"Patience & perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear & obstacles vanish."
~John Quincy Adams
This past week at a glance...
*Sunday I attended church at Faith again! This week our sermon was on wisdom and envy. We studied in James where it challenges us on the danger of envy and how to overcome it because envy can poison us from within. To understand this we looked at the definition of envy which is: "A feeling of discontent of covetousness with regard to another's advantages, possessions, qualities, or luck." What surprised me is that the antonym of envy is confidence! That means that envy is really another way of being insecure. We spent time looking at King Saul's life and how he became so envious of David. Check out this "flow chart."
So, a "soil of envy" = insecurity which leads to bad fruit (actions) = fear & paranoia (misguided actions) which leads to bad consequences = obsession, greed, and rage. whoa.
Then we looked at solutions (which is the title to the series we are studying.)
1. Live a life of generosity. (It reverses the fruit of envy)
2. Celebrate the success of others. (It cuts the seed that grows into the "envy bush")
3. Secure your identity in Christ. (Titus 3:3)
*Monday morning we all the girls in our school got together and we did what's called, "Stand and Face the Music." Basically we went around and took turns, so one girl would stand up and then three other girls would raise their hands and say what they loved and valued about the person that was standing. It was sort of difficult to take so many compliments however it was so encouraging to hear what other people see as some of the best things about you.
*Monday afternoon we went on a road trip to the Eagle Rock Campus in the mountains, (over 8,000 ft. above sea level) because at the Arvada base we had a DTS return from their outreaches. They have "debrief week" and for graduation they stay at the base with their families. We gave them a little bit of extra room by staying up at Eagle Rock for the week! What an amazing week that I feel so blessed to be apart of!!! Highlights of the week include: A beautiful white Yamaha piano that I got to play, air hockey, bonfire with s'mores, volleyball, messy game night, the returning outreaches came and did presentations on their outreaches, (which got us all even more excited!) and beautiful scenery!Monday evening when we arrived at Eagle Rock I received a package from my wonderful family! God brought it to me at the perfect time because inside were a pair of heavy duty gloves! This was perfect because at 5:15am Wednesday morning myself and some of my fellow students hiked up Eagle Rock, (the mountain) to watch the sun rise over the Rocky Mountains. I don't know what I would've done if I didn't have those gloves! We climbed practically straight up and 95% of it was straight rock climbing! When I got to the top and looked out over the terrain it took my breath away. Just before the sun actually rose the snow caps on the Rocky Mountains behind us turned a stunning shade of pink!!! It was gorgeous!!! It was worth waking up and hiking that early. I wouldn't trade that moment at all and I'm so very thankful for the safety and opportunity that God granted each one of us.
Wednesday I got to spend some sweet time with my friend Malia. We hiked up to the prayer chapel that is on the grounds of Eagle Rock, and we spent the afternoon there. The prayer chapel is a tiny wooden and stone cabin that is big enough for two couches and a fire place. We were able to talk and I had a blast making a fire, playing my penny whistle, crocheting, and listening to Billie Holiday. It was picture perfect with the mountains all around us and hot chocolate warming our hands.
*Friday we came back down the mountain and headed straight to Hillside Church where we attended the graduation of the DTS that returned from outreach! It was a very sweet and simple ceremony and I know that when it comes time for our DTS to graduate, I am going to be so sad! All of these people that I have just met have become my family. After graduation we returned to the Arvada Base (home!!!) and had a reception for the graduates and their families!
*Friday through next Wednesday is full of "GLORY" because Brittne Yoder has flown all the way to Denver just to hang out at the base and visit friends, including Malia and myself! I'm so honored that she is here!! We have already gotten to have a sweet coffee date at her second home (aka Starbucks), and catch up with each other. I'm so excited to see what this week has to hold and I'm sure I'll include an update next weekend! Thank you Lord for friends, girl time, and happiness... Especially when it snows!! :)
::Guest Speaker: Dean Sherman::
While at Eagle Rock we had a guest speaker by the name of Dean Sherman. He taught Musicians and Young People's DTS on Spiritual Warfare this week. Honestly I was so excited going into the week, but I quickly learned that what I interpreted spiritual warfare to be was a very tiny part of what it actually is. The teaching that we have received this week has been so valuable and something that seriously everyone should hear because it's so influential and happens in everyday life. Crazy!
So! Spiritual warfare is 90% taking place in your mind and 10% is casting out a demon in someone (exorcism). It is literally figuring out who says what. (between God and satan) I thought this week was going to focus on the 10%. Boy was I in for a shocker!
One of the enemies main goals is to destroy relationships between God, others, and myself. (sin, evil, and wrong = bad relationship) Why? Relationships are so important. How do I know this? Take a look at the 10 Commandments! Each one is in reference to how we are to relate with God and with other people.
