Seek His Face

Recently I have been thinking about seeking God's face, a lot of songs that we sing here we talk about seeking His face. I did not understand what that meant? And how I could seek God's face, and why I would want too. While I was playing the piano I asked the Lord what I should write a song about? I was lead to Psalm 27:8 

^"8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek."

It struck me that when God said to David, "seek ye my face" davids heart immediately said "thy face Lord, will I seek." It is amazing to me, because there was no hesitation, no question. immediately his heart. I asked the Lord for more revelation on seeking His face, and He just showed me how personal and intimate it is to seek someones face, to look at someone in the face is so much different then to talk over the phone and over text. We fall into passivity when we "text" about big issues because we are scared, or worried about the response of the other person. However, God tells us to seek His face. A face of perfect love, perfect peace. Why wouldn't we want to seek His face? 

So today, I went and looked up more of what the bible says about seeking His face. 

SEEK means: to make a search or inquiry, to try to discover

"face of God is a term used to refer to the character of God, especially his favor towards his people. For God to turn his face to his people is to offer them his grace and help; for God to turn his face against his people is to withhold his favor and blessing. To seek the face of God is to seek his favor."

The more I read, the more verses I find on seeking God. 

2 Chronicles 7:14

14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Numbers 6:25-26

25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

1 Chronicles 16:11

Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.

Psalm 105:4

Seek the LORD, and his strength: seek his face evermore.

Lord,

Please give me a deeper revelation on what it means to seek your face. Help my heart to say, Your face Lord I will seek daily.

Amen

Staff Training

 It's so surreal that I have been here for a little over three weeks. I have learned so much about myself, and leadership. I live at a community house with radical lovers of Jesus, I can't imagine living anywhere else during this season. It's amazing how you can feel like family with people that you've only really known for two weeks.

The first week was fire and fragrance staff training, we started off by being in the prayer room for three hours, then in the afternoons we would have lecture. Donna Cole (one of the school leaders) spoke on radical love, she brought such simplicity to loving people, and how the bible says we should love. Once she spoke we split into groups of three and had to teach and apply the information almost instantaneously. I am still reading and praying the verses on love, and I want to be a women of radical love.

Christians have no Excuse for not loving, "because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Romans 5:5

After a full week of just Fire and Fragrance staff training, we had corporate staff training. The man who spoke was an incredible wise leader. He runs a leadership DTS in Montana. "It's not about being perfect, but knowing your role." Be a great follower, and you will learn how to be a great leader. We never stop learning about God, and our identity is not YWAM. He posed this question, "are you a disciple of Christ or your position?"

During the weekend we had some friends come and teach us very practical discipleship tools. People are coming to this DTS to be trained. We redefined the meaning of small groups, and declared them as training groups, these groups are to get people equipped and trained. These groups are strategic in learning the gospel, preaching, and teaching.  I mean, they are coming to a Discipleship Training School.  What do you expect? As a staff we are committed unto breakthrough. We are committed to see our students reach freedom, and know their identity in Christ.

We are being training to seek and save the lost.
   Luke 19:10

      ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

The whole reason we are doing any training, the whole reason why I am here is to seek and save the lost. I long to be more like Jesus everyday. We are all being trained by Him daily. I am so thankful to be here, I know that the Lord is going to do some amazing things in the next three months. We are going to see mass salvations in Jesus' Name. IT IS SO EXCITING TO FOLLOW JESUS!

Arriving in Kona

These are just a few pictures that show the first week here on the big island! It has been quick almost two weeks of being back here in Kona, staff training is going by really fast! Last week we learned about radical love, and this week that being a good leader is being a great learner! I am so excited for the privilege to disciple students in a little over 3 weeks! I am so expectant that God is going to do amazing things in this school! And I am just waiting in eager anticipation to see how God moves! Thanks for all the prayers and support! I miss everyone at home a bunch! Praying and thinking about my friends and family from the OC often!!

Coming soon from Kona Hawaii.

       

   I’m so thrilled to be informing you I decided to partner with Youth with a Mission (YWAM) and take part in the incredible staff that is equipping the next generation to go into the nations to share the good news of Jesus Christ. My journey started in January 2012 with three months of learning about myself and about the love of God and how to effectively share that love with others, the following three months I spent in Germany and Poland taking everything I learned and applying it. My heart was knitted with this community and sharing Jesus with others. I know I will never be the same and that I am called to the Missions field. This summer I spent time at home reconnecting with family and friends and working to have enough finances for whatever God called me to next. In August I went to a missionary conference called Circuit Riders at International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Mo. Upon my return I found myself praying for Kona, and how my heart burned to be apart of the work they are doing there. While waiting upon the Lord I heard “go” and went to Washington D.C. to volunteer at David’s Tent which was a 40 day worship tent on the lawn of the Ellipse Park, outside of the White House. It was there in the middle of a huge field where I felt the Lords peace over this situation to go and be apart of a huge move of God. In going to Kona I will be able to learn leadership and discipleship by hands on experience and in such a unique way having the opportunity to lead a 3 month mission’s trip somewhere that is undisclosed at the moment but nevertheless I am humbled that God would choose me for such a time as this. I believe we are at the beginning of a defining time in history and I am overjoyed at what the future holds. If you feel passionate about seeing the next generation being discipled and going out and sharing the gospel, I love to share this desire together. Prayer and finances are a big part of this ministry. If you could commit to partnering with me for at least the next 6 months, it would be incredible. To break it down, an average monthly support for a full-time missionary or intern worker is $1,000. The YWAM base leader Andy Byrd suggests we raise that much per month for all basic necessities and practicalities. Any little bit helps. However if you prefer a one time donation that is incredible, and I am extreamly greatful. But if you could commit long term I'd really like you to be apart of the ministry that I am doing with weekly email updates, clear information on our ministry for that week and also sending me prayer requests so that I can be praying for you. I am undone with the faithfulness and love of God. Thank you so much for supporting me thus far and I am so expectant on what the future holds.

