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True North: The Treasure Of A Compass

2/23/2017

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a gadget I’m especially thankful for due to my lack of general directional skills. Gratefully, I’ve had the GPS my whole driving life, but long before the GPS was around lived the map, and before that, the compass.
Earlier this week a thought came to me seemingly out of nowhere, that the difference between a map and a compass is that while the first gives you in depth instructions on how to get to your destination, a compass gives you only the correct direction to arrive there. These last few months have been what I can explain as a “compass season” in my life.

You see, sometimes I want to know the whole plan. I strive to know the details and force fit all the pieces in my head together to try to figure out the end game. However, this only leads to worry, confusion, and sometimes sadness or me feeling overwhelmed when I can’t seem to find the right answer or formula. The problem is, you don’t ask the quarterback to explain to you what play he’ll call in the 3rd quarter or why when you’re seven minutes into the game. You just trust that he’ll make the right call. This is the heart I’m growing into having with my Jesus.

What I do know is that “Jesus is my strength and shield and He will never fail me”, and that He knows and has all the answers when all I have is questions. That He has my best interest in mind. That His dreams for me are better than my own and that He is more than all I could ask or imagine. I do not have to figure out for myself what’s next and why and who and where and how it all fits together. I actually can’t. And I also don’t need to expect Him to show me all those details right now. I simply need to lock eyes with Him and abide in Him. HE is all I need. Not His plan, not His answers. HE is ALL I NEED. While worry (ultimately unbelief) only breeds anxiety, unrest, despair, and desperation, trust and belief in the One True King brings PEACE, REST, and LIFE ABUNDANT. My Compass has shown me True North and calibrated me to it, as He has set my heart on Him. I know what I am called to right now, and that’s got to be enough for me. He’s never given me any reason not to trust Him. HE HAS NEVER ONCE FAILED ME. I can’t speak for God, and why He chooses not to show me the whole game plan and the times when I need to merge in 690 miles I can’t say for sure, but I have come to think it’s because it wouldn’t be best for me and He knows that. Knowing every part of my future right now would scare my hair straight. It would terrify me more than likely. I’m not ready to know all that. God PREPARES me for my future through my present. It would be unhealthy for me to know the plan before I have the trust, the courage, the faith, and the tools to handle it yet. He creates steps and seasons and lets us learn lessons in our lives for a reason. Some of those reasons, I believe, are to prepare us for the next step or season.

God is good, all the time. In all His ways. In the timing He choose reveals things to me. In the times He leads me as a compass and the times He guides me as my map. Who am I to question the map writer? There is a perfect peace that transcends all understanding in simply trusting the One who knows. I trust You Lord, “help me in my unbelief.”

By Bri photo cred: Pablo Garcia Saldana
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Hello! My name is Brianne and I am 23 years old from Troy Pennsylvania. I did my Discipleship Training School at YWAM Charlotte in the spring of 2014, went to Cambodia on my outreach, and attended a School of Leadership Development and Outreach in the spring of 2015. I then joined staff and served at the base and on DTS staff. This December I moved back to my hometown for a season of connecting with my family and serving locally while excitedly awaiting the next steps God has written into my story!

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Vulnerability, Shame and Redemption

2/22/2017

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Vulnerable: The quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally.

Shame: A feeling of regret, self-hate, and dishonor.

Redemption: The action of regaining or gaining possession of something.

For years, I have refused to be emotionally vulnerable. I believed that being vulnerable didn’t mean there was a possibility to be hurt, but a guarantee. Over time my heart became more and more hardened to letting people see who I really was, developing shame for who I was. At the age of 15 I was sexually assaulted by a much older guy. As a result, I shut down all of my emotions. I thought that if I didn’t let anyone see the pain I was in, it didn’t exist. If I didn’t share my story with others, it never happened. I was in denial of my own reality and emotions. Not feeling angry, hurt, or betrayed sounds really great, right? It comes with a price: the absence of joy, love, or acceptance. It is impossible to selectively numb emotions.

