India Trip Meeting

This afternoon we had another trip meeting, and every time we meet I get more excited and expectant. To start us off, we did a couple ice breakers, and if you've never played Signs, it's super fun:) Then we went into a time of worship and prayer. 

We prayed over a lot of the things we were expecting for from the trip. We want the Lord to prepare the hearts of the people we'll be developing relationships with, to soften their hearts and open their eyes. 

I'm doing a morning devotional over prayer and something I've been learning is how to act as an intercessor. There's a part that talks about how Moses was an intercessor for the people when the Lord was angry with them. Moses prayed on behalf of the people. He didn't change God's mind, but by intercessing for them and offering prayers on their behalf, God's power was released through his prayers. 

That's exactly how we approach India! O Lord, prepare their hearts for the words we bring them through your message. Use our hands, our words, our smile, our touch, to bring your truth and love into their lives. 

The Lord will do great things, of this I am sure. 

Please continue praying for my team, that we will be fully equipped for the work ahead, and that the hearts of the people would be prepared for His message. 

Support!

Praise God, He is so faithful, perfect provider, so sufficient!

There was a point earlier today when I was discouraged about raising support for the trip, and I just stopped what I was doing and layed it before the Lord. Later today I opened my email and there were over half-a dozen updates! Isn't He so good? Yeah, so good!

So here's my financial update. In the past week, the Lord has been faithful and gracious to provide $650!

Thank you all so much for your support. The Lord will surely use it and multiply it.

Trip update

After Encounter tonight we had another team meeting to discuss where we're at with everything. Here are some updates:

-We will start meeting every Thursday night after Encounter, and then every other Saturday for two hours.

 -During this time we will be putting into action in Norman what we will do in South Asia, by sharing the gospel and evangelizing. We will be doing a lot of training on everything we need to know about the area and the work we will be doing.

-During the trip, we will be getting gym memberships, as recommended by the team already working there. The people in the area are very relational, and we will be working out four times a week to establish relationships and work from there.

-Our plans for raising support continue. We need $26,000 in the next few weeks. Our Lord is the perfect provider and we are trusting Him to provide. "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be given to you." John 15:7

-We are also doing some fund raising projects, and will work on them on the off-weeks when we aren't training

Prayer Requests:
-That the Lord would banish all fear in any/all aspects of the trip. 
-That our training would be effective and powerful
-Provision for all financial needs 
-Logistically, all the necessary plans would fall in place
-Each team member would be spiritually and emotionally equipped 
-An increase of love, wisdom, and boldness for each team member

Prayer Requests

I also wanted to add, I have a few requests for those who love to pray:

* Pray that the Lord would prepare us emotionally and mentally for the trip. There are going to be a lot of hard, confusing, and exhausting aspects of our trip that need a lot of prayer.

* That all the logistical aspects of our trip (flights, visas, etc) come together well and quickly

* A lot of the ministry work we will be doing involves relationships. We'll be doing a lot of relation-building to get that foundation for sharing the Gospel. Pray that the Lord would equip us with wisdom, overwhelming love, patience, and kindness.
"For in him you have been enriched in every way--in all your speaking and in all your knowledge--because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you." -1 Corinthians 1:5

* Pray for the softening of hearts and that truth would penetrate all lies: "The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of Christ, who is the image of God." -2 Corinthians 4:4

Thanks, and I would appreciate any encouragement or feedback you have!

Love's like a hurricane, I am a tree

Tonight we had Life Group at Heather's house, our section leader. First of all, it was awesome. We had a lot of new faces and then all the beautiful one's of those who always come. 

Antioch has this system where you come to church and love on God and learn more about him and his purposes, but then we always have Life Group, which meets once a week at someone's house as a community.

We have food and hang out, then go into a time of worship and prayer, a brief message, then Discipleship Groups (D-Groups). Life Group is such a blessing to me, and the amazing girls (and guys) who come are so encouraging.

WELL. So tonight after Life Group, we all went to my sister Sam's house for some cookies and rain. No kidding, Norman got hit with tornado "warnings" and some hail. But other than that it made for a beautiful night of sitting on her porch with my best friends, watching the storm blow in, praising Jesus. It was so good. So good. This is what I expect college to be. Awesome moments of community when our love for Christ becomes the focus of all the other stuff. 

These are some of the girls last Christmas at the Courts, our old meeting place. We've gotten so big that our life group has multiplied twice. We're up to about 20 again. Praise Jesus:)

This is kind of what it looks like from the porch, just thought I would share.

What God laid on my heart tonight, a couple verses

"This is the covenant I will make with the house of Isreal after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people."

...This is what the LORD says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar--the LORD Almighty is his name."
Jeremiah 31:33

"This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it--the LORD is his name: Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."
Jeremiah 33:3

"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth."
Isaiah 42:1-4

"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. I will build you up again and you will be rebuilt, O Virgin Israel."
Jeremiah 31: 3

Tonight Antioch is having its college service, Encounter, at 8. It's so awesome! Every time I go, I feel like God opens up His truth to me, and I grow closer to Him. After the service we'll have a meeting about the India trip. I just finished the letters, so hopefully I can send them out tomorrow.

A verse I included on the support letter (that I read on a friend's letter), is
"Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given to me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."
Ephesians 6:18-20.

So good! I can't wait for this trip:)