Return

"So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually." Hosea 12:6

So there again God calls me. Here again God seeks me out. I am a sheep, I follow what I do not know, I avoid what is not there, I feed on that which is refuse. I seek after the things which I can see, the things which will fade away, and God breathes, "Return." But I cannot return of myself. I must return by the help of my God. I cannot do it on my own. He pulls me, coaxes me, puts thorns in front of me and bars the way until I see Him again. Until I again behold His beauty and return. And when I do I "observe mercy and justice." I observe mercy by forgiving unabashedly, without prejudice or pride, without thought, I forgive. And justice. For justice I pray day and night that God would set the captives free, for justice I make all efforts to tell the world what goes on behind closed doors, what they don't see when they see a girl selling her body on the street is the eyes of a child-scared-cold-alone. I seek, then I forget. I get hurt. I don't forget the pain. I hold grudges, I think of only myself, I indulge and delight the daydreams of things I would like to enjoy. Only by the help of my God can I return again to mercy and justice. And then, "wait on your God continually." He doesn't come when I thought He would. He doesn't come how I think He should. He is late. He doesn't seem to be doing anything, and aren't they fine anyway? Without Him aren't they okay? I am blinded by greed and selfishness. I want this now. I don't think I should have to wait any longer for this. It's not fair. "Return." Again He breathes on me. I hear His voice, I know His voice because I am one of His sheep. "My sheep hear My voice and they know Me." Again He reminds me. "I have better for you. Greater for you. Just wait on me. I AM FAITHFUL." 

Pray:

I believe You are FAITHFUL God. Help me to return, to observe mercy and justice and to wait on You continually. You are coming. Coming for your people. Coming for Your lost sheep and I KNOW You are faithful. I know You will come. I know You will save. I know You will set the captives free because of WHO YOU ARE. So make bare your holy arm in the eyes of all the nations for all creation waits in eager expectation for your sons and daughters to be revealed. Cut the chains, oh God, that bind. And I want to continually return. Help me to continually return and wait for You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Encounter to Salvation

In this is the beauty ~ as we encounter the least of these, we encounter Christ, and they encounter Christ through Him alive inside of us.

"Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world." John 4:42
"You search the Scriptures; for in them you think You have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life." John 5:39-40

Salvation is a person, an encounter with the One who changes lives and hearts. The people heard the testimony of the Samaritan woman at the well, but they didn't believe until they themselves had an encounter with Jesus. They said, "we ourselves have heard Him." 
One chapter later Jesus claims to be God's Son and says to the religious leaders they search the Scriptures, but will not come to Him to encounter Him. Salvation cannot come apart from an encounter with the person, Jesus Christ. 

When praying for the captives of human trafficking across the world, I cannot pray for them passionately until I have an encounter with Jesus. Where is Jesus? He is waiting on the street corner, in the brothels, plastered in a picture window of a red-light district wearing nothing more than sexy lingerie, in the men-pleasure bars, in the business rooms. The orphan. The homeless. The most hardened atheist. Loving the least of these means encountering them, to know Jesus.

Prayer: Jesus I pray that I would truly encounter You this week. That as I see the least of these in front of me that I would stop and encounter them, love them in Your name. It doesn't matter if I look crazy or stupid. Loving the least of these means loving You, and I pray that the captives would encounter You through Your presence in me. Encounter Your daughters and sons in slavery throughout the whole world that through encountering You their salvation would come. Jesus' Name, Amen.

Sought Out

"'My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them'...For thus says  the Lord God, 'Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so I will seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the peoples and and gather them from the countries , and I will bring them to their own land; I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,' says the Lord God. 'I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and strong and feed them in judgment.'" Ezekiel 34:6;11-16

God is seeking His lost sheep. Throughout the whole face of the earth His flock is scattered, and He is seeking them out. The ones working in forced labor for no wages, He is seeking them out. The ones trafficked for commercial sex and forced to have sex while their money and dignity is stripped from them by their captors, God is searching for them. The children whose innocence has been stolen because they are being sold for sex by their own parents, He is seeking them out. The women and men caught up in the pornography industry and the lies it is selling them, God is seeking them out. The ones who feel their lives are hopeless and no one cares, God is searching for them. He continues to search for them because they are HIS. He says "My sheep" have been scattered. He is seeking and searching for His sheep. When He finds them, He will bring them to a safe place. He will give them rest and good food. He will heal them, strengthen the sick, and they will know that they have finally been found. 