The enemy comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy. The Father comes so that we may have ABUNDANT life! (John 10:10). We can’t have this abundant life if we are living in the bondage of shame. We have to break the chains with vulnerability and embrace the reality that our Father in heaven is able to redeem and restore the areas where we are broken. When trauma happens, big or small, it takes our willingness to be vulnerable. We must reclaim that vulnerability to reclaim our lives.

For the first time in my life I am embracing vulnerability. Shame is a feeling that can be overcome by the action of being vulnerable. I am learning that sharing my story can inspire and bring hope to others and as a result I have built deep relationship with others, felt a sense of joy that has been missing for far too long, and discovered freedom like never before in being who God has created me to be. Embracing the redemption of the Father has changed my life in a drastic way.

So how do you practically embrace vulnerability?

Be vulnerable with yourself. Love yourself just as God created you.
Be vulnerable with the Father. He is safe and you can be honest about where you are at, you’re feelings, and your struggles. Nothing is too much for Him.
Be vulnerable with others. Share your story. Embrace the emotions that come with sharing, and allow yourself to inspire others.

It’s simple, but not easy. You get to make the choice. The Father is waiting for you. Will you continue to live in shame and self-protection, or will you embrace vulnerability, and redemption, and reclaim your life?

By Ally photo cred: Agnieszka Boeske

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God used Ally's journey in her Discipleship Training School to walk into her newfound freedom.
Gain true freedom through an encounter with your Savior and heavenly Father in a Discipleship Training School in YWAM Charlotte. Fill out the form below for more information.

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Building a Contact List for the Long Haul

2/20/2017

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When we start out on the mission field and begin the process of raising our support the one thing we need to do and be faithful with is building our contact list. When I first started out 20 years ago I began with a contact list, but at that time I did not realize how important it was. Throughout the years I have discovered how vital it is. In most cases, it is the foundation in which God gives to you on which you build your mission upon.

Building a healthy contact list is more than a list of people who could give you money. It is a list of different types of relationships in which you are in. This is your circle of influence. Having a contact list will help you be faithful in your relationships and your communication with individuals. These are people who could be intercessors, supporters, and people who care about you.
If you haven’t already, please read my article, “How Many Supporters should a Missionary Have?” It will communicate the value of those relationships you have.
Before you start I want to make one thing clear. The bigger your contact list is the better. I have talked to so many missionaries who are struggling with their finances. When I ask them the question, “What do you think is a good number of people have on your contact list?” I have had people say that 10 or 25 people are really good. Honestly, those numbers are too low.
When starting out I tell people to target at least 200 people and then build from there. If you come up with more than 200 people, that is even better. I know for some of you it may seem overwhelming. Well, it is not as hard as it seems. Here are some steps to build your contact list.

Start with your Wedding list. Pretend you are going to get married and assume that money is not a consideration on your wedding list. Who would you invite? Your family and friends! Write them down on the list.
Social Media list. How many Facebook friends do you have? How about your contacts in LinkedIn? Who is in your circles, your Google Plus? Add them into your list.
Anyone else. Maybe you have some people in your college, high school, church, or work that for some reason are not in the first two lists. Then this is where you had their names in the mix.
Vet your list. It is time to go back and look through your total list. Is there someone in the list that would get upset to get your newsletter? Go through your whole list and look at each name one at a time. Ask yourself the question, “Would our relationship be damaged if they received my newsletter?” Now if you spend more than five seconds on a name you are thinking too much about it. Keep that person on a list before you start making excuses why they shouldn’t be on the list. In most cases, the people I am talking about is family members who don’t quite understand your calling into missions. In some cases it maybe others. But if you know it would damage your relationship then go ahead and take them off the list.
Collect contact info. Now that you have your list you want to collect everyone’s contact info. And when I mean contact info I mean everything.

Mailing address
Email addresses (Work and personal)
Home number
Cell number
Skype name
Name of spouse and children
Connected through Social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Etc)
Website

The more information you have for your contacts the better. You will find that people will move or change their email address. When that happens you have other ways to contact them to update your information.
Also, know that different people prefer to communicate in different ways. Some reply quickly to text. Others may respond better to email. And others like to get phone calls. The more ways to communicate to your contact list the more effective your communication will become.
I know some of you may be thinking this is a lot of work. I want to say yes it is. Depending on your situation this will take you about 30 to 40 hours of work. But if you are looking at financing your future in missions, it is a very small price to pay.

