Before Steen, my best friend, and I set out to have our girls day out we told each other that we needed to keep our eyes and ears open for how God could use us. So, after we had fun drinking Chik-fil-A milkshakes, buying goodies to take into the movie theater (smart food white cheddar popcorn and reeses pieces), lovingly embarrassing our friend Amy who works at Publix and watching "What happens in Vegas," we went to dinner. We picked up Amy during her dinner break and tried to eat at a local restaurant that was way too crowded and would not allow enough time for us to eat and get Amy back to work on time. So, instead I suggested Tecali Grille and as we pulled in the parking lot declared, "there is a reason God brought us here instead."
As soon as we walked in the restaurant there was a buzz. One waiter immediately commented on Steen's rad hairstyle. And, during the course of a couple minutes we had at least 4 different waiters come by our table. Then, Christopher a.k.a Corndog comes over to our table wanting to be a part of the fun (those of you who know Steen and I together know we are insanely outgoing and loads of fun, which usually magnetically draws people to us). So Corndog actually sits down at our table and shares that he is a cross-country runner at American Heritage Academy. He then proceeds to tell us that he is injured and has to go to the doctor on Wednesday and won't be able to run in his last race on Friday. Steen and I in that instant looked at one another and knew exactly what we were going to do.
I asked Corndog if it would be alright if we prayed for him when we finished eating. He said, "yes that would be awesome!" I have to admit Steen and I were a little shocked at his excitement. So we ate quickly and asked him to take a 5 minute break and come outside so we could pray for him. There we were Steen and I, laying hands on his ankles in the parking lot as people walked by. We knew God wanted to heal him. We both prayed, feeling the power of the Spirit come over us. Then, we asked Corndog with excitement to walk on it asking, "does it feel any different, is it healed?" And, he looked at us with this incredible grin and said, "my legs feel lubricated and I wasn't going to be able to race on Friday, but now I can!" Oh, praise God, he healed his ankles / feet!!!!! Our God is so AMAZING!
We got Corndog's info so we can hear about his doctors appointment and watch him race on Friday! We are going to bring some friends and cheer him on. I will send and update after the race.
We were asked to write an essay called "This I Believe" about what really matters to us, as preparation for this world missions adventure called the World Race. This is what I believe...
I believe that God is so much bigger than my "normal." And, that my "normal" needs to continuously change.
Normal. What is normal anyway? Normal is a perception of our current reality. And, our normal is transformed and changed as we add new truth to our reality. As truth is revealed our normal morphs to incorporate the new truth. So, therefore, our normal is constantly changing as new truths are introduced and we allow it to change.
Some people don't want there normal to change and they allow themselves to live in a unrealistic world, one that is safe and that they can confine and understand. Well, I have come to realized that there is so much that I don't understand. There is so much truth that I have not yet received and allowed to change my perception of normal.
Here is an example where my normal changed. I just recently got back from a conference in Lakeland, Florida. I witnessed something that I had never seen before. I believe in miracles and that people can be healed in the name of Jesus, but I had never seen anything like this. Todd Bentley had a vision, while he was preaching, about a woman in the audience who had no eardrum and said that God wanted to heal her. She came forward, which was incredible in itself that there was actually a woman in the crowd who indeed had no eardrum. Then, Todd prayed over the woman and with faith tested it out. He closed her good ear and gently snapped into the ear that previously had no ability to hear. The look on the woman's face was priceless. She could hear! She was so astonished and filled with joy!
And, I praised God as he gave me another glimpse of who He is and that He allowed my normal to be changed. Now my normal includes God re-creating eardrums so that people can hear. And, tomorrow who knows. But, I am open to changing what I think is reality for the truth that is. God, please continuously change my perception of normal so that I will instead see through your eyes, the world as it really is.
*Here is a poem I wrote about the idea that the world as we see it is a blank canvas, but as God reveals His truth, the canvas becomes a masterpiece of vivid colors. There is so much going on beyond our vision.
White May Be, But Colors I See
Light shines through the hazy green windows Penetrating deep into the language of the heart Black shadows slowly disappear as truth unveils Refreshing transparencies overlapping lingering shapes Amber rays dance across the clear blue reflection Wind gently whispering, revealing silent love Hues of red-orange-yellow fading into shades of blue Searching beyond oneself, imagination of the soul Contentment overwhelms and peacefulness reigns White may be, but colors I see.
