Releasing the Power of Jesus!

So I was just reading my current book by Bill Johnson "Release the Power of Jesus" and he was talking about the importance of testimony. Now mind you, I am all ready for bed and snuggled up in my favorite blanket but God said I needed to share this stuff.
This week has been pretty incredible for the first week. God has done so many visible things in each one of our lives but I mostly just want to share an awesome story that occurred during lunch yesterday. My friend Mary had been having shooting pain in her hand and arm for a couple days. She had mentioned it before but we really didnt think much of it. We were all sitting at the table eating our lunch when she just dropped her fork and squeezed her eyes shut. When we asked her what was wrong, she said that the pain was so severe that she could not even move her hand. So we immediately began to pray for healing. This is something God has put on our hearts for this school so we might as well start seeing it in our own lives! So we were praying and singing out the song "Healer" and within a couple minutes the pain was completely gone and she hasn't had any pain since! PTL!!!
I've also seen God begin to work in the students lives. God has also used a lot of my life's struggles and situations to speak into the students lives. It's been so good. Even though there have been some pretty crappy things that I've had to go through, God is using them to help other people find the same freedom that I have. In that case, it's worth it.
God is good, and He just keeps getting better and better!

I want to look on the face of the one that I LOVE!

So today was pretty intense for me. This week has been really great! Our first week of teaching has been with Lisa Cuellar. She has been speaking on things like passivity, worship leading, and the importance of praise. Today we did an exercise where we took Psalm 103, blasted some worship music and just prayed out our praise to God. We didnt ask God for anything, we just thanked Him for whatever He's done in our lives and praised Him just for who He is! She encouraged us to just keep praying even if we didnt have words. Just pray in the spirit! So that's what we did for 15 minutes! Just praised and thanked God. It had nothing to do with us, it was ALL about HIM!
I cant even begin to describe what this time was like for me. I started off praying out the scripture and then just went off into my own prayers. Thanking God for everything He's ever done for me. It's so crazy when i actually spend the time just thanking Him for everything and contemplating just how great He is, I'm stupid for EVER not trusting Him or doubting Him. Blah, He seriously is just so freaking good. He's never failed me, never given up on me. I mean seriously He's had every right to. He's given up so much for me and i've rejected Him so many times and yet He's always there with arms wide open ready for me to come running back into them! Ugh! He's so amazing.
The other thing that really impacted me today was Lisa encouraged us when we ran out of words to just pray in tongues. Now i'll admit, i've had a very hard time with this over the years. Growing up in an Assemblies of God church where i've seen it faked so often, I never trusted God enough to believe that it was possible. It always just seemed really fake and i'm just not about that. But today I did run out of words and it felt so weird so I just said, "God what the heck" and started speaking in tongues. Um, I cant even explain what was going on. I wanted to just burst into tears! I felt so close to Him. Something in my spirit just totally connected with Him. I have never felt that in my life and that's how I knew that whatever I was praying meant something. It was connecting with the very heart of God and I was so overwhelmed. We finished and went to lunch but my heart was still with His. It was hard to move back into my daily responsibilities. I love Him. I cant say it enough.
Being here has given me an unexplainable passion and love for God that I dont think I would have ever experienced in america. At home where im so dependent on people. Ive had to break away from everything I know so that i literally only have Him. He know's me so well, i gotta give Him that one.

My New Reality on HEALING

Well our first week of SOW is officially over! Wow what a week! It's been a good time of us getting to know each other, eat a lot and worship together! We also got some teaching on songwriting this week. I know I've already been through this school and had teachings like the ones we will have, but they are different teachers so I'm excited to be able to learn even more! I'm so excited to get to sit in on all the classes. It's gonna be great!

