Hey Everyone,
I'm sorry it's been such a long time since my last update. Things have been changing like crazy.
Last time I posted I had said that I will be doing the School of Worship in Nashville. In making that decision I was still not 100% sold on that being the final location of me this summer. Something in me felt some reservations, so I simply asked God to please let it fail if it wasn't the right thing for me to be doing. Sure enough, he answered!
Opportunities opened up here in San Jose, and God did an awesome job at not providing funds for the trip (i say that in all seriousness.) and really gave me confirmation through that. At first I was a little disappointed, but then I realized how crazy it is that absolutely no support came in for this. It was such an answer to prayer because it gave me complete confirmation on this.
So for now, I will be in San Jose serving here. I'm going back to school at West Valley in the fall and am looking to get a job in the mean time. Who knows what the future holds for me in crazy adventures around the world, but for now I know that it's time for me to be in the Bay Area spreading the love of Jesus here!
Thank you all for your prayers and support. I would love to keep you updated on what God's doing here!
Josh
Friday, May 25, 2012
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
(Official) Support Letter
I sent out a post that was pretty similar to this already, but this is the touched up one with a little bit more information. Sorry if you've already received this, trying to make sure I get it around to everybody! Plus, I'm extremely excited to share this with anyone and everyone that will read it! God is doing some crazy awesome things!
Okay...down to business!
Dear Friends and Family,
I am writing to you to tell you about an amazing
opportunity that I have been presented with! But before I do, I would like to
thank you for your prayers and support throughout my adventures in Kona and
South Sudan. When I began that journey, I had no idea what was about to be done
in and through me. God did some amazing work over the last 6 months. I saw Him
do things that I have never seen before. I made some new friends, and had my
world completely turned upside down and flipped back upright. God really
changed my life, and I am so excited to share with you what’s next for me.
When I first got back from Kona I said that
there were a million and a half opportunities available but I didn't know which
one to do. One of those opportunities was to go out to Nashville and do YWAM's
School of Worship. It's an opportunity that hasn't left my mind since Kona
(before outreach). It's something that's kept coming back up even through all
of the wrestling and decision making. I
have prayed about it and that is what I am going to do in this next season of
life!
I would love to go into some detail
to explain what SOW (School of Worship, so much easier to type than the whole
name) is.
Although YWAM is a mission’s
organization, it also doubles as a university. University of the Nations
provides courses in many subjects. Out in Kona there's a counseling degree, the
school of worship, bible degrees, etc. SOW is the music portion. It isn't a
program where I am a declared music major; it is more training in the specific
area. SOW is geared towards worship and encountering the Lord through worship.
Via the SOW page: (More information
at: http://ywamnashville.org/courses/sow)
"The School of Worship is a 5
month, encounter-driven training course that is set on knowing the Spirit of
Truth so that we can worship Him in spirit and truth. As we come to encounter
Him in a real and intimate way, both corporately and individually, we behold
His glory (his ultimate beauty and magnificence) and therefore are transformed
from one glorious state to another. We also learn from the biblical history of
worship to get the foundations and then work with the Lord for new revelation
on how to use those foundations in today's church, and world."
Some of the topics that we cover are:
-Cultivating Intimacy with God
-The Work of Holy Spirit in Worship
-Pursuing Personal Freedom
-Character Development of a Worshipper
-Understanding the Biblical & Historical Context &
Basis of Worship
-The Marriage of Worship and Intercession
-The Prophetic Nature and Role of the Worship Ministry
-Musicianship and Song-writing
-Developing Leadership & Team Dynamics
-The Grace of Worship in Spiritual Warfare
-The Role of Worship in Reaching the Nations
-The Role of the Supernatural in Worship
SOW runs a lot like the DTS that I
just went through. I will head out to Nashville in June for about 12 weeks and
then go on outreach for 8 weeks to return in November. The outreach location is
not final yet, but I will update when that comes out! I'm sure it's going to be
Legend---wait for it---DAIRY!
This is the fun part. I love
fundraising. The cost of this school is quite a bit less than my DTS was. The
cost of SOW is $2,990 for the lecture phase and the cost of outreach is to be
announced when the location is determined. That is quite a bit less!
I would like to invite you to support
me in this adventure. The Lord did amazing things over the past 6 months and I
am really excited to see what God is going to do next.
My first request is that you would
please keep me in your prayers. God does amazing things when we talk to him, so
if you could keep me and this adventure in your prayers it would mean so much
to me!
My second request is that you would
prayerfully consider supporting me financially! It has meant so much to me to
have all of your support thus far and I hope you will consider continuing to
support me! I have made it extremely simple to donate this time. On my blog (see
below) there is a spiffy little "donate" button on the right side. If
you would like to support me financially you can do so there! Please put
"SOW" as a memo. If you would like to mail a check, that is fine as
well! Send me an email to get my address! Unfortunately, It Is not tax deductible.
God is going to do crazy amazing
things over this next chapter of my life. I am extremely excited to see what
goes down. I would love it if you would partner with me in this! If you have
any questions please don't hesitate to contact me! You can email me, facebook
me, or we can even skype! I'd love to share more of what's on my heart with
this! Also, you can join a new facebook group I made! I will be doing quick
little updates on it while still sending out the big ones on my blog. The group
can be found at: http://www.facebook.com/groups/110743549060231/
So much love for all of you! More
updates to come!
Josh
Email: Josh.m.morrison.91@gmail.com
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Remember When I Said I Was Loosely Holding Onto My Plans? ...Yeah, Things Change.
So the last time that I sent out a real update I said I was picking something and holding onto it loosely for now. Well, yeah, sometimes plans like to change, which makes life way more exciting!
When I first got back from Kona I said that there were a million and a half opportunities and I didn't know which one to do. One of those opportunities was to go out to Nashville and do YWAM's School of Worship. It's an opportunity that hasn't left my mind since Kona (before outreach). It's something that's kept coming back up even through all of the wrestling and decision making, and I think that is what I am going to do in this next season of life!
I would love to go into some detail to explain what SOW (School of Worship, so much easier to type than the whole name) is. So here ya go!
Although YWAM is a missions organization, it also doubles as a university. University of the Nations provides courses in many subjects. Out in Kona there's a counseling degree, the school of worship, bible degrees, etc. SOW is the music portion. It isn't a program where I am a declared music major, it is more training in the specific area. SOW is geared towards worship and encountering the Lord through worship.
Via the SOW page: (More information at: SOW)
This is the fun part. I love fundraising.
The cost of this school is quite a bit less than my DTS was. If you recall, my DTS cost $4,000 for the lecture phase (first 3 months) and then another $6,000(ish) for the outreach (second 3 months).
The cost of SOW is $2,990 for the lecture phase and the cost of outreach is to be announced when the location is determined. That is quite a bit less!
I would like to invite you to support me in this adventure. The Lord did amazing things over the past 6 months and I am really excited to see what God is going to do next.
My first request is that you would please keep me in your prayers. God does amazing things when we talk to him, so if you could keep me and this adventure in your prayers it would mean so much to me!
My second request is that you would prayerfully consider supporting me financially! It has meant so much to me to have all of your support thus far and I hope you will consider continuing to support me! I have made it extremely simple to donate this time (No envelopes, no checks, nothing!). On my blog there is a spiffy little "donate" button on the right side. If you would like to support me financially you can do so there! Please put "SOW" as a memo. Unfortunately, I don't think that they are tax deductable. I am extremely sorry, I will look into it to confirm that they're not but I'm pretty sure they're not.
God's going to do crazy amazing things over this next chapter of my life. I am extremely excited to see what goes down. I would love it if you would partner with me in this!
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact me! You can email me, facebook me, or we can even skype! I'd love to share more of what's on my heart with this! Also, you can join a spiffy new facebook group I made! I will be doing quick little updates on it while still sending out the big ones on here. The group can be found at: http://www.facebook.com/groups/110743549060231/
So much love for all of you! More updates to come!
Josh
When I first got back from Kona I said that there were a million and a half opportunities and I didn't know which one to do. One of those opportunities was to go out to Nashville and do YWAM's School of Worship. It's an opportunity that hasn't left my mind since Kona (before outreach). It's something that's kept coming back up even through all of the wrestling and decision making, and I think that is what I am going to do in this next season of life!
I would love to go into some detail to explain what SOW (School of Worship, so much easier to type than the whole name) is. So here ya go!
Although YWAM is a missions organization, it also doubles as a university. University of the Nations provides courses in many subjects. Out in Kona there's a counseling degree, the school of worship, bible degrees, etc. SOW is the music portion. It isn't a program where I am a declared music major, it is more training in the specific area. SOW is geared towards worship and encountering the Lord through worship.
Via the SOW page: (More information at: SOW)
"The School of Worship is a 5 month, encounter-driven training course that is set on knowing the Spirit of Truth so that we can worship Him in spirit and truth. As we come to encounter Him in a real and intimate way, both corporately and individually, we behold His glory (his ultimate beauty and magnificence) and therefore are transformed from one glorious state to another. We also learn from the biblical history of worship to get the foundations and then work with the Lord for new revelation on how to use those foundations in today's church, and world."Some of the topics that we cover are:
SOW runs a lot like the DTS that I just went through. I will head out to Nashville in June for about 12 weeks and then go on outreach for 8 weeks to return in November. The outreach location is not final yet, but I will update when that comes out! I'm sure it's going to be Legend---wait for it---DAIRY!
- Cultivating Intimacy with God
- The Work of Holy Spirit in Worship
- Pursuing Personal Freedom
- Character Development of a Worshipper
- Understanding the Biblical & Historical Context & Basis of Worship
- The Marriage of Worship and Intercession
- The Prophetic Nature and Role of the Worship Ministry
- Musicianship and Song-writing
- Developing Leadership & Team Dynamics
- The Grace of Worship in Spiritual Warfare
- The Role of Worship in Reaching the Nations
- The Role of the Supernatural in Worship
This is the fun part. I love fundraising.
