The truth of Lady Liberty.

"Pure and undefiled religions before God and the Father is this: to visit widows and orphans in their distress [and] to keep one's self unspotted from the world." (James 1:27)
      The and, added by our English translators perhaps causes us to miss one of the most profound statements of what enables us to be unspotted from the world- Looking after widows and orphans in their distress.
       The destruction of Sodom was not ultimately in their sexual sin (a direct consequence), but that in their arrogance and careless ease they forgot the poor and the needy. (Ezekiel 16:49).
        Have we forgotten:

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lighting, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
(Emma Lazarus) 

       Have we become so self indulgent that we have forgotten who we are? Why we are here? You and I, carries of the Kingdom, children of God. Do we long to be unspotted from the world? 

Then, let us care for the poor, the widow, the orphan, the one who has nothing and no one. What will awaken in your heart, but gratitude, joy and love? All things of the Kingdom- which we are promised is not made of meat and drink, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17)

       The culture of the world-the lies of the enemy have so groomed us to believe it is all about "me". But it's not. It's about Jesus. And what does He say? "Whatever you have done to the least of these, You have done to me." (Matt. 5:40)

        Let us learn pure and undefiled religion from the one who showed us how. It's not in what we do not focus on (I will not sin, I will not sin)... or any self denial or oppositely self indulgence. It's in fixing our eyes on Jesus- setting our minds on things above. It is in death only we find life. And, we are dead...our life is no hid with Christ in God. So living dead to the world and alive to Christ, let us love the least of these. And in this we will discover a much more excellent way. Jesus is the only answer to the plague on the land. 

                                  With all my heart. 

Annual Traditions...

The ABC's of 2014
I am so Thankful for:

ATW and the experience of taking a team of 7 to so many different places and seeing God's hand on the whole trip- watching Him minister to people's hearts all along the way.
Books- right now it's been the audio versions. They have given me hours of provoking thought, lulled me to sleep at night, and drew creative pictures in my mind as stories weave to together.
Clean clothes. A washing machine gets taken for granted so quickly until we go for seasons without. 
Doing life God's way. Sometimes its the way of suffering, sorrow, and seemingly unclear paths-but He has always promised to light the path, particularly around our feet that we would know where to walk and how to step. I would not have it any other way.
Every moment where physically I feel good, and learning to lean on Jesus more in the moments that I don't. 
Faithful provision, every need being met, sometimes in the strangest ways, but He is always faithful to come through. 
Grandma's box of wisdom that I received last Christmas. Many quotes and poems and scriptures that I realized were worked into the fabric of my upbringing. A gift that will be treasured forever!
Hot water bottles...handy as all get out. Well used since picking it up in South Africa. 
iPads! Such a blessing on outreach, small enough to tote around, but bigger than a phone screen, making updating and communication just that much easier. It's a book, a game board, a notepad, a Bible, and more :). 
James, my favorite book of the Bible. He puts an exclamation mark on the teachings of Jesus, causes you to look at the depths of your own heart seeing where it's out of alignment and cheers you on to draw near to God that it may come into alignment once again.
Kids! I love my nieces and nephews so much. The sweet little notes, hugs, skyping, fun moments playing games or building puzzles. 
Librivox...haha. Seriously, I enjoy being able to listen to old classics. What a fun app. Louisa May Alcott, George MacDonald...
Mom cooking me food day after day and dad giving random hugs (and bringing me home.)
New mercies every morning! 
Opportunities to learn, grow and be stretched constantly. 
Prayer-a constant companionship with the Father.
Quiet walks with Jesus. Sometimes it's the sound of silence that stills my heart the most. Today I stepped in a mud puddle on purpose with my rubber boots, just because I could...and it made me smile! 
Renewing friendships with old friends. Are you aware of who is in your life? Some of them you may go through the rockiest seasons with and it's with them that friendships are the sweetest. 
Sarah and her sweetness. I have an excellent roommate who exemplifies the love of the Lord and seeks to honor Him in every way. We have a lot of fun together and also get to challenge one another in our walks with Jesus.
Thai pants- seriously my favorite clothes now. Comfortable and wearable in all weather. 
Unexpected season of rest back at home.
Vacation- experienced my first "real" one ever when I celebrated our 30th anniversary of our base this year with 76 other people on a cruise! Wow. What an experience. 
Water, clean water. We are so blessed and we don't even know it. Well water at mom and dads especially. 
Xylitol, making life a little sweeter. 
Yummy food. Curry, Sweet potato fries, almond butter, bean chips, almond and rice crackers, hummus...it's been a year of learning to eat in a whole new way and I am grateful for yummy foods I have discovered along the way!
Zzzzz- beds, pillows, blankets, mattresses and my hippo. 

