Identity to Destiny

Ay mates! So much has happened in the past week and I am thoroughly enjoying the time God has given me here!  My mind is wrestling with so many new ideas & concepts and somehow I'm not feeling drained.  For lectures this past week our DTS leader, Luke Roque, spoke on "Identity in Christ" and he did an incredible job of humbling himself and making it very personal.  Identity is where we find our value & purpose and our identity determines our destiny.  It can be tricky to distinguish the difference between identity & personality, but in the end it revolves around our motives.  God can give anyone gifts overnight, but our character is a process and it takes time.  We also learned that Satan often deceives us by telling lies covered by subtle truths to make us buy into a false idea or identity.  A huge part of our identity is the "fear of man" and how we are perceived by others.  If we can understand that our identity needs to be in God then there should be no "fear of man", for fear is faith in the wrong kingdom.  Not easy stuff...

Also this week we learned more about Koney 2012 and his hunger for power that forces children into slavery.  There is currently a video going viral to spread the word about Koney and his destruction in parts of Africa.  Something to be aware of however, the group Invisible Children who created this video, only sends 1/3 of their donations to Africa directly.  Overall, it is a really inspiring video and we can all play a part in praying for the corruption in third world countries.

For outreach we are currently learning games & skits for the camps & events we'll be putting on.  As a group we've decided to buy 100 Bibles to bring with us, which we found for close to $7 in their native languages.  I am really getting stoked for all that God has planned and I just know he's going to blow us away.  My group has really made some huge breakthroughs this past week, so thank you tons for your prayers.

As far as everyday life here, last Saturday we climbed a local mountain "Mt. Coolum" and it was an amazing view over the Sunshine coastline & ocean.  One night a smaller group of us went "treasure hunting", which was very new to me but really interesting.  Pretty much we just prayed that God would show us where we needed to go & if there was anyone needing help or that needed the gospel, and that he would show us.  Talk about faith... Anyways it's rained a bit this week & I have yet to get stung by a jelly fish unlike everyone else.  I did however manage to get involved in a surfing accident Friday, but thankfully I have a hard head.  Friday evening all of us guys had a huge game of rugby on the beach, which was much more enjoyable than I originally expected.  I also got my basketball fix last night finally playing at a park...well overdue.  I am definitely settled in after a month into this 5 month adventure & I can't imagine ever getting sick of it here.

This next week is prayer week & we will be praying for 3 hour slots on a daily basis.  If there is anything anyone needs prayer for you can message me or facebook me & I would be more than willing to give you a couple hours :)  Thanks for all of your support and feel free to comment below!  Please pray that God continues to speaks to me this week and that I am able to stay energized.  Love from the Land Down Under!

"God hasn't called me to be successful.  He's called me to be faithful." - Mother Teresa