The cost of this school is quite a bit less than my DTS was. If you recall, my DTS cost $4,000 for the lecture phase (first 3 months) and then another $6,000(ish) for the outreach (second 3 months).
The cost of SOW is $2,990 for the lecture phase and the cost of outreach is to be announced when the location is determined. That is quite a bit less!
I would like to invite you to support me in this adventure. The Lord did amazing things over the past 6 months and I am really excited to see what God is going to do next.
My first request is that you would please keep me in your prayers. God does amazing things when we talk to him, so if you could keep me and this adventure in your prayers it would mean so much to me!
My second request is that you would prayerfully consider supporting me financially! It has meant so much to me to have all of your support thus far and I hope you will consider continuing to support me! I have made it extremely simple to donate this time (No envelopes, no checks, nothing!). On my blog there is a spiffy little "donate" button on the right side. If you would like to support me financially you can do so there! Please put "SOW" as a memo. Unfortunately, I don't think that they are tax deductable. I am extremely sorry, I will look into it to confirm that they're not but I'm pretty sure they're not.
God's going to do crazy amazing things over this next chapter of my life. I am extremely excited to see what goes down. I would love it if you would partner with me in this!
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact me! You can email me, facebook me, or we can even skype! I'd love to share more of what's on my heart with this! Also, you can join a spiffy new facebook group I made! I will be doing quick little updates on it while still sending out the big ones on here. The group can be found at: http://www.facebook.com/groups/110743549060231/
So much love for all of you! More updates to come!
Josh
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Why?
So pretty much, Jesus woke me up in the middle of the night tonight with some melodies on my mind. I tried to go back to sleep for about 45 minutes. No luck. So this is what came out.
Before I share the lyrics (they're pretty raw and not sugar coated) I want to give a little backstory on why this is on my heart. So here goes...
On Friday we were given the privilege of leading worship for an Easter service with one of the local Christian schools. We chose to sing the song "in Christ alone." god ruined me with that song. He smacked me in the face with the question "do you actually know what you're singing?"
Think about it.
"in CHRIST alone...my hope is found."
First off..how many times does it go more like this in my life...
"in Christ (most of the time)...my hope is found."
Or
"in Christ (sometimes)...my hope is found."
Or take this line:
"what heights of love, what depths of peace. When fears are stilled, when strivings cease."
Has anyone ever actually read that line? It says "when STRIVINGS CEASE."
Then why does it seem like our worship is full of striving? Like its a production? Like if we can only nail that solo, or get those perfect harmonies, or like if we get the perfect sound mix then it will somehow be 'good worship.'
Or from another song:
We Sang the song "amazing love." I dont know how well known it is but the chorus goes like this:
"amazing love, how can it be?
That you my king would die for me.
Amazing love, I know it's true.
And it's my joy to honor you.
In all I do, I honor you."
Why is that a normal worship song? Why? Seriously...why? Think about what the song is saying.
Its asking how can it be that Jesus, our KING, died for us. It's claiming to be amazing. It's declaring that it's our joy to honor him in everything we do. How many of us actually believe that? How many of us claim that it's hard to love people? How many of us say that at times we don't feel like following Jesus because it's easier to do something else? But I thought it was our honor to follow him? That's what we just sang in the song at least...
No, I'm not questioning my faith. No, I'm not questioning why I worship Jesus. This song is simply getting raw and asking why we don't worship Jesus.
This isn't a call to guilt, it's a cry for authenticity...both from my heart as well as my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
Well, that got a lot longer than I originally planned...so here it is:
Title: why?
Verse 1:
Why do I sing
Why do i worship
Why do I call out
Things I don't mean
What do I mean?
Why do I close my eyes
Why do I kneel down
Why do I cry
Why
Oh why?
chorus:
I'm tired of all these empty words.
Hallow surrender to your will
I open my mouth and speak these lies.
Like my life is yours.
Or
I've given it up it's not for me.
How can I stand here and simply sing
It's yours.
Is it yours?
Verse 2:
Why do I come?
Why do I lift up my hands
And pretend to honor
You god?
Are you God?
Why do I vow
To serve you or
Why do I bow
To pretend that you're worthy
Of something that you're oh so worthy of?
chorus 2:
A life lived for you that's not my own.
A heart given up for you to show
Your love through
Your life through
and
I've given it up, my everything
I'll give anything to glorify your name
Because you deserve it
Oh you so deserve it.
Still finishing it. That's just a heart piece from me...I don't want it to come off as anything more than a cry of my heart simply asking why. Absolutely no judgement, because it's me asking myself out loud more than anything.
Before I share the lyrics (they're pretty raw and not sugar coated) I want to give a little backstory on why this is on my heart. So here goes...
On Friday we were given the privilege of leading worship for an Easter service with one of the local Christian schools. We chose to sing the song "in Christ alone." god ruined me with that song. He smacked me in the face with the question "do you actually know what you're singing?"
Think about it.
"in CHRIST alone...my hope is found."
First off..how many times does it go more like this in my life...
"in Christ (most of the time)...my hope is found."
Or
"in Christ (sometimes)...my hope is found."
Or take this line:
"what heights of love, what depths of peace. When fears are stilled, when strivings cease."
Has anyone ever actually read that line? It says "when STRIVINGS CEASE."
Then why does it seem like our worship is full of striving? Like its a production? Like if we can only nail that solo, or get those perfect harmonies, or like if we get the perfect sound mix then it will somehow be 'good worship.'
Or from another song:
We Sang the song "amazing love." I dont know how well known it is but the chorus goes like this:
"amazing love, how can it be?
That you my king would die for me.
Amazing love, I know it's true.
And it's my joy to honor you.
In all I do, I honor you."
Why is that a normal worship song? Why? Seriously...why? Think about what the song is saying.
Its asking how can it be that Jesus, our KING, died for us. It's claiming to be amazing. It's declaring that it's our joy to honor him in everything we do. How many of us actually believe that? How many of us claim that it's hard to love people? How many of us say that at times we don't feel like following Jesus because it's easier to do something else? But I thought it was our honor to follow him? That's what we just sang in the song at least...
No, I'm not questioning my faith. No, I'm not questioning why I worship Jesus. This song is simply getting raw and asking why we don't worship Jesus.
This isn't a call to guilt, it's a cry for authenticity...both from my heart as well as my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
Well, that got a lot longer than I originally planned...so here it is:
Title: why?
Verse 1:
Why do I sing
Why do i worship
Why do I call out
Things I don't mean
What do I mean?
Why do I close my eyes
Why do I kneel down
Why do I cry
Why
Oh why?
chorus:
I'm tired of all these empty words.
Hallow surrender to your will
I open my mouth and speak these lies.
Like my life is yours.
Or
I've given it up it's not for me.
How can I stand here and simply sing
It's yours.
Is it yours?
Verse 2:
Why do I come?
Why do I lift up my hands
And pretend to honor
You god?
Are you God?
Why do I vow
To serve you or
Why do I bow
To pretend that you're worthy
Of something that you're oh so worthy of?
chorus 2:
A life lived for you that's not my own.
A heart given up for you to show
Your love through
Your life through
and
I've given it up, my everything
I'll give anything to glorify your name
Because you deserve it
Oh you so deserve it.
Still finishing it. That's just a heart piece from me...I don't want it to come off as anything more than a cry of my heart simply asking why. Absolutely no judgement, because it's me asking myself out loud more than anything.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Recap/Story Time From Outreach
Hello E'ryone!
Now that I've been back for a few days and have started to adjust a bit, I wanted to send out an update telling about some of the amazing things that happened while we were in South Sudan. While we were there I had Very limited internet access, and when I was able to get on I had to pay for it so that made it hard to tell some of the amazing ways that God moved. I did mention some of them, but here are more details! So here ya go!
1. Crazy favor on outreach:
-It was insane the amount of favor we were shown. When we first arrived at the airport, we were somehow able to check more bags than we should have been allowed for free. We were also able to check overweight bags with no additional cost. This not only worked on American Airlines to get us to London, but it also worked on Kenya Airways going from London to Juba. It was crazy. There was no way we should have been allowed that, yet we were shown crazy favor.
-When we got to South Sudan, we were picked up by a range rover-like vehicle and rode for 4 1/2 hours from Juba to Yei. Along the way, we only had one bag fall off of the top, which was a tent. We noticed it in time and were able to retrieve it. Where the favor comes in, is that it got dark with about an hour and a half left in our drive. From everything we were told; you don't drive at night in S. Sudan. Besides that, we were going almost 50 mph on a road that you probably should drive no more than 20-25mph on. Bumps galore, yet somehow no other bags fell off of the top. Nothing. When we got to Yei and "untied" our bags from the top, there was no way that they should have stayed on. Super sketchy.
-The Lord totally hooked us up with free rides on a helicopter with the UN. We really learned that you never know what will happen if you simply ask a question. Crazy favor in getting hooked up with the ride because that meant that we didn't have to do that long drive again, and we didn't have to pay for it either. Such a blessing.
