Where's your Sword?

For people who know me well, know that I have a huge passion for Reconciliation. So when there is division in the church, or family or whatever, it really hurts my heart a lot.
There's been stuff going on around 614 and beyond and it leaves me in tears. I have been interceeding a lot this week - allowing my heart to break for what breaks the LORD's heart - and asking the LORD for more revelation and wisdom.
This is what YAHWEH was revealing to me:
By the power of the HOLY SPIRIT we are able to really engage in some intense spiritual warfare. We are able to fight harder, longer, we are able to learn in precision and discearnment - sharpening our swords, stamina, strength etc. He allows us to have that to fight against the Kingdom of Darkness, but if we do not put our swords back in their sheaths at the end of it, we can seriously do damage. Especially to those who have been blessed in spiritual warfare - who have more bite, more power etc. If you walk around YOUR camp with your sword out you can easily slash people or cut them down.
The more we grow in the LORD the more we must remain humble, to guard our tongues, to uplift the body, to fight the good fight and love one another.
I've been praying that my sword would be sharper and that I would be able to cut through lies from the enemy, and have discernments (Hebrews 4:12), but with that I also have to recognize the responsibility.

Oh LORD, please continue to teach us humility and how to not only receive your weapons of warfare, but to treat them wisely and only for Your Kingdom. Amen.

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds".
2 Corinthians 10:4

Grad Photos

These are very late, but I guess better late than never.




Oh yeah, and here's proof that Dan saw a bear on our trip. It was dead and stuffed...but still :)

He is Faithful

I figured out where I can get a mattress so by the end of the weekend I will be able to "Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace." Glory, hallelujah!
I was/am feeling a bit like a lepor. Some people won't hug me, people carefully watch what I've touched so they can wash it afterward, it's actually really giving me a new perspective on things. Even when people first find out that I've had bed bugs for over a year, their faces can't lie. It grosses people out.
Last week I was over on the other side of the apartments and there was a bedbug in my shirt so I shook it out and everyone in the room was repulsed.
So, although bedbugs are leprocy are not exactly on the same level, I can definately get a very small glimpse into their lives.

On a completely different note...
I am now working at Starbucks (following in my brother's shoes) and mainly doing mornings. This means I have to wake up at 4:30am. So this week I reached a new level of delerium. When I get tired, supposedly (according to Olivia Munn, my roomate) I get a lot funnier. I am glad that there is an upside.
But, despite the tiredness, the LORD, Yahweh, has shown Himself strong. I lead worship at Kneedrill this week and I was sort of chuckling as I was praying because I knew that my energy was spent, meaning that whatever was going to happen HAD to come from God. And, as always, He was faithful. I was giddy. The Spirit stirred us into a beautiful time of praise and worship to YAHWEH.

In all things, ALL THINGS, I will bless the LORD and proclaim that He is faithful.
Amen.

Please pray

I know this may make me sound like a bit of a woosy, but...
I am being eaten in my sleep!
Okay, sounds a bit dramatic, but it's is partly true.
I had all my stuff moved from the Balmoral hotel, where I was last year, to these communal apartments where I live with 16 other people.
I kind of sort of brought bedbugs here (they were in my stuff) and I am trying REALLY hard to de-contaminate and stop them from spreading. I got rid of my dresser, I was my sheets all the time, I even have a mattress cover, I at one point washed every single piece of clothing that I own...
Grrrrrr...
Why am I still being attacked. I got woken up three times last night by those little buggers (hahaha).
Any advice, tips, prayers that you want to throw out.
I KNOW that there are so many worse things in life than to be bitten by bedbugs every night, but hey, if I can rely on you guys for prayer and protection, I will.
Cheers,

PS - I lost my address book with all my phone numbers, so if you have called me and left a message for me to call back...really sorry.
(Sorry Nana)

The WORD of the LORD

During my 2am-5am war room shift (prayer room), I was praying up some of the Psalms and the LORD gave me a revelation that spoke powerfully to me.

"Our power is based on Your favour". -Psalm 89:17b NLT

We don't "earn" special rights or get seniority or get on God's good side by doing these things for Him - it is simply that when we humble ourselves and have that posture that recognizes WHO God is and who we are that He trusts us more with His power because we get it.
When we grasp (or begin to grasp) that God is Almighty and the Saviour to all (and that we are not) He wants to empower us because our hearts are bent towards the Truth and Revelation of Christ.

Weigh it. Pray it.

