I've spent some time in the last day or so dwelling on what I love about the US, what I can't wait to see and eat and do. I'm longing for home. I miss my family. I miss the comforts of home. I miss consistency. So I've spent a few hours “checked out” of Croatia, and “checked in” to home life. Its a good thing this week we are doing physical labor, renovating the cafe, because I'm not making my ministry here suffer, but those hours are gone, and I'm still here and I nothing has changed. I am going to land in Boston and see a friend, I'm going to eat Doritos and salad. I will be an American in America for a few hours.

Then I'll get on a plane and head for Guatemala and my final 2 months of ministry on the World Race.

The problem is: America is not what I SHOULD be longing for. My home is not there. My home is not a comforter made of feathers, but a Comforter given by the Father. My mother's house has NOTHING on my Father's house.

We've all heard the phrase, “People who are too Heavenly minded are no earthly good.” Well, I disagree. I don't want to spend my last 4 days here or my last 2 months on the race being earthly good, if I'm not Heavenly minded. I want to dwell on the Paradise awaiting me in eternity. I want to live life here, whether in Croatia, Guatemala or America, with the hope of Heaven in the forefront of my mind. I want to be seeking Him. I want His love to flow down from Heaven and onto the people I am surrounded by. I want to live live seeking His Kingdom, honestly praying for His Kingdom to come and His will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.

 

 

 

Lord, I want to lift up all my friends and family members who are transitioning into the summer season. May they spend these next months seeking you, resting in you and glorifying you. Thank you so much for the support all my friends and family are to me. You know exactly what I need, and you've blessed me with the exact emails and conversations when I need them. I love that you've given me terrific friends who follow you and through your love, love me.

Lord, I proclaim healing and health over Chris and baby Joshua. Thank you so much for the ministry Chris and Sam have and how you are keeping her healthy and being glorified through miracle baby number 2. Lord, I thank you that Amanda's spine is healed. I have faith you have healed her. It may not show up today or tomorrow, but you love her and Your will for her is not pain or limitations, but that she would stand before you and you would receive glory.

Lord, I continue to pray my support account fills to overflowing. God that you would supply the last funds I need to finish the race and pay for medical insurance and other costs. I am amazed by the way you have provided already, and I know in faith you will complete the process.

Your wisdom is incredible, it is so great we will never understand it. Thank you that you have gifted people to seek your wisdom and share it with others. As I learn more about you from different teammates, teachers, pastors, speakers, authors, I am humbled by the way you reveal your glory to people. I pray you would continue to work in me as I seek to learn more about you and Your will for my life and for Your Church.

 

Lord, I'm less than 80 days from returning back to the US. God, Let me spend these next days serving you where you have me. I want to continue to pour myself out into the communities you have placed me in. Heavenly Father, show me how to live today for today. Show me each morning what your will is for me on that day. God, I love that I give you my future and no longer need to worry about it. I am free to live for right now and rest in the fact that You have a perfect plan for me. Father, remind me of this when I forget.

I love you Lord. I give my life to you and pray I walk in Your ways and not my own. I pray I would be able to forgive those who hurt me as you have forgiven me, and that I would pour your blessings out onto every person I come into contact with. You are the God of goodness, and I worship you.

In Your Precious Name I pray,

Tim and Grace (their kids, not pictured, are Mila age 1 and Thomas age 3)

The Warholics have been here for 4 years and have a great ministry. Tim is the pastor and business man who runs the ministry. They have taken over a cafe previously run by another missionary couple to reach out to the city. There are Saturday night events, summer English Camp, other events and great cookies and coffee too! The greatest part about both of them is the clear love they have for each other, their kids, their team, our team and the people of Split. Its seems like a long list of people to love, and it is-- if it was short there wouldn't be something worth mentioning. We have had a lot of fun with them and are getting to learn a lot about life as missionaries and Christ followers from them.

Chris and Nada (with Simeon age 1)

These two have only been here a few months, but already have a great ministry presence in Split. Nada is Croatian and grew up in Germany. The ministry they have because of her heritage is great. The people of Croatia are traditional in many ways, specifically religiously. It is a great witness to see a Croatian following God and serving Him here. They help Tim and Grace in various ministries and play a key role as members of the ministry team.

These three are all here short term for now, but are interested in serving long term. Kristin has a passion for the youth of the area and uses English lessons and the English Camp as a ministry tool. She has been here since September and her heart is truly for the people of Croatia. Rachel also arrived in September and has made the cafe her main ministry as she finishes Bible college. She has become a fast friend and I have been blessed to get to know her and learn the ins and outs of Split from her. David is in many ways the manager of the cafe. He taught all of us how to make the coffee and baked goods, made our schedule, handles the finances of the church and the cafe. He's only been here about seven weeks, and already he has a ton of stuff he's doing.

I'm 105 days from being back on US soil, GOD WILLING. Right now I'm financially not going to make it each of those days. I am $1406 away from finishing the race. I'm asking that if you can possibly give anything that you go ahead and give! I live on $10 a day, 5 for lodging, 2 for food and 3 for transportation. Just $10 keeps me on the race another day. (Airfare means the total is larger than just the $10 I live on).

Here is the challenge I am laying before you: find a match!!!