2. God really taught us what He will do if we are simply obedient:
-There were several times where big things happened simply because of a simply act of obedience. There was one day where Luke and I were walking down the street and we felt like we should pray for a guy with a limp. We prayed that he would be healed and it totally changed his attitude knowing that someone cared about him and wanted to see him well instead of just looking the other way. That led to someone else coming up and asking us to pray for him and his leg. We did so and again, it seemed like it made a difference in his day. We then had another man run up to us (we hadn't taken 5 steps yet) and ask us to pray for his stomach ulcers. After we prayed for him he said it was better! We thought it was cool, but were a little skeptical. We ran into him a week later and he was freaking out because he still had no pain in his stomach! It was something that he had been living with for quite some time. He was seriously healed of it. His life was seriously completely changed because of a simple prompting from the Lord and He completely healed him! It wasn't anything of our power, it wasn't anything to give us credit, it was simply Him doing something huge in someone's life. That's the kind of God he is. He cares about what we're going through, and wants to see us through it. Whatever way that means, He cares.
-There were several times throughout outreach that one of us would feel that little nudge to go talk to someone. This is incredibly scary almost every time you do it. As soon as that nudge is felt there are a million and one reasons that come to mind on why it probably isn't from God and why you shouldn't have to do it. Usually, those are a million and one reasons why it is from Him. The lives that were changed from this are insane. Alcoholics gave up drinking. There was someone who, after we were done talking with him, told us he was about to go do "something very bad that he would probably regret" completely changed. So crazy. Simple, affectionate based obedience to the Lord has more power than is given credit to it. What does that look like back home? I'm no expert, but I'd say simply listening to that little nudge that tells me to smile at that stranger, or pay for that random person's lunch, or ask that friend how they are truly doing, not just surface level doing. Showing people that they matter and they are worth my time is one of the most powerful tools that I can ever use to love on people.
-There were three of us on the team that had gone through the Justice Water training back in Kona. We really felt it on our hearts to bless the base with a water catchment tank. We were able to teach how to do it, and we even made two tanks! They are about 3000 Liter tanks that will collect rain water so that there is perfectly clean drinking water through the rainy season and part of the dry season!
3. Insane, Crazy, Awesome "important" people met on outreach:
-I believe it was the first weekend we were there (a lot of them run together when I think back to them) we went to church. It was ridiculously long. Probably about 4 hours or so. Crazy. Afterwards we were told that we were going to go do a house visit to someone and meet him. We were excited, very excited. The next thing we know we are walking through a little village of mud huts and we come up on this huge fence and a big house. This house was a house much like the ones we have in America. They open the gate and we meet several people. Turns out that we were sitting in the house of a General from the South Sudanese army. Insane. We got to sit with him for quite a while enjoying drinks and just hearing what he had to say on several things. Crazy. A couple on our team got words for him from the Lord and we were able to love on him. So crazy.
-Speaker of the House of parliament. Crazy. We were doing a "youth camp" (In S. Sudan 'youth' means anyone age 45 and under...) in Panyana. One day, while the 3 guys were playing soccer with the "youth" one of the girls came up and told us we had to go because there was a government official there. We got back to the village, disgusting from playing barefoot on a dirt field, and found out we were meeting with the Speaker of the House. He was from that area, so he was back home for a visit and we got to sit and talk with him and enjoy drinks with him too! It was crazy because it wasn't an 'official' meeting with an official, so it wasn't all business talk. We were in his home and able to talk with him about a ton of stuff and just get to know him, not his title. So good!
-World Vision. There was one day where Luke, Melodie and I felt like we were supposed to go to the world vision compound and pray for people. We rolled up to the security gate and told the security guard that exact thing. Some how, by the grace of God, he let us through. There's no way he should have done that. 3 kids rolled up to the booth and said that the Lord told us to go there so he should let us in, then he did! Crazy! We ended up meeting the coordinator of water and malaria for world vision South Sudan. We were able to teach him the water training that we had done in Kona and he said he was going to use it because it is so simple and so inexpensive! We also were able to meet the Christian Commitment Coordinator for World Vision South Sudan. It was so insane how that simple act of obedience in stepping out to do something crazy produced so much fruit. God is so good!
-Kathy. She started an organization called CCC (Confident Children out of Conflict) which goes into the slums and takes girls that have been physically/sexually/emotionally/any other kind of abused and brings them up in a new environment. Most of these girls were working as prostitutes (even as pre-teens) or in brothels. Kathy would bring them to the compound and teach them how to live life as girls, not as objects. Since they were in this disgusting trade from a very young age, it's all that they know. They think that all they are worth is what men want to do to them. Kathy teaches them their value and how to be people. It is an absolutely amazing organization. What she is doing to restore the lives of these girls is absolutely amazing. I fell in love with the kids there. They would all call the girls "auntie" and the guys "uncle." I feel like I left a bit of my heart there with them in S. Sudan. Amazing girls that are seriously going to grow up and be the voice of change for the nation.
-Other people we met:
---The Commissioner of Morobo County (head of a county. almost equivalent to a governor here in the states.)
---Minister of Water for the South Sudan Government
---Arch Decon of the Anglican church in the Morobo County
4. Some fun/crazy/awesome stories/memories/quotes:
It wouldn't be a complete recap if I didn't mention some of the craziness that happened there!
-I love this family. Emannuel, Sharon, Samson, Jacob, Santos, and Agnes were seriously such a huge blessing on our lives. They are one of the families that lives and works on the YWAM compound in Yei. They welcomed us in and treated us like family as well. Such a blessing to get to know them and love on their kids. They are seriously an amazing family!
-There was one day where I was taking a break and editing some pictures back on the YWAM base in Yei. I was sitting with one of the older boys (about 13 years old) and the little kids were messing with me. I was starting to get annoyed a little bit because I was exhausted and just needed a break. Samuel (the 13 year old) yelled something in arabic and the kids all ran out screaming. I asked him what he said and he told me that they tell the little kids that white people will eat them if they mess with them. It's like a new version of the boogey man. It was hilarious! Poor kids thought I was going to eat them!
-Melodie (one of the girls on my team) and I seemed to share just about every single awkward experience that could ever happen. Anything that could happen, did happen. Bathroom stories, awkward conversation stories, etc. We experienced it all. Oh man, how close you get as a team when you live together for 3 months.
-There used to be a cat that was on base. I use the term "used" for a reason. One day, it went missing. We were wondering what happened to it so we asked our translator. He denied knowing anything about it. We then asked him "Santos, did you kill the cat?!" He said "No, I did not kill the cat..." We then asked him if someone else killed the cat. He said "I cannot answer these difficult questions." We all laughed, then asked him if we ate the cat. He answered "You Americans with your tricky questions. I cannot answer them!" The best part about it is that he spoke perfect English, so he understood exactly what we were saying. He was just messing with us because Tara (another one of the girls on our team) is obsessed with cats. It was hilarious.
-Driving to church one day, we passed a run down shack that was a shop. On the front it had written "Lord, Bless my enemies before you bless me." Wow. What a concept. That absolutely rocked me when I read it and has stuck with me ever since. What if I applied that mindset to everything I do? What if that was my outlook on life? So crazy. So counter cultural. Especially to see it in a nation that was super war torn. Crazy. Absolutely rocked me.
-The stars above South Sudan are absolutely amazing. There are very little city lights, so you can see everything. As you can see above, it is beautiful...
Obviously, there are so many more stories of things that happened. This would be the longest post ever if I were to share all of them. I'm working on getting more stories out there. I'm still working on processing all of it and sharing the memories. Some of them are extremely hard to share. I saw some stuff there that are hard to cope with, but I know that with time I will be able to talk about all of them. Since I got home, I'm realizing how much I fell in love with South Sudan. One day I will be back there. I absolutely love it and I love the people there.
All of these memories are strait up to show how amazing God is. None of them would have happened if it wasn't for him. He actually cares about me and my team. He actually cares about the people of South Sudan. He actually cares about each and every one of you that are reading this right now. That's the kind of God he is, and it blows my mind to think about that.
Until next time,
Salaam (peace)
Now that I've been back for a few days and have started to adjust a bit, I wanted to send out an update telling about some of the amazing things that happened while we were in South Sudan. While we were there I had Very limited internet access, and when I was able to get on I had to pay for it so that made it hard to tell some of the amazing ways that God moved. I did mention some of them, but here are more details! So here ya go!
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| My Family/Glory Team! |
1. Crazy favor on outreach:
-It was insane the amount of favor we were shown. When we first arrived at the airport, we were somehow able to check more bags than we should have been allowed for free. We were also able to check overweight bags with no additional cost. This not only worked on American Airlines to get us to London, but it also worked on Kenya Airways going from London to Juba. It was crazy. There was no way we should have been allowed that, yet we were shown crazy favor.
-When we got to South Sudan, we were picked up by a range rover-like vehicle and rode for 4 1/2 hours from Juba to Yei. Along the way, we only had one bag fall off of the top, which was a tent. We noticed it in time and were able to retrieve it. Where the favor comes in, is that it got dark with about an hour and a half left in our drive. From everything we were told; you don't drive at night in S. Sudan. Besides that, we were going almost 50 mph on a road that you probably should drive no more than 20-25mph on. Bumps galore, yet somehow no other bags fell off of the top. Nothing. When we got to Yei and "untied" our bags from the top, there was no way that they should have stayed on. Super sketchy.
-The Lord totally hooked us up with free rides on a helicopter with the UN. We really learned that you never know what will happen if you simply ask a question. Crazy favor in getting hooked up with the ride because that meant that we didn't have to do that long drive again, and we didn't have to pay for it either. Such a blessing.
