FREEDOM

At training camp at the end of August, my squad and I were the ones that sat on the back wall, observing. Skeptical, many sat back and watched while some participated.

I look at us now, only three months into it and I am completely blown away. Not by what we have done, but what God is doing through us. 

I can tell you honestly that the family I know today, the faces that I see and the hearts that I hear are so beautiful. My heart is overflowing with love. I see them becoming the man and woman of God that they were created to be.

We set out to have a worship night and then our new squad leaders (formerly team leaders like myself), Aly Beeler, Sydney Sample and Nathan Salley, were going to speak. As we worshipped the Holy Spirit fell upon us. I could hear it in their hearts that my squad wanted God to show up. They were ready. After we poured out our hearts to God, we slowed the guitar and began to prophecy into our three new squad leaders and commission them out. I wrote them all down and I kid you not I have at least a page and a half for each of them and that was just breaking the ice! As our squad spoke into our new squad leaders our eyes began to tear up. It was so clear that the Lords hand was upon them and on us. I watched them receive and they physically began leaning closer and closer to the ground. Not out of shame, fear, or feelings of being overwhelmed, but because they were being humbled and shown the face of God. It was as if the Heaven’s opened up and God came down and sat in the middle of the three of them with a tear in his eye saying “Son, Daughter, I am so proud of you. Look at you! You are so beautiful! You are SO BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!” 

Our squad is addicted now to speaking life into each other. We could do it all day! 

Prior we asked, why wait for Africa to have a beat in our hearts? We wanted it now and the Lord gave it to us! The Lord showed us visions of one of our squad leaders running before our squad preparing for battle, holding up a banner. I saw this vision on June 13th in our leader meeting. It was Aly running with this banner over head. But, I never knew what was written on it. All I saw was that it was a white banner and she was running with is, showing it to us and preparing us for battle. Tonight I saw, we saw, that FREEDOM was written on that banner. God is has prepared us for battle before we even stepped foot into Africa and set a beat in our hearts. A beat that is according to the rhythm of God, not of man. 

Just when I thought the presence of God couldn’t get any thicker, Brittany Priess asked to sing a song she wrote that she felt is for our squad. We had been prophesying that the Lord was putting a beat in our squads heart……”There is a Holy beating, a divine rhythm”…..and the song continued. It was RIDICULOUSLY POWERFUL! 

So again, just as I thought the presence of God couldn’t get any thicker… We all walk back to our tents to pack up because tomorrow morning at 6:30am we leave the campsite for Africa. I  am sitting in my tent and I hear one of my girls yelling at the to of her lungs “I AM A WOMAN OF GOD! I AM NOT A SLAVE TO MY PAST!” etc. 

I tell you, I couldn’t have ripped out of my tent any faster to join her! Here’s my sister in Christ standing on top of a picnic table proclaiming and prophesying life over herself and telling Satan that he has no hold over her! What do you do in a situation like that?? YOU PROCLAIM AND PROPHESY WITH HER!!! So we did! We all screamed, danced, cried, and prophesied into her spirit who God says she is!!! WOO!!!

BRING IT ON AFRICA!! We, O Squad, are coming with a beat in our hearts, spirits and souls!!!