If you can give $10 to keep me on the race, and find another person, a coworker, a friend, neighbor, acquaintance, stranger on the street to match that $10, I can stay another 2 days! I need your help. I am just one person living on the other side of the world, but if I get all of you to do a tiny bit of support raising then hopefully I can meet my goal. God has provided in incredible ways throughout this year and I know He can provide the rest of the funds needed. This way all of you get to be part of it! I'd love to hear great stories of how you found someone to keep me on the race for another day. Anyone who finds a match will also get an awesome World Race prize I find along the way, so let me know if you find a match! I want to bless you as you bless me.

Some tips on how to find a match:

• forward this email

• instead of just saying hello to the person sitting next to you in church during the most awkward 5 minutes of the week, present my case to them:)

• ask friends and co-workers

• present this to your Bible study or small group

• tell your kids you will match their gift

• ask your parents if they will match your gift

• try anything, be bold:)

Prayer support is also exceptionally important, please continue to lift me, my team and our ministry up in your prayers. I have some wonderful monthly supporters and I cannot thank you all enough, your continued support is such a blessing to me.

• We are living in a small village called Arcalia (about 500 people total)

• We have our own little house, 2 rooms

• Our host, Gabby, lives in the house with her husband and four kids, but they moved in next door with her in-laws while we are here.

• I sleep on a pull out couch with Tomina, its a bit bigger than a twin.

• We cook for ourselves, mostly sandwiches for lunch and beans, lentils or pasta for dinner

• I'm almost done reading the entire Old Testament from beginning to end (I started this venture quite a long time ago).

• There is a park with a castle in it less than a block away, we discovered a wireless signal in said castle.

• We have to sneak into the park to use said wireless connection.

• We have a TV and DVD player-we've already had a Bourne marathon and we watch a movie most nights together as a team.

• There is also a satellite dish, the only channel in English is E! Entertainment.... wish it was CNN.

• Ministry is different everyday- kids most days come over all day and ask us to come out and play.

• Gabby is one of very few believers in the village.

• Most people in the village either attend a church each week because that is what they do, what they feel pressured to do, or never attend because they have been so hurt by the church they have rejected the entire faith.

• Gabby's husband is not saved, but he is interested in us and our stories, please pray for him.

• Their huge rabbit has bunnies that are super cute:)

• We spent the first week in Romania in Tinga Mures working with YWAM there.

• There is a ton more, but I gotta post this and want to keep it short.
  

Later this week my team, with team Remnant and seven members of the F-Squad (July 2008 launch group), will head to Luhansk, Ukraine for the next 3 weeks of ministry. We will be in a village about one hour from the city. We will stay at a summer camp and go out into the neighboring village for ministry. The camp is what we World Racers consider "rustic," aka no running water, heat, electricity, or internet. We haven't gotten there and there is always a chance things have been miscommunicated, but we are prepared for a colder Africa.

Our ministry is expected to be varied, which is something to look forward to. Since there will be 20 racers we will probably break off into talents and giftings to serve in different areas. I am looking forward to working in an orphanage for older girls in the village and a few other opportunities.

This blog is a response to the question posed from my youth pastor friend Sam. I planned to respond via email, but decided a blog is even better:) So the question: What is your take on "the prophetic?"

The Race has introduced many new things into my life, some as simple as smart airport packing, other things are more deep. My faith and my relationship with God has expanded more on the Race than ever before. Other than my actual conversion in high school, my relationship with God has never been so changed, challenged and intentional. My time in the Word is time spent with Him. Worship is a love offering, a love song I sing to my Friend and my Father. Prayer is a conversation. A two-way conversation. He speaks. God, the One from the Old Testament, the One from the Cross, the One who dwells inside of my heart speaks.

What does He say? Well, it depends on what we are talking about, but part of what He says is prophecy. Yup, prophecy. Now, I'm not talking about Words of the Lord that I need to deliver to Isreal like Isaiah or Jeremiah, or about morphing into a trance like Professor Trelawney in Harry Potter. I don't lose myself and suddenly start speaking with "the voice of the Lord." This prophecy is from 1 Corinthians 14, the words of wisdom or knowledge from God. Paul writes:

So this prophecy strengthens, encourages and comforts people. It does so for people I am praying for as well as God speaks these things into my life as well. As I spend time in prayer I can ask God to give me a word, an image, a passage of Scripture, or even a song to encourage, strengthen or comfort another believer. Typically for me I just get a single word or passage. Then as I pray about that word, may it be love, or perseverance, or whatever, I begin to understand more completely what about that word the person needs to hear. Now part of this process is trial and error. I don't always hear what God is saying, but think what I am saying is what God is saying. Before I deliver any prophetic words I check to make sure they are strengthening, encouraging or comforting, Biblical, they make sense and that God will be glorified in my sharing them. If those things are there I can be assured that even if the words I have are not from God they are edifying to the other person. I make mistakes. I thought I was supposed to give someone a Psalm... which Psalm God... 196, okay, what does that say??... no one knows that because there are only 150 Psalms... but through more prayer and clarification and spending time in the Word I found what God was trying to say, where he wanted me to look in order to encourage my friend.

This past month my teammate Summer had words of wisdom from God for each member of my team, and that is a new challenge for me. I want to seek prophecy on behalf of others intentionally. I am going to be spending time with God this month asking for words from Him that can strengthen, encourage, and comfort people in my life. This includes my team, leaders, and you, my friends and family back home.