2. God really taught us what He will do if we are simply obedient:
-There were several times where big things happened simply because of a simply act of obedience. There was one day where Luke and I were walking down the street and we felt like we should pray for a guy with a limp. We prayed that he would be healed and it totally changed his attitude knowing that someone cared about him and wanted to see him well instead of just looking the other way. That led to someone else coming up and asking us to pray for him and his leg. We did so and again, it seemed like it made a difference in his day. We then had another man run up to us (we hadn't taken 5 steps yet) and ask us to pray for his stomach ulcers. After we prayed for him he said it was better! We thought it was cool, but were a little skeptical. We ran into him a week later and he was freaking out because he still had no pain in his stomach! It was something that he had been living with for quite some time. He was seriously healed of it. His life was seriously completely changed because of a simple prompting from the Lord and He completely healed him! It wasn't anything of our power, it wasn't anything to give us credit, it was simply Him doing something huge in someone's life. That's the kind of God he is. He cares about what we're going through, and wants to see us through it. Whatever way that means, He cares.
-There were several times throughout outreach that one of us would feel that little nudge to go talk to someone. This is incredibly scary almost every time you do it. As soon as that nudge is felt there are a million and one reasons that come to mind on why it probably isn't from God and why you shouldn't have to do it. Usually, those are a million and one reasons why it is from Him. The lives that were changed from this are insane. Alcoholics gave up drinking. There was someone who, after we were done talking with him, told us he was about to go do "something very bad that he would probably regret" completely changed. So crazy. Simple, affectionate based obedience to the Lord has more power than is given credit to it. What does that look like back home? I'm no expert, but I'd say simply listening to that little nudge that tells me to smile at that stranger, or pay for that random person's lunch, or ask that friend how they are truly doing, not just surface level doing. Showing people that they matter and they are worth my time is one of the most powerful tools that I can ever use to love on people.
-There were three of us on the team that had gone through the Justice Water training back in Kona. We really felt it on our hearts to bless the base with a water catchment tank. We were able to teach how to do it, and we even made two tanks! They are about 3000 Liter tanks that will collect rain water so that there is perfectly clean drinking water through the rainy season and part of the dry season! 3. Insane, Crazy, Awesome "important" people met on outreach:
-I believe it was the first weekend we were there (a lot of them run together when I think back to them) we went to church. It was ridiculously long. Probably about 4 hours or so. Crazy. Afterwards we were told that we were going to go do a house visit to someone and meet him. We were excited, very excited. The next thing we know we are walking through a little village of mud huts and we come up on this huge fence and a big house. This house was a house much like the ones we have in America. They open the gate and we meet several people. Turns out that we were sitting in the house of a General from the South Sudanese army. Insane. We got to sit with him for quite a while enjoying drinks and just hearing what he had to say on several things. Crazy. A couple on our team got words for him from the Lord and we were able to love on him. So crazy.
-Speaker of the House of parliament. Crazy. We were doing a "youth camp" (In S. Sudan 'youth' means anyone age 45 and under...) in Panyana. One day, while the 3 guys were playing soccer with the "youth" one of the girls came up and told us we had to go because there was a government official there. We got back to the village, disgusting from playing barefoot on a dirt field, and found out we were meeting with the Speaker of the House. He was from that area, so he was back home for a visit and we got to sit and talk with him and enjoy drinks with him too! It was crazy because it wasn't an 'official' meeting with an official, so it wasn't all business talk. We were in his home and able to talk with him about a ton of stuff and just get to know him, not his title. So good!
-World Vision. There was one day where Luke, Melodie and I felt like we were supposed to go to the world vision compound and pray for people. We rolled up to the security gate and told the security guard that exact thing. Some how, by the grace of God, he let us through. There's no way he should have done that. 3 kids rolled up to the booth and said that the Lord told us to go there so he should let us in, then he did! Crazy! We ended up meeting the coordinator of water and malaria for world vision South Sudan. We were able to teach him the water training that we had done in Kona and he said he was going to use it because it is so simple and so inexpensive! We also were able to meet the Christian Commitment Coordinator for World Vision South Sudan. It was so insane how that simple act of obedience in stepping out to do something crazy produced so much fruit. God is so good!
-Kathy. She started an organization called CCC (Confident Children out of Conflict) which goes into the slums and takes girls that have been physically/sexually/emotionally/any other kind of abused and brings them up in a new environment. Most of these girls were working as prostitutes (even as pre-teens) or in brothels. Kathy would bring them to the compound and teach them how to live life as girls, not as objects. Since they were in this disgusting trade from a very young age, it's all that they know. They think that all they are worth is what men want to do to them. Kathy teaches them their value and how to be people. It is an absolutely amazing organization. What she is doing to restore the lives of these girls is absolutely amazing. I fell in love with the kids there. They would all call the girls "auntie" and the guys "uncle." I feel like I left a bit of my heart there with them in S. Sudan. Amazing girls that are seriously going to grow up and be the voice of change for the nation.
-Other people we met:
---The Commissioner of Morobo County (head of a county. almost equivalent to a governor here in the states.)
---Minister of Water for the South Sudan Government
---Arch Decon of the Anglican church in the Morobo County
4. Some fun/crazy/awesome stories/memories/quotes:
It wouldn't be a complete recap if I didn't mention some of the craziness that happened there!
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| (Left to Right) Emannuel, Sharon, Samson. |
-There was one day where I was taking a break and editing some pictures back on the YWAM base in Yei. I was sitting with one of the older boys (about 13 years old) and the little kids were messing with me. I was starting to get annoyed a little bit because I was exhausted and just needed a break. Samuel (the 13 year old) yelled something in arabic and the kids all ran out screaming. I asked him what he said and he told me that they tell the little kids that white people will eat them if they mess with them. It's like a new version of the boogey man. It was hilarious! Poor kids thought I was going to eat them!-Melodie (one of the girls on my team) and I seemed to share just about every single awkward experience that could ever happen. Anything that could happen, did happen. Bathroom stories, awkward conversation stories, etc. We experienced it all. Oh man, how close you get as a team when you live together for 3 months.
-There used to be a cat that was on base. I use the term "used" for a reason. One day, it went missing. We were wondering what happened to it so we asked our translator. He denied knowing anything about it. We then asked him "Santos, did you kill the cat?!" He said "No, I did not kill the cat..." We then asked him if someone else killed the cat. He said "I cannot answer these difficult questions." We all laughed, then asked him if we ate the cat. He answered "You Americans with your tricky questions. I cannot answer them!" The best part about it is that he spoke perfect English, so he understood exactly what we were saying. He was just messing with us because Tara (another one of the girls on our team) is obsessed with cats. It was hilarious.
-Driving to church one day, we passed a run down shack that was a shop. On the front it had written "Lord, Bless my enemies before you bless me." Wow. What a concept. That absolutely rocked me when I read it and has stuck with me ever since. What if I applied that mindset to everything I do? What if that was my outlook on life? So crazy. So counter cultural. Especially to see it in a nation that was super war torn. Crazy. Absolutely rocked me.
-The stars above South Sudan are absolutely amazing. There are very little city lights, so you can see everything. As you can see above, it is beautiful...
Obviously, there are so many more stories of things that happened. This would be the longest post ever if I were to share all of them. I'm working on getting more stories out there. I'm still working on processing all of it and sharing the memories. Some of them are extremely hard to share. I saw some stuff there that are hard to cope with, but I know that with time I will be able to talk about all of them. Since I got home, I'm realizing how much I fell in love with South Sudan. One day I will be back there. I absolutely love it and I love the people there.
All of these memories are strait up to show how amazing God is. None of them would have happened if it wasn't for him. He actually cares about me and my team. He actually cares about the people of South Sudan. He actually cares about each and every one of you that are reading this right now. That's the kind of God he is, and it blows my mind to think about that.
Until next time,
Salaam (peace)
Friday, March 23, 2012
The Next Step...
Since I've been back in the states (both Kona and San Jose), I've gotten asked the question "What's next?" so many times.
I've been thinking a lot about this question a lot. I honestly didn't know how to answer it. I honestly didn't know what to do next. There are so many things I want to do. I want to go back to school and finish my degree. I want to go to Kona to do the School of Worship. I want to go to Nashville to do the School of Worship. I want to staff a DTS and pour into the next set of comm transers (the school I just did). I want to do a lot of things, Unfortunately, I can only do one right now.
The hardest part about this decision is that I feel like God is opening a ton of doors and then He's telling me to "pick one." One day I feel like he's saying one thing...then next day I think he's saying another, then the day after that he's telling me it doesn't matter which one I do, because it's up to me. Let me tell ya, that makes it really hard to clearly hear which one I'm "supposed" to do. I'd love it if God would just highlight one and close all of the other doors, but it seems like that's not what's gonna happen here. Which, honestly, is okay! Makes for a crazy adventure!
So I've made a decision. I am applying to commit the next year to go back out to Kona and spend some time in Leadership Training and Staffing the next Comm-Trans school. What this means is that I will be going back through the same program that I just did, but instead of being a student I will be one of the leaders and then I will lead a team onto an outreach somewhere in the world. I'm not accepted yet, so it's not 100% guaranteed at this point, but that's the direction that I'm pursuing.
On outreach the Lord really showed me my passion for discipleship. While in South Sudan I loved pouring into the youth and adults of the church to see growth in their lives. I feel called to help raise up the next generation of revivalists here in America and abroad. I feel like the Lord is calling me to help train up the next Comm-Trans class to push them towards pursuing Jesus because of what He did to encounter me in the past 6 months.
I definitely believe that if I'm hearing God wrong on this one then He's gonna correct me. I want nothing more than to see His will be done and I'm running after that. If I'm mistaken on what I think I'm hearing him say, then I know without a doubt that He will correct me. I'm just gonna go for it and let him handle the rest. If he's not giving me this choice then I believe that He's faithful enough to get me where he wants me to be.
What this would mean is that I would go on full time as a missionary. It is a year long commitment and then at the end of the year I can either renew it or pursue something else that the Lord is laying on my heart.