God has really been teaching me a lot here. I was thinking the other day about healing. Last year when I was going through my SOW, about 2 weeks into the school my entire body broke out into a rash and I had no idea where it came from! We prayed for it countless times and it would get better but it didnt seem to want to go away completely! I did everything I knew to do for it but it would not leave me! It was so entirely frustrating. I couldnt understand why God wouldnt heal me. But as I sit here right now there is nowhere on my body that has that rash anymore. It hit me this week. Who's to say that God didnt heal me? I was listening to a podcast from Bethel Church in Redding CA and Bill Johnson shared a testimony from a kid. He had broken a bone in his body and he told the congregation that after just 5 months (i think) his bone was completely healed!! Now how many of us would just dismiss that as, well thats how long it normally takes for a broken bone to heal and take the credit completely away from God! God is good, all the time! He WANTS to heal every sickness, disease, broken bone and rash that will ever try to plague our bodies! But He never puts a time restraint on the way He does things. So why is it that when we dont see results in OUR timing, that the credit gets taken away from Him. We have to remember that HE created our bodies and it was HIS idea for the body to heal itself. So ultimately ALL healing is His doing, whether it takes 1 second or 10 years! It's in those times when we dont see instantaneous healing that we have to remember to say "I dont understand your ways, oh but i will give you my song, i'll give you ALL of my praise". My mind has been exposed to a new reality, and it makes me love God even more than before!

Well that's all for this little tangent. Until my next revelation!!  :)

Though I sleep, my heart is awake

Well, today was the very first day of SOW Finland! YAY! I'm so glad to be able to be a part of something new God is doing here in Finland. It's such an honor. I spent most of the day in my room with a guitar. Unfortunately it's the first time I've really gotten to play guitar since I've arrived in Finland so my poor fingers dont look so great right now. Each one has a blister. But thats the price of being a musician. I'll take blisters anyday! Anyway, I was playing guitar and asking God which songs to pick to lead worship tonight. Man, it was not easy! I have not led worship in such a long time. I was a bit worried. But God in His faithfulness doesn't need me to feel comfortable or even prepared. He can use me right where I'm at. I mean its not like I dont practice every chance I get! I just don't get those opportunities as much as I would like.
So tonight was my first time ever leading worship with a guitar. Its a good thing that we do worship more acoustically here b/c I've found that I somewhat pace when I play guitar! HA! I just cant stand still. But it was great. I wasnt nervous at all and it's crazy b/c normally i would have felt sick to my stomach and gotten all uptight inside but i was able to just completely lose myself in worship! It was just so wonderful! I just LOVE His presence. I was created to worship Him and that is where I feel most at home. Man, if we really will be spending all of eternity in His presence just worshiping Him, I am COMPLETELY ok with that! Nothing will make me happier.
My passion for God has gotten uncontainable. I really cant even describe it. Every day when bedtime rolls around i'm SOOO ready for sleep. But i've gotten into the habit of reading before bed, and im currently reading "The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind". And EVERY night, God shows up! It's not fair b/c I need  rest but I so badly just want to spend time with Him! He's such a tease! But then when I get up in the morning, it's like i'm so anxious to be with Him. Blah!!! I LOVE HIM SO MUCH!
I've come to the conclusion that no one will ever be able to come close to understanding the life I live until they begin to pursue their own closeness to the One I live for. He is my favorite. I love Him more than life.
This trip has already impacted me way more than I can even put into words. I'm pretty sure I could write forever and a day about how in awe of Him I am. I've never been so blown away by nature in my life! It really does just radiate His glory!
Ok seriously I have to get to bed. Six thirty is going to come way sooner than I will want it too.

Peace out world!

I'm falling in love!

So I must say, God knows me so very well! It's so true that you cannot follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and NOT be happy! I mean, I know the winter has yet to come but still. Oh my freaking gosh! This place is amazing! We have been working a lot today on preparation for the school (which i have some cool stuff to say about) and after so many hours of being cooped up inside, we decided to go for a walk to the lake. Can you say absolutely GORGEOUS! Finland is such a beautiful country. The lake reminded me a lot of home in PA. It felt so nice. The air here is probably the best air I've every breathed in my life! If I could somehow get my air from here and take it home with me, I so would. It's so clean feeling and the smells are just amazing! I have been in such awe of nature here. I've been noticing the Glory of God through His creation of this county. God ya did good thats all I have to say. Seriously, next summer you should take your vacation to Finland. Not Helsinki or city places, but get out into the forest. It's breathtaking!

