What I Want

I've been doing a lot of thinking. A lot. (That may scare some of you, but no worries. I'm not planning a prank or anything.)
Since Summer Heritage, my heart has been really stirred. Well, since before Summer Heritage actually, but this past week definitely added to it.
I can't stop thinking about the kingdom of God, being involved in the work of God, and that sort of thing. I've prayed about it, searching my heart and making myself available to the Lord. I find myself in the car praying for the Lord to have His way, or singing songs of worship to my Saviour.
I've had such a desire in my heart to work for the Lord, to be the lowliest of servants in His kingdom, to see His sweet face, to be a part of the work that He has promised for these last days. Its the cry of my heart. Its everything that I could ever dream of and more. It is what I want.

All that I am, all that I have
I lay them down before You, oh Lord
All my regrets, all my acclaims
The joy and the pain, I'm making them Yours

Lord, I offer my life to You
Everything I've been through, use it for Your glory
Lord I offer my days to You
Lifting my praise to You as a pleasing sacrifice
Lord I offer You my life

Things in the past, things yet unseen
Wishes and dreams that are yet to come true
All of my heart, all of my praise
My heart and my hands are lifted to You

Lord, I offer my life to You
Everything I've been through, use it for Your glory
Lord I offer my days to You
Lifting my praise to You as a pleasing sacrifice
Lord I offer You my life

What can we give that You have not given?
And what do we have that is not already Yours?
All we possess are these lives we're living
That's what we give to You, Lord

Lord, I offer my life to You
Everything I've been through, use it for Your glory
Lord I offer my days to You
Lifting my praise to You as a pleasing sacrifice
Lord I offer You my life

Lord, I offer my life to You
Everything I've been through, use it for Your glory
Lord I offer my days to You
Lifting my praise to You as a pleasing sacrifice
Lord I offer You my life
Lord I offer You my life

I want to let Jesus use me. If it means leaving everything that I have ever known, if it means sitting in a prayer room for hours, if it means living under a bridge, whatever I have to do, I want to make myself available to Jesus.
I want to be effective and involved in the Kingdom. I want to do exploits for the Lord. If I have to life a live of poverty, if I have to sell everything that I have to give to missions, if I have to endure persecution and suffering, whatever the Lord asks of me, I want to do mighty things for God.
I want to make it to heaven and see Jesus. If I have to forsake my loved ones, if I have to abandon every career that I have ever sought after, if I have to live in hiding, whatever it takes, I want to be saved.
These things are the earnest pleading of my heart.
These things are what I truly want.

Just Some Thoughts on Waiting

Earlier today, I was thinking back to a conversation that I had with two of our young ladies following youth camp. It was one of those conversations that are wholesome and bring you closer to one another. I love those conversations.
It began with one of the young ladies talking about a recent trial that she has been dealing with and how God is getting her through it. She spoke of how she knew that she was in the will of God and that she trusted that He was going to work it out for her good. The conversation slowly moved and evolved, changing to where all of us could effectively add to the conversation with our own experiences and struggles.
Then we began to talk about the goodness of God, which happens to be one of my favorite topics. I mean, how could I not talk about it when God is so good to me all the time?! We told stories of the things that God has done for us, the prayers that He has answered, and all the times He has been there for us. If you know anything about us or TLC, you know that we have been blessed beyond measure with so many things: ministries, a wonderful heritage, incredible moves of God, being involved in the work of God all over the world; We have so many things to be thankful for! That being said, conversations like this one generally don't end very quickly!
I began to talk about how awesome it is that God cares for each and every one of us. He listens to us, He hears our prayers. He works on our behalf and will go out of His way to reach us. He is such a good God!
Then the other young lady began sharing a story from camp. She talked about the storm we had Friday afternoon at camp and how she didn't want to get wet. She needed to go do her hair for church but didn't really want to get out of the dorm because it was raining so hard (I had an umbrella and was dripping from head to toe. No lie.). She casually prayed and asked God to make it stop raining because she didn't want to get wet. She then went outside and trekked to the bath house so that she could do her hair. By the time that she got there, she was soaked and decided to just take a shower because she was dripping wet. A few minutes later, she was doing her hair and another young lady walked in. As she came in the door, she commented on how weird the weather was and proceeded to tell about how, even though it was an incredibly heavy downpour moments ago, it had stopped raining and the sun was out and shining brightly. The young lady that had wanted to badly to not get wet began to think about this development. She finished getting ready and continued to ponder. She told us, "What would have happened if I had just trusted God and waited on Him? I wouldn't have gotten soaked and had to deal with the mess. It would've been a lot easier on me if I had just let God work before trying to go and do what I wanted to do.".
This stuck with me all these weeks. To some, it may seem trivial, but I believe that there is a lesson to be learned here. Perhaps God desires to do something for you, You've prayed about it and asked Him, but you don't see any differences and you're about to give up on waiting. Through the Bible, we know that good things come to those that wait upon the Lord and His timing. When you do, you won't have to 'deal with the mess' of doing it on your time.
I know, that whatever my walk with God brings me, wherever it leads me, and whatever He has me to do, I want to wait on His perfect timing so that I don't make a mess of things!

Isaiah 40:31

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Threescore and Ten Pt. 1

Summer Heritage was amazing this year. Its always amazing, but this year? I honestly believe that it was vital to the growth and continuation of the church in America as well as in other parts of the world. Why? Because we are now carrying the torch.

Every minister that preached at the conference had to be at least 70 years old (hence the 'Threescore and Ten' theme that was used there). They came burdened, passionate, and anointed and we left that way. In every service, we discovered that we have power, that God is our strength, that He is everything that we need, that he'll take care of us, and also that we must carry the torch. We were challenged to trust him and follow him without hesitation. I know I will.

Here is the line-up/service schedule:
Wednesday Night: 
Eld. Tommy Jackson - "Who's Going to Tell It When We're Gone?"
Thursday Morning: 
Eld. Allen Picklesimer - "Sardis; The Church that Used to Be"
Eld. Morton -"Oh Taste and See"
Thursday Night:
Eld Johnny Godair - "The Rod of God"
Friday Morning:
Eld Moody - "Don't Throw Away Your Future Thinking About Your Past"
Friday Night:
Eld. Morton - "Are You Going to be a Wise Man or a Fool?"

God called and anointed us. He challenged us. He gave us strength and faith. God moved.

While we were gone, we had at least 5 healings in our youth group alone. At church yesterday, we had another one.

We discovered the power that we have through Jesus. No devil scares me. No spirit frightens me. No type of fear can claim me. I have the power of the name that is above every name.

Another thing that happened: God brought someone into my life that I needed right at that moment. I knew this young man for about 24 hours before God used him to talk to my heart and challenge me to be stronger and better. He talked with me and cried with me and gave me so much. I definitely wouldn't have gotten everything that I did if he hadn't shared his burden with me. I am so thankful that God blesses His people with fellowship and relationships that can bring them closer to Him! God is good to us, isn't he?

I'll be posting more soon, along with some pictures. Check back soon!