Pretoria, South Africa
Hello Everyone! Howszit?
Well my team and I as well as team Ignite got in to Pretoria, South Africa early yesterday morning, around 7am, after leaving 1pm on Tuesday from Mutare, Zimbabwe. 6 of our 9 teams of I-squad are all being housed at Popup Ministries here in South Africa and WOAH, God is moving.
Last night, we had the awesome chance to go to Passion- a global Christian conference mainly for 16 to 25 year olds. It’s spreading a wild fire for the Lord and it is incredible. I hadn’t heard of it before this week but evidently it’s pretty popular back in the states. World Racers love Passion and well last night we got to go and worship with our South African brothers and sisters. Chris Tomlin led worship and we had an amazing pastor, Louie Giglio, speak over this country. It was incredible, to partake in the global church, to see other nations worship is just amazing. God is SO much bigger that we could ever know. I danced and laughed and cried. My spirit is soaring right now.
Then this morning I spoke to our 6 teams here at Pretoria and a few of the leaders here at Popup. I knew the Lord was telling me to, I was fighting Him, it was early, I haven’t showered in days, I didn’t want to speak in front of anyone just feeling like a blob but… I did it.
It started with Russell, our contact here in Pretoria, who basically spoke over I squad, saying we, all 59 of us, had be called to the forefront of a generation in America that will rise up and actually BE the church of Christ. Russell said, “You were put in America for a reason. And right now you are getting a crash course on how to change the church of America by being here, by doing this World Race.” He said that South Africa has been praying for the American church and that we are it and he was SO encouraged. Then I remembered a prayer I wrote last month. I found it in my journal and knew that the Lord wanted me to read it to I squad.
So here it is:
Written Wednesday August 22, 2012
My prayer for America:
That you God would shake us from our cozy beds & comfortable lives and our dependence would become You. That we would stop spending on our selves and instead give- give of our time, give of our energy, give of our sleep, give of our money, our resources, our precious goods.
O Lord, would we stop spending on ourselves and lift our head and eyes to You. O, Lord would we see a world in need and quick to the call.
I pray the church would be unashamed to profess the name of Jesus. I pray that we would speak truth in the uncomfortable, the deadly, or angry places. That people would not die without hearing the name of Jesus.
I pray the American church would rise up out of lukewarm-ness, out of complacency and LOVE our enemies, our foes, the homeless, the destitute, the addict, the fatherless and the forgotten.
O Lord, rise me up out of my selfish demeanor and selfish ways. Show me how to love the people of America and my brothers and sisters in Christ. Give me vision to implement community, gifts, and love to those who do and don’t know you.
O Lord, heal us of our western leprosy: loneliness.
For even with all the goods, comfort and things, we have forgotten how to live with one another how to speak life and hope into dying souls masked by nice clothes, clean hair cuts, and well done make-up.
O Lord, let me see into the hearts and souls of the lost.
Give me vision to love and love well.
And let me act, let me act, let me act in LOVE.
Let me be a tool of inspiration to compel and prompt others out of slumber to be the church of Christ and not the consumers of America. For our citizenship is a heavenly one.
May greater things be done on the city of Los Angeles, nay hearts be won for and unto Christ, lives directed into the Kingdom. Let us arise, O Lord, that we may see signs and wonders of your greatness.
Awake this sleeping giant and propel us out, around, everywhere for Your Kingdom.
O Lord, let me bloom into this desert land that others may see and smell of your goodness.
Make us poor but rich in You.
Let us die that we may truly have life.
Let us not settle for partial commitment or comfortable ways.
O God, you see the homes, so perfectly portioned and kept,
But where is the life? Community? Hope?
Let us not despair in the lonely isolation.
O God, May hearts ache for You and lives be changed by You.
Let Your Kingdom come and a community of love, unity, and
intimacy be cultivated among your children.
O God be our God again.
The Lord continued speaking over us through the word and we just broke- sold out for the Kingdom, willing to count the cost, willing to give it all. There were tears of joy, and happiness, and prayers so heartfelt, tears poured down our faces. And this is only month 1 on the Race. WOAH.
This Sunday my team and I find out where our next ministry site will be and what we will be doing for ministry. Excitement abounds!! Please keep us in your prayers as we've encountered everything- health issues, spiritual warfare- already. My team redeemIng D.U.S.T. is still shining though.
Sending you all my love,
Lynette
