Stop Looking

On my drive back from work I was listening to a preaching from Pastor Tony Evans. God uses him a lot to speak into my life. "Stop looking and start living" was the motto of the preaching; refering to singles who need to stop looking for a partner and to simply get on with our lives and live it to the fullest. That deserves an AMEN as well as an OUCH.

I've always known that I need to just serve the Lord and let Him bring someone into my life in His perfect timing. After all, my life verse is Psalm 37:4. I just want to delight myself in Him and let Him give me the desires of my heart that are in sync with His heart. But when it comes to the subject of "relationships" it's tough to wait on Him. Especially when my flesh as well as my soul opposes what my spirit knows to be the godly thing to do.

However, I must say that I love the fact that God's ways are higher and contradictory to the ways of this world. While many of my friends and my family worry if I will ever find a man, I've stopped worrying about it. My little cousin even asked me the other day, "Jenny, will you ever have a boyfriend or kids?" According to many people I haven't found anybody because I'm doing it wrong. I should be out and about, meeting guys and testing the waters. No thanks. I'm actually learning to just wait on God and let Him be the one to write my love story, rather than me writing my own.

Ruth is my role model in this aspect. Ruth was just gleaning in the fields when she met the man God had for her. So I will continue serving the Lord, and allow God to bring that man into my life whenever He deems fit.

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Looking Ahead

I can't help but think about 2012 and how it is quickly approaching. 2012 looks to be a promising year in my life. But I must be EXTREMELY wise and careful in the decisions that I make. Waving good-bye to my 20's and actually looking forward to turning 30 next month.

Preparation for the MCAT is underway. My goal is to take the MCAT around May or June with the intention of becoming a med-school student in 2013. I must also shadow a physician and obtain recommendation letters for med-school. May God give me wisdom and grace in this process. There is no doubt in my mind that God will give me favor with the admissions office.

I am also going to work with a team from my church that will be going to Costa Rica on a missions trip in July. There is a lot of spiritual and physical preparation, as well as fund-raising to do.

The search for protégé's are also in effect. My heart is to lift up a great team for the communications department of my church's youth ministry. I have already started training people in using Photoshp and Final Cut Pro to create graphic design and video projects.

Family goals are also set. For my 30th birthday, I want travel to Puerto Rico to meet my little sister. She is 16 and I just found out this year about her. I always wanted a little sister and I was very happy to find out that I have one.

2012, I'm ready for you.

A Trip Back in Time

Good friends are hard to find. And I've found them :-)

My friend JP came up with the awesome concept of a 40's photoshoot with a group of us that have been friends for more than 10 years. It was fun to say the least.

Here are some pictures from the shoot.

Pictures taken by: Elba Dipp (Dipp Photography) and JP Cardona (Breakthru Productions). Two amazing photographers to say the least.

Blue is my new fav color

 

We know that pink is for awareness of breast cancer. We know that purple is for awareness of pancreatic cancer. What a lot of people don't know is that blue is the color for human trafficking. Blue is the color that raises awareness of the 27 million people that are trapped in the grip of slavery... The 100,000 woman and girls trafficked each day in the United States alone... The 1.2 million children trafficked for sexual exploitation... And the two children that are sold per minute into this veiled commodity. 

Jesus said, "You will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32)

 

 

***A POST TAKEN FROM MY FRIEND RYLIE'S BLOG***

 

Romance; God's Way

I would like to start off by congratulating my dear friends Bobby and Carla. God has been putting together a beautiful love story in which you two are the main characters. Your example has encouraged and inspired me.

Not too long ago Carla would be talking to me about Bobby and how she was really starting to like Bobby. The lingering question "does he like me back?" would leave our conversations in suspense. So as a sister in Christ I would encourage her to pray and fast about it and just seek the Lord for guidance. When a girl starts letting a boy into her heart it could be something truly beautiful, or a disaster waiting to happen.

It turns out that Bobby was facing this same dilemma :-) hehe. He was interested in courting Carla, but he kept quiet for more than a year. I admire and respect him very much for waiting. Although he had feelings for her, he didn't act upon those feelings until God put everything into place and confirmed that He approved. It is extremely rare to find a guy, even a Christian one, that puts these feelings and desires aside in order to wait for God's confirmation. He didn't have to flirt with her and use pick up lines to get her attention. He prayed for her, and God answered his prayers. She didn't have to dress provacatively and use seduction in order to get his attention. As I said before, Bobby and Carla have been an example to me.

