the more I gave to others the fuller of happiness and blessing did my soul become."
• "Now I am happy in my Saviour's love. I can thank Him for all, even the most painful experiences of the past, and trust Him without fear for all that is to come."
• "Unspeakable joy all day long and every day, was my happy experience. God, even my God, was a living bright reality, and all I had to do was joyful service."
• "12 million--a number so great that it is impossible to realize it-yes, 12 million souls in China, every year, passing without God and without hope, into eternity... Oh let us look with compassion on this multitude! God has been merciful to us; let us be like Him."
• "Would you not give up all for Jesus who died for you?"
• "To contemplate going out to China far from all human aid, there to depend upon the living God alone for protection, supplies of every kind, I felt that one's spiritual muscles required strengthening for such an undertaking. There was no doubt that if faith did not fail, God would not fail."
• "I shall have no claim on anyone for anything. My only claim will be on God. How important to learn to move man, through God, by prayer alone."
• "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee... may he keep me ever thus, simply depending on Him for every blessing, temporal as well as spiritual"
• "I know He tries me only to increase my faith, ant that it is all in love. Well, if He is glorified, I am content."
• "One who is really leaning on the Beloved finds it always possible to say 'I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.' But I am so apt, like Peter, to take my eyes off the One to be trusted and look at the winds and the waves... oh for more stability! The reading of the Word and the meditation on the promises have been increasingly precious to me of late."
• "I have made it (finding a house) a matter of prayer, and have given it entirely into the Lord's hands, and now I feel quite at peace about it. He will provide and be my guide in this and every other perplexing step"

Amen.

Evangelism

Evangelism. What do you think of? I used to think of street preaching, of shoving my beliefs down someone else’s throat, annoying people who didn’t want to hear it. It used to really scare me. It’s something I’ve definitely been learning in the past year. It still does sometimes, but it is so awesome! I think what I like about it the most is all I have to do is share what God’s done in my life… to share his love… to listen to other people’s stories and beliefs.

Last May, when I was in Byron Bay, I was terrified of evangelism. I didn’t even agree with it. I thought of all the encounters I’ve had with crazy street preachers and the bad taste it had left in my mouth. How can that spread Christ’s love? Last year when I went to Nimbin, the drug capital of Australia, for evangelism day I refused to talk to anyone. I was afraid of getting questions to which I didn’t know the answers. I was afraid of these people who have had many spiritual experiences and encounters. I wasn’t about to tell them that they had to believe what I believed. Going back to Nimbin yesterday made me realize how much I’d changed, how much God has moved in my life, my perspective had completely shifted. I am so much more solid in my faith now. I am confident about the Lord of my life. I no longer worry about inconveniencing people, because I want to share God’s love with them.. I want everyone to experience the love and freedom that I have received from God. I used to be a relativist… thinking each person had their own beliefs and that was cool, but that’s not good enough anymore. I know that Jesus is real. I’ve seen evidence of that in my life… I’ve seen miracles, healings, I’ve heard His voice, I’ve felt unspeakable joy and peace that could only be from Him… I know with every inch of my being He is real. Many people would say that that’s great… that they’re glad I’m happy with my beliefs but that they’ve found their own way. I still don’t want to push people, I’m not going to force anything, after all, God has given each of us free will… if people aren’t ready to accept His love, that is completely within their rights. But I know that what I believe is TRUTH. In the Bible, Jesus says “I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the father except through me.”—John 14:6. All I can do is share what I’ve found and let the Holy Spirit take care of the rest. I’m not trying to make converts, I’m merely a vessel for the Holy Spirit to talk through me… it’s His responsibility to move through and convict people. All I can do is pray and seek his will for me.. for what he wants me to share each day. I need to listen to people’s hearts and pray for the Holy Spirit to give me the words to get through to people, for them to feel God’s love and heart clearly.

Yesterday in Nimbin was so encouraging… all I want to do is have conversations with people…. I have an obligation to share what God’s done in my life. I have been freed! I can’t contain my enthusiasm, my excitement of my love for Christ. In Matthew God commands us to go out and preach the gospel. It’s not scary anymore. I shouldn’t be sorry for what I’m sharing, for wanting to talk to people about this. Jesus is the best thing that ever happened to me, I should want to tell every single person about it! Sharing excitement is natural… when someone gets a job, a sweet new car, good grades, whatever it may be, they are excited! They want to share and celebrate it. This is the same… but the excitement never really fades. God is always with me. You can never finish growing or experiencing his love in new ways. There is a refreshment and new excitement in relationship with God every single day! I can’t share enough! I want every single person to experience God’s love, joy, mercy, forgiveness!! As long as I’m alive, I want to share this love… I don’t want to keep this love for myself! How can I? If I love people at all, I will share it! If I’m rejected, I can still rest in His love. I know He’ll bless me for sharing… for stepping out of my fear of man. Hello evangelism… thank you Lord for giving me a heart for sharing your name!