"Why the devil works in every family, church, and marriage is because he wants to keep relationships broken down because we lose power. When we keep tight relationships, we have power over satan." So in that we shouldn't dishonor and resent others or even engage in arguments, because it equals bad relationship. God's mercy never runs out on us, so why should ours run out on other people? "We either subdue evil (good relationships) or evil subdues us (bad relationships)."
Our saying for the week has been, "Push back the darkness pray down the light." We have authority by the blood of Jesus to bind the devil! That is awesome power to have! We should pray in FIRM FAITH and not say, "Lord if it's your will..." There is power in believing what God can do!
-John 10:10 "I have come that you might have life to the fullest."
Speaking of having life to the fullest, did you know that 50% of Christian kids stop going to church &/or serving God when they leave home at age 18? They say, "It's not for me anymore, I want to live a little." So if Christians can't "live a little," and do whatever they want then that's saying that God has lied. That you can't live life to the fullest while loving and serving God. I'm sorry, what?! Check your thinking and reasoning youth of America. You are falling prey to spiritual warfare by listening to the enemy as he blinds your eyes by believing that you are "missing out" on something by not participating in the ways of this world.
There are two (and only two) ways that you can live in this world...
Kingdom VS. World
-Love -Selfishness
-Serving -Controlling
-Submission -Rebellion
-Humility -Pride
-Generosity (giving and receiving) -Greed
-Justice -Injustice (bias, prejudice, favorites)
-Integrity -Corruption
-Wholeness -Brokenness
"DTS isn't teaching us what to believe, but how to live."
We must distinguish between sin nature and human nature. There isn't anything wrong with human nature because Jesus had human nature when he came to Earth. If He didn't then the cross was worth nothing. It says that He was tempted in all ways, (Hebrews 4:15) the thing that is different is that He didn't sin. Ever. So the saying, "I'm only human," means nothing! Yes we are human, but so was Jesus.... so what's your excuse now?
Satan is tricky and smart. He uses different tactics in different parts of the world to keep people blinded from truth. How do I know this? Look in the "non-west" (ex. Africa & Asia). Satan gets up in peoples faces and tries to intimidate through fear. Why do you think it is that you hear of people being exorcised of demons in these parts of the world more than the Western cultures? Fear works there. In the west he tries to hide and whisper to people that spirits and things of that nature are just mystical things that aren't real. Whoa.
Kingdom Weapons
2 Corinthians 10:3-4 "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does."
-"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds."
-"If I don't fight the devil then I will fight people, because we are all fighters by nature."
Our enemy is not flesh and blood, it is supernatural.
Kingdom
2 Corinthians 4:6 "For God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."
World
2 Corinthians 4:4 "The god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light." This verse shows us why spiritual warfare is always in play when we communicate.
The enemy will lie to everyone about 2 main things: 1. God 2. Yourself
-Replace the lies with truth via the Word. (Romans 12:12)
I'm so sorry if all of this ^^^ seems so scattered! I was just following some of my notes and if you want to talk to me about any of this stuff in detail I am so up for a conversation! Especially if I haven't made myself clear-- which I do NOT want to do! Anyways, it was an amazing week with so much learning that I felt as though my brain was going to explode! :)
::THAILAND/CAMBODIA::
*One month from tomorrow I will be on an airplane headed to Bangkok, Thailand. AHH!!!!!! I am so excited already and I can't believe how fast time is going! Please pray for me as I have to get two additional shots/vaccinations before I go over! :( Ha ha.
This week we continued in a part II teaching on preparing testimonies and we took it a step further with talking about preparing sermons as well. I took some very informative and helpful notes! If you are at all interested in them let me know! Some parallel what I mentioned last week in my blog so I'll jump to the next thing!
Last evening we had another meeting where we watched the documentary, Nefarious. This documentary explores the prostitution "industry", as well as sex trafficking all across the world. It is a Christian documentary so it is tastefully done. I recommend this highly, but also caution as to the graphic nature of the topics. It wrung my heart out while we were watching it. Even thinking back to it now I am getting choked up. I know for certain that this is the outreach that I am to go on now more than ever. I believe that God can and will use me in Thailand and Cambodia. I'm excited and determined at the same time. This mission that I'm on will be tough, but I'm ready for the challenge that it presents.
After watching the documentary we had prayer and worship, and honestly that is the best thing to do after watching it.
God is so good! I'm looking to raise $1,000 to pay for the last bit of the outreach. That is nothing to God! I know that He wants to bless us all the time, and I have peace and faith knowing that He will!!! Guys, seriously thank you for all of your prayer and support. You are faithful and I can see how much you love and support me. I'm so blessed to know each one of you, and I cannot wait to see all of your faces again! You are all greatly missed.
Thank you God, friends, and family!!!
From My Heart,
Brielle Renee
P.S. Sorry there isn't a video cast this week!
BUT!!!!
P.S.S. Check out this video that my friend Dee did for her creative project! I helped her out and it turned out awesome! She is so talented and this video is beautiful!!! (Link is below)
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