Now that you have a list what do you do?

Use it in a Multi-Channel Donor Communication Strategy. CLICK HERE to download.
Mail your newsletters! Read these four articles to learn how. Article 1, Article 2, Article 3, Article 4
Make appointments! Click here for tips. Click Here for more input

God has a call on your life. May God continue to help you as you walk in your calling.
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If you would like more training to become a missionary, fill out the form below to learn more about Youth With A Mission Charlotte's Discipleship Training School which can launch you into your mission calling!

By Dustin Campbell photo cred: Daria Shevtsova

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For Those In Transition

2/16/2017

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Our Heavenly Father wants to assure, encourage and empower you in this very crucial season.

"He has you in the palm of His hand. See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me."
(Isaiah 49:16, NIV)
As we embrace this new season, it is so important to fix our eyes on Jesus and not on our present circumstances. Let us ponder the personal word and promises that we received from Him. Believe and be assured that, our names are engraved on the Hand of our Father who loves us, and cares for us. Focusing on Him alone, will give us the stability that we need during this time of transition. God is with you and for you. He knows the future and has already prepared the things that need to take place in order for you to reach your promised land! Jesus is with us from the beginning of this journey, at the middle (waiting period) and waiting for us at our destination. Remember; He will never leave you nor forsake you. The one who called you is gracious, faithful and trustworthy. He is holding your right hand...so do not fear!

Here are some points to remember while in transition from Bill Burns:

What to do in transition
1. Don’t let fear drive you
2. Don’t grumble or test (question) the Lord
3. Don’t allow unbelief to rule
4. Don’t rebel (disobey His Word)
5. DO understand the prophetic word He has spoken; receive and believe it.
by Haydee Campbell photo cred: Joe Roberts
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The Ways of Our Father

2/15/2017

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I was reading the book of Matthew and I noticed something. I kept on seeing, “your Father” or “your heavenly Father” and it got me thinking. What was Jesus trying to teach us? This is what I noticed. Between Matthew 5:43 to 7:11 Jesus mentions, your Father or your heavenly Father 14 times. And one time He says, “Our Father.”
Now Jesus is known for calling God His Father. All throughout the gospels you can find Jesus saying, “My Father.” But here in between the verses above he never says, “My Father.” Why?

I believe Jesus in this portion of scripture is teaching us the ways of our Father. We are called to grow and become more like our heavenly Father. I saw 9 things in this passage that Jesus is trying to show us about our relationship with our Father. I would like to share them with you.

1) We are called to LOVE like our Father (Matt 5:44). Jesus says that we are to love our enemies. We are called to love those who use us and persecute us. Do we love those who, in short, hurt us? You maybe asking yourself, “How can I do that?” Just think of how much we have hurt God. Every time we sin we are hurting Him. Yet He still chooses to love us. He asks us to do the same. God is asking us to love those hurt us. He would never ask us something that He didn't give us the ability to do.

2) We are called to BE LIKE our Father (Matt 5:48). How are we not like our Father? Are we working on those areas that we are not like Him? I believe the other points will help us to be more like Him.

3) We are called to GIVE AND RECEIVE like our Father (Matt 6:1-4). Do we give in secret and prepare for His reward openly? He has called us to give though our deeds and actions, not for public recognition, but as a way to express love to others and our Father.

God also wants us to know how to receive from Him. More will be touched later on that one.

4) We are called to TALK with our Father (Matt 6:5-13). Our Father longs for the time alone with us in that place of intimacy. He deeply desires for us to pull the time away to be alone with Him to share with Him our deepest joys and desires. He also longs to share with us His deepest joys and desires for us.

When was the last time you had that intimidate time with our Father? Is He calling you now?

5) We are called to FORGIVE as our Father does (Matt 6:12, 14-15). Forgiveness is a basic principal in our relationship with our Father. We are called to forgive. Again, through God's grace we have been given the ability to forgive those who have hurt us. That could be your spouse, friends, parents, sibling, whoever.

