At 7:16am: "Expecting something big from God today on @theworldrace so you can expect a blog."

After the girls got done singing Bruce asked me up to introduce the team and tell about where we were going and what we were doing.  So I began talking about everything and then began sharing my testimony.  I shared a condensed version of my testimony and then told stories of healing that we have experienced on this race.  After I shared about the healings I invited people to come up if they would like us to pray for any type of healing for them.
 

During the night she felt something happen to her, that she wasn't sure about.  She woke up the next morning, she was able to see.  Her eye was completely clear and she was able to see again like she had as a young girl.  

As I began my journey back to the hostel I chose to take another way home which I like to do because walking the same trail twice doesn't have adventure involved.  I enjoy getting lost and trying to find my way back home.  I enjoy adventure and if you continue to walk the same path your whole life how are you ever going to experience what it means to be lost?  So, I took a side street in a general direction towards home but obviously out of my way.

Peering into the windows of each business, my eyes were curiously scanning the happenings on the inside.  I made my way down the street, noticing the people walking around me.  Taking in the different forms of art and architecture that are contrastingly different from what I am used to seeing.  As I walked down the street I peered into a dark window and some Nike shoes caught my gaze.  I stopped in front of the door, wondering if the sign was reading "open" or "closed." Wondering, if they are open then why is it so dark inside? All I saw was shoes and decided I really didn't need to go into the store so I turned to my right and began to walk away.

A man sitting on the hood of a car begins to quickly shout at me in Romanian.

I looked at him in the eyes and said, "I don't speak Romanian dude."

He hopped off the hood of his car and said with a shout, "Well what language do you speak?"

Jokingly I said, "English."

He began to ask me why I didn't go into his store.  I explained that it didn't look open and that I really didn't have a good excuse.  So he told me to go into the store.  Hesitantly, I turned around and went into the store.  It was a really awesome graffiti shop and made me think how much my brother, Aaron, would love the shop.  They had special paint just for graffiti, which is an acceptable art form in Romania and it is not considered a crime.  I walked in, glanced and walked out.  And he asked me what I thought.  I told him it was sweet but I am not an artist one bit.  
 

So he began to ask me more questions.  "Where are you from? Why are you here? What city are you from in Texas? What denomination do you support?"  And as I answered each question, he followed it with another one. I shot up a small prayer and asked God to guide this conversation.

The conversation took a direction when I mentioned that I followed Jesus.  That I didn't side with a particular denomination but that I believed Jesus died on the cross for my sins.  That He saved me from a past of reckless living and put me into a place of true love and freedom.  That Jesus is my only savior and redeemer.

Then he began telling me what he believed.  It was extremely similar to what I believe, but he did add a few things that I am not sure are biblical.  But man, did he have a true sincerity to hear my words.  His gaze never left mine as his eyes almost peered into my soul as he spoke.  He spoke from a stance of learning and not a stance of judgment.  He didn't have it all figured out and that was fine.  He spoke with me about people who I haven't been able to do research on to know what they believe, but that is irrelevant to the magnificent picture I am going to paint for you in this next paragraph.

As he was speaking about what he believed, I interrupted him by saying, "I don't really know anything about the guys you are talking about but this is what I know about the God that I serve.  I know that he took me from a place of brokenness into a place of freedom.  That he has huge plans in store for me and that he has been using me in unreal ways this year.  I have seen a lady who couldn't see, begin to see.  I have seen a lady who could only walk with a limp, walk without a limp.  I have seen a lady with a bad back, tell me that there is no more pain."

As these words were being spoken, his posture began to come alive.  Then he did something that was very suprising.  He ran across the street, full sprint and about 40 or so feet away from where we were originally standing.  And he shouted at me.

"I don't f@$%ing believe you!"

I yelled back, "I am serious bro. I am not joking."

He returned the shout with, "That doesn't make sense, that is crazy!"

That is when he began to run back towards me, his face was gleaming with life. He ran and placed his back against the wall of the building I was leaning against.  And, he began to cry.

I was caught off guard; not expectanting to see a man on the street cry in front of someone he had just recently met.  Then I opened my mouth and the words that came out were not from me.  The Holy Spirit inside of me began to speak more about these experiences, that I was just a human being, that I wasn't special, and words of truth and honesty.

He kept crying.

The conversation was nearing two hours as he began to share with me more about supernatural things that had happened in his life.  Things that blew my mind, but I said amen to what God was doing in his heart.  It would have been easy to fight with him in that time, but I let the Holy Spirit work in his heart because I knew my words would only cause him to take a defensive stance.