Not on my time but on Yours...

It has been three and a half weeks here in Washington. I've left the property twice and taken 4 short walks down the driveway.

 Never in my wildest imaginations would I have imagined such a season. It has been long and trying on my heart and mind. To keep a positive hopeful outlook requires more than sometimes I am capable. Self pity is my gravest enemy and Drawing near to the Lord my greatest weapon.
At the moment things are fine, my sister and I sit here in companionable "silence" listening to Christmas music and being anti-social networking across the airwaves. But still it is nice to have someone around.

 Jesse wanders in and out reading about making cheese and other creative things. Mom bustles around doing random house chores.
And what in the world do I do all day? Besides check facebook too often and read random blogs...here is what I do:

The YWAM Prayer Journal was given to me from dear friends Ken and Doris. I've used it as a daily thankfulness journal as well as a Bible reading plan. Currently in the book of Ezekiel. When I was in the worst of being sick I got a couple of weeks behind, but now have caught up again. If you are interested in one of these journals let me know and I can procure one for you. 

Countless pages of scribblings trying to process ATW and life. Also a place to practice the challenge from Beth Moore to memorize the book of James. Something I started 7 years ago and had let drop until now...

Keeping up with this awesome study via face time with some of my friends from YWAM. We started a few weeks before I left. 

A good read from my friend Erika. You may find a future blog post ramble on this particular book as I am discovering much in it impacting my life in this particular season. (Such as the personification of self-pity being my greatest enemy.) It's like I am traveling along with Much-Afraid through the valleys and deserts with companions-sorrow and suffering. If only I would learn to see them as companions as well and not my enemies. 

I amuse myself with trying to accomplish every "extra" challenge listed. The only one left to obtain is a score of 240+. Sounds impossible, but I have figured out the trick...its in the cards. haha. (This is the swiss board in case you wonder what version I happen to be playing.) 

And unless these wind up being sold, everyone might end up with cowl scarves for christmas. My nephew decided one of the hats I made he just has to have...I believe it will wind up under the tree with his name one it. 

I even finished my 2010 ATW photo book and am working on the year 2014. Yes, I skipped all the years in between..I may go back to them after but for now since 2014 is fresh in my mind it is a better start. 

At night I listen to Audiobooks: current "read" Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott

We built a puzzle as well..I brought it from home partially built in the box so that I wouldn't have to redo it...here is a sideways picture. It's turned on my computer but for some reason will not come up turned on here. 

Tomorrow I am looking forward to visitors and meeting Baby Eden Joy. Tonight is family night so the house will be full of noisy little boys. They are quite amusing. Though Rylan can't quite figure out why I don't want to jump on the trampoline....maybe because inside of my head feels like it's on a trampoline already?! 

One more snippet from Ecuador.

I woke up this morning thinking about our last day in Ecuador....