Yesterday Bobby and Carla announced in church that they are officially courting each other. I am extremely excited and happy for them. Courting is not a very popular idea, but it's definitely what you find all throughout the Bible. If you are curious to know more about courting I recommend "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" by Joshua Harris. Simply put, courting is a process in which a man and a woman get to know each other better, with the intentions of getting engaged and eventually marrying. Deciding who we marry is one of the most important decisions in our lives; second only to accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. This is very different from dating.

Bobby and Carla understand that God has a special purpose for them as a couple. It goes beyond the way they feel about each other. There is a divine purpose in their relationship. May God use them to impact lives and to reach many many many souls with the Gospel.

God hates?

This weekend was a very special weekend in my life. Camp Arise was such a blessing. Words cannot express enough what God did in the lives of our youth.

 

In this camp our youth were able to experience a new dimension of worship. We praised God in spirit and in truth and the Holy Spirit moved powerfully. Young people were set free from oppression and delivered from self-destructive habits.

On Saturday morning we shared a devotional on God's love. To be honest, I've been Christin for thirteen years and have heard ALOT of messages on God's love. I myself have preached about God's love on many occasions; but never have I seen so clearly an aspect of God's love that He revealed to me at camp.

John 3:16 says that God so loved us... and I'm sure you know how the rest of the verse goes. He loved us so much that He gave of Himself and died on the cross for us. But God revealed a truth that pierced my heart and filled me with an even greater love and appreciation for Him.

2 Corinthians 5:21
For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

This verse shows us that when He died on the cross for us He became SIN. At first that may not seem like the huge deal that it truly is.

Deuteronomy 9:18 “Then, as before, I threw myself down before the Lord for forty days and nights. I ate no bread and drank no water because of the great sin you had committed by doing what the Lord hated, provoking him to anger.

The Lord HATES sin. There is absolutely nothing about sin that the Lord approves of. Yet, He was willing to be crucified and become the very thing He hates so that we may be free from sin. His love for us is so much greater than His hatred for sin. WOW. But let's not be mistaken in thinking that because God loves us He will not punish our sin. He most certainly will, but the remarkable thing is that in His death and resurrection He provided a way out. He paid the penalty for our sins. Now that's LOVE at it's very best. How can I know and experience this truly amazing love and continue to sin against God? I can't! This is why the Gospel is so powerful. God's love is transforming and liberating. His love compels us to live for Him and do only what is pleasing in His sight.

Showing love

People have approached me and told me that they really enjoy my blog posts. Each time, they made my day. I guess we are not always fully aware at how massive the internet is and the impact it has. Even when you can't see, people will be reading your blog. No pressure hehehe. I just laugh because it's always been the people I've least expected that come to my blog to read my posts. Feel free to comment and show some love on here :-)

I've met some really amazing people through this blog: missionaries, pastor's kids, etc. I've enjoyed connecting with each of you and reading your wonderful posts.

Well, for now I must continue working and preparing for camp coming up next weekend...

Just what the DOctor ordered

A child is sick and showing several alarming symptoms. Worried, the parents rush the child to the nearest hospital. At this point it is still very unsure exactly what the child has. I can't help but picture how many different ways this child can be treated, depending on what the doctor deems suitable.

There are two major branches of medicine (allopathic and osteopathic). An allopathic doctor is an M.D. and an osteopathic doctor is a D.O. In many cases both of these branches may have completely different approaches to treating the same disease.

I want to share with you my passion for the osteopathic approach to medicine. All of this started while observing my grandma's aging process. She takes over 15 different medications a day. The sad part is that she even has to take medications to counteract the side effects of the other medications. I am outraged at the fact that not only does she have to take all these pills, but she has to take them for life. I never agreed with that. What do people in Latin American countries do? I know for a fact they don't live off of pills the way we do here. For example, why is it so easy to prescribe a pill to lower your cholesterol? Wouldn't it be wise to boost your body's own natural mechanisms to combat disease? Wouldn't it be wise to prescribe a healthy diet that will eliminate harmful cholesterol? But being such a microwave culture, we want results quick and easy. We can take a pill to lower cholesterol levels, while continuing to eat junk and not exercising properly. We treat the symptoms, but seldom treat the root of the problem; the self-destructive habits we have that make us prone to so many diseases. I know I don't have much authority in this area. I don't eat healthy most of the time and I almost never exercise, but I have been making changes in this direction.