Have you ever wanted to be someone else for a day? Well for me that person is Anna the prophetess. Anna is a woman of faith. Below is the passage about her in Luke as she got to see baby Jesus on his day of dedication at the temple. I wish I was Anna on this day - getting to see Jesus face to face.
"There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem." Luke 2:36-38
As you can tell from the passage she was a prophetess, an intercessor, or prayer warrior, a worshiper, she fasted, she gave thanks to God, and she told everyone she could about Him. Wow! Anna was such an incredible woman who more than anything wanted to be in the presence of God! She longed for her Beloved and she gave her whole life to worshiping Him. She spent 77 years in the temple dedicated and consecrated to the Lord. So, not only do I want those qualities for myself, but I believe that God is calling me to be an Anna today.
I am called to be a prophetess, an intercessor, or prayer warrior, a worshiper, to fast, to give thanks to God and to tell everyone I can about my Beloved Lord!
The night I turned 21 was a pivotal night in my life. I was sitting in the kitchen at my friend Rich's house and it was a little after midnight. I just sat their reading my bible and praying alone until both Rich and Traci who had been asleep upstairs both came down declaring that God had woken them up to come and pray with me. So as you can see this was not the typical 21st Birthday. We grabbed some blankets and went and cuddled up on the back porch. Rich prayed, and then Traci prayed. And, then it happened.
I started praying and amidst the praying I went into a trance like state. It was as if I was in my prayer. And, no I was not dreaming, or sleeping. Vividly, in front of me I saw a beautiful green hill and coming directly towards me was this beautiful white horse. As, I stared at the horse my blood in my veins bubbled up with joy and peace and this uncontainable desire to be as close to it as possible. But, then a voice began to speak to me that said something along the lines of, "my horse is not there yet, but you see it, you see it because you believe it is coming. keep watching and tell people of the white horse." I also was given 2 scripture verses Joel 2 and Acts 2.
To be completely honest the only thing I knew about the book of Joel was that it was in the bible. That's it. So, I read in Joel where it says, "And, afterward I will pour out my Spirit on all people, your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions, Even on my servants both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth." Wow, I thought. I never knew God wanted to speak to us with dreams and visions, etc... Then, I proceeded to read Acts 2, which read, "No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: In the Last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams, Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy." (Now what the heck I thought. No way it is the same verse. I had no idea. This was unbelievable!)
What was God trying to tell me? I never knew God spoke to people before with dreams or visions. And, I surely wasn't taught that in church. But, then it happened to me and was confirmed with scripture. So, next I went and found the prayer pastor at the Cincinnati Vineyard, Rusty. Rusty was gifted in interpretation of dreams and visions. So, I shared my vision with him and he told me about Revelation 19. Seriously, I couldn't believe my ears, it was so astounding! Revelation 19 says, "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With Justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has the name written" KING OF KINGS and LORD OF LORDS."
Now, I was in awe and shock. The white horse I saw coming over that hill was Jesus. That explains the overwhelming joy. And, I believe Jesus is coming on his white horse. I see it. I know he is not here yet, but I have faith that he is coming. Jesus is coming back for his bride, the church. My Savior and my Beloved, whom I dearly love is coming!
(Now as a side note - there is much to be done before that day. There is a harvest to be sowed and reaped. So until that day comes I believe my job is to usher in the harvest and one day I will see my Beloved coming toward me on His white horse).
This is my interpretation of our Team name. Team B.O.L.D.! We are no longer called the married team! Read below to see what we are all about.
B*O*L*D* Bringing our Lord's Deliverance, Discipleship and Dominion Bold: (confident, adventurous, free, fearless, daring) We are living out God's dream. We have been commissioned, and are going out BOLDLY. NO more passivity. We will not be silenced. We know the love of our Father and the intimacy with him so deeply that we can't contain it and are compelled to share His love BOLDLY! But, we know we are only Bold because of the Lord in us and we will not rely on our own strength, but the Lord's. We are called to live as Christ incarnate and by doing this we must boldly break of ourselves and pour ourselves out for the restoration, healing and reconciliation of all creation. We will boldly bring deliverance, discipleship and dominion! "The Righteous are as BOLD as a lion" Proverbs 28:1 But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might..." Micah 3:8 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Acts 4:29
Deliverance: (To rescue, restore, redeem, liberate) Restoring hearts. Bringing death to life. We have the power to speak life as we speak the truth of the gospel of grace. We are called to free people from the life they once knew and restore them to the life they were intended to live. We are called to bring our Lord's salvation. "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Col 1:13
Discipleship: (model, teach, lead, train, bring up) Raising up followers of Christ. Leading people into intimacy with the Father. Teaching people to walk in God's authority and faith and revealing God's dream to them through intentional relationship. We will model worship and prayer and a lifestyle of Love. "Go and make disciples of all nations." Matthew 28:19 We are commanded and commissioned to go and make disciples, to reconcile men and women back to God and to help them realize their true royal identity and authority.