It was a warm, winterish day. We piled into the back of the truck and headed down to the local prison. Upon arrival we received purple stamps on our arms, surrendered our passports and walked through the big metal gates.
Men lined the perimeters of a jail "town". There were a few clothing items hanging on a line, a little shop of some kind and toward the back beside the basketball court was a small little chapel.
Soon a large speaker system was set up and we plugged the jump drive in. Two songs registered on the play list. Where were the rest of the dramas? None that we had chosen for the day were working. Well, things like this happen so quickly we prayed and improvised.
There was a man who led a few songs and our contact stepped up and introduced us. Many of the men lingered further back but about 20 or so came up closer and joined in.
We shared the two dramas and prayed for the message of the gospel to be clear.
Then Caleb stepped up to speak... "MEN OF ECUADOR"...you could have heard a pin drop. The air was thick with the presence of God as he shared the reality of the cross and what Jesus has done for us.
Our time was short, we needed to be out before 12:30 or we would be stuck in through lunch and beyond. We invited them up for prayer and probably 15 came forward.
Five men surrendered their lives to Jesus that day.
As I looked into the weathered face of a young man in blue pants, tattooed with gang markings, I felt the heart of the Father longing for His lost son to come home. And that day, he did.
While we were walking back toward the gate, my friend turned to me and said "do you know who that was?" No..of course not. Why would I? Turns out he was one of the top street criminals of the city. If you say you are his friend on the streets, you will get respect. "I've never seen him like that in all the times I've been here. God definitely did something big today." She told me.
What?! Jesus let me be a part of that?! This man might be the key to changing the whole city.

I am not sure how he is doing now, but I continue to pray that the seeds continue to grow and there will be much fruit. On another note, a young man who hasn't given his life to the Lord, yet, was delivered from drugs that day. Our contacts found this out later when they went back. May the Spirit continue to do what only He can do in his heart.

When you face various trials...

Funny my blog is called Count it all Joy.

And funny that in this season I am doing a study on the book of James. 

Not all that funny...it's just really real. And right now in this time, I am learning a whole other depth to what it means to count it all Joy. 

Coming back from overseas a couple of months ago, I was quite tired and ready to rest. I took a trip home, got a newer car...took the drive back, and on they way started to really not feel the best. Had plans to go to Florida a week later to see my friend Alicia before taking some time to go on our 30th Anniversary cruise for YWAM Denver. Both Florida and the cruise I was sure would be quite restful. And in so many ways they were. I spent a lot of time in the word of God, journaling and in fellowship with a few friends. In the midst of this, I kept feeling more and more ill. 

I had gone to he natural doctor who has been treating me for Candida and she had seen some parasites in my blood and put me on a herb to kill them off. But as I was on the trip I realized I think I need to get more testing. Unfortunately, the medical field and natural field are so often at odds,  it was difficult to convince the doctor I needed testing. But managed to...tests came back positive. Was treated- with an antibiotic. In total now I have seen 5 doctors, been on 5 antibiotics...and feeling quite worn out. 

I was working as much as I could...which went from about 4 hours a day to about one. Kept thinking after this medicine I should be better. Finally. This last weekend, my mom and dad said "maybe you should come home for a while." Something inside of me melted and I knew it needed to happen. 

So where is all the joy you ask? I am still learning myself. The joy is in the relationships of the people around me and not in the circumstances. Right now my joy is that Jesus is seeing me through it..though I admit I've grumbled at him and cried out my fair share of times I am believing that I will come out of this knowing Him more. It's difficult to be a place where I need to say I need you, I can't do this by myself. (Not just to The Lord, but to others). 

The joy has been found in my roommate Sarah who who would pray for me when my head was spinning or I would wake up in the night feeling miserable. Her kindness to make me dinner or bring me tea. My joy has been in countless friends who have taken me to the doctor, gotten me groceries, brought me flowers. It's in my dad taking the time to say he will come and bring me home. 

For a while I kept trying to look backward and see joy in what could be. And I do believe one day joy will be more complete. When the whole slum in India knows Jesus. When people in every nation we visited are worshiping Jesus and the throne, we will see it's worth it all. 

Another Joy I have found is in praying for others, I am thankful for the notes and requests I have received and know that The Lord is answering. And to know I am surrounded in prayer is a joy. 

I have an incredible community here who has said please, rest, get well. So with this release I am going home for a while...and do just that.  

Sometime I will share more about our time in the slum in India. God has not let me get their faces out of my mind in the midst of all of this. 

Little Jose

Everyday in Ecuador I was able to shower love on a little rascal with the biggest smile and a ton of energy.  Little Jose was the happiest child. All my clothes were dirty from sitting beside him at meals, I tied his shoes more times than I could count... I wanted to take him home with me.

