Carnaval Stories 2011

Alright on to Mexico! This is a portion of my journal entry on March 5, 2011

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Saturday already. Only a couple more days here in Mazatlan. It’s been awesome though. After the first 24 hours or so where it was really weird, its really just been so good to be home. That’s something that’s really hit me is that I actually have a home in Mazatlan and even if some things about the base change, I will always have a home here on the Pacific Ocean. That’s just awesome!

Carnival has been awesome so far. We’re done with 2 days of outreach and I’ll be here for 2 of the remaining 4 nights. The first night we went out evangelizing. My little group of 5 saw 9 salvations in the first couple hours!! The first was this couple selling gum, candy, and cigarettes outside of the Carnival gates. They had been in a car accident on the way to Mazatlan and had lost a lot of their stuff. Also the guy had twisted his ankle. So we talked, prayed and prophesied over them and their business. God healed the guy’s ankle and they both got saved! It was cool because they both kind of got saved separately but still together. Laura and I were talking to the woman while Mark and Ben and Montse were talked to the man. The LORD gave me a word for the woman about not giving up on dreams and she said she had a lot of business dreams so we prayed and released favor upon her and her husband and asked God to open up doors for them in the area of business.

We also prayed for this little boy Josue who was a small child with only one lung. We prayed that God would do a creative miracle and release a new lung from the storehouses of heaven. While we were praying, his mom got saved and tons of people gathered around curious as to what was going on and some of them received Jesus as LORD and savior as well.

Last night I led a team into Carnival. We walked all the way through to the other gate and back. I really had to fight the lie that we weren’t doing anything because we weren’t doing any evangelism, though we did see one salvation and we prayed for a few healings. It was however really intense intercession and spiritual warfare the whole night. I think one of the things God is growing me in is to be obedient to Him and do what needs to be done rather than just wanting cool stories. He’s also just reminding me the importance of prayer and spiritual warfare. However I think God is also being really faithful in also giving me rest while I am here. I’ve gotten to go to the beach twice and have time to spend with the LORD so it’s been great.

Our Prayer Gazebo

YWAM Mazatlan and the Pacific Ocean

God Loves Media

This is awesome (has nothing to do with my trip, just awesome)

Just Normal Life

So it’s been about a week since I got back from my spring break trip to California and Mexico.  I have to admit that it was probably the best spring break I have ever had.  Not only did I get to see many friends, but I got to encounter Jesus and in just amazing unbelievable ways.  Over the next few days I’m going to be posting stories, videos and typed up journal entries from my trip.  I do this not to glorify how awesome my life is (even though its pretty awesome), but to give testimony to the powerful name of Jesus.  I would hope that these testimonies more than anything encourage you to see that the impossible is possible anywhere and everywhere and that God wants to do the impossible through you.  Anything I or the other people in these stories have done you can do because the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives inside of you just as He lives inside of me (Romans 8:11).

Ok so for this entry I want to describe a little bit about my time at Bethel Church.  My first stop over spring break was to a small city (more like town) in northern California called Redding.  In this town there is this church called Bethel (http://www.ibethel.org/site/).  I’m sure most of you have heard of it and if you haven’t its time you have (If you haven't heard of Bethel maybe you've heard of Jesus Culture or Bill Johnson both from there).  For about a year and a half I have been reading, hearing, and watching stories that are coming out of this church.  Stories of miracles, of the blind seeing and the deaf hearing, the lame walking, stories of generosity and miraculous provision.  Getting to go and visit Bethel was something that I’ve wanted to do for a while now and it was definitely an honor. 

At Bethel Church they have a ministry school called the School of Supernatural Ministry.  I currently know 6 people who are doing this school.  Therefore my trip had a two-fold purpose, visit my friends and see the church.  Neither disappointed.  While I was there, there was a conference going on where I got to hear the likes of Bob Jones and Graham Cooke speak.  I got to worship while Kim Walker-Smith was leading.  I also got to attend the healing rooms on Saturday morning where I stood in line for 2 hours just to get into the room because there were so many people waiting in line in order to receive healing.  It didn’t bother me though as people were getting healed in line as well.  I was able to strike up conversation with two other ladies and we prayed and prophesied over each other.  When I finally did get to the front of the line I got to experience so much joy.  I got to see a leg grow out, people walking without their previous needed canes, and many, many people laughing from the joy of the LORD.  On Sunday I got to attend a regular church service and hear Bill Johnson speak.  On Sunday night I went to the Twin View Campus where they have a worship service every week and my friend Hunter who is a second year student was leading worship.  It was incredible; I got a lot of breakthrough that night.

Despite all the cool things I experienced and saw I think the thing I got out of the most from being at Bethel was how normal everything was.  I was seeing and experiencing abnormal supernatural stuff but it was so normal.  Like this is what the regular Christian life should look like and this is a place where it does.  These people weren’t any different than you and I, the church wasn’t even very big (much smaller than I expected), they were just people living in the reality of a Heavenly Kingdom that is not only amazing, but it is available now.  Another thing I loved about Bethel was the way they honor other people.  They know how to honor the Spirit of the LORD upon other people and to receive from each other and to respect each other.  They also are the only place I’ve been to that has the structure of the church (outlined by Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and Ephesians 4:11) figured out.  They have men and woman operating in all 5 of the fivefold positions and all know and do their role wonderfully resulting in the Kingdom being brought to earth. 

To wrap up my time in Redding, it was really a great time of refreshing after a very tiring and exhausting Winter Quarter in college.  I got to go snowboarding and to watch Megamind and go on Adventure Time with Jake Oie.  It was great.