Sorry if this is too much of an outburst. As you can see, this is a very touchy subject for me. I am zealous about trying to getting people to change their attitudes towards medical care. Less prescription drugs, and more preventive and holistic techniques. True doctors understand how the body functions and can treat illnesses using the God-given resources available within the body itself. God designed us so intricately; and I can't wait to get into med-school and study the human body in more depth.

The Cost of Discipleship (She Smiles, She writes)

Let me start off by giving credit to my friend from She Smiles, She writes. This is a wonderful post that I just had to share.

“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’;

In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples."
Luke 14:28-30;33

The Cost of Discipleship is found in the first 4 books of the NT. Some Bible translations refer to these verses as "Discipleship will be difficult". Huh.

Pretend that you're looking for a job. You heard of this man, Jesus, who goes around healing people, speaking wisdom & saving souls. You hear that you can apply to be one of his disciples and you immediately believe this discipleship position is your dream job. You go online and download the application. The application states that every applicant has to have 2 prerequisites to qualify. 

1.  "If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:26)
   This job requires a certain kind of person, someone who will hate his/her parents, siblings, spouse and children. The word hate in this context is just a Semitic expression for "loving less". If you can love all those people less, then maybe you have a chance. He adds, as if reading the minds of our 'me' generation, "yes, even [hate] your own life". Love yourself less!
   Crazy to think this is just prerequisite #1.
2. The next prerequisite goes along the lines us acquiring and bearing a cross. Imagine you go to a store and you find your own cross with your name on it. Jesus paid it for you, you just need to pick it up and THEN follow him. Trust me, you don't get very far following him without the cross.
   But what does this crucifixion metaphor mean? It means a disciple must die to self-will & embrace God's will, no matter the cost.  If His will means leaving your country to save orphans in Africa, you take up your cross and follow Christ on to Africa. If His will is for you to endure torture, persecution & die a martyr, you bear your cross and follow Christ until your last breath.

Now, if you think you have the prerequisites nailed, you fill the rest of your application. Once you reach the bottom, you notice that there is one last think you need to know before submitting the application: you must know how much this 'job' (more like lifestyle) will cost you.

"Well Savior, what's it going to cost me to call you my teacher, my master, my Lord ?" you ask.
His reply: "Everything. You must renounce to all."

As a potential disciple, you must always first count the cost in order to see if you will persevere in faith. If you're not willing to relinquish everything, you'll end up like the rich young man from Matthew 19. Jesus gave him the opportunity to be one of his close disciples (potential disciple #13). This young man was moral, keeping all the commandments, yet he asked the Lord what he was lacking still. "Renounce to your 'great possessions', give them to the poor and come follow me," Jesus answered (Matt. 19:22). This man could've brought the gospel to Asia, maybe even be the author of many books in the NT! But we will never know because he refused the invitation. And to think it was all because of what he 'owned' (If you're struggling with this, Jesus addressed materialism in Luke 12:13-21 & Luke 9:25). The young man went away sorrowful, probably knowing he would regret that decision.

Or you can be like those that, when they heard the invitation, "left everything & followed him" (Luke 5:11b). The Bible speaks of them as men who will inherit the kingdom of God, not because of them possessing any supernatural ability (they were as faulty as we are) but because they took up their cross and followed Christ.

These 3 conditions make up the commitment of every true follower of Christ. We've been taught to say/repeat a prayer to receive Christ as our Savior that often times don't really affect our everyday lives. We say the prayer and go back to our regular way of living all the while thinking 'we're saved'. The reality is that Christ died to be your Savior AND your Lord. There's a big difference.

I'm a disciple of Christ, a title I wear proudly that comes with desert & stormy seasons, modern-day Pharisees and betrayers, modern-day Judas you must love regardless. This is all part of the cost, to suffer with Christ.
 Yet I wouldn't trade it for the world. I will always love  the intimacy I have at the feet of Jesus more. The cost to know Him and make Him known is worth it.
But what about you? 
If you don't have the discipleship commitment and have called yourself a follower of Christ, renounce to the tittle immediately if you're not willing to bear your cross. You cannot love Him less.

If you want to accept Christ as your Savior AND Lord, run and seek Him as fast as you can! Repent of your erroneous way of living, pick up your cross and follow Him. He is waiting for you as we speak.