Living in a children's home there is never a dull moment. 46 kids to love... Who love you back. Never underestimate the power of a hug. 

Reflecting...the beginning of the journey

 We are ready to go, send us around the world Jesus...to anyone and everyone who needs to hear your invitation to life with you. 

First stop...Cancun, Mexico

It was a little on the rainy side some days...here we are after being caught in a rain storm. 

We shared the gospel in the open air. This was in front of a woman's home/store. She graciously opened the space and almost the whole slum came to hear the Good News. Several people gave their lives to Christ that night. 

We did some work projects at the Mission Church of Vida Life. This church was actually one I had the privilege of helping build in 2009 when I went down with another team.  

Here is the church now in it's completed state 5 years later. We also had the opportunity to preach and do a kids program here. 

And sometimes...you wind up on TV. To watch the show you can click here! 

Here we are out at another village where we spent the day clearing the land and then later we did a program and played with all the children. 

 The beautiful beaches...

 And the beautiful people..this is Damaris. She serves full time with Tree of Life Ministries. Tree of Life was started by some friends of ours who live in Cancun. They have a vision to see this city transformed with the gospel of Jesus Christ. I loved seeing them all again and getting to minister along side friends. 

And then...before we knew it, it was time to head to Ecuador. 

Stay tuned for another post soon that shares more...

Thoughts on singleness and dating and other relational things...

Today I sat and visited with two of my closest friends. They have both been married over 5 years and have multiple children. Our conversation went in and out of topics like children and pregnancy and other things and then it shifted to dating and singleness. It got me pondering....so here is my ponderings. 

There are blogs and posts floating around about how I kissed Dating Goodbye has hurt a generation of people. In someways it was an extreme, yes. But in a messy culture, well...there are no easy answers. As a young 16 year old, freshly broken up with a boy I was ready and willing to do something different. And so, I kissed it good bye...sort of. I actually just said "Jesus I give you the reigns to my relational life." 

Now 17 years later, I have a lot more perspective and am also so grateful. I live with no regrets. I didn't kiss it goodbye and then sit on my hands and wait in my house. I looked to Jesus. There was a season... Where I really struggled and it took some convincing from The Lord to get me into Missions still single. (Though I knew without a shadow do a doubt He wanted me there). But the bottom line is, where better to be then doing what you want to do with your life and ultimately, being in the place God wants you to be? 

It's not really about being single or dating or married or courting or any labels we put on anything. We are actually just called to Relationship. Relationship with God and out of that, relationship with others. My relationship with God- listening to him and walking with him actually gives me the ability to Trust Him with all the rest of it. 

Do I want to be married? Sure! Do I mind being single? No... Do I sometimes wish I was in a different season by now? Don't we all? If you ask me tomorrow, it might be one of those days. Elisabeth Elliott said to treat each day of singleness like a gift. It was good advice....let's treat every day of our lives like a gift and not wish them away looking for something better. Each day has it's glories and it's troubles. It's just a whole lot easier to walk each one of them arm and arm with God the Father! 

I think that's all for now... 

The Wooden Chair

When I was just a little girl, I'd close my eyes to pray. And there I'd see the Father sitting in a wooden chair. When I would speak He'd lean to listen and hear what I would say. 

I'm older now and thought that I somehow had a strange imagination as a child. Imagine God of the universe...not on a throne but on a wooden chair. So I laughed it off and as I prayed I wanted to see God on His throne. it's beautiful there. Surrounded by gardens and a big beautiful stone wall. And He is so inviting. 

But the most beautiful place is still the wooden chair. Even now my eyes are filling up with tears. You see someone shared a story- a vision of another, of Jesus in His favorite place upon a wooden chair. The chair was in a little room called "the weeping room". It was found deep in the house of God, within the intimacy room. A simple room, accessible by trapdoor. Here He looks out at the world and sees and hears every cry. He sees all the brokenness and hurt and pain. 