Dominion: (authority, power, kingdom, territory) Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:9-10 Empowering people to take dominion over all creation. The Holy Spirit empowers us to partner with God in unleashing his Kingdom here on earth. We are a royal priesthood, we are his adopted sons and daughters and we are called to re-establish His everlasting Kingdom. Jesus performed miracles here on earth not as God, but as a man, setting aside his divinity. He was able to perform miracles because he was empowered by the Holy Spirit. This gives us confidence and the boldness to know that through the Holy Spirit we are equipped and given all authority and power, just as Jesus. As we come together in community, as the body of Christ, as His disciples, we will be fulfilling his dream and see heaven fully inhabit earth.
Holding my 15 pound rock in my hands I began walking along the path ahead of me. It was heavy and I could feel it's weight, but as I began to walk further and further I began to feel the weight of the rock in a new way. I began to feel the heavy burdens I had been carrying around with me. I began to feel internally the heaviness that my arms were feeling physically. I began to get tired as I climbed the first mountain. And, as I reached the top a familiar face greeted me, asking me what the rock that I was carrying symbolized.
In my brokenness and through my tears I shared with him that I have been relying on my own strength instead of depending on God to be the rock in my life. The rock was also representative of past hurts, blame, self-condemnation, pride, lies, and fears. He asked me if I was ready to lay down the rock I was carrying and I said with angst, "I want this to be hard, I want to remember this day so that I never pick up this darn rock ever again." So, I continued climbing the second mountain.
As I got to the top I looked up and saw a wooden cross and immediately tears ran down my cheeks washing away all of the things the rock represented. I cried like a little child, wailing to my Beloved Savior. I thought about throwing the rock off of the top of the mountain, but all I could do was lay the rock down at the foot of the cross, get on my knees and weep. I let go of all of me, everything I was and everything I knew and stood up with my hands held high, crying Freedom with my posture.
Walking down the mountain, I felt an inexplainable amount of freedom because all of the ugly roots had been removed from my heart. By releasing the dark places of me, my heart has expanded and I can feel the love of my Father filling me back up with his truth. I am the apple of his eye, I am His Beloved, I am an adopted daughter of the Lord most high, I am beautiful, I am a warrior princess, I am a prophetess to the nations and so much more.
It was a powerful experience and one that I will not forget. I am glad that I had to carry the rock for such a distance, because it made me realize the heaviness that I carry around with me everyday. I never want to pick up that rock again. I am FREE.
The presence of the Holy Spirit was thick in the room like a blanket of love and peace wrapping me up. The reservoirs of emptiness within me were being filled up with real love,peace and joy undescrible. I was once again crying tears of joy as his presence was bubbling up within me. Then I hear someone praying over my husband and I look down and this man of God on his knees praying for Joshua.
At that moment more tears of joy spilled out of me. I knew that God was pouring love into my husband and speaking forth his calling. It is such an amazing thing to see the love of your life being lifted up and stepping into all that God is passionately desiring for him. Joshua is coming alive and it is absolutely beautiful and breathtaking. It is better than all the transformation happening inside of my own heart, because I am watching the man I love become something he never really believed he could be. And, now God is lifting up his arms and I get to watch the magnificient artist paint this vivid image of LIFE ALIVE. Josh is released and free to LEAD!
Then, tears of joy began to flow again as Joshua laid his hand over my heart and began to pray for me with boldness and freedom. He began to lift me up and pray that God would heal all of the brokenness in my heart. He asked God to restore my heart to its fullness and that the places that he has caused pain and hurt would be made whole again. This is significant to me because Josh has not wanted to pray because of the messiness in his heart and instead of self condemnation he was free to be completely HIMSELF in the throne room of God's presence, accepting God's love just as he is. AND, that is a beautiful sight. I love my Beloved, Joshua!
While I was looking up video's on Moldova on youtube I discovered this BBC documentary about a new country that is unrecognized by the rest of the world. It is very interesting, but you will need about a half hour to watch all three videos above.