As the conversation ended and I walked away he said, "Thank you for talking with me.  I can't share what I did with most people, but you are different from a normal person.  You are different.

You are different.  Those three words resonated deep in my heart and they are words that I will hold onto for the rest of my life.  I hope my words were powerful to communicate the intensity of this conversation with Daniel.  God's supernatural presence showed up with me on that street, and I pray God continues to show up in powerful ways such as this one.

I mapped out my testimony using a timeline application on my iPad and just begun to write out what has happened in my short 24 years on earth.  As I began typing, I saw times in my life where God had prepared a glorious path with Him.  In Oklahoma for a revival at a church and I was saved from a stray bullet.  The bullet was shot in a drive by shooting by gang members in downtown Oklahoma City. A bullet that came out of a wall directly in front of me, but did it not hit me. And was nowhere to be found after an extensive search.  

I saw a vision of an angel standing in front of me catching that bullet.  

I received a phone call from my grandmother at the exact minute I got out of jail on a hazy Sunday morning.  Crying she exclaimed in the voicemail:

"God is going to do great things through you if you would just trust in Him.  I just see Him using you in the mightiest of ways that I cannot describe it."  

Just recently I received a revelation from a new friend in Romania, David, who told me that He saw me in a vision. His words:

"You have a dangerous heart. God has prepared great things for you.  He loves your heart and the way that you seek after Him.  He said that you have a heart after His heart.  Continue to seek Him with all that you have and He will continue to bless your path.  I see a vision of me sitting on a couch watching you on TV and me saying, 'I know him.' God has big things in store for your life and He loves your humble heart."

The instances above are just a small portion of what He has revealed to me over these past four months on the race.  My previous blog about becoming a Warrior is just part of His mysterious plan.  But, as I looked back over these monumental moments in my life, I can see the devil at work in my life.  He revealed to me recently that there are two choices: "You choose to press into me, or you can choose to try to battle this yourself."

In the past, I have chosen self.  I chose to half-heartedly follow after Jesus and see half-hearted results.  I can see that my sin has kept me from truly walking into a dangerous place with God.  I can see times in my life when I thought I had to be perfect to spend time with God, instead of seeking him in my brokenness.  Here in Eastern Europe I have been attacked with lust in a more powerful way than any time on the World Race.  As I look back over my life, lust has been something that has kept my leadership ability at a standstill.  I thought Central America was bad, but as God is guiding me into His Promised Land, I see the giants that stand ahead.  Eastern Europe is not harder because the women are prettier or because they don't like to wear clothes, it is harder because God has something explosive prepared and the devil is afraid.

So as I am attacked here in Eastern Europe, God has asked me the simple question:

"What are you going to do about it? What are you going to give up, so that I can overcome? Are you willing to rely on me for your power?"

My answer was and is to press in deeper.  I chose to give up sleeping longer in the mornings and to wake up to spend extra quiet time with God. I chose to trust that He is going to fight for me in my weakness. I am not a slave to sin and I am not going to let these giants keep me from my inheritance with Jesus. God is calling me to walk in a new anointing with the Holy Spirit; an anointing that is followed by signs and wonders.  

The examples displayed apostles of the New Testament are boiling inside of this generation and just desiring to burst out of the crust of this earth.  This generation is walking into newness with God that we have never experienced.  As the water beneath the surface begins to boil from God's anointing, the steam that is currently being pour out on this earth is only the beginning of the geyser that is going to explode in this dry land.

Some scriptures that have been blowing my mind.

•••

The people of Israel started worshipping idols and God was upset so He said to Moses that He was going to kill all of them. Moses prayed and said, "No God." Then Exodus 32:14 says, "So the Lord changed His mind..."  Wait, the Lord changes His mind about things? Doesn't He already know whats going to happen?

Then as I kept reading Numbers 23:19 says, "God is not man... He is not human, so he does not change His mind."  Also in 1 Samuel 15:29 it says, "the Lord never changes His mind" and then in 15:35 it says, "He is sorry He ever made Saul".  Didn't He already know what Saul was going to do?  Why is He sorry?

•••

My next question is with 1 Samuel 16:14 says, "Now the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul, and the Lord sent a tormenting spirit that filled Him with depression and fear." (key phrase being "the Lord sent")

This is a command from the Lord.  It says He sent the spirit, not that He allows it. What?

and with 1 Kings 22:19-23 says that, "The Lord was sitting on His throne with all the armies of heaven around Him, on His right and left.  The Lord said, 'who will entice Abab to go into battle?' There were many suggestions, and finally a [lying] spirit approrached the Lord and said, 'I can do it!' And the Lord said, 'Go ahead and do it.'"