"For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
Phillippians 1:21

InDesign fun

I just wanted to share a bit of the work I do for the youth group in my church. I run the communications department of the youth ministry, which oversees different ways of keeping our kids up to date with what is going on in the ministry. Part of the communications department is creating a monthly newsletter that is given to the youth. This is October's newsletter.

I welcome tips and suggestions for future newsletters.

Testimony

God spoke this to my heart in a supernatural way today. "There's no test-imony without a test". These past few years have been periods of tests, and then those tests turning into a testimony. I was just never able to appreciate it in that way before. As I was in God's presence today I just broke down and had to give Him thanks for everything that He is doing. I realized that it has been very easy for me to thank God for helping me when I am going through a trial, but I have not been able to thank God for the trial itself. When the rough times in my life are over I breathe a sigh of relief, but as long as I am still in a rough moment, it is sooo hard for me to rest and know that God is in the midst of the storm with me. You would think that after walking with God for so long, this would come easy and natural to me. Not so. I am reminded of the stubborn Israelites. After having seen miracle after miracle, they continuously fell into despair and would want to go running back to Egypt at the slightest opposition they would encounter. I would think, "foolish Israelites." How could they doubt God when He just finished proving to them that He would provide and take care of them? Then I realized that I would fall into the same trap. What I have learned in this is that I cannot depend on past victories or miracles to make it through a current trial that I am going through. I have to seek God and cling to Him knowing that there are new victories and miracles awaiting me as I go through a new trial.

Seeing what my family has been going through and what I have been personally experiencing has taken a  toll on me. I've had to ask God for a new measure of strength and faith. And to my delight, He has given it to me today. For the past couple of weeks God has been putting 2 teenage girls and 2 marriages on my heart very strongly. What God was compelling me to do was to invite the two teenage girls to the youth camp my church is hosting in November, and to pray and fast for two marriages. Today I was able to speak to the parents of the teenage girls, and to my amazement, the parents despite not being Christian, were very enthusiastic about letting their daughters go to camp. Praise God. Now I have to put these girls in prayer and fast for God to use camp weekend to draw them to Him. Today I was also able to speak to my friend, and to my amazement, she is working things out with her husband. They were on the brink of divorce and I was praying and fasting for their marriage to be restored. This deserves another "PRAISE GOD!" So in the midst of a rough season in my life, today was filled with victory and a glimmer of hope.

I just want to leave you with a song from Jesus Culture that is very fitting for everything that God has made more real to me today.

Human Interaction

How wonderful that we get to share our lives with other people. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers... How blessed we are to be surrounded by people. However, I didn't always think this way. I look back at my school days in elementary, middle, and high school. I didn't have too many friends. I was always shy and awkward. Ask my brother. After school was out, he would always wait a while and make sure I had already started walking home before he would start walking home. He didn't want people to see him with me, and he didn't even want people to know I was his sister. How could a popular guy be seen with a shy and weird girl?... even if it was his sister. Ok, I went off on a tangent. But there is a point I am trying to make.

Fast forward 15 years... I am still a bit shy and truth be told, I am still a bit weird. However, what has completely changed is my view of human interaction. As a teen, I wasn't looking to make friends and hang out and have fun. I didn't care to make friends. But that all changed when Christ came into my heart. God began showing me how special every single person is to Him. He even knows the number of hairs on everybody's head. So if God took the time to make everybody special and unique, then why can't I make a conscious effort to meet people and get to know them? As Christians we are called to do so.

My personal calling became evident in a vision that I had a few years ago. I still remember that I was sitting on the side of my bed and writing my thoughts down on paper. I was writing something between a poem and a devotional. I hope that makes sense. As I was writing God started showing me a bunch of people; some I could recognize and some I couldn't. Each person God showed me had a common characteristic. They were introverted, and outcast by most other people. In other words, they were "weird" people... just like me. And I suddenly understood why God gave me the personality and temperament that He did. I have a calling to reach out to people that are normally rejected and outcast by society. That is why I now say that it is a blessing to be surrounded by people: no matter how strange or different they seem, we are all God's creative handiwork.

What we're made Of

We were remembering with my pastor all the tough times that our church has been through. Indeed it is nothing short of a miracle that we are still standing. God has sustained us in a supernatural way.

One of the hardest times was back in 2003. All at once, the city closed down our church for over a year, my pastor's health deteriorated in Guatemala and he needed immediate surgery. We were left without a church and without a pastor. But even in this, we saw God's provision and care. Vida Abundante church opened up their doors and let us have our services there at night.

