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Top 11 From 11 in 11

 

7.3.12

"Been around the World and….Ah ya yaaih…"

So it’s almost a week of being home after the World Race…and I have really been trying to process… what have I learned this year? How am I different? How is my perspective changed? How have I grown in the Lord or in my knowledge of who God is? There are so many things that I have learned this year…and I don’t think even 11 of them will begin to try to explain all of them; this experience has molded me, shaped me, broken me, and restored me. It’s made me into a stronger woman of God who seeks after the Father. It’s made me consistent. I went into this experience thinking through Christ I would really change the world; yes I have impacted lives for Christ but I think God has impacted mine even more. I have experienced inner healing in places I didn’t know needed, I have discovered more of my true identity in Christ and can now walk more confidently in that, I have learned the power of prayer…there is so much freedom that I have gained in Christ. I have been freed of things I didn’t even know I held onto. Through it all, time and time again, I have realized that the Lord is SO good. He never changes. His love is steady, amazing, and he brings truth, love, light, peace, and joy into my life each and every day. He is holding me when I am broken. He making me into something new always. I am his new creation in Christ. His Beloved Daughter. Redeemed. Made New. Freed. Restored. Forever Changed.

 

So here they are…the top 11 things that the Father has taught me these last 11 months…

 

 

1.  I am God’s worthy daughter.
 

Worthy of receiving and being loved. Not because of anything I did but because I belong to him.  I am his beloved, and he chose me.  It is by grace through faith; He uses my once broken story for his redemption and glory. He lifted me out of the my troubles and set my feet on solid ground. I can stand in the Lord’s truth. He’s washed me clean. His blood and grace are enough. He gives me my worth. He tells me I am precious, to be honored, valued, and loved. He revealed the truth through the love he pours out on me time and time again; his love never quits or fails. 

 

 

“He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” Psalm 40:2
 

2. He has a plan & a purpose for my life. Oh that day we rafted the Nile in Uganda and our raft had to be the one to go over the waterfall! That day I realized that although things may slip out of my control, the Father has my life in his hands. That doesn’t change. He protects my life and the plan he has for it.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

3.  There is strength in Sisterhood. (and in community)
We are called to build one another up in love, to pray for one another, and to fight for one another. There is something so beautiful about sister’s growing in friendship and in the Lord while serving. 


 

4. His heart beats in me for the broken. There are so many times I have been just really broken for those God loves.For the sick in Africa…God asked me to pray for healing, and it came for a woman who had Malaria. From the orphans in the Philippines who didn’t have a Mom…God gave me that chance to be a Mother to them. For the Prostitutes in Thailand who don’t have any self-worth…I spoke love, and words of life to. For the homeless on the streets of Penang the night we distributed food when it poured down buckets of rain into the crazy hours of the night…through love and evangelism I saw many accept Christ for the first time and it was so worth every moment. For those in China who might never hear of Christ….I got to show that love of Christ through relationships with the orphans there. I threw them the first party they ever had because of God’s goodness…and I know they will look back and remember they are loved. Or there is the time in L’viv when I listened to a girl tell me her story for hours of how she felt depressed and prayed with her; I wasn’t going to give up on the freedom God had for her. 


 

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not  despise.” Psalm 51:17
 

5. Inner healing; I am a new creation in Christ.

 Self controlled, living by the spirit, freedom from the chains that held me down, filled with joy, peace, love and the fruits of God’s spirit. No longer is it me that lives but Christ in me glorified. Before coming on the world race I was baptized to renew my commitment to the Lord. I was saved at age 13 but never got baptized afterwards. This was the perfect timing because it was God's timing. I experienced so much freedom of this being solidified on the race.

 

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new Creation” 2 Corinthians 5:17

 

6.Relationships are worth fighting for. We are ALL God’s children. Sometimes we do something that may have offended someone. God’s grace is enough for us to be forgiven so we can forgive those who have wronged us; even our brothers & sisters. That's what loving "feedback" is for. Packaging words that build up character so a person can grow. God fights for us every day, and he does that through each other as we show his love to another. Sometimes it just takes reaching out to someone. Praying for them in humility. Letting go of hurts, and embracing relationships. Even us Christians are not perfect and we have to fight for each other like the Father does. 

7.Patience. There have been times where I have wanted God to tell me something or for something to work out in my time; what I have realized is that God’s timing is always perfect. Patience is part of his spirit so I embraced the times on the race when I felt like giving up; like going home and throwing the towel in…God was patient with me. Oh, how patient and loving our God is. So patient. 

 

“And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.” Hebrews 6:15

 

8. What a Man of God looks like. Men, you have honored us ladies. Picked up our packs time and time again….spoke life, and worth into us. Fought for us. The patience and love you showed allowed me to have inner healing from past wounds from other Men. When men love like Christ, us woman can love better too.

 

(there they are…the CLP brothers.)

9. How to Have a Servant’s Heart like Christ. All throughout the race, I had to be reminded that I wasn’t serving for man, I wasn’t serving for money but I was serving for God. I gave him honor, praise, and worship through serving. It’s one thing to tell someone about Christ but another to show them his love through acts of service. 

“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free” Ephesians 6:7-8

 

10. Who God Says I am…my gifts he has blessed me with; my identity in Christ.
Oh, how I have learned so much about my identity. Who God says I am and not what others say I am. I have learned to hear the voice of Truth; the Father’s voice. What does my “Dad” say about his “Daughter”?  He says so many things…every day. He says I am an artist, restorer of the broken, redeemed, joyful, peace-bringer; he calls me daughter, friend, my love…he has told me and reminded me of my gifts; evangelism, encourager, a heart and passion for youth, music/worship, dance, writing, discipleship, and art. 

“You are all together beautiful, my darling…” Song of Solomon 4:7

 

11. I am anointed and am passionately called to impact youth girls. 

While serving in Malaybalay Philippines and painting a mural at “New Life” during month 4 of the world race, I asked God what he had in the future… God spoke to me loud and clear and told me a vision he has for me with youth girls who are broken and lost. He is calling me to ministry in the U.S. This is going to be a 3 year process and for now he is working out some other pieces of the puzzle first. I am excited for what the Lord has & know it will be so good. As for now I am told to be patient and wait on him in this process.
 

Cambodia


Malaysia


Uganda
 


Rwanda


Philippines

L'viv, Ukraine

 


 

Thank u Father for putting your heart in me for the next generation of youth…& Thank you to all of my supporters for helping me out in this journey where I could discover so much of who I am as a daughter of the King. The Lord is so faithful and good. Words can't even really describe my appreciation.