Well now that I have convinced you all that Finland needs to be on your places to visit list, let me tell you something cool that happened today. Well I must say, God is seriously the coolest EVER! I mean, think about it, He's the God of the universe, who created Finland I might add, and He likes to talk to ME!!! Um, yes please. Today we spent the morning praying for the students in the school. We asked God for encouragement and what He wants to do in them during their time in the school. As we started praying for one of the students God immediately told me that He wanted to show this student more of His Father's heart. At first I was like, wow how typical and I somewhat dismissed it. So I kept listening for something else and got a scripture. It didnt completely go with what I had heard previously but for some reason the Father's heart just kept nagging at me. It wouldnt leave my mind. So I told Mary and Mirjami what I had heard and they asked me if I knew anything about this students backround. I said no, and they went on to tell me that he doesnt have a good relationship with his father but he is in the process of healing from that. WOW WOW WOW! Seriously, hearing from God is such a privilege that I do not take for granted one bit! I LOVE hearing from Him. I LOVE when He speaks. It's always so good. I love Him SOOOOO much!!

Ok well I'm gonna go talk to Him now. I'm so in love with Him!

I MADE IT!!! YAY!!

Well I'm here in Finland! It has been so great so far! I got into Helsinki Sunday evening and met Mary and Mirjami, the other two staff for the School of Worship. We spent the monday afternoon in downtown Helsinki so I could see what it's like. It's very beautiful! The buildings are so pretty! LOVE IT! Then that night we had some staff training.
I have been quite jetlagged. Not fun at all! The other night i was up until 4am! Oh how i just wanted to sleep. So Mary and Mirjami let me sleep the morning away. Very nice of them! Then we had a time of prayer and worship for the school. It's so cool to see what God is speaking for this school! He has been saying alot about healing and miracles which gets me so very excited b/c its something God has really been speaking to me personally about. I cant wait to see what He does! Then we had another time of staff training and after that, MORE SLEEP! It seems as though i cannot get enough of it!
This morning we made the 4ish hour drive from Helsinki to Koivumaki. I bet you cant guess what i did the whole way!! Yup, SLEEP! I'm still not 100% recovered from the jet lag but I'm praying that it wont be too much longer.
Tomorrow we will be getting things ready for the school which starts on Monday! Cant believe it! It's gonna be great!
Well, theres lots to do before next week and I need to make sure I am all ready to go! So I bet you cant guess what I'm gonna go do!!!


goodnight :)

My Opinion On Packing

So I have started the long agonizing process of packing. Bleh. Need I really say more? Probably not but im going to anyway. I did all my laundry (did i mention how much i dislike doing laundry?) and then started packing up all the stuff in my room. Thats always hard for me b/c i get super distracted by reading all the encouraging notes and looking at pictures. I must say, i have the most AMAZING friends in the whole entire freaking world!! They never stop encouraging me and loving me. They are the best! I love them a whole heck of a lot. Not to mention, i am so grateful that people hear God on my behalf and share those things with me. Oh i just love how God LOVES me!! Ya, He's pretty freakin awesome too.

The other night i was driving around with my friend Jennah, and i just realized how amazing my life is. Yeah, i have for sure put up with my fair share of crap but look where i'm at now! I'm getting the opportunity to travel the world doing what i love, helping other people through missions and music. I also get to bless the heart of the Father through worship. So great! So freakin great! Then i have the two best sisters in the world and i already said how amazing my besties are! And just when i think my life cant get any better, God tops it! I am so thankful for the life that i have, and even more thankful for God's favor over my life. I am so grateful that He has and will NEVER give up on me. He trust me, loves me, believes in me more than anyone else in the world. Ahhh!!! I LOVE LIFE! Yes, i am going to be sad to leave everyone here. I have made more friendships in this past year and im thankful for each and every one of them. It really has been a great time being home. I'm happy i got this opportunity. Thanks God. :) The statement that you cant follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and not be happy is so true. I cant testify to it! It doesnt mean that life will never be hard, but you can still be happy even when life is rough.

Well, enough procrastinating. I need to get back to packing. I really dont want to though. Anyone wanna come pack for me???