I would greatly appreciate prayers for me for this next season of my life. It is a big step of faith for me, because I am going to learn how to trust the Lord in ways that I've never had to before. It is going to be different from anything else I have ever done. I know that He has placed this on my heart, so I know that He is going to come through for me.
If you would like to support me financially in this, I have made it very easy this time. There is now a "donate" button on my blog page (http://joshmorrisonywam.blogspot.com/) which allows you to donate through paypal. No mail. No checks. Nada. Very easy!
I will send out a more formal invitation to help support financially after I get accepted. I am simply stepping out in faith at this point and asking for your prayers on this. If you would like to support now, go for it, but absolutely no pressure.
Thank you all for your prayers and support over the past 6 months in my DTS. God totally destroyed my life and then remade it into something that I never thought would happen. I'm loving every second of it, and I can't wait to see what the next step is. I couldn't have experienced it if it wasn't for all of your prayers and support.
I love you all. So flippin much.
Josh
I've been thinking a lot about this question a lot. I honestly didn't know how to answer it. I honestly didn't know what to do next. There are so many things I want to do. I want to go back to school and finish my degree. I want to go to Kona to do the School of Worship. I want to go to Nashville to do the School of Worship. I want to staff a DTS and pour into the next set of comm transers (the school I just did). I want to do a lot of things, Unfortunately, I can only do one right now.
The hardest part about this decision is that I feel like God is opening a ton of doors and then He's telling me to "pick one." One day I feel like he's saying one thing...then next day I think he's saying another, then the day after that he's telling me it doesn't matter which one I do, because it's up to me. Let me tell ya, that makes it really hard to clearly hear which one I'm "supposed" to do. I'd love it if God would just highlight one and close all of the other doors, but it seems like that's not what's gonna happen here. Which, honestly, is okay! Makes for a crazy adventure!
So I've made a decision. I am applying to commit the next year to go back out to Kona and spend some time in Leadership Training and Staffing the next Comm-Trans school. What this means is that I will be going back through the same program that I just did, but instead of being a student I will be one of the leaders and then I will lead a team onto an outreach somewhere in the world. I'm not accepted yet, so it's not 100% guaranteed at this point, but that's the direction that I'm pursuing.
On outreach the Lord really showed me my passion for discipleship. While in South Sudan I loved pouring into the youth and adults of the church to see growth in their lives. I feel called to help raise up the next generation of revivalists here in America and abroad. I feel like the Lord is calling me to help train up the next Comm-Trans class to push them towards pursuing Jesus because of what He did to encounter me in the past 6 months.
I definitely believe that if I'm hearing God wrong on this one then He's gonna correct me. I want nothing more than to see His will be done and I'm running after that. If I'm mistaken on what I think I'm hearing him say, then I know without a doubt that He will correct me. I'm just gonna go for it and let him handle the rest. If he's not giving me this choice then I believe that He's faithful enough to get me where he wants me to be.
What this would mean is that I would go on full time as a missionary. It is a year long commitment and then at the end of the year I can either renew it or pursue something else that the Lord is laying on my heart.
I would greatly appreciate prayers for me for this next season of my life. It is a big step of faith for me, because I am going to learn how to trust the Lord in ways that I've never had to before. It is going to be different from anything else I have ever done. I know that He has placed this on my heart, so I know that He is going to come through for me.
If you would like to support me financially in this, I have made it very easy this time. There is now a "donate" button on my blog page (http://joshmorrisonywam.blogspot.com/) which allows you to donate through paypal. No mail. No checks. Nada. Very easy!
I will send out a more formal invitation to help support financially after I get accepted. I am simply stepping out in faith at this point and asking for your prayers on this. If you would like to support now, go for it, but absolutely no pressure.
Thank you all for your prayers and support over the past 6 months in my DTS. God totally destroyed my life and then remade it into something that I never thought would happen. I'm loving every second of it, and I can't wait to see what the next step is. I couldn't have experienced it if it wasn't for all of your prayers and support.
I love you all. So flippin much.
Josh
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Back In San Jose...What Now?
Pretty much...I'm back in San Jose. It's crazy. There's so many different thoughts and emotions going on right now I don't even know where to start. It's a crazy mix of excitement/exhaustion/being overwhelmed by everything.
I can't believe that DTS is over...It feels like just yesterday that I was packing to head out to Kona. It feels like just yesterday that I was completely clueless about what would happen in the biggest 6 months of my life. I had no idea what God would do. I had no idea that God would completely tear down the life and mindset that I had and completely replace it with something that actually gives him glory. I had no idea how dead my relationship with God had become and how much I really needed him to reveal himself. I had no idea that my picture of Jesus needed a total reshaping.
I had no idea that I would come to truly know who Jesus was.
Looking back on the last 6 months really makes me realize how much I have changed. Even in the past day of being home I have seen such a culture shift in my life. It was so freaking good. It was so ridiculously painful at times, but at the same time it was something that I am so thankful happened. God is so faithful it's ridiculous. It's so amazing how He knew that this past season of my life was the perfect time to have me do something like this. I can't believe I resisted as much as I did.
So what next?
I honestly don't know. I feel like God's opening up several doors for amazing opportunities. I have no idea which one it's going to be. Waiting to hear back on some things before I start thinking about it. What I do know is that I am going to soak in every second of being back home with my friends and family. God's definitely got big things in store for the bay area. I can't wait to see what that shapes up to be!
Even though I don't have much planned out, there is one thing that I know for sure. It's something that our school leader said when he came to visit us and it has stuck with me ever since. When you don't know what to do, default to service. So that's what I'm going to do. I may not have all of my plans (or any of them) mapped out for the next season of my life, but one thing I know for certain is that I want to look like Jesus. So that's what I'm gonna do.
Default to service, because service points to Jesus.
So stoked to see what's to come...
I can't believe that DTS is over...It feels like just yesterday that I was packing to head out to Kona. It feels like just yesterday that I was completely clueless about what would happen in the biggest 6 months of my life. I had no idea what God would do. I had no idea that God would completely tear down the life and mindset that I had and completely replace it with something that actually gives him glory. I had no idea how dead my relationship with God had become and how much I really needed him to reveal himself. I had no idea that my picture of Jesus needed a total reshaping.
I had no idea that I would come to truly know who Jesus was.
Looking back on the last 6 months really makes me realize how much I have changed. Even in the past day of being home I have seen such a culture shift in my life. It was so freaking good. It was so ridiculously painful at times, but at the same time it was something that I am so thankful happened. God is so faithful it's ridiculous. It's so amazing how He knew that this past season of my life was the perfect time to have me do something like this. I can't believe I resisted as much as I did.
So what next?
I honestly don't know. I feel like God's opening up several doors for amazing opportunities. I have no idea which one it's going to be. Waiting to hear back on some things before I start thinking about it. What I do know is that I am going to soak in every second of being back home with my friends and family. God's definitely got big things in store for the bay area. I can't wait to see what that shapes up to be!
Even though I don't have much planned out, there is one thing that I know for sure. It's something that our school leader said when he came to visit us and it has stuck with me ever since. When you don't know what to do, default to service. So that's what I'm going to do. I may not have all of my plans (or any of them) mapped out for the next season of my life, but one thing I know for certain is that I want to look like Jesus. So that's what I'm gonna do.
Default to service, because service points to Jesus.
So stoked to see what's to come...
Monday, March 5, 2012
Last Week in Sudan.....
Crazy. This is the last week that we're in sudan. Tomorrow is our last official day too. Starting wednesday we're going to be on debrief until we fly out on saturday. It has gone so incredibly fast i can't believe that it's already over. God has done so much in the past 2 1/2 months in both the lives of the people we've met and interacted with as well as my own life. I've seriously grown so much over the time here in Sudan. God's built me up, broken me down, rinse and repeat. It has been truly amazing.
Our time here in juba has been great. It has been amazing to pour into the lives of the girls at CCC and to be able to show them that not all men simply want to take advantage of them for their bodies. It has been absolutely amazing to get to know them and see the gifts that the Lord has put into them and the passions that they carry. They are amazing girls! I've really connected with a few of them and have been able to speak life into them and simply love on them appropriately, which is something they're definitely not used to. So good.
There are really mixed feelings about coming home. On one hand, my heart is here in Sudan. I absolutely love it here. I love the people. I love the culture. I love being here and don't want to leave. I wish I could stay here, but I know that the Lord is definitely calling me home to San Jose for a season. The other hand is that there is such anticipation for what the Lord is going to do back in San Jose. It is going to be a season of amazing revival and I am so excited to see what is going to happen. The Lord is placing some incredibly crazy things on my heart to do there and I am really excited to see them come to pass.
Thank you all so very much for all of the support you have given me to be able to make this even happen. It has not been in vain. The Lord has completely transformed me from the person who I was going into DTS into someone completely different. He has really shown me what it is like to have a relationship with him and walk with him daily. He has really shown me areas of my life that I need to improve in. He has really shown me areas of my life that I have passion and strength in. It has been amazing to be molded by our creator even more than I could have ever anticipated. So freaking good. God is so good. God is so exciting. I can't believe that I was so frustrated that he wanted me to do this back in february (last year) when I felt like he was telling me to drop out of school for the time. Crazy. Now I am so excited to see what is going to come next in my life now that I have this fire for the Lord inside of me. I am so excited to see all of the things that I'm going to do (in going back to school) that I never would have been able to do pre-dts. God has really given me a desire to walk through life and make it interesting, not just go through the motions of daily routine. God has really given me a desire to give him Glory in everything I do, not just on sunday mornings and evenings. God is so good.
