I’ve been trying to post this for over a week!  WiFi has finally worked for two minutes straight!

So our 5-day wilderness adventure was full of crazy surprises!  From the beginning, we were constantly in suspense because we never knew what we were going to do.  God was teaching me to depend on Him for strength minute by minute.  In our teams of five, we hiked over 26 miles on mountainous trails in the dry dessert heat.  My calf muscles have expanded while my stomach has shrunk (at least for a day or two).  I will forever be grateful of toilets, toothpaste, showers, sleep, food, and laundry machines.  The sun sets and stars were AMAZING!  For the first time I saw a shooting star! 

In Tijuana we had the opportunity to hear from a man who has been in prisoned in Iran for sharing the gospel, Dan Bowman.  His whole body and life testimony scream Jesus.  His personal stories make me so excited for my future adventures with Jesus.

Dan’s message was so simple but profound.  The essence of his teaching is this: everything I do for God must come from intimacy with God.  The Christian life is discovering more of His love for me.  Everything else fades with a deeper realization of who Jesus is.  It was never God’s heart that we would do anything out of obligation, but always out of love.     

Dan said that passion isn’t based on our feelings, but on God’s unfading character.  Passion comes from a deep understanding and revelation of His truth.  I needed to hear this so much, because I thought that my passion for God depended upon my feelings.  Now I understand that even though my emotions go up and down, I have not lost my passion for God if it is based on who He is.  Passion doesn’t come from striving but rest in the Lord.      

What keeps us from a lifestyle of passion?  Focusing on our failures.  Walking with God is learning to enjoy a friendship, not about getting everything right.  Instead of focusing on fixing ourselves, we only need to fix our eyes on Jesus.  A legalistic list of things we need to do brings judgment and comparison, but when Jesus is at the center, there is freedom.  I can live the way I was created to live.  We often make Jesus unreal, but He wants to be included in every moment of our lives.

Sometimes I think that growing and being and the process of becoming like Jesus is somehow not good.  I want to “arrive.”  Yet Luke 2:52 says that Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.  So Jesus grew!  God is showing me that there is nothing shameful in growing, but He is with me in the midst of the process.   

I want to be defined by my love towards Jesus.  I want to live in the truth of how He sees me.  I want to be so preoccupied with Him that I don’t have time to sin.  I want to live in faith stepping out on what I believe He’s calling me to do.  If I fail, I know that He’s still proud of me and still loves me! 

As we were handing out cupcakes to prostitutes last night, some of us had the opportunity to talk to Maria again, who introduced us to many of the other girls.  A few days ago Lizbeth, (the Unfading Beauty leader), was able to spend three hours talking with her at Starbucks.  Please pray that God would continue to soften her heart.

Please continue to pray that each person would be able to raise all of the money for the outreach.  One family still needs to raise $10,000.       

I have to preach in Spanish during my outreach!!  It is kind of overwhelming for me to write a sermon, bt I am trusting that He will show me how to prepare now and what to say.  I want to trust Him with each day, and I’m excited for the future plans he has for me!

Yummy Mexican desserts

My amazing roommates

Miki, me, Alejandra, Ashley, Nicole, Anna, Alexia

My Niko team

Neko means to overcome in Greek. We did that this week in the wilderness as we hiked over 26 miles up mountains and with heavy backpacks! 

Applebees

Ashley and Izzy

Cafe with my roommates

For all of you Spanish speakers, here's an essay for my professor at Montco!  

 

Amor Transformando

Mi Experiencia con Jovenes Con Una Misión

Jessica Miller

2 de Noviembre, 2013

Mi vida nunca sera la misma después de Musica y Misión (Escuela de Discipulado y Entrenamiento).  He aprendido independiencia dejando mi familia y mis amigos por 5 meses.  Yo he experimentado la cultura Méxicana y he aprendido mucho español.  Yo he ganado conocimiento en escribir canciónes, presentación en el escenario, y teoria musical.  Vivir en un cuarto con siete chicas ha producido paciencia, humilidad, y pensamientos.  Yo hice muchos amigos de los Estados Unidos, Canada, UK, Scotland, Bahamas, Africa, y México.  Algunos chicos me enseñaron a surfear, mi nuevo deporte favorito.  Visité la famosa Bufadora, compré ropa en las Segundas, y pasé mucho tiempo en la playa.