Is the spirit of lying a part of the Lord's armies? Or when God speaks does the whole spirit realm hear it? And why is the Lord sending another spirit that is not from Him? Or is it from Him? Is He partnering with Satan? What the heck is happening?

•••

What is the angel of the Lord?  It is mentioned throughout all of the Old Testiment. Is it Jesus? or is it His angels? And then who is the Spirit of the Lord? Is that the Holy Spirit? Who is the death angel? Why are there only a couple angels who are named in the Bible?

•••

This one is interesting.  2 Chronicles 6:1 says, "Then Solomon prayed, 'O Lord, you have said that you would live in a thick cloud of darkness.'"  What the heck?  In 1 John 1:5 says,"God is light, and there is no darkness in Him at all." What the heck?

Does God live in darkness? But God is light and there is no darkness in Him? How does darkness exist where there is light? Especially the light of God.

•••

At church Friday night spoke on this scripture, Luke 9:23 about taking up your cross daily. The way he spoke about it was different.  All of the other times I have ever heard this preached, it was about the cross being your sins. You have to die daily and give the cross your sins.

The way he preached about it was, Jesus was sent to earth for a reason.  When you think of the cross you should think of it as more of your purpose or destiny.  It was Jesus destiny to die on the cross, and He lived each day knowing that was His destiny.  So we are to live each day according to our destiny. Know what your destiny is each day and take it up daily.

That was a good word, my question: Why are we so focused on our sins, as believers and daily followers of Jesus, if God has already forgiven them?

•••

1 Samuel 11:6 says, "The Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry."

Deuteronomy 4:24 says, "The Lord your God is a devouring fire, He is a jealous God."

1 Chronicles 10:13b says, "So the Lord killed [Saul] and turned the kingdom over to David..."

I could keep going about the verses that list when God became angry.  He becomes angry all the time.  I know that there is a righteous anger, yes I know that, but why does He get angry so much? Is He still a God of anger? Where is His wrath displayed now?

Why does it tell us over and over in Psalms that the Lord is slow to anger? Why is God not killing tons of people like He was in the Old Testament? Is Jesus constantly changing the Father's mind? But if "Jesus is  the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8) Does that also apply to the Father?

(I know that the obvious answer here is the cross, I just feel like there is something deeper.)

•••

I thought it was very interesting the amount of times it mentions Moses or Moses and Aaron falling on their faces before the Lord to fight for Israel.

•••

1 King 4:29 says, "God gave Solomon very great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge as vast as the sands of the seashore."  It goes on longer about all of the knowledge and wisdom that Solomon had and it is incredible.

Why did God give Solomon so much, knowing that he would worship idols a few years later in his life?

•••

I am only in 2 Chronicles so I am sure I will have a ton more questions.  I actually left out quite a bit of other questions, and there were more that were answered while I was reading.

"The Lord our God has secrets known to no one.  We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that He has revealed to us." Deuteronomy 29:29

I just left what was said to be the most dangerous countries in the world according to the murder rates, and I can tell you that the news isn't showing you the things of God that are happening in each of those countries.  There is more to life than the negative aspects.  I am now in Eastern Europe, a place that is painted with dark and gloomy colors, and a place that movies are made about murders and captures happening in hostels.  I can tell you that there are people walking with God in this place and are speaking His words with power and authority.

People in other countries are serving the Lord.  As we went to church last night here in Romania the Lord has opened my eyes to the last four countries that we have encountered.  In each of them people chose to believe what the news is telling them, that they are dangerous and appalling.  I am telling you, that while there are truth in the facts that

                    life is more than just facts.

I have been to Guatemala and watched people be healed and been healed myself.  I have been to four different churches, watched them wholeheartedly worship the Lord and speak words of truth and prophecy over the World Racers that were attending.  I have been to El Salvador and seen one lady's back healed, one lady's foot healed and one lady's eyes healed.  I went to four communities and one church and each time I was blown away by the way God moved in those places.  They invited God into their lives and expected Him to show up.  I have been to Honduras, the murder capital of the world, and went into the most dangerous colony in the capital, if not the world.  I saw two paintings of scripture that covered what used to be gang's graffiti markings.  I saw a respect for God's word by people who don't follow God's word.  I saw street boys who were getting high every day on paint thinner radically transformed by God's grace.  I saw them praising God, diving into scripture and pressing into what the Lord has for their new lives.