And this is the stuff we're made of. I love remembering how the church came together. Although we didn't have a building of our own, and the pastor was fighting for his life, God brought a unity in us that helped us get through this tough time.

I also think about the underground church in China. They are in constant persecution. They are arrested and tortured for their faith. Yet in all this, the underground church is growing exponentially. People are coming to Christ in record numbers. They even send missionaries around different parts of China and neighboring countries.

Jesus' words in Matthew 16:18 hold true.

Matthew 16:18
And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

In His Image and Likeness

We are made in God's image and likeness. How amazing that out of all creation, the God of the universe chose to make us the only creation like Him. Not even angels are created in His image and likeness. God was reminding me of this and it brought so much comfort and encouragement to my heart. When we're down, we can be strengthened in remembering that we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us. We are His creation, and even better than that; we are His children.

Exalt 2011 (part 2)

All I can say is that I was blessed to be part of this event. I was so proud of all the youth that participated and offered their talents to exalt the Lord. Enjoy the videos below.

Ricardo y banda - this is an original song composed by Ricky

Camille and Lily - a beautiful choreography to Casting Crown's - Praise You in the Storm

Genesis and Amanda - interpreting Francesca Batistelli's - Beautiful Beautiful... It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL

Jeffrey - spoken word... He's got a lot of potential

Joshua - playing Exaltate on the sax

Exalt 2011 (part 1)

The lights turn off and the countdown starts...

Little Jeffrey gets on the stage and introduces the masters of ceremony. Enter Milagros and Eddie. A lovely welcome was given to all the people there and the other churches that joined us. This was just the beginning of an amazing night.

Exalt was the title we gave to our youth talent show. And we got to see A LOT of talent. What was the most beautiful part is that from the very beginning when we were planning this event, we had set in our hearts that the main purpose was to encourage our young people to put their talents to use in a way that would bring God glory. This was not a night to show off talents, but to offer them to God and exalt Him with them.

The first participation was Ricardo and the band he put together. He composed a beautiful song and had the band play it. Let me just say that the song is truly anointed. Today it's been stuck in my head the whole day, and my friends have told me the same thing. We are going to start playing it in our Sunday services as part of the worship.

The second participation was Camille and Lily doing a choreography to Casting Crown's song Praise Him in the Storm. In the weeks leading up to Exalt they would talk to me about the choreography and how their desire was for each movement to transmit the message of the song. We can have hope in knowing that in the midst of the storms of life God is right there with us. The choreography was not just elegant and graceful; it spoke hope and encouragement to people that needed it.

Genesis and Amanda sang Beautiful Beautiful by Francesca Battistelli, and it was absolutely beautiful (sorry for the redundancy). I had never had the chance to hear Genesis sing before and she blew me away. These girls sang with all their heart and I am so proud of them.

Jeffrey did spoken word to a poem he titled "Redemption". Everybody enjoyed hearing his poem. He has a wonderful ability to express himself through poetry. He has a bunch of notebooks at home full of poetry he has written.

Joshua played a song on the saxophone titled, Exaltate, a song we've sang in our worship services. I had to just stand back and admire his stamina. I would not be able to blow into the saxophone and play one for over five minutes. He played the entire song, not just bits and pieces of a song like you may usually hear. He put his all into the song and it showed. I can't wait for him to play on a regular basis as part of our worship team in church.

Reset, the youth worship band of Centro Biblico International was the last participation before the special finale. It was such a pleasure to have them with us. They played three songs and everybody had a special time of praise and worship with them. My friend Shadia is the leader of the worship band and it was my first time getting to see her play the drums.

There are many pictures and videos to upload, but here are pictures of each of the participants.

The leadership of the youth ministry put together a special finale. We incorporated each of our talents into a skit. To finish the night, my youth pastor, Pastor Willy gave a powerful message encouraging everybody to discover their talents and abilities and to use them to bring God glory. This became one of my favorite messages out of all the ones that I have heard him preach throughout the years. I feel so blessed to be a part of this ministry and to see how God is lifting us up as He has promised us.