You know why it makes me cry too? I've seen the things that make Him weep. The bars and redlights, the poor and destitute, empty idol worship, divorce, unforgiveness, anger, orphans...it pains me. But what makes me weep all the more? When I was just a little child, in the midst of all He saw...when I would open my mouth to pray, He leaned in to listen. We matter so much to Him, I can't get over it. And now...again when I close my eyes to pray. This is where I see Him...and I know I can go in there with Him. 

You can read the whole vision here: 

http://www.whitedoveministries.org/index.cfm?zone=Docs/Prophetic%20Words/PWTheWeepingRM.htm&page=Articles

Value the Individual.

Tonight as I stood at the back of the Rescue Mission looking out at a sea of faces, I remembered my first experience with the homeless. It was my DTS, we were doing this ministry at a coffee shop..our job was to mingle and talk to the people. I was terrified. I guess because all I thought about was me, and what if this and what if that. It was one of the longest nights of my life.
This evening was so different. My job tonight was to clear out trays and cups and make sure tables got wiped down as wave after wave of people came in to eat. The night flew by. I cracked jokes with a few here and there who were not eating their brussels sprouts (can't blame them..I am not much of a fan either), passed a long a smile, shook a hand or two. No time for conversation. No time to hear their stories. I don't know that much has changed in the situations- but much has changed in me. I wish I could have heard where each one came from. Why are they there, was it decisions, or rough circumstances.
Some eyes were clear and full of hope, others hollow, some were glassy from drinking, others filled with wells of sorrow. Some would not look up. Others flashed with pain. Regardless of where we have come from, each of us has value. A simple "May I take your tray, sir" restores dignity, for a moment. Jesus let it go much further.

Radical intercession.

Thank you Jesus for your amazing love and power. Thank you for inviting me in to your wild extravagant boldness. Tonight was the epitome of what I long for: taking back what the enemy has stolen. The boldness to declare truth tonight was like fire.
So what happened? Myself, Chloe, Katie & Elizabeth went up to the Commons Hill top again and up there was Ryan, Luke and Caleb. I started to pray and Ryan invited us to the center. We began to declare TRUTH and pray and take back the ground. I felt like removing my sandals. "Everywhere the sole of your foot treads." Then Caleb took his off and we began to just proclaim more. I got in the center and started to dance like a crazy person. I've been LONGING to claim that hilltop for Jesus. Oh my goodness. We started to sing "Let it Rain" because I felt a little sprinkle. The rain and the wind started whipping and swirling around us and the more it rained the louder we sang. This kid sang back "don't let it rain!" Well, it didn't work. Literally every person left- all the air cleared of pot smoke. I felt like we needed to clean the area- to pick up all the trash. Even the cigarette butts and do it like a prophetic act. A few people came up, but most didn't stay- they just looked and left. And if they came they wouldn't come in the circle.
Heaven broke in tonight. The atmosphere changed. Fear fled. A kid's hand got healed, I ran into Leroy, a kid that Sarah, Jenny and I met a couple of weeks ago.
Later, Jacob told us they were on the bridge and some kids came through and one freaked out. He said "what is going on?" because they were praying for people on the bridge for people and he said "they are praying for people here and there were crazy people back there praying and making it rain." Lol. Go God. Tonight you truly did use creation to testify. It really did reveal your glory. Thank you God that the city of Denver WILL know Jesus!! Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that you are Lord- to the glory of the Father.
-Taken from my journal May 2, 2014

Journey to being WELL and HEALTHY again!

So many of you know I have been on a a journey to be well. After spending two years, now going on three, trying to figure out what was wrong..to no avail, I finally had a simple blood test done and was diagnosed with Candida. This was causing my body to stop absorbing nutrients and thus causing many weird problems. Well now I have officially been battling it for about two months and feeling INCREDIBLY better. How you ask? Well, first off..I can breathe. Second, I can sleep at night. Third, No more acid reflux....and the list goes on.
Between prayer and natural medicine I am becoming well. And I am CELEBRATING! I am on a pretty strict diet, but in the process I have learned a lot of fun food tricks.
Today I made a Chocolate cake that is entirely free of all things i can not eat. I've discovered interesting ingredients like Quinoa and Xylitol. Oh and did I mention..I don't even usually LIKE cake?!
As I get well, i am pretty convinced that sugar and large quantities of highly processed food will not really ever be given permission to enter my system again. Not after seeing the difference. The only thing I miss now and again is a giant slice of fresh bread with Nutella on top. But then, I have learned how to make my own Nutella as well...not bad.