I just arrived in Romania and I am already blown away.  I am blown away by the church service I attended last night and the preacher that spoke words of truth.  I am blown away by the way the young people worshiped the Lord without reserve and earnestly desire to be a generation that is walking in God's supernatural anointing.

Many times we are painted this picture of how the world is and what the world looks like.  For too long we have set by and let the news paint that picture, but I am telling you that you are only getting one side of the painting.  If you would just flip the canvas over and start painting a picture for yourself, your picture would have so many more colors.

If you haven't left America, leave America.  Explore the world.  Learn that there are people out there that are going to change your life in more ways than they could ever imagine.  Know that a change in your life will be a change for the better. Realize that sometimes what you really need is a different perspective to see the true reality. Find the Christians that are in the world, challenging the norm and bringing new color to a black and white world.

Life is more than just facts, life is experience.

Or we can chose to fight.

In the past month, people have been speaking the word "warrior" over me.  Even as I write this blog, He is bringing me full circle.  Connecting the dots in my mind and reminding me of my destiny with Him.

I have to make the choice of warrior, and I can no longer chose to be silent.  I can no longer take any other stance but a stance of righteous aggression.  He is calling me to fight.

There are many times in our Christian walk that God brings us on the border of the Promise-land, but we as Christians chose to turn around and walk in the Wilderness.  He lets us explore the Promise-land and shows us this land that is exceedingly good, but we are to scared to step up and fight the giants.  I think it is because we forget that He is the one doing the fighting.  It is not us doing the fighting, we just simply need to show up for battle.

Joshua 1:9 says, "This is my command- be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Wont you just show up for battle?
 

1. My whole team got parasites, and some got them twice.

2. Two people, that I know of, pooped in their pants.

3. Chopped down at least an acre of tall grass with only a couple machetes.

4. Jesus healed my knees and I have no more pain or discomfort in them.

5. Shared my testimony at a maximum security prison in Chimaltenango, Guatemala.

6. Hung out with special needs children and became their friends.

7. Was told I needed to poop in a baby food jar then told I could just scoop out the poop into the jar.

8. Went cliff jumping in a beautiful lake.

9. Received very deep and revealing prophecies from three different Guatemalans.

10. Finished the New Testament.

11. Prayed for a man on a bridge with no leg, and began to realized how lonely he felt.

12. Ate Taco Bell.

13. Learned how to love others and prefer others above myself.

14. Worshipped God at church even though it was entirely in Spanish.

15. Got kissed by the little special need orphans/children.

16. Attempted surfing and only got up once.

17. Saved Kate from a rip tide and swam her into shore when she couldn't swim any longer.

18. Jesus healed a lady's foot and she no longer limped when she walked.

19. Jesus healed a lady's back and she no longer had back pains.

20. Prayed for a dead man to be raised.

21. Jesus healed an older ladies eyes so she could see again, then became a Christian.

22. Got destroyed by mosquitos and had 50 bites on my two legs alone.

23. Jumped off a waterfall and swam in tunnels through the mountains.

24. Helped a family with $150 worth of groceries.

25. Experienced a supernatural lifestyle that all Christians are called to live.

26. Prayed for a man struggling with alcohol and saw his life change before my eyes, trusting that he is still living for Jesus.

27. Stood on a 4" concrete pole right next to a huge canyon, Puerto de Diablo.

28. Experienced the greatness of a community striving to be more like Christ.

29. Fit 16 people into a 5 passenger truck and 23 people into a 15-passenger van.

30. Drove another team to the waterfalls.  Didn't stop at red lights/stop signs, passed on turns and everything else locals do.