1.2.3.4.

International House of Prayer

Best Friend Naomi Link

Friends and Mentors from back home

D.C. Night watch

STARBUCKS JOB

Graduating Kona

Flying home from Kona

That is how many blog posts are coming...

I have so much stuff to update on.. I returned to Kona HI. on May 31st. 2012. From there I went to my hometown, Lake Forest Ca. and spent the whole summer there. I was working part time at Us Too Center a gymnastics gym for special needs kids, and really felt the Lord calling me out of there and into somewhere else. I ended up quitting and getting a job at Starbucks. I really really love working at Starbucks, its such a fun enviornment and atmosphere. Everyone that I work with is incredible and often I find myself talking about God when I'm working. It's pretty awesome.

All summer I was serving my local church in there High School Ministry. I went to camp, volunteered on the weekends, and did various outings with HSM. I really love HSM and everything they stand for as a ministry. It really is so important to get highschool students inolved and give them an opportunity to grow. I know that I grew so much in highschool, and this ministry really helped me.

In Aug. I went to Kansas City for something called Circuit Riders; which is basically a 2 week evangelism equiping school. It was incredible, the school was located at International House of Prayer. I listen to Mike Bickle, the main teacher at IHOP, about every week. I was so blessed to be able to go and reconnect with many of my friends from Kona. During CR they spoke about the send. And how God is sending us out into the nation. Who really knows what that means? Can anyone really be ready to be "sent". There was posed a challenge to all of us students, are we awake? Do we take urgency on our lives, and arise to the call that God has put on our lives? We all have a destiny living to do incredible things by God.

September is one of my favorite months, I feel like its a month of routine and steadiness. In September its when school starts, biblestudy, different church events and also its my birthday. SO AWESOME. This year I signed up to be a high school small group leader, and a womens ministry leader. I was hesitant about starting something that would be hard to leave because I wasn't sure where I was going, and if I was going to go back to Kona to staff. On September 30th I went to Washington D.C. only for 4 days, to be apart of something called, Davids Tent D.C. Wow I was so blessed to be able to be apart of it. I contacted my boss and asked her if it was a possibility to take me off the schedule till November, and she said YES. I was litereally confused. Is this really you God? You want me to stay here for the rest of the time. How can this be? I was so overwelmed and excited with what was to come at Davids Tent.
While at Davids Tent, I really got to press in and find out the heart piece of worship. JOY. We were on the night watch and the thing that kept us going was praising with JOY and having fun! I think it really broke the mindset that worship has to always be structured, or a certain way, because it definitely wasn't. 6 hours would go by so fast, and we would almost not want to leave. The times that were most difficult were the times we lacked joy. "The joy of the Lord is our strength"
I'm so thankful for what God is doing in America, and all over the world. He is so faithful and kind.
next stop......

KONA

BURN

We did a 24hr BURN last Saturday and it was great! We have so much fun together just burning for Jesus and giving him 24 hours of worship. It's totally a joy. We had people prophetically painting and doing all sorts of stuff it was awesome. I love the BURN because its so unique and it can seriously be anything you want. Anyone is invited and it's not affiliated with any church.. it's just people who come to worship Jesus! I can't wait to come home and do burns with people back at home! It's going to be AWESOME!
Here are some pictures from the BURN...

Der Garten

One day we went to Der Garten church/cafe/neighborhood hotspot. I loved it. We met the owners, mother and daughter who pretty much run the whole thing they are missionaries from Washington State.. (I think?) They were super awesome. Thursdays and Fridays they invite anyone who wants to come into their cafe for dinner fellowship and worship. Kim is the mother, Thilo is the husband and Bre is the wife. Thilo is really great on the guitar and piano. Something that they do pretty regularly is worship on the subway. So we got on the ringbon which goes all the way around the city of Berlin, and on our first train Heidi and I stopped and talked to this girl name Natalia. but then we stopped in a neighborhood that was more or less a ghetto and we just did worship on the street and evangelism. Dominique and I approached this woman who was very dressed up with bags next to her like she was going on a trip, just waiting for someone. So we asked her if she spoke english and she said yes. So we just started talking to her, she asked us why we where there and a bunch of other things and it was really good because she just asked us so many questions about God and what we believed and she was genuinely interested. It was really great, then we were worshiping, and the presence of God was in the train. We could all feel it, and we were singing How He Loves. It was absolutely incredible. Then a little while later, like 5 minutes we got kicked off the train by 7 security guards. 

We headed back home and on our way we had to take 3 different trains. We change trains so much in Berlin its hard to keep track and remember all of them. Heidi and I wanted to stop for a quick treat at the bakery so we walked ahead of everyone so we could stop quickly. However, it was not quick enough we turned around and saw no one. We thought, what the heck... where did everyone go? Did they board a train already? so we go down into the subway station and we don't see them. We go back outside and we don't see them so we just start walking into the direction we think they went. I was pretty convinced they got on a train because they were gone so fast. SO we ended up walking to the next train station because we don't really know where they were/ how to get there or what train to take so we just walked and just had an instinct it was the right direction. We usually have only our team of 10 but that day we had about a group of about 20 and Heidi and I are the shortest ones so we could easily be looked over. We weren't scared we were actually completely fine. there were 2 search parties going on and finally we found them/they found us. When we got back to Der Garten Dominique Bill and Elisabeth gave us huge hugs and felt so bad for losing us. It was good that we made it because they did board another train and we didn't know which way to even go so thank you God for always watching out for us! Here are some pictures from this place!