Community

Learning to love like Jesus

Life is tough. There will always be people you struggle with… you’re not going to get along with everyone. I’ve always done my best to stick with the people I identify with; who are compatible with me. Over the past year, God has placed me into situations where I’m with people I wouldn’t normally hang out with. And not just a little bit of time… He’s made them a part of my day-to-day life. I love it…. I mean, I struggle with it, but it’s my challenge. What can I learn from being around so many different kinds of people and different personalities? God’s amazing love for every single one of us! I’ve been praying about this a lot lately… sometimes I just don’t want to put in the effort to love people… I want to coast, to hang with people like me. I find myself avoiding people I don’t automatically click with. But I’ve really been hit like a ton of bricks about that over the past few days. God doesn’t call me to stay comfortable… or only love the people who love me. He calls me to love everyone. It makes so much sense… Why wouldn’t I? I mean, after all, we’re all created just as God wants us. He didn’t make a mistake. If I don’t show love to someone because I don’t particularly mesh with them, I’m distinctly saying God’s creation isn’t good enough. I’m not saying that I have to get along with everyone perfectly, but I must learn to see people through God’s eyes. When I think about God’s love for any person I don’t click with, all I can do is smile… because God’s love for them is so huge… . Even if the person drives me crazy, I can’t find a reason not to love them… because Jesus does. Will I hang out with them all the time? Maybe not. But I must stop ignoring them.. stop taking the easy route. Why would I withhold love from anyone? It makes absolutely no sense. If I’m in love with God as I say I am… love should pour out to each of His children through me… I should get His heart. It’s so exciting! I mean… I know it seems simple and impossible all at once… but God’s been demonstrating how it is possible. He’s so good and gracious that He’s given me glimpses of His immeasurable love for every single person. I will strive to love everyone and when I do struggle, I will cling even closer to Jesus to teach me how to demonstrate that love. What an amazing God I serve! He loves each and every one of us equally, even though none of us deserve it. He loves each of our quirks, he loves our mannerisms, our shyness, our loudness, whatever. He loves us just as He made us… we don’t need to change a thing about us to make Him love us more. It’s an unconditional love… now we must learn to love each other like that. I’m taking it a step at a time… and although I’ll never perfect it, I’ll depend on Him to continue to teach me one step at a time.

New Home...

What brought me to Aus? Straight and simple… God. I look back over the past few months and not only was I not excited to go back, I was fighting it. I wasn’t ready to leave everything behind. But God provided and made it very obvious that I was supposed to be here. I had many obstacles standing between me and Australia when I came home from my DTS in September. I had my work cut out for me… I had to raise all my support, get my parents to understand why I wanted to go, apply to staff the DTS, and get a visa. I ignored all of them. I did the bare minimum to scrape by… instead I focused on school, work, and friends. But the money came in… my parents became my biggest cheerleaders, I was welcomed with open arms to staff and my visa came through miraculously. God made it all happen. Now that I’m here, that’s more apparent than ever. Today for lectures all 42 of us on the school just talked about how we ended up at the Sunny Coast January 2010 DTS. Everyone had pretty different stories… but when it came to my turn, I wanted to start bawling. As I started explaining all the miracles that took place to get me here, I was blown away. God really wants me here… I don’t quite know why… I don’t feel especially good at staffing, but I’m so confident this is exactly where I’m supposed to be. So cool. It was awesome hearing the students’ responses also. I am so excited to see what God does with each person on this school. It’s going to be huge! Although I’m still struggling to find my place and my balance as a staff member, God is so good and His will for me to be here is undeniably obvious.

I’m loving getting to know the students too… today they were all so vulnerable and real… so exciting. The growing process is going to get messy, but I can’t wait to see the fruit of all the labor. God is going to make big changes in each of our lives… it’s going to be excellent.

There are so many great things happening here. God is moving.

Prayer requests:

· That I continue to make the Sunny Coast my home

· That I learn the balance of being staff and a friend with the students

· That each of the students will be so impacted by God on this trip they’ll be changed for life