God loves you so much. He wants you to experience the same thing. All you have to do is let him encounter you and love you. All you have to do is let him take over your life and he will definitely make it interesting. Painful? at times. Not in a bad way, but in a growing sort of way. Exciting? Most definitely. God is not boring. He doesn't want to make you into a religious zombie who simply follows a bunch of rules that are a bunch of bull crap and are always striving to be a good enough person. He simply wants to run with you. I encourage you to step into that love. Step into that love that he has for you. I promise you, it is totally worth it. I promise you, your life will never be the same.
So much love for you all. I want to be able to meet up with each one of you and talk about what the Lord has done in my life in the past 6 months. Please feel free to email me (joshmmorrison@yahoo.com) and we can talk! As soon as i get back to the states i'll have my phone as well, so text me! I really want to share all of this with each one of you. You are the ones that made this possible, and I cannot express how incredibly grateful I am. So much love for you all!
Our time here in juba has been great. It has been amazing to pour into the lives of the girls at CCC and to be able to show them that not all men simply want to take advantage of them for their bodies. It has been absolutely amazing to get to know them and see the gifts that the Lord has put into them and the passions that they carry. They are amazing girls! I've really connected with a few of them and have been able to speak life into them and simply love on them appropriately, which is something they're definitely not used to. So good.
There are really mixed feelings about coming home. On one hand, my heart is here in Sudan. I absolutely love it here. I love the people. I love the culture. I love being here and don't want to leave. I wish I could stay here, but I know that the Lord is definitely calling me home to San Jose for a season. The other hand is that there is such anticipation for what the Lord is going to do back in San Jose. It is going to be a season of amazing revival and I am so excited to see what is going to happen. The Lord is placing some incredibly crazy things on my heart to do there and I am really excited to see them come to pass.
Thank you all so very much for all of the support you have given me to be able to make this even happen. It has not been in vain. The Lord has completely transformed me from the person who I was going into DTS into someone completely different. He has really shown me what it is like to have a relationship with him and walk with him daily. He has really shown me areas of my life that I need to improve in. He has really shown me areas of my life that I have passion and strength in. It has been amazing to be molded by our creator even more than I could have ever anticipated. So freaking good. God is so good. God is so exciting. I can't believe that I was so frustrated that he wanted me to do this back in february (last year) when I felt like he was telling me to drop out of school for the time. Crazy. Now I am so excited to see what is going to come next in my life now that I have this fire for the Lord inside of me. I am so excited to see all of the things that I'm going to do (in going back to school) that I never would have been able to do pre-dts. God has really given me a desire to walk through life and make it interesting, not just go through the motions of daily routine. God has really given me a desire to give him Glory in everything I do, not just on sunday mornings and evenings. God is so good.
God loves you so much. He wants you to experience the same thing. All you have to do is let him encounter you and love you. All you have to do is let him take over your life and he will definitely make it interesting. Painful? at times. Not in a bad way, but in a growing sort of way. Exciting? Most definitely. God is not boring. He doesn't want to make you into a religious zombie who simply follows a bunch of rules that are a bunch of bull crap and are always striving to be a good enough person. He simply wants to run with you. I encourage you to step into that love. Step into that love that he has for you. I promise you, it is totally worth it. I promise you, your life will never be the same.
So much love for you all. I want to be able to meet up with each one of you and talk about what the Lord has done in my life in the past 6 months. Please feel free to email me (joshmmorrison@yahoo.com) and we can talk! As soon as i get back to the states i'll have my phone as well, so text me! I really want to share all of this with each one of you. You are the ones that made this possible, and I cannot express how incredibly grateful I am. So much love for you all!
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
No Big Deal
We got in to juba today. We'll be here for 15 more days and then we
head back to america! So crazy how fast the time is going. The lord is
so good. He does crazy things...for example get missionaries a contact
with the United Nations to get free flights on a helicopter. No big
freaking deal. Not like it was legit or anything...oh wait. it was. So
good!
It was very hard to leave Yei though...All of the people on the YWAM base there are like family to us. I learned so much from all of them and have some super close relationships with them all. They are seriously like my brothers and sisters. The last night we had a man night and the three of us (luke josh and I) watched hercules with all of the boys. So much fun, gonna miss those kids!
While in Yei we ended up building two rain catchment tanks! So crazy! We were able to work with some of the people at the YWAM base to teach them how to do it and pumped out two. One was the way we were taught and the other one was a way that we made up using bricks instead of forms! So stoked that it worked. It's crazy to think of the impact that a rain catchment tank has in an area like that...I totally take clean drinking water for granted but it was such a blessing to them! So stoked about it!
So we're in juba now until we head back to 'merca on march 10th. I can't believe it's coming up so fast! Crazy! We're staying with an organization called CCC (Confident Children out of Conflict). It's pretty much like an orphanage for girls who were in prostitution or trafficking. They teach life skills and other things of that nature. There's currently another ywam team from california here running a camp for them. We just got in today so i don't know exactly what we'll be doing but i know it will be so much fun!
Much love for all of you! Missing you all very much. Stoked to get back and tell some amazing stories of how God moved in South Sudan!
It was very hard to leave Yei though...All of the people on the YWAM base there are like family to us. I learned so much from all of them and have some super close relationships with them all. They are seriously like my brothers and sisters. The last night we had a man night and the three of us (luke josh and I) watched hercules with all of the boys. So much fun, gonna miss those kids!
While in Yei we ended up building two rain catchment tanks! So crazy! We were able to work with some of the people at the YWAM base to teach them how to do it and pumped out two. One was the way we were taught and the other one was a way that we made up using bricks instead of forms! So stoked that it worked. It's crazy to think of the impact that a rain catchment tank has in an area like that...I totally take clean drinking water for granted but it was such a blessing to them! So stoked about it!
So we're in juba now until we head back to 'merca on march 10th. I can't believe it's coming up so fast! Crazy! We're staying with an organization called CCC (Confident Children out of Conflict). It's pretty much like an orphanage for girls who were in prostitution or trafficking. They teach life skills and other things of that nature. There's currently another ywam team from california here running a camp for them. We just got in today so i don't know exactly what we'll be doing but i know it will be so much fun!
Much love for all of you! Missing you all very much. Stoked to get back and tell some amazing stories of how God moved in South Sudan!
Monday, February 13, 2012
What I'm Learning In South Sudan...
It’s been crazy what I’m learning here in South Sudan. God’s really
been teaching me what it’s like to walk through the day with him. It’s
definitely about sharing Jesus with people, and that’s what it’s so
about, but i’m really learning that it’s less about evangelizing and
more about walking with God throughout the day. If I think about it as
evangelizing then it sounds like a chore. It sounds like something that
I have to do. Sounds like something that If i do it then i’m a better
christian or some crap like that. When I look at it like my life is an
everyday walk with Jesus then it’s a relationship. It’s something that
fruit will come out of because when you’re focusing on Jesus you will
see fruit. It’s not a chore, it’s a relationship. It’s not a
requirement, it’s a product. It’s not something I have to do, it’s
something I want to do. It’s so crazy to see the way God’s changed me
since i’ve been out here. What’s even crazier is that although I’ve
been changed in a number of ways…i’m still me. I’m still Josh. I’m
still the one who thinks will farrell is hilarious. I still quote
anchorman all the time. I will still laugh everytime I hear one of his
quotes. I’m still the Josh that will joke around with you. I’m not
changing my personality or my character. What i am changing is the
way that I look at other people. That’s what loving Jesus is about.
It’s not about conforming to a mold of what a ”christian should look
like.” It’s not about fitting a certain standard or voting republican.
It’s not about selling everything you have to go do something you hate.
It’s about loving Jesus and letting Jesus love other people through
you. It’s about walking with Jesus through the passions you have in
life. Passions are not bad, in fact God gave each of us passions like
crazy because he loves us so much he wanted to make us unique. He gave
us skills because he designed us and want us to be unique. It’s crazy
how God made each of us specific to us. It’s crazy how walking with
Jesus doesn’t mean changing that…it means running with that in a way
that was never before imagined. So good! God is so good. God is so
freaking good! I love that i’m really learning what it means to be a
christian and to tell other people about Jesus. This isn’t oxiclean. I’m
not trying to sell you something. I’m not trying to give you something
that i’m saying you need because your life isn’t as good without
it…I’m simply telling you of someone who really cares about you and
wants friendship with you. I’m simply saying that the one who created
you actually wants a relationship with you. The one who made each of
us…with our skills…wants us to know him personally. The one that
designed musical abilities in us…the one that designed us to be good
with money…the one that designed us to be good with computers…the one
that made us good with sports…that’s the one that wants to have
relationship with us. it isn’t about giving up what we love to follow
Jesus…it’s about loving the one who gave us those passions. So good.
God is so good. And God loves each and every one of you so freaking
much. God wants nothing more than a relationship with you. He doesn’t
want you to come to him so he can condemn you. he doesn’t want you to
come to him so he can say you do wrong things. Jesus didn’t die so we
wouldn’t go to hell…Jesus would die so we could have relationship with
him. So good. So freaking good. God is so freaking good. I am blown
away by this. I am blown away that the one who made us actually wants us
for relationship and not for a power trip. Always remember that. You
are loved. You are legitimately and genuinely loved. You have a purpose
and that doesn’t mean you have to come to God so you can sell
everything you have to move to the middle of no where and do something
you hate. That’s not God. He’s not a God of obligation, but of
relationship. Seek after him and you will find him. Pursue relationship
and he will grow with you. Never forget that.
Crazy Story Time...
