Author: Adventures

Shout It

Door to door ministry has been something I have dreaded. It scared me to go up to people and present the gospel. I mean they are strangers and what if I offend them? Fear kept me on the sidelines as I believed that other brothers in sisters had words to bring conviction that I didn’t have. But by Gods grace, He is changing my perspective and teaching me that I have much boldness in in Him! Door to door ministry is actually something I am learning to embrace and enjoy now because God has given me the privilege to bless and be blessed by others. Such an encounter was a few weeks ago...

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My God, He is good

Let's just dive into Graham's brain for a little bit. I think a lot and I am only human, so my wisdom is very limited and the wisdom I have is only from God (doesn't mean I'm not stupid sometimes, again I am only human). But again, I digress… I came onto this Guatemala trip breathing in limitless possibilities for God to move and breathing out a very rogue driving force of veiled love. God has broken me of that. See it comes from being flooded by a lot of Bible reading, theology studying and loving people so much that you can see how they can grow. So, for all of...

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God works in mysterious ways

God has given me inexplicable joy after a few really hard weeks. I kept asking him to fill me with joy and I kept getting frustrated that he wasn't. What I realize now that I could not see before, is that he had to make room for his Joy to fill me up. Making room was painful. But it was ever so necessary. I hadn't realized that by looking to other things to assure my value, my beauty, and parts of my identity, I wasn't allowing God to have space to work in my life completely. I wanted Gods blessings over me, but I hadn't allowed him to actually have his way completely...

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This is permanent

We just returned from our mid trip debrief where we had a time of relaxation from and reflection on all the craziness of the past two months. I figured I share some of my reflections with everyone who's interested.  In the past two months God has affirmed that I'm always accepted by him, no matter how badly I miss the mark. I'm always loved and he always wants me with him, even when I'm at my darkest. I'm a new creation in him, the old one died and the new one is alive now. I'm still imperfect, but my imperfections are only old habits that will die in...

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What an Uninterested Child Taught Me About Love

In a few hours I will be heading to a little refuge tucked away in a little niche on the outskirts of town.  This is where I met little Locia, a girl with an independence that defies her size.  She is one of the residents of this beautiful well-kept orphanage.  Locia has taught me a lot about love.  Thing is, she doesn’t want anything to do with me.   When I first met this little one, she sat at a table on a sunny afternoon, as several other children colored, staring at the wooden boards in front of her.  The sun shown on her disinterested face,...

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Broken Expectations, Broken Heart, Real Love

I knew coming into this trip I was going to stand out. Pale skin (so pale I sometimes glow), red hair, freckles, and bright blue eyes. I stand out everywhere, but in Latin America, this is amplified. I knew people would stare, I expected that, but I did not expect to be affected by it. And I definitely didn’t expect to learn from it.  Walking anywhere was not fun, consistent catcalls, yelling, and stares that gave me chills. I hated it. I hated going anywhere. But one day, after a little breakdown I decided to ask why. Why did God want to walk me through this? How could God...

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We Have $50,000 – Who Should We Give It To?

Celebrating Unsung Heroes Unsung hero n: a person who makes a substantive yet unrecognized contribution; a person whose bravery is unknown We have $50,000 Who should we give it to? Epoch 2013 honors the unsung heroes; the people who cross the boulevard or the world to serve where poverty, drought, HIV/AIDS, sex trafficking, homelessness, and fear reign. For these heroes, this is more than planting churches and discipling – this is life. And we want to give them a lot of money to continue doing what they do. This October, we're...

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A Woman’s Pain and Our Plea

     She pulled open the broken screen door that clung onto its last little hinge and revealed a dimly lit room that housed a single cot on the far wall. My group of six squeezed into the tiny room. And there sitting on the cot was one of the most tragic sights we had yet to see.      Rewind. March 4, 2013 the first Monday of the month, my team had been told by our contact to be ready at 10am to start our week of door to door evangelism. A local church called Rey de Reyes asked to partner with us to reach the community.       ...

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No Hablo Espanol!

God called me on this trip knowing that I could speak Spanish decently, not fluently. While at the children’s hospital, I went into the little girl’s section first. I made friends with one little girl who had an overwhelming cast on her fragile leg. We didn’t have much conversation; we mostly played with her doll. Her face lit up as I began to play with her. The next little girl I went by was crying nonstop. I tried to talk to the woman who was with her, but she informed me that she was only there to keep her company because her family hadn’t visited her in a...

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Clay

Hello Friends The last few days (actually 2 months) have been a time of reflection and revelation. Of surrendering and being filled up. And one thing that God has called me to lay down is my FOCUS. There are many times that I focus on me, from every day issues to spiritual things. I think about me and my struggles, what I have done wrong, what I need to change in the future, how I will reach certain goals, and how I will grow in my relationship with the Lord. But that is pride and therefore I am acting in sin.   But God is calling me to be the CLAY. Isaiah 64:8 says that “And...

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Not OK: The Truth Isn’t Sexy (7 Lies About Human Trafficking)

In cooperation with End It Movement, we're spending Tuesdays this month shining a light on slavery and human trafficking. Slavery is not OK, and our missionaries around the world have had raw, firsthand experiences fighting it. This week we hear from World Race alumnus Laura Meyers of the October 2008 G Squad. After the World Race, Laura did an apprenticeship to learn about human trafficking and educate others on how to fight it. She shares a list of lies and truths about trafficking from the Salvation Army. LIE #1 All women working in prostitution,...

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Eyes for Blessings

There is something about a hot shower, a perfectly foamed latte, and the access to peanutbutter that has the tendency to make an already great day just that much better. Alyssa and I went for a walk through Antigua yesterday and we enjoyed the absence of cat calls and the very common sighting of  white, English speaking people. ( it being Holy Week brought a huge amount of Americans/ non Spanish speakers). We were aimlessly wandering and just popping into shops when they grabbed our attention. In the back of our minds, we were also on a mission to encounter some peanutbutter and...

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