Hey folks - hope this blog finds all of you doing well. Some updates for you. We finished Leadership Camp last Friday. I miss our kids already. We are now in the transition process of beginning Green Team. This camp is actually run by another non-profit organization. Though things have slowed down tremendously, this camp brings its own challenges as well. Myself and another AI staff member are there to basically help run things. We are struggling with keeping ourselves involved. And trust me on this - we try very hard. The bottom line is it's another program so they have their own expectations/rules/discipline procedures and it just doesn't quite measure up to what we are used to doing. The people we are under are very nice. We are just going to have to be very creative in how we interact with the kids and how we bring the Gospel to them.
Many of you have called and commented on my last post. Thank you for your support and prayers with this. There has been much prayer and faith involved in bringing back peace in my heart. Our God is a sovereign God and we as a staff here at AI have no choice but to trust Him and be in communion with Him on a minute to minute basis; or quite honestly if you don't the enemy will attack. I am so thankful that our Tuesday mornings will now consist of corporate worship and prayer together. We missed that when we were in LC. Yesterday we spent time in deep prayer lifting up specific individuals; praying over them and their chains of bondage. I have learned to be fully and completely dependent on the Lord through prayer here. In a place like this, you are stripped of everything. The phrase 'God Is Your Strength' is brought to a whole new level. Today I was very encouraged in taking a house visit to one of our kids. We went to drop off a permission slip. By the time we left, we were served a meal, had such an amazing conversation, prayed, and invited back. Trips like these to houses are very, very few and far between. As I said, I was very encouraged by the visit and warmth/hospitality the Swanson family showed us.
I want to share with you about a lady, in hopes of you being facedown in prayer for her and her salvation. Her name is Angela. The first week I was here I always saw her walking the streets and standing on corners. Every time I saw her I got a very strong uneasy, unpeaceful spirit about her. God did and has continued to put such a burden on my heart for her. I cannot go a day without thinking about Angela. I began praying for her about the 2-3 week we were here - that God would place her in my path throughout the day. He has. There have been a couple of times where I have tried to talk to her and she will say hi and walk off. Other times she will ask for a dollar, and walk off with a very agitated and frustrated attitude because I won't give it to her. Each time I have prayed for her the words "self esteem, identity, salvation, hope" keep burning inside of me. If I was to guess, Angela is a prostitute who is heavily addicted to some sort of substance. She needs help, she needs Jesus. Please join with me in praying for Angela. Specifics: that God would continue to cross our paths on a daily basis, for her to soften her heart to me, that the Holy Spirit would speak through me, and most importantly that God would open a door for me to share the Gospel with her. I am trusting in God for this to happen before the summer is up.
As we are at the half way point of the summer I have mixed feelings. It's almost as if it has gone so fast at times, and yet so slow at times as well. God has really spoke to my heart during this time of short term mission trips and what, if anything is the point of them. Uh oh, I might have stepped on some toes there. I don't apologize and I will love to sit down and talk to those of you about it when I get home who are curious of what God has laid on my heart. I have learned what Kingdom living consists of and the beauty, as well as the battles it involves. Please continue to pray for me and our staff as we push through this last month or so. Specifics: energy to make it through the day, truth to be spoken to us and through us, intentional interactions, open doors, and a supernatural love which we can reflect to the people of Aliquippa. I cannot express to you haw thankful I am for those of you who have committed to me in prayer. This is the only thing that keeps me going throughout the days. I am having a great time here and I am so thankful that God has brought me here for a specific purpose. You are a treasure to me. Until next time, love deeply.
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