A prayer for the oppressed, the orphan, the weak, and the broken:
Dear Jesus, 
No matter what, You never change. Though we are finite, You are infinite. When this life doesn't make sense, when we have sorrow like the deepest ocean, when we despair, when we experience pain and suffering, we can look into Your eyes and know true beauty. Please comfort the sorrowful, give rest to the weak, relieve the oppressed, Father the orphan, and love us with Your everlasting, unrelenting love. You are there when we are alone, You hurt when we hurt, You know what it means to be forsaken by all, even Your Father, You know what it means to carry a burden You did not deserve. You are the One who understands. Be here with us, Jesus, in our own life, right where we are. That is all we need. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Gathering the Outcasts

 ^“Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.

⁸ The Lord God, which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.”

Isaiah 56:7-8 God is gathering the outcasts of Israel to Himself. Right now the oppressor is trembling upon his bed with visions and terrors in the night for the terrible day of the Lord is coming.

Is. 2:11-12
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled,
the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down,
And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
¹² For the day of the Lord of hosts
Shall come upon everything proud and lofty,
Upon everything lifted up—
And it shall be brought low—

Isaiah 1:16-20
“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean;
Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes.
Cease to do evil,
¹⁷ Learn to do good;

Seek justice,
Rebuke the oppressor;^[a]
Defend the fatherless,
Plead for the widow.
¹⁸ “Come now, and let us reason together,”
Says the Lord,
“Though your sins are like scarlet,

They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool.
¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient,
You shall eat the good of the land;
²⁰ But if you refuse and rebel,
You shall be devoured by the sword”;
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Awaken your hearts to the cry of the oppressed. Let God show you what you can do. Start with prayer and don’t cease to pray until God has opened your eyes to the needy around you. I urge you, the time is now, don’t delay. 

Oh Lord God I pray the oppressor would cease to prosper. I pray the captives would be gathered into Your loving arms. I pray that the church, Your body, would arise and defend the cause of those who cannot defend themselves. Arise oh God and make bare Your holy arm in the eyes of all the nations (Is. 52:10). Let them see Your glory and let Your enemies be ashamed, but let the righteous rejoice. Surely Your salvation is coming for Your little ones. In Your name I pray Jesus, amen. 

Prayer update

Sorry for the delay in this blog as far as posts go, things have been crazy lately with the move across the world. Update: I have moved to South Korea for 1 year of teaching and prayer. I am continuing to pray for an end to human trafficking so if you feel called to pray for this issue please follow my blog and encourage others to do so as well. As of right now, Cambodia has been a country laid on my heart to really adopt in my heart as a place of prayer. So many girls are sold into slavery in the country of Cambodia, and if you watch the film "Nefarious" you will see that about an extremely large percentage of families are selling their very own children as sex slaves every day. Seeing the girls, and the extreme child sex culture of Cambodia simply breaks my heart every time in a way that I cannot describe. Please join me in prayer for these girls, some as young as 7 years old, who are being sold for sex every day, every hour having their innocence stolen again and again. 
Pray Psalm 72
Exodus 3
Isaiah 61-62 

Oh God we cry out and join our voices with those who are in captivity. Many do not know there is a Father out there who truly loves them and cares for them. I pray that You would reveal Your Father heart to these girls and cause their cry to come up before you that you would raise up a deliverer for them. Deliver them , oh God, from bondage with signs, wonders, and a mighty hand. Only You can set the captives free. We ask for this God in Your Son Jesus' name, Amen.

A Year in Perspective: A reflection over the year 2012

A Year in Perspective

Humble Beginnings:    As I look back on the year 2012 I remember the word humility. Before I reflect with you, I will give you one caution: Prayer is powerful. Last year around the new year, a friend of mine led a Bible study on choosing one word for the coming new year and meditating/praying for it all year. After this lesson, I chose the word humility. I didn’t know really what true humility was, but I knew it was what God wanted for me. In God’s grace I was about ready to be equipped.

Hard times:    After the poor review at my teaching job, I kicked into high gear, striving to be a better teacher, to do things right. I learned and grew as a teacher. I became a much better teacher than when I had started. However, I was not able to keep my job. I prayed more, my faith grew, and I grew.

Time for re-focus:    Just after the school year ended I scheduled surgery for my right shoulder to repair a torn labrum. During the time I was off work, God called me to pray. He asked me to spend time in prayer with Him every day. I did. It was amazing what He did. He poured into me. He poured love into me, grace into me, words of life into me. He healed me. I realized, too, that it was not so hard to love, not when you have been loved by the Creator of the universe. I continued to grow.

Faithful God:    I applied to about 30 different teaching positions in Nebraska and Iowa and heard not a word. I continued to pray, to have faith, to believe God for a job. One day I sent a resume to some random job on a career site for a teaching position of 1 year in South Korea. An email came back two days later as a positive! I knew I was going to South Korea to teach English as God had opened the door a mile wide. God was so faithful!