                Todo de eso me ha cambiado.  Pero experimentar la voz de Dios ha sido la mejor parte de mi viaje. Yo he visto vidas cambiadas por él, personas que tenían vidas miserables.  Yo sé que él es real. Dios se ha revelado a mi.  Estoy aprendiendo a escuchar y depender de el Espiritu Santo.  El ha estado mostrando su amor por mi.  Ahora mi identidad es en su apasionado amor por mi. Dios está haciendo mi corazón puro.  Nunca veré a las personas de la misma manera.  Dios está rompiendo mi corazón por las personas en esclavitud y los niños sin padres.  Quiero hacer una diferencia en el mundo.  No quiero hacerlo en mi misma fuerza pero en su fuerza.  No quiero hacerlo solamente porque hay una necisidad, sino porque amo a Dios y quiero agradarlo.  

Dios me está preparando para mi crusada a Cuidad de México y Republica Dominicana en Deciembre.  Estoy muy emocionada por este tiempo.  Hay 8 personas en mi equipo.  Estamos escribiendo canciónes para conciertos para chicas en prostitución en Cuidad de México.  Un líder de mi crusada, Lizbeth, acaba de empezar un ministerio para las prostitutas en Ensenada.  Cada jueves, nosotros caminamos por los calles para orar y hablar.  Este jueves era la noche de Halloween.  Sentí una oscuridad espiritual fuerte, pero también sentí la presencia de Dios con nosotros.  Habían muchas personas locas vestidas en disfraces tratando de asustar a los niños.  Ellos no vinieron cerca de nosotros.  Y hablamos con una mujer en prostitución y vamos reunirnos con ella pronto.  

La noche de ayer miramos una película sobre trafico humano.  Entiendo que muchas chicas tienen vidas muy difíciles y no escojen vender sus cuerpos.  En algunas partes de Asia, es parte de la cultura vender a su niña en esclavitud.  En los Estados Unidos, muchas chicas son atractidas por dinero y glamor.  No es fácil para estas chicas salir de este negocio.  Pero esta vida no trae felicidad.  Ellas necesitan esperanza, Jesús.  No puedo esperar para compartir el amor de Cristo con ellas.             

I have never felt spiritual darkness as I did on Halloween night.  As every Thursday, I went with the Unfading Beauty ministry to downtown Ensenada to walk the streets and pray.  We split into two groups.  Prostitutes were dancing in windows, and the bars and night clubs were packed, with loud music and beaming lights.  Everything seemed to scream evil.  Huge mobs of college kids ran up and down the streets, dressed as witches and demons, scaring innocent children.  As we were praying, I kept repeating Psalm 91:7-8:  “You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.  A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”  The mobs did not come near us.  As we were literally walking through the valley of the shadow of death, I felt the Lord’s hand of protection over us. 

One leader in our group felt led to plead with God for the sake of one righteous person, like Abraham did over Sodom and Gomorra.   Later, we found out that in that exact same place that the other team had been approached by a woman named Maria.  They talked with her for a while and found out she was a prostitute.  She’s going to meet with Lizbeth and Corina in the next few weeks.  It’s so cool how God is working even amidst the darkness!  Please pray that Maria would come to know Jesus!  I’m amazed that God chooses to use us, as weak and apathetic as we are.

                On Monday I had to chance to be part of Casas de Esperanza (Homes of Hope).  This YWAM ministry builds modest but secure homes for needy families.  As the families came to the base to apply for a house, we made an effort to share God’s love with them.  The DTS students led worship, performed a skit, served food, and played with the kids.  These boys and girls are so precious.  Many of them look and smell as if they haven’t had a bath for weeks, but they are so excited to play with you and talk with you.  One girl took off her bracelet and gave it to me as a gift.  I felt so rich there.  Why am I so well off?  God has blessed me with so much.

                On Saturday we are performing songs in Spanish we created in our co-writing groups.  We’ll be using the songs in outreach.  There are two Christian bands from Ensenada that we’ll be performing as well.  We are stoked for tomorrow! 

                This upcoming Tuesday we’re going to the wilderness for team building week.  We don’t know where we are going and didn’t receive too many details, except for a list of the things we’re allowed to bring… which is not much.  Deodorant, toilet paper, and toothpaste are not permitted.  I don’t feel as if we need to give up using toothpaste in order to be united.  This may be the hardest part of the DTS yet for me.  The girls in my room know I brush my teeth constantly.  (Lol!)  I am not very open to the possibility that God wants to teach me something through this.  Lord, show me if I am wrong.  J 

I have never felt spiritual darkness as I did on Halloween night.  As every Thursday, I went with the Unfading Beauty ministry to downtown Ensenada to walk the streets and pray.  We split into two groups.  Prostitutes were dancing in windows, and the bars and night clubs were packed, with loud music and beaming lights.  Everything seemed to scream evil.  Huge mobs of college kids ran up and down the streets, dressed as witches and demons, scaring innocent children.  As we were praying, I kept repeating Psalm 91:7-8:  “You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.  A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”  The mobs did not come near us.  As we were literally walking through the valley of the shadow of death, I felt the Lord’s hand of protection over us. 