31. Sammie bombed a hill on my skateboard and crashed pretty hard.  It was gnarly. She's legit.

32. Shaved my beard into 6 different designs over 6 days.

33. Preached for about 25 youth at a church service.

34. Watched kids use my skateboard all day, every day.

35. Decided to live a transparent lifestyle instead of one that only shows the "good" things in life.

36. Shared my testimony with the guys living here, to encourage them to keep on living this new life.

37. Had 41 people share a 3 stall and 2 shower coed bathroom.

38. Received prophecies and visions for people on the squad and the squad as a whole.

39. My portable speaker and two knives were stolen.

40. Made a website for Zion's Gate Ministries.

41. Fasted for what might have been my first fast of my life. Then fasted again.

42. Ministered in the poorest neighborhood of Tegucigalpa, Los Pinos.

43. Took a group of World Racers and Hondurans to Roatan for an amazing time in the ocean.

44. Slept on a bed 7 nights in the entire 3 months.

45. One girl pooped in the ocean.

46. Saw two Hondurans snuba dive for the first time in their lives, they didn't even know what it was.

47. Reflected with the Honduran guys who went to Roatan about their weekend, and noticed how much we take for granted.

48. Felt/Noticed/Seen the Holy Spirit move in newer ways than I have ever known.

49. Met some amazing people who have forever changed my life.

50. Cried thinking about leaving Honduras.

As this month comes to an end, it is very hard to leave.  I have never felt such a connection to any country as I do with Honduras.  The ministry this month has spoken to my heart and the boys this month are very important to me.  I think its strange because we have only been here for 3 weeks, the shortest of all, but I feel like God will call me back to Honduras one day to work with Zion's Gate.

Going into this next month, the teams have changed and I am now with Wes Vickers, Hosanna Sheeley, Jo Linda Sala, Jill Schulenber, Robin Brooks and Naomi Angeline.  Can't wait to see what God has in store for this new powerhouse of a team!  Bring on Romania!
 

Herman
1) Snuba diving was my favorite because I have never done it. The picture with Tony was the best part of it.
2) The water trampoline was my second favorite. Jumping and doing flips was really fun. Then when we jumped onto the blob and shot people into the air, it was so fun!
3) Sharing my testimony and reflection on Psalms 71:20-21. Because it is an opportunity for me to share so that everyone participate in helping me. These words were important to me because it shares my past but also my future.
 

Cristopher
1) Fire dancer was my favorite especially the part about with the hula hooping girl. The music and the night, just the whole experience was my favorite.
2) The rope swing was number two. I was the only Honduran to do it and it was very dangerous.
3) Snuba diving was my third favorite because it was my first time. The fish were the best to see under the water, especially the bigger ones.
 

Walter
1) The Aqua Glide in the ocean was my favorite because I like riding down with friends.  I was fearful at first to go down but I don't have anymore fear.
2) The second was the boat. I liked it very much. I had a lot of fear and trembling before I got on the boat but I don't anymore. I liked the waves, they were so fun.
3) I like playing with the group at the beach because I liked talking to everyone and it was my first time at the ocean. I loved to eat on the beach and swimming.

Ariel
1) The first thing was the experience on the boat. The big waves were way fun! It was my first time on a boat.
2) The park was my second.  The monkeys were awesome, one bit my ear!
3) The fire dancers in the night were my third favorite.  The guy was the best, when he was using the bull whip was my favorite.

Thinking back on the weekend it was amazing to see the boy's faces as they saw each new thing.  Just to watch their faces as we embarked on a new experience.  Just a couple of guys who have changed radically over the past months that have started to realize that "everything is possible with God."  Tony's phrase that is often used here at Zion's Gate.  Everything is possible with God and coming back from that beautiful place makes me wonder how anyone could ever question that.  We took five boys from Los Pinos, the poorest colony in Honduras, and they got to snuba dive, snorkel, play on a beach and hang out with a bunch of North Americans.  I'm not trying to brag, I am trying to say when you follow God he is going to provide for you in more ways than you could ever imagine.

One thing that Tony said that really stuck with me was, "What's cool is that they want me to do everything with them. When I was eighteen I didn't want anyone old to be with me."

It's something that really speaks to the character of the ministry that is happening here in Honduras.  These boys who used to be living on the streets and behind dumpsters are radically changing and seeking after the Lord.  What people are saying impossible and impractical, Zion's gate is making a reality.

Pray for these boys, pray for Roatan to be a life-altering experience for them.  Pray for their hearts.  Pray for courage to be different.  Pray for example.  Pray knowing that anything is possible with God.  Anything.

Zion's Gate Ministries is our contact this month. Such an awesome ministry.



We are staying in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.



We are working with boys from Los Pinos, this is Luis.

This is Fernando, Herman and Mario (Left to right).

Tony, our ministry contact, had us pray over the city.  He asked Ariel and I to represent each group.

 

This is our view every night from the place we are staying.



This is Herman's cousin who lives in Los Pinos.



They have no running water and the living conditions are terrible.

But the people who live there are still very happy people.

 

These little girls became my friends, they just stood there and laughed at their pictures.

The group went to another colony to minister to the kids and play futbol with them.

Tony and Jo Linda talk to a boy who is addicted to paint thinner.

The statue of Jesus Cristo that overlooks the city.

 

The entire group.

A beautiful catholic church in downtown Teguc.



The best picture of the trip so far.