Although this post is already long, I would like to include a poem that I wrote specially for the finale:

You may as well call me Babel
Confused and unable to find my way
A journey I once started with Christ, Immanuel
Has now turned into dismay

Oh heart, how envy has lead you to a dark and lonely place
At the mere sight of God’s work in another person’s life
My peace and joy become like vapor and vanish without a trace
And my soul is consumed with bitterness and strife

If only I could have Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams
If only I was as the apostles, people could be healed by my shadow
Or as the Prophet Jonah brought a nation to repentance on it’s knees
To have the courage of David, who killed Goliath with one throw

How I long to say, “Here I am, send me”
Many say that in serving You there is great delight
And on their faces I see their genuine glee
But in my case, I can’t seem to get it right

What have I to offer to the Creator who reigns in majesty?
Talents and gifts to honor Him with; I have none
These melancholy words are spoken in all honesty
How can I present myself empty handed before your Son?

For although you know the plans you have for me
Plans for good, plans of a future and of hope
Your purpose in my life I cannot see
And I find myself in a battle, struggling to cope

So I pray that you help open up my eyes
Help me see myself the way you do
For I have fallen for the enemy’s lies
Help me to rediscover that your words are true

My mind and my heart cannot seem to reconcile
I know that God chose me for a reason
I’ve been hearing this now for a while
Perhaps God will reveal my purpose in due season

Am I that clay contending with the Potter?
Why did you make me this way?
Am I that child questioning God the Father?
Why was I brought to this earth anyway?

Now to rid myself of this attitude
I can have the Holy Spirit if I ask
Let my heart be filled with gratitude
And my gifts and talents will He unmask

Physics

CAUTION: Do not try this at home.


The laws of physics state that if the man in the picture holds the 15lb ball attached to a pendulum a little below his chin and releases it, it will not swing back high enough to hit him in the face. This is actually a classic demonstration given in physics labs when teaching on the properties of a pendulum. This holds true as long as an external force is not applied to the ball. If somebody stands at the other end of the pendulum and pushes the ball, then yes, it will in all likelihood smash his face.


OK... enough physics.


I actually don't even like physics. I'm a science nerd, but when it comes to physics, the concepts take a bit longer to register in my brain. And this is where frustration comes in. All I'm trying to do is get into med-school to become a pediatrician. Why do I need physics???? Maybe once I get to med-school I will see why I was required to take it.


I know this is a test of life that I must pass. I've been so frustrated with physics that at times I've felt like forgetting about med-school. But how can I? I can't see myself doing anything else but pediatrics. Physics just stands there and taunts me, "HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT?" So now all I can do is brace myself and prove to God, to myself, and to my family and friends that I can overcome this and even be one of the top students.


Yes I know this sounds dramatic, but to me this has been a huge battle. Please just pray for me to be wise and understanding.

I Left my Heart in Costa Rica

I was finally able to go on my first missions trip :-) What a joy it was to serve God along side with the Sharp family, the missions team (The Amazing 5), and the Sion congregation.

I was truly blessed to be able to meet such wonderful people with a love for Christ. I loved working with the youth and being able to play with the kids. I was also encouraged by how my friends and family were able to see how happy I was to be on this missions trip. I left my heart in Costa Rica. I felt so at home and so fulfilled.

Since I've been back, I've been hard at work with my fellow leaders of the youth ministry at my amazing church. We've been working hard planning the next two major events: Exalt and Camp Arise.

Exalt is our talent show and it is this Saturday. We say talent show, but it is really a night of exalting God, using the gifts and talents that He has given us.

Camp Arise will be next month. Can't wait. It is amazing how we have lots of fun with the youth, but also experience fresh touches from God.

Life can't get any better than this... you haven't truly lived until you've had a relationship with Christ and served Him.

Trust

These months of preparation for my missions trip to Costa Rica have been very interesting. I've been confused at times. I've never done this before and I can say that I've learned a few lessons. The one major thing I've had to learn is to trust God. It's so much easier said than done. I've had to trust for His provision. I got to the point where my mind felt like it was spinning; trying to come up with countless ideas for fund-raising, yet God kept repeating to just trust Him. I didn't want to just sit and do nothing and expect the money to fall into my lap. So rather than drive myself nuts trying to get the money, I felt God leading me to just focus on simple and effective projects.

This Sunday will be the first car wash we've ever held during a service at my church. It's very practical for most people. They get to go to church and get their car washed all at the same time.

I also want to thank everybody who has helped make this trip to Costa Rica possible. Every little bit of money donated helps and I am very grateful.

Faith Without Deeds is Dead

This quickly became one of my favorite songs...
It motivates me to see beyond myself and look to the needs of those around me.