Is there someone you haven't forgiven? I believe I need to say that forgiveness is a process. Depending on how deep the wound the longer the process takes. But know that forgiveness is a choice. We can choose to forgive. I also believe in the process of forgiving we also receive the healing from the offense.

6) We are called to FAST with our Father (Matt 6:16-18). During fasting we get closer to God. It should be a time of intimately and receiving a deeper understanding of Our Father. Back during the time of Jesus people would fast so they could look holy to others. In short put on a mask to look good.

How many Christians put on their “Christian mask” and who are not being real? We do it to look good to others. Christianity is not about looking good, it is all about intimacy with our Father and sharing that with others.

When was the last time you fasted with Our Father?

7) We are called to TRUST our Father (Matt 6:24-34). Do you worry about your future? Or how about to get all those bills paid? Or maybe for some of you it was you worried about what you were going to eat. My question is, what are you looking at? In verse 33 it says, “...seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Are you looking at your problem, or the problem Solver? Are you looking at your business our His business? Are you looking up to Him, our down to your lack?

We don’t need to worry. You will be tempted to worry, but you don’t have to. Choose to put your trust in Him. Even when everything looks black and there seems to be no way out, Our Father can open a door that was never before seen. If He can feed 5000 off of 5 loaves and 2 fish (Matt 14:13-21) He can meet your need. This one speaks to us personally.

8) We are called to ASK from our Father (Matt7:7-12) Do you ask from our Father? I don’t mean about asking Him to have you win the lotto. I mean asking Him about those things that He wants for you and that are good for you.

If you are asking for help with your character, habitual sin, or wisdom on what to do with your kids, your job/business. He wants to help. If you need help paying the bills, saving your marriage, or need food on the table He wants to give.

There are a lot of times we don’t ask Him to give to these needs. Sometimes we don’t have because we don’t ask. (James 4:2)

9) We are called to SHINE OUR LIGHT to glorify our Father (Matt 5:13-16). Does your light shine in a way that God gets the glory? Or by the way you live your life does people become attracted to One who transformed your life?

By the way we live our lives are people becoming attracted to our Father? If not, we must wonder if we are living “The way of our Father.”

God is calling us to the ways of our Father. Hear His call and let us follow Him.

By Dustin Campbell Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
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Are you a Son or a Slave?

2/15/2017

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When we read Luke 15 we come to this passage of a story of two sons. One is a shameful son who ask for his inheritance before his father dies to burn it on shameful living. And you have another son who serves faithfully with his father.

When the shameful son figures out his foolish choices he heads back to his father asking to be treated as a servant. But his father embraces him as his loved lost son and celebrates his return.

The other son who has served with his father can't even call his brother, "brother" (Luke 15:30) is outraged when his father accepts the person he has already rejected.

If you have spent any time in the church you have heard this story. But the more I read this passage the more I see how our Father God wants to relate to us and how we relate to Him. It shows how our Father views us and how we view Him. It exposes His heart for us and exposes the true nature of our hearts to ourselves.

We have a loving Father who deeply loves His children. But some of us failed so much, so openly we feel that we should not even be called a sons, but treated like a slaves. Others of us publicly are called sons and have no seen fault but hidden in our hearts we carry a relationship that functions more like a slave with his master.

Two sons.
One entering in repentance to the Father. The other avoiding a celebration with the Father.
One broken. The other hard.
One asking to be a slave. The other living like one.

I look at this passage and I see myself. Not only as a prodigal son who has sinned but also as the other son who acts like a slave.

God has been working on me the last few years on what it means to be a son. He is teaching me what it means to be in his family, not just a servant in his household.

I am longing to grow deeper as a son. Being a missionary it is easy to step into being a slave/servant in the house of God. But God has so much more for us. We don't fully understand His deep love for us. We don't fully understand how much He accepts us as His beloved children.

Where do you see yourself? Are you a son or a slave? Where are you standing with our Father?

Wherever you stand I do pray you would walk with me on this path of intimacy going deeper in our relationship with our Father. For sure down this path there will be times where we will need to let go of things through repentance. We must understand that with intimacy comes exposure. Anything that is hidden will be brought into the light. But