One leader in our group felt led to plead with God for the sake of one righteous person, like Abraham did over Sodom and Gomorra.   Later, we found out that in that exact same place that the other team had been approached by a woman named Maria.  They talked with her for a while and found out she was a prostitute.  She’s going to meet with Lizbeth and Corina in the next few weeks.  It’s so cool how God is working even amidst the darkness!  Please pray that Maria would come to know Jesus!  I’m amazed that God chooses to use us, as weak and apathetic as we are.

                On Monday I had to chance to be part of Casas de Esperanza (Homes of Hope).  This YWAM ministry builds modest but secure homes for needy families.  As the families came to the base to apply for a house, we made an effort to share God’s love with them.  The DTS students led worship, performed a skit, served food, and played with the kids.  These boys and girls are so precious.  Many of them look and smell as if they haven’t had a bath for weeks, but they are so excited to play with you and talk with you.  One girl took off her bracelet and gave it to me as a gift.  I felt so rich there.  Why am I so well off?  God has blessed me with so much.

                On Saturday we are performing songs in Spanish we created in our co-writing groups.  We’ll be using the songs in outreach.  There are two Christian bands from Ensenada that we’ll be performing as well.  We are stoked for tomorrow! 

                This upcoming Tuesday we’re going to the wilderness for team building week.  We don’t know where we are going and didn’t receive too many details, except for a list of the things we’re allowed to bring… which is not much.  Deodorant, toilet paper, and toothpaste are not permitted.  I don’t feel as if we need to give up using toothpaste in order to be united.  This may be the hardest part of the DTS yet for me.  The girls in my room know I brush my teeth constantly.  (Lol!)  I am not very open to the possibility that God wants to teach me something through this.  Lord, show me if I am wrong.  J 

I have never felt spiritual darkness as I did on Halloween night.  As every Thursday, I went with the Unfading Beauty ministry to downtown Ensenada to walk the streets and pray.  We split into two groups.  Prostitutes were dancing in windows, and the bars and night clubs were packed, with loud music and beaming lights.  Everything seemed to scream evil.  Huge mobs of college kids ran up and down the streets, dressed as witches and demons, scaring innocent children.  As we were praying, I kept repeating Psalm 91:7-8:  “You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.  A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”  The mobs did not come near us.  As we were literally walking through the valley of the shadow of death, I felt the Lord’s hand of protection over us. 

One leader in our group felt led to plead with God for the sake of one righteous person, like Abraham did over Sodom and Gomorra.   Later, we found out that in that exact same place that the other team had been approached by a woman named Maria.  They talked with her for a while and found out she was a prostitute.  She’s going to meet with Lizbeth and Corina in the next few weeks.  It’s so cool how God is working even amidst the darkness!  Please pray that Maria would come to know Jesus!  I’m amazed that God chooses to use us, as weak and apathetic as we are.

                On Monday I had to chance to be part of Casas de Esperanza (Homes of Hope).  This YWAM ministry builds modest but secure homes for needy families.  As the families came to the base to apply for a house, we made an effort to share God’s love with them.  The DTS students led worship, performed a skit, served food, and played with the kids.  These boys and girls are so precious.  Many of them look and smell as if they haven’t had a bath for weeks, but they are so excited to play with you and talk with you.  One girl took off her bracelet and gave it to me as a gift.  I felt so rich there.  Why am I so well off?  God has blessed me with so much.

                On Saturday we are performing songs in Spanish we created in our co-writing groups.  We’ll be using the songs in outreach.  There are two Christian bands from Ensenada that we’ll be performing as well.  We are stoked for tomorrow! 

                This upcoming Tuesday we’re going to the wilderness for team building week.  We don’t know where we are going and didn’t receive too many details, except for a list of the things we’re allowed to bring… which is not much.  Deodorant, toilet paper, and toothpaste are not permitted.  I don’t feel as if we need to give up using toothpaste in order to be united.  This may be the hardest part of the DTS yet for me.  The girls in my room know I brush my teeth constantly.  (Lol!)  I am not very open to the possibility that God wants to teach me something through this.  Lord, show me if I am wrong.  J 

Homes of hope kids

These kids and their parents were applying for a house.  So precious.  This was the first time the kids actually understood what I was saying!