This is a song about an orphan girl that Brooke met in Rwanda while on a missions trip.

Albertine lost her mother in the genocide back in 1994. Brooke's life was never the same again after meeting Albertine. She dedicated and titled her album after the girl.

The world is so full of hurting people. How can I see the need and do nothing about it?

Just remember also; what we sow is what we reap. If we lend a hand to those that need help, God will lend us a hand when we are in need. How awesome is that?

BECAUSE

"Because 27 million people are still in slavery.
Because the average age of trafficked victim is 13.
Because someone should do something."

Human Trafficking is an organized criminal industry that affects every nation. Whilst the statistics can seem overwhelming, it is important to remember that every number represents the life of a victim.

Just Wait

~*`*~ A friend of mine shared this video with me and I just had to post it... ~*`*~

I ♥ spoken word and this girl is just awesome. The poem is about how us women need to wait for the man that God has for us. Let me expand a bit on the concept of waiting.

I've learned that waiting on the Lord is not easy. It does not even come naturally. It's a decision that we must make daily, but it is very much worth it.

I waited on God for 12 years; praying and fasting and never doubting in my heart. I would declare my family saved and serving Christ. After 12 years I can say that more than half of my family has Christ in their hearts and serve Him. But there is still more fasting and praying to do.

I waited on God for 10 years. After losing my grandfather, I was in need of a word from God. The weekend after my grandfather passed away, I went to a youth retreat and that is where I received my first prophecy about being a missionary. That was back in 2001. Now I am months away from going on my first missions trip.

Just wait on God... it is worth it.

Young Jesus Freaks

Anila and Perveen

(these names have been changed to protect

the individuals and their families)

17 and 18 years old

Pakistan

1997

Anila met Perveen at school. As their friendship grew, Anila gave Perveen a Bible and taught her Christian songs. Perveen quickly learned Christian songs and began to teach them to her younger sister when her parents weren’t home. Perveen’s parents soon learned of the songs. Being strict Muslims, they were not happy about them. But rather than confronting Perveen right away, they had her younger sister try to find out where she was getting this Christian influence.

Anila eventually invited Perveen to a Good Friday service. When the young Muslim heard the Gospel presentation, she immediately accepted Jesus. Perveen became very excited about her new relationship with Jesus and saw great changes take place in her life. She read her Bible and praised God boldly. Anila knew that, before long, her friend would encounter opposition from her family.

Perveen’s parents were furious when they learned of her conversion. They had previously arranged for her to marry a Muslim man. When Perveen again refused, she ran away.

When Perveen’s parents could not find her, they accused Anila and her pastor of kidnapping her. They had Anila arrested. Anila was slapped and beaten in front of her parents for over nine hours. Finally she was taken to prison.

Anila’s pastor and his family were taken to prison on the following day. Anila and her pastor experienced horrible tortures in jail. She was whipped sixteen times (five times would make a normal man pass out). When they were released, Anila could not sit for two months, and her pastor could barely walk from the bruises on his hips and thighs.

Perveen was later found by her family. In Muslim nations, children are often severely beaten for converting to Christianity. Others are killed by their own parents or siblings for apostasy, converting to another faith.

To restore the honor of his family, Perveen’s brother stabbed her to death. He then turned himself in to the local authorities. As is not uncommon in such situations, he was eventually released without incident.

Anila was then arrested on charges of kidnapping.

She was imprisoned, then released on bail a little more than a month later. She and her family went into hiding, as their lives were threatened by radical Muslims.

In May 1999, Anila was acquitted of all charges. Praise God for the prayers of faithful believers around the world! Continue to pray for her protection as she remains in hiding.

“I have seen the world,” Anila said, “and it has nothing good. Jesus is my only peace.”

There are hundreds, maybe thousands of other, similar stories that are never told of Christian children and teens being killed by their Muslim parents. Jesus said this would happen:

Brothers will give their own brothers to be killed, and fathers will give their own children to be killed. Children will fight against their own parents and have them put to death. All people will hate you because you follow me, but those people who keep their faith until the end will be saved.

Jesus (MATTHEW 10:21,22 NCV)

Pray for these young believers, that God will protect them and strengthen them. Pray for their parents, that they too will come to know Jesus as Lord. And most of all, forgive their persecutors and pray for the Muslim people to find the love of Jesus Christ and be saved.