Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in this holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who does not lift up his soul to what is false
And does not swear deceitfully.
(Psalm 24)
Whenever I have read this Psalm in the past, the ascension seemed unattainable. Clean hands and a pure heart? Not me. More like some old guy in a white robe with his head bowed, solemnly taking one step at a time after undergoing numerous cleansing rituals.
But several weeks ago, when my first team leader Alyssa, spoke these words over me, they began to take on a whole new meaning.
The Lord is saying “Ascend the hill, Amanda”
You don’t have to wait.
You have a special invitation to go.
You, Amanda, have clean hands and a pure heart.
Ascend the hill. The Lord is inviting you to His holy place.
These words were continuously spoken over me during our final weeks in Thailand, by my leader, other teammates, and by Jesus. I could feel a stirring in my soul for more, like I was about to break out of a cage I just realized I was in. The Lord was guiding my steps, and I knew He was up to something amazing.
As a squad, we spent our final two days together in southern Thailand where new squad leaders were raised up and new team leaders took their place. This meant team changes as well. I knew in my gut that for me something needed to change in order for God’s purposes to be accomplished.
We stood on the beach as they announced squad leaders, which included my first team leader, Alyssa (yay!), and new team leaders, including my teammate Justin (yay again!). Then the team leaders started reading their new teams. Chip Carnes, one of the previous team leaders, called my name along with four others: Tyler Vessels, Alison Gray, Kaitlyn Wolff, and Ga’Nene Edwards. I was so excited! I had loved getting to know each of these people thus far, and now we would get the opportunity to walk through life together, day by day. Then Justin, who had been on my first team, began reading his list…and it included every member of our previous team plus one new member.
My sweet friend Becky immediately put her arms around me and I started to cry. It’s not that I didn’t like my new team or felt left out of my old team, I was just sad. I’ve learned that grieving is healthy when seasons end. And for that reason a lot of grieving takes place on the World Race. Grieving the countries we are leaving, ministries and ministry contacts, and all of our new brothers and sisters. So you can only imagine how it felt to leave my Earth Like Heaven family I had lived with and experienced so much with the first three months of the Race.
But once I finished crying and processed the end of a season, I was ready. The last piece of the puzzle locked into place, and it was time for the ascension to begin. I literally felt like a marathon runner hearing the shot of the starting gun.
I’m ready to run! I kept repeating these words the entire night, speaking out the urgency in my soul. I’m ready for more from Jesus, I’m ready to align myself with heaven and step into the identity God spoke over me long ago, I’m ready for heaven to break loose around me as I partner with Jesus in bringing Kingdom to Earth.
The Lord has spoken that His daughter has clean hands and a pure heart. He has given me a special invitation to join Him on His holy hill and I am running as fast as I can!
My new team is Team Ascend the Hill and we are working with Team Children of Light in Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia. Penang is an island located off the west shore of mainland Malaysia. This island is a tourist hotspot known for their great food, historic architecture, and beautiful beaches. Overall, Malaysia is a melting pot for Asian culture heavily influenced by China and India. Islam is the predominant religion, but Hinduism and Buddhism are very prevalent as well. While taking a 10-minute walk to the supermarket, it is common to pass an Islamic mosque, a Buddhist temple, and a Hindu temple. Therefore, Penang is such a strategic location for ministry as many of its citizens carry influence in other Asian countries and cultures as well.
This month we are working with YWAM Penang in a variety of ministries. The three ministries we will be working with the most include: serving the homeless, fundraising for and building relationships with cancer patients at a local hospital, and serving at Just Caffe, a YWAM coffee shop as an outreach to the city. My primary ministry will be at Just Caffe as I work several shifts throughout the week and build relationships with customers and college students from the university across the street. Check out their facebook page for more info: http://www.facebook.com/JustCaffe.
We will also be prayer walking and talking with those often marginalized by society: the homeless, sex workers, gays, and transvestites. Finally we will be ministering with PenHOP: Penang House of Prayer, during random times throughout the week. PenHOP offers worship, prayer, and intercession sets all throughout the week at different times and anyone is welcome to attend. We went tonight for the first time for “Worship with Words” where they sang through passages of scripture. I am so thankful for this place of refuge that is filled with the presence of the Lord!
Well, that’s about all for now. Hopefully this gives you a picture of what’s going on internally and externally as we begin Month 4. I’m so thankful for each of you and your prayers. More stories of God’s goodness to come!