Crazy story time:
So Last weekend we were in town using the internet (trying…i havent been able to for a couple of weeks cuz it hasn’t loaded at all…) and we went walking down the street to buy these cookie things (i’m gonna bring some home. Put peanut butter on it and it’s like a nutter butter haha so good i’ve had like 50 packages since we’ve been here cuz it’s 2 for a pound [one pound is like 30 cents]) and we saw a guy with a crippled leg. We asked him if we could pray for him. We did, nothing happened, but God is still good. We took about 3 steps toward the market and someone else stopped us and asked that we pray for his leg too! We did, and although nothing happened in the moment we have faith that it will! Then…like 3 more steps further…a man came up to us and asked us to pray for him because he has stomach ulcers and it causes him incredible pain. We prayed for him and he said thank you and we left. We went back to town this past saturday and he ran up to us and said that ever since we prayed for him all of his stomach pain was gone! so crazy! God healed his ulcers because of our prayers! We are going to talk to him today again! It’s crazy because he was an arab man and here in south sudan if you see an arab man it means he is a muslim (not stereotype…that’s just what it means here) So in Jesus name he was totally healed and it’s such a door opener!
So Last weekend we were in town using the internet (trying…i havent been able to for a couple of weeks cuz it hasn’t loaded at all…) and we went walking down the street to buy these cookie things (i’m gonna bring some home. Put peanut butter on it and it’s like a nutter butter haha so good i’ve had like 50 packages since we’ve been here cuz it’s 2 for a pound [one pound is like 30 cents]) and we saw a guy with a crippled leg. We asked him if we could pray for him. We did, nothing happened, but God is still good. We took about 3 steps toward the market and someone else stopped us and asked that we pray for his leg too! We did, and although nothing happened in the moment we have faith that it will! Then…like 3 more steps further…a man came up to us and asked us to pray for him because he has stomach ulcers and it causes him incredible pain. We prayed for him and he said thank you and we left. We went back to town this past saturday and he ran up to us and said that ever since we prayed for him all of his stomach pain was gone! so crazy! God healed his ulcers because of our prayers! We are going to talk to him today again! It’s crazy because he was an arab man and here in south sudan if you see an arab man it means he is a muslim (not stereotype…that’s just what it means here) So in Jesus name he was totally healed and it’s such a door opener!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Update from South Sudan Jan. 30, 2012
1/18/2012: So its been a while since the last update. Still
loving it here. A lot has happened too. Esther, Josh, and Liz all left for Iris
ministries on the 10th. Sounds like they’re loving it there. That
same day we had a meeting as a team and decided that we really wanted to step
it up when it comes to boldness in sharing during the village ministry time. It
really hit us that while God will tell us if he wants someone to speak
specifically he will say so, but if we don’t hear a name it’s not an excuse not
to speak and share the gospel. In reality, as Christians were all called to
share the hope that’s we have. That day we got to sit down with two women for
about two hours and talk about Jesus! So good! The day after that we prayed for
a man’s foot to be healed. Till believe that it will happen! After that house
we came upon another one. There a sister in Christ was added to the kingdom!
It’s so crazy how God wants to use us to tell others about him. When we stop
trying to sell it as something the people need and stop saying how life will be
better with it fruit comes. It comes because we simply tell people about the
love of Jesus. It’s not like some info-mercial trying to give you something
new. It’s simply a story of love. It’s simply a story of someone dying for people
that he loved. So good! A couple days ago we were doing the same thing in the
villages and two more people came to Christ! Oh the power of the simple gospel!
God is
really stretching me like crazy to speak more and more. In several of the
village times I find myself saying something…next week we’re going to panyana
and leading a camp there. I have a sermon and two seminars that I’m leading
there. It’s cool how God told me before I left Kona that I would be speaking
and that he would prepare me…and now it’s happening. Crazy!
We’re
moving along on the rain catchment tank! The first full layer of cement is
done! It finally looks like a tank! Three more to go and it will be done! So
stoked.
God’s
really been challenging me to dig into the bible even more than ever before. I
am finding that if I don’t spend time with him at the beginning of each day
then it is very difficult to walk out in love. It’s not an obligation thing, I
simply want to spend time reading it! I’ve never had that desire before, so I’m
really enjoying it! Tara and I have started reading threw the new testament
from start to finish and out loud. Matthew has really been rocking me. What if
I truly took everything that Jesus said and lived by uit? So good! I’ve also
been reading 1st Corinthians (at the time I wrote this 1st, now I’ve
finished it and am into 2nd Corinthians) on my own. So good. I
encourage everyone to read it and get ready to get rocked. Remember, it was
written to the church…and somehow it is still totally applicable to us as
Christians in our time as well. So crazy.
Still feels
like home here. God’s placed some things on my heart and I’m pretty sure I’ll
be out here again someday for longer than three months. If anyone is up for a
crazy God adventure then pray about joining me! It’s gonna be epic.
Break off
any stereotypes you may have about south sudan. It’s not like what I
pictured before coming. It’s very safe. Of course, there are some parts that
are dangerous, but isn’t that the same story everywhere? There’s some parts of San Jose that you don’t
go to because it’s dangerous. God is moving like crazy in this nation. It’s
only a matter of time before it takes off and is a hub for revival in Africa. And hopefully the rest of the world.
1/22/2012: We made it to panyana today. Begins the week long
youth camp. It’s about an hour and a half or so away from Yei. We’re right
along the border where South Sudan, Congo,
and Uganda
meet. The camp is pretty sweet! We’re staying in one of the African style
brick/mud huts. They had beds already made with mosquity nets and everything
ready for us! We go in, had a short meeting then went to church. Service was
like 4 ½ hours long. Never before in my life have I ever been so thankful for
hour and a half long services like back home in America. It was really cool and
they had so much good stuff to say, but man, 4 ½ hours is a long time to just
sit there. They had us up front as guests too, so we couldn’t get up to go to
the bathroom or anything. We have a break now until 6:00pm. When we’ll meet
before the evening meeting. This week I’m speaking at least 3 times. On Tuesday
I am doing a 2 hour seminar on “Hearing the voice of God.” Crazy that as of 4
months ago I woulda called you crazy in regards to this topic, yet now here I
am speaking on it to the youth of this camp. Funny how God works things like
that. On Wednesday I’m doing a seminar on discipleship methods. On Friday Night
I am doing the evening teaching on “sharing your faith.” I’m so stoked to see
what happens with this camp. We’re expecting some crazy fruit to come from it!
Lately,
I’ve been thinking about going back to school right away before I go back into
the missions field. I’m considering teaching while also getting my degree in
psychology. We’ll see. I’d love to be a little more equipped in some areas
before I go into long term missions overseas. We’ll see after outreach what
happens with that!
1/24/2012: We’re into the third day of the youth camp. It is
going well so far! God is moving big time here and it is cool to see how the
students are taking it all in. I spoke today on hearing the voice of God. I was
super nervous right before I went up but then ended up speaking for over an
hour. There were a lot of questions afterwards too which is awesome! Revival is
starting in South Sudan! Loving panyana! We’ll
get to go for a walk today and go for about 3 miles to the congo! Crazy!
So stoked for it! So, everyone here is a freaking beast at soccer. You say
you’re gonna play then all of a sudden they’re all changed into their cleats
and Manchester
united jerseys. They’re really good though! Luke and I were talking and it was
like our varsity higschool teams wouldn’t even be able to touch these guy…and
they’re like 12-16 years old. So funny! I did score a goal though (total fluke,
shouldn’t have happened at all…) The keeper was out of the net when I shot…he
dove back in front because it was a weak shot but it hit a hole in the ground
and bounced up right over him…plus he was like 12…but come on, those are just
minor details! It was so fun though. When I come back to the states I’m
definitely going to get more into soccer so when I’m out here next I can at
least keep up a little bit with these guys.
1/27/2012: Today went really well. I was supposed to speak
on discipleship but I felt like God really wanted me to talk on how He isn’t a
God of fear but a God of relationship. What was crazy is that I really felt
like I was supposed to go in with no notes.
I was so nervous going into it. The holy spirit really moved though and
I spoke for over an hour with no filler stuff…just strait speaking. It is
getting a lot more comfortable to speak in front of people. I’m actually
starting to enjoy it!
Pretty
much, We met the speaker of the house of south sudan today. No big deal. He’s just
number 3 in line in the government. No big deal. If the president dies, the VP
takes over. If the VP dies, the speaker of the house takes over. No big deal.
Not only did we meet him, b ut we3 got to sit and talk with him for over an
hour over drinks. He is a solid Christian! So good! From what he said, the
nation is moving in an amazing way. So good! We got to pray for him too! So
good! I also have pictures to prove it too!
1/30/2012: We’re back in Yei from panyana. Camp was an
amazing week. There was so much growth in the students. Our small group
especially seemed to be really impacted. All week long the generic church
answer (not too different from home) was “if you humble yourself and confess
your sins Jesus will give you whatever you ask for.” By the last day of small
groups their answers were all about how they truly understand what a
relationship with God means and how they’re going to tell others about it! A
lot of them sound really ready to go out and live Jesus out with their lives!
So stoked!
Being back
in Yei feels like being at home. There’s something about this base and the
leaders here that’s different from anywhere else. I’m really going to miss Seme
(The pastor in panyana)…a lot…but YWAM Yei really feels like home.
I am
constantly amazed by how similar Africa is to the United States. I used to look at it
and imagine a whole different world. It’s very similar. It’s not that image of
everyone and their mother about to die of starvation that usually gets painted.
There are teenagers who rock sunglasses and act like they’re too cool for
everything. Kids on their cell phones and that are texting. Phones go off in
church. People tell jokes and play pranks on each other. People care about how
they look and what they wear. Teenagers struggle with doing drugs. There’s
little motivation for school. Girls get pregnant at younger (teenage) ages.
Some churches are dead. Some churches are alive and kicking. There are stores
to buy things at. Everyone loves music. There are things specific to the culture
and customs as well. Now, if no one knew that I was living in Africa, or I
hadn’t mentioned it, one would have thought this description was about America. So why
does Africa get all of the bad rep? I know
it’s not perfect, but people starve in America. People don’t have proper
health treatment in America.