The REVOLUTION

The new session is in and they're willing and ready. Praise the LORD!
Last night we had our first Street Combat (where we go in pairs through the alleys and streets to meet people, pray with them, share the love of Jesus) and I had a fantastic time.
Each of the second year students were matched with one (or two) of the new students. It was their first day in the down-town Eastside, and we don't waste time!
Yahweh showed Himself strong. I bumped into so many of my friends in the streets (Laura, Bill, Susan, Maureen, Joseph) we met some new people (Isa, James). Nobody got saved last night but it was incredible to see the zeal and passion that the new students had. No fear. Amen.
Tonight they are spending the night on the streets (then they have classes in the morning - woopeee!)
I pray for MORE. That they would receive more than our session, that they would press in and adopt the heart of Christ from day one. I am so proud of them and I have only known them for such a short period of time.

In other news...
I started my job at Starbucks on Sunday. I will be working 20-25 hours/week. My responsibilities for 614 and the War College are as follows:
Teaching/leading Extreme Prophetic, School of Justice, co-leading Re:Cre8, co-leading Nightlights, helping with a squad, overseeing G.A.P. (genocide awareness project) and a gospel choir! I've got a lot on my plate, but PRAISE THE LORD for He is good.

Airport Adventures

This afternoon I headed to the airport in anticipation of seeing Dan off (home to England for 7 weeks, then London, ON) and instead of having tears of sadness, the LORD did something totally different.
Dan just checked his baggage and we still had an hour left before he had to board. The airport was packed.
From the corner of my eye I saw a woman crying. The LORD gave me a word of knowledge 'this woman's son child is missing'. I told Dan, and so we went to ask the woman if we could help. She was crying and I asked her "Are you missing a child?", she nodded yes and then proceeded to get a picture of her son from her wallet. He's wearing a red t-shirt and has blond hair and his name is Cale.
Dan and I went one way and Darren went the other way.
We kept praying and asking the LORD to open our eyes to see where he was. About 15-20 minutes later I spotted him in a large crowd of people. "Cale! Cale!"
I swept through some people and told him that it was going to be okay, that we knew where his mom was and that he would see her very very soon. Dan ran ahead to get his mom. It was just like a movie when they were reunited.
Both Dan and I got misty eyed as we saw them embrace and cry and be so thankful for each other.
Wow. PRAISE GOD! What an amazing thing. The mother hugged us and thanked us. Supposedly nobody else would help her so she was very grateful. We said 'God bless you' with sincere hearts and then walked away with such joy in our hearts.
Reconciliation is beautiful. It gets me every time.
So instead of being sad about saying goodbye to a friend, I was celebrating how the LORD has brought a family back together. I couldn't imagine something more fearful for a mother than losing a child in a busy place where anything could happen.
PRAISE JESUS! It was so powerful.

More Pics from the trip

Click on photos to see them bigger




This last one is funny because I was so confused as to how I got in the water, since I was doing quite fine in my kayak. "You should ask Dan how you got in the water" someone said.

First set of photos

Community in the Body

I just arrived "home" in Vancouver. Wow, what an amazing holiday.
It was such a rich time of fellowship. I can't even explain.
Here's what I absolutely loved about it (besides all the spectacular sights...the pics will probably come tomorrow).
Natural prayer. I cannot stress this blessing enough. We'd be driving and all of the sudden one of us would just start praying and all of us would join in or be in agreement. We prayed for many things, including each of our session mates, daily.
Another great thing was Read the Bible. This was something that we had in our schedule this year - each day we would get into groups and have each person read a chapter of the bible. We did it each day while we were gone. I loved how it wasn't the same person initiating it. Someone would say something like "who wants to read the bible?" and everyone would be in. What a blessing. I can't get over it. We were all hungry for the Bread of Life. Amen.
Many healings happend as well, things that I would have just let go in the past (sore backs, crick in the neck, headaches) we got together to pray and lay hands and praise the LORD for healing us.

This week showed me so much of what it is to have a family in Christ. I've been living it out all this year, and that's been fantastic, but it was so exciting to see that it happend organically while we were on our own. We weren't scheduled or "expected" to do any of it. We chose it. Beautiful.

Last night (our last night) we were having a little impomptu prayer meeting and we were all giving prayers of thanksgiving and I was so moved. It was the first holiday (that I can remember) where Jesus was constantly being brought into what we were doing. Hallelujah! God is so good.
This morning before leaving Vernon, we had a breakfast Shabbat (sp?)we came together to eat and break bread and give thanks to God for all that He has done. Rich.

I could not have asked for more. We did my favourite things - Kayaking, hiking, white-water raftring, exploring with phenomenal children of God in some of the most beautiful creation that I have ever seen.

To Jesus, Dan, Anthony, Andrea, and Paul - Thanks for a week that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

"How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!" - Psalm 133:1