Of course, Chocolaty things are not the only things I have learned to make..but it seems that treats are the hardest. I was limited even to eating no fruit until a couple of days ago, so sweet things were pretty scarce in my life. I've been enjoying things like Tortilla soup (without tortillas of course. I enjoy it with Bean and Rice Chips). Homemade Rotisserie chicken- the things our toaster oven can do are AMAZING. Cream cheese Crepes,  Lots of guacamole, squash and beef crockpot special, and more....

Thanks for standing with me in prayer. I believe I am healed by the power of Jesus. Now my body is just learning to function properly again. 

I have been handed a precious gift.
7 students to journey with for the next 5 months.

The Awaken DTS has begun. We have 20 students total and they are absolutely amazing. I feel as though God has just given us a sweet glimpse into His heart for them and can not wait to see them fully come alive in all He has created them to walk in on this planet.

My Around the World Team grew from 5 to 7 over the past week as several students prayed about switching over and joining us. They are dynamic additions to the team. This week I am looking forward to having them all over for dinner and getting to hang out and bond a bit as a team and also begin to work on our visas.
Keep your eyes peeled. I am hoping to post a little intro to who my team is on here some time soon. In the mean time be praying for them- for freedom, healing, continued boldness, finances, a rise in faith, and that God would do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think according to HIS glorious riches in Christ.

Today we took them all to church here as we had a "YWAM Sunday"- a good friend of ours who was in Denver for a season but planted a new base in Redding, CA came back to speak and then afterward we got to go around and minister to so many in the church. We have also had the opportunity to join hundreds of young people in the city for an event called City Wide Worship.

John 15.

In 2010 I had these images in my mind..hadn't done much with a paintbrush, but wanted to try. So I got some canvas and the first two pictures is what resulted. It's the story of John 15. I never finished the third one..until tonight. It's hard to get them to lay out in the exact circle since they are squares on a flat screen, but it's a circular picture. As we abide in the Vine, we bear much fruit. Fruit that remains. And as a result, that fruit(spills over) impacts the world and the nations will glorify the Father. Now, 2014, the pictures are complete. Merry Christmas Dad ;). 

A post of random tidbits from Winter Quarter so far.

Hello from SNOWY land! It's 0 out at the moment, so it's just a little chilly.
We are into week 5 already here of the winter quarter. The Compassion DTS has 28 students that have just made final decisions about their outreach--17 will be going to Colombia and the rest to Latvia & Romania. We also have the Boarders DTS who will be taking off to Thailand, Mexico and Turkey & Romania.
The teams going to Romania will be working with one of the bases that my team worked with while we were there! I am so glad they are going to be able to go and invest some more in that community.
In other news,
I have a new roommate. My lovely friend Stacy is currently at our Mountain campus and then moving on to other things in March. But below is Sarah- She's great! She moved in last week. Yup, she is as fun as she looks :-)

Also, we have been getting creative this quarter with Kingdom Night because it's been so cold. Last week we spent a couple of hours in the mall and this past week we did Worship and Intercession for the city while some of the staff/students went out and talked to people in coffee shops. It's so much fun to go to the "ordinary" places and just ask God who He wants to bless, to know about Him, to be healed, etc. When we walk into a place aware that the Spirit of God is present with us, we see through different lenses. 

Amazing song by my friend Lindy.

So encouraged by this song today! My friend Lindy put out a track, just released! Enjoy it. Reminds me  that YES this is why I do what I do!


Spent most of the day planning ATW...so excited for what is shaping up! Will share more as locations become cemented. Continue to pray with me that we will go where He wants us to go, and that I won't let myself get overwhelmed in all the prep.