· More patience for me as I find my role here

· That I won’t dwell in the past or look to the future, but rest in the present

Cost of Discipleship

The grass is always greener on the other side… I feel like I’ve been living out that expression this past week. As excited as I am about being here, I’ve also been terribly homesick. I miss my friends, my family, good coffee, anything and everything familiar. I left a perfectly happy life to come here… and I began to wonder why. It’s not that I wasn’t happy here, but new beginnings are always rough. You have to reach out, make new friendships, and adapt to a different culture. It’s definitely not easy. Yesterday I was really struggling… crying yet again over everything I left behind. God reminded me of my purpose for being here. We’re doing orientation lectures this week with the DTS… laying a foundation for the weeks to come… running through the basics. Yesterday a wonderfully wise lady at the base, Miss Pattie, came up and shared on the ‘cost of discipleship.’ She talked about leaving everything behind to follow Christ. When Jesus approached the disciples in the Bible, they instantly dropped everything to follow Him. They left their careers, families, everything they’d ever known behind at the drop of a hat… to follow Jesus. That’s a pretty crazy leap of faith. This wasn’t the first time I’d heard this stuff… but this time it applied to my life in a whole new level. To be a follower of Christ, I really do have to leave EVERYTHING behind. I always thought that was pretty extreme… and that I’d never have to do it myself, but being here, I’ve realized I can’t live in both worlds. I must choose one or the other. Living on facebook and constantly skyping home won’t improve my life here… it’ll just make me miss home and be miserable here. Choosing one or the other just simplifies things. It’s not that I won’t be in touch with people at home, but I can’t run to that for comfort… as an escape. I also realized I can’t look at this period of time in Australia as a ‘2 year shift…’ this is my new life. I can’t just count down until I leave then go back to Eugene and live how I was before. Eugene is no longer my home. I’m moving on… whether I’ll live there again or not is not even something I have to consider now. Right now, I have to settle into my new home.

As scary and tough as this new life is right now, I’m confident that God has brought me here for a reason. I’ve already been stretched so much… my going outside my comfort zone, I have to cling to God for comfort. Nothing else compares.

God’s really blown me away with new revelations over the past few weeks. I love it. I can’t wait to see what comes next :)

First Day of DTS!

Today was orientation day on the base for DTS (discipleship training school)! It was so awesome! We started out with a great base worship time this morning. the blue room was full of people and the Spirit. It was such a special time. Everyone felt God's presence in the room. I was blown away... we were all worshiping whole-heartedly and it was such an amazing environment. I've missed worship like that. So heartfelt. Amazing. Although there were 60 other people in the room, it felt like it was just me and God. I didn't want it to end, but the rest of the morning was awesome too. The DTS leader, Mallory, came up and introduced the vision of the school, then the students had time to reflect and ask for prayer and make goals for the school. It was great! I'm so excited to see these students grow. Their prayer requests included giving up their inhibitions to God... not holding on to anything but openly falling into God's love. What an exciting request. I remember when I reached that point on my DTS... then exponentially grew from there. God has so much to share with each of these students... and with me.

I'm stoked for this school for my own growth too... last night I stayed up past midnight praying for vision and goals for the school. God revealed things He wanted me to work on and new challenges to live up to. It's so exciting. One of my commitments is to wake up at 6 every morning. I want to start every morning with a quiet time with God... dedicating the day to Him. Then I'll still have time to have breakfast with the girls before lectures at 8am. I've been learning so much already and can't wait to see what God's going to show me next. It's so different being on staff.. I have much more responsibility, but that also presents more opportunity for growth. God is good. :)

I'm so excited for my one-on -ones too. The girls are so incredibly sweet and open to growth. God is going to blow them away. And I get to be a part of it... encouraging them along the way. What a blessing! I love that God has allowed me to have a position of mentorship... that i can encourage people the way I was encouraged. I'm forever indebted to the leaders from my school.... and hope to have an impast on the students here.

I'm also looking forward to the SBS (school of Biblical studies) in September. It's a pioneering school from this base and I've had the opportunity to talk to the leaders... they have such an amazing passion for knowing the Bible inside and out. I'm so looking forward to being a part of it. I get so much out of the Bible already, but it'll be exciting to know it more in depth... and in context. SO EXCITED!

There are many more great things going on here... God is working in big ways already!
Write more soon....
Heidi

Students Arrive!

They're here! The day has come and I'm so excited. Since i've been in Australia we've been anticipating this day... preparing for it. The past week we've been in staff training... long hours filled with lots of information and prayer. Now everything is coming together! I'm living in a house with 1 other DTS staff, Callie, and 8 girls from all around the world. I get to drive everyone around in a monstrous white van... which is slightly intimidating... especially since I JUST learned to drive on the left side of the road. But it's going to be awesome! I'm so excited to get to know all the students and to pour into their lives. this is so different from my DTS... 3 months in Australia and then 2 months of outreach. It's going to be a great and challenging experience for all of us.

This past week has been a bit of a struggle for me.... leaving home for 2 years is definitely more extreme than anything I've done before. But I already am feeling at home here... more everyday. I still miss everyone from home, and i doubt that will change, but i'm excited to see what God has in store for me here. I'm excited for all the experiences to come... to get out and see more of the world and to reach out.

I have been challenged by so much already... and i can't wait to see what happens next. Hello January DTS!