Isaiah 49:8 “Thus says the Lord ‘In an acceptable time I have heard You, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.’”

God’s call to stay for four more months:    After receiving the open door for South Korea, I then began to focus all my efforts on getting my paperwork together to go. It was a process that was supposed to take about 10 weeks, but I needed it NOW. So again, I trusted the Lord would be faithful to His promise. After the paperwork came through in about half the time it should have taken, I had been offered a few different positions in South Korea already. I felt God calling me to stay in Omaha, that He had something for me here, that He wanted me to stay. It was tough, and had been tough to live at home again not having a teaching job. I wanted to leave, to go! And yet He called me to stay, so I did. I surrendered the next four months to Him in October 2012 and decided to stay.

The power of Prayer:    After discovering the power of prayer, I realized that if I could do nothing else, I would pray. After feeling called to Omaha for a few more months I knew there was a purpose for me here. I knew my purpose had to do with the re-awakening passion inside me for ending human trafficking. In college I had learned a lot about what was going on in the world and in the U.S. involving human trafficking and knew something had to be done! I didn’t know what to do so I committed myself to one hour/day prayer for human trafficking. I also quit my retail job by faith because, though it was a job, I knew it was taking away from God’s purpose for me here in Omaha. I was not serving the poor or seeking justice for the oppressed as God says in His word.  One week later I saw an old friend at a morning prayer meeting: Pastor Cainos. I filled him in on my life and asked for prayer for all God was doing. He called me and asked me to join the Omaha Dream Center, a new church plant, to work with them on this issue of human trafficking. Again, God came through in an amazing and wonderful way because of prayer!

Today: Currently I am working on human trafficking in Omaha, specifically mobilizing prayer for this issue, informing people about what is really going on in their city, and joining forces with other like-minded people to form a united front against this issue in Omaha and the world. Together we can have a greater impact on this issue. In early January I will be attending a conference put on by a ministry called Exodus Cry which will be a powerful time of prayer and speakers who will bring information about how ministries can have a greater impact on human trafficking. I am awaiting word from the public schools in Korea, but at this point have plans to leave for South Korea in February 2013 for my 1 year teaching contract. I am not finished with the issue of human trafficking and will continue rather to be an advocate, informant, and prayer warrior for this issue wherever I am. Please pray for God’s continued guidance in my life to “Walk in the light as He is in the light.” (1 Jn. 1:7) Thanks for reading!

Please contact me if you would like more information or have specific questions! J 

Exceedingly Abundantly above ALL that we ask or think

As I gaze into my computer screen I know I have much yet to do. Christmas presents to buy or make, people to contact, lists to check-off, documents to print, library books to return, etc. The list goes on and on, and to be honest it will never end. There will always be something more to do, something to be busy doing. When I think about all those things I used to get overwhelmed, knowing that I had to juggle all those things and read my Bible AND pray seemed like a lot to put on my plate, but now I simply sit on my bed with perfect peace. Want to know my secret? My secret is Jesus has come into my life, removed everything I once thought was mine, given me His peace (John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.") and then He gave me the desires of my heart, "Delight yourself also in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart," and, as if that were not enough, He is giving me "Exceedingly abundantly above all that I could ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20). I reflect on the goodness of God, on the healing that has taken place in my body, on the Divine ways He has taken care of situations in my life, the opportunity to go overseas for 1 year, the family, the people who love me, those who pray for me. I remember how I committed to prayer, quit my job, and 1 week later joined the Dream Center. I reflect on the prayers for 1,000 women who have a heart to end human trafficking in Omaha, and realize there are already many in the army, in the fight. I realize that the meetings, research, and crazy connections are all from the Father. I remember that I am called to pray and the Father LAVISHES His love upon me; and all I can think is, "Exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think." I remember that all He has given me is not mine, but His, and if His hands can hold the universe in place and still gently stroke my cheek, then I can rest in the peace that when God's eyes are on me and mine on His, nothing else in this world matters. This is the Father's love, not to do the bare minimum, not to save us and be done with us, not to call us and then leave us stranded, not to deceive us, but to give us more than we could have imagined or thought, to give us exceedingly, abundantly more. As you reflect on God or as you think of God, remember that He is seeking to show Himself strong on behalf of those who have a heart loyal to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9). God is waiting for us to position ourselves to receive His many abundant blessings today. Humble yourself before God, so He may be exalted, so He may show Himself strong on your behalf. Get Jesus, seek Him, ask Him for life, He is already with you, waiting.