There’s poverty there too. I’m just really noticing how no matter where you go
in the world you will see the exact same things. Sure, there are minor
variations, but still…same thing wherever you go.
I really
have a hope for this nation though. Some of the strongest Christians I have
ever seen are here. The government has some very honest people in it which is
helpful for setting the groundwork. It’s going places.
Monday, January 9, 2012
Hey Guys,
Absolutely loving it here. God’s doing crazy things already!
I’ve decided that because there is so limited internet access I am going to
post my journal entries throughout the time here. Each time I post I will have
updates from most of the days in between so I can keep you all updated!
Starting with Day 1 which I touched on in the last update. Enjoy!
12/23/2011: God totally had our backs right away. Somehow we
were able to check more bags than we were allowed to for free. So Crazy.
12/25/2011: So blessed to be able to spend Christmas in England with
Chloe’s family. Amazing, I love it here. Definitely going back one day.
12/26/2011: Totally blessed at the airport…again. We had
several overweight bags that we had to check. The lady at the counter found out
what we were doing and completely turned a blind eye to our weight on the bags.
Yeah, God!
12/27/2011: The ride from Juba
to Yei was crazy. Almost 5 hours of crazy bumpy roads where we had no idea
where we were going or how long it would take. There is no way our bags should
have stayed on the top of the car, yet somehow they did. Thank you Jesus!
12/28/2011: Yei is amazing. I seriously feel so at home
here. Everyone at the YWAM base is so welcoming and hospitable! Playing Frisbee
with the kids really broke the ice and was a lot of fun. We got to sit down
with George (one of the staff) and talk for a while about the base. I think we
are going to do several water projects here. There’s so much potential for this
base! One day it’s going to be huge. He has such an amazing heart for the Lord
I just know it will be blessed. I definitely want to bring a team out here one
day. Maybe next fall? We’ll see!
1/1/12: Crazy day today. We went to church in Yei. It was so
awesome to see the absolute joy that the people there had. We walked in to sit
down and they escorted us up to the front to sit with the pastors and their
families. After church we went to this house to talk with someone. We walked
through a village of mud huts and what looked like total devastation to come
across a huge house. It looked like our houses back home. It had a high fence
with barbed wire on the top. Turns out we were sitting in the house of one of
the major generals from the south Sudanese army! Holy crap. Crazy. We got to talk
to him for a while about a ton of things. He definitely “knows” God, but
doesn’t actually know him personally. Hardcore praying for him. He did let us
pray for him before we left though. Crazy prompting from the Lord. Back in Kona
they taught on the verses in Romans that share the Gospel. I wrote them down on
a piece of paper and then shoved it into my bible. Since that day, I felt like
I shouldn’t write anything else on it except “The soil makes all the
difference.” Well, when we were praying for him I felt like God told me to
leave that piece of paper in the house. So when I got up to put my camera bag
on to leave I subtly turned my back to everyone and then dropped the piece of
paper onto his entertainment center. Who knows what will happen with that, but
we’ll see!
I got to
talk with Abraham (one of the boys on base) for a while today. He knows a lot
of horrifying things that no 10 year old should ever know. The nation going
through war definitely had an impact on him. He also told me about this car
that occasionally (or used to, I didn’t understand 100% because of the language
barrier) drives down the road. He said it is black with black tinted windows.
He said that when the kids see it they all run and hide. He didn’t exactly know
what it was, but he did know that if they took a kid you would never see them
again. Horrifying. It’s probably either child soldiers or trafficking. Makes me
feel sick to my stomach to think about. It broke my heart to hear his response
when I asked him what he wants to do when he grows up. He said that there
aren’t really any options of things for him to do. There’s such a spirit of
hopelessness over this nation.
I can’t get
the idea of staffing a team out here off of my mind. It seems like so many
things trigger these thoughts. Still praying into whether its me or the Lord,
but we’ll see. I do know that I love it here.
I got rocked by a
quote that was on a shack in town today. It said:
“Lord, bless my
enemies before you bless me.”
Wow.
1/2/2012: Crazy hectic day today. Melodie and I were given
the privilege of leading worship for the base this morning. So much fun! We
then went as a team over to the other side of the base to find a spot for a
rain catchment tank. We found a perfect spot and prayed over it. I have this
feeling in my spirit that from that one spot so many lives are going to be
changed. We started by leveling the ground to get it prepped for the tank.
We then
went into town to get the supplies. It was extremely exhausting going from
place to place to find them and negotiate the prices. 1142 pounds later (about
$350 USD) we got all of the supplies. I can’t wait to start teaching themen on
the base and from the community the water projects. Educating them in the
smallest things will seriously save so many lives.
We’ve been
here for only a week and a half but it is already feeling like home. After
sending a Facebook message at the internet place I just sat in one of the
chairs and drank a coke. I never realized how much I would enjoy a bottle of
coke. So good!
On the way
back to the base I totally got rocked. I looked down and saw how dirty my feet
were and then totally thought of the passage where Jesus washed his disciple’s
feet. I always thought it was cool, but the significance never clicked to me.
My feet were absolutely disgusting. So crazy! Our savior washed the
disgustingness of their feet. Totally blows my mind to think about that.
1/3/2012: We started the water project today. It was a
little frustrating because we already have to get creative with supplies, but
it got going after a while. We cut most of the forms and will piece them
together soon!
We also
helped lead a bible study at a local church. It was a really good discussion on
John 6 where Jesus feeds 5000 men. I never thought to look at it from the
perspective of the little boy who had the food that was multiplied. He had so
little, yet the Lord did such huge things with it.
Tomorrow
our team is putting on a seminar. Several people got that I would be speaking,
yet it really didn’t sit well with me. I was willing to do it if the Lord
confirmed it, but it didn’t feel right. We prayed about it as a team and our
whole program ended up getting changed. We have 4 speakers for it. Victoria on restoration and identity in Christ, Liz on
relationship with our heavenly father, Melodie on co-creation (with Tara painting in the back) and Luke on something. We’re
stoked for it.
I got a
crazy word from the Lord today. I felt like he said “San Jose isn’t your home anymore.” I really
don’t know what that means yet, but it rocked me. I was also getting a ton of
words while we were praying about the seminar. I asked why I was getting so
many and I felt like God said “Why wouldn’t you?” So crazy. So rocked. God is
so good! Yeah!
1/4/2012: Well, to put it simply, we stopped a fire from
burning someone’s house down. It was supposed to be a controlled burn to take
out dead crops and it caught the wind and went over the fence to someone else’s
land and went crazy. There is no doubt in my mind that we had some help from
God on this one. There was wind and it was really dry. A couple of us were
praying that it would stop in Jesus’ name, then suddenly it just died off. It
was in the middle of dead stocks of corn and was like it suddenly came to a
halt. So crazy.
It finally
hit me 100%...I’m not home in the states anymore. When the fire was burning
someone had their phone out. I asked if they were calling someone for help and
they just gave me a look like “uhh…who do you expect me to call??” Yup…not at
home anymore. I still feel at home here, but it has just completely hit that
I’m not in America
anymore.
1/5/2012: I got to sit with James for a while yesterday (One
of the kids). He helped me learn some Arabic because I was struggling with it.
We then got to read some of the bible together. I read a passage to him and
then he read John 1. It was so awesome to be able to help him with that. The
joy on his face when we finished reading was so crazy to see. I can’t wait to
pour into him more in the coming months.
1/7/2012: Sitting in the meeting room right now. Were about
14 hours into our 24 hour burn. All of the teams throughout the world (that
still sounds so crazy to say) started the 24 hour prayer time at 6:00pm London
time last night (about 10am [I think] back in Cali) and constantly have at
least two people in this room either praying, worshipping, or reading the
bible. I had my sets from 9-11pm, 1-2am, 5-6am, 7-8am, 9-10am, 12-1pm, and
7-9pm. It is crazy how the Lord speaks in the late hours of the night. He’s crazy
dropping revelations on the people here. So good!
We got to
do some village ministry the other day. We walked through this trail and came
upon some huts. I am completely blown away by the generosity of the South
Sudanese people. It makes me sad to think about my mindset, and the mindset
that America
has. We walk up on a few huts and greet people that we’ve never seen before.
Instantly they all rush over to us and greet us like we’re family. They gather
any and all chairs that they had and gave them to us while they sat on the
ground. My mind was blown. They have very little, yet their outlook towards
others is to give. We have so freaking much, yet our mindset is to keep it for
ourselves and expect more. We came out here to show the people of South Sudan what the love of Jesus looks like, yet I find
them being the ones that truly represent what the self sacrificing love of
Christ looks like. Oh, what would happen if Africa started influencing the US
instead of the other way around? Crazy lesson on humility.
1/8/2012: We’re going to church today. I’m giving my
testimony. We’ll see how that goes haha. I’m a little nervous, but God’s placed
an excitement on my heart for the message that I’m going to bring with it.
Boom, lets do this.
1/8/2012: So we got to the church and they threw it out
there that they not only wanted a testimony but they wanted someone to preach.
Well, I was ready to share so why not right? What’s crazy is that over the past
48 hours God was preparing me to preach today. It’s not so much that he gave ma
a sermon that he was giving me a peace to do it and not fear. It’s so easy to
share when it’s the holy spirit and not you talking! It was for over a half an
hour on how God is not a distant God but one who wants to run with us personally.
As a shock to me (and probably a lot of you reading this) I guess I am decent
at public speaking after all. Haha man, it’s crazy how God can use us in the
midst of our biggest fears to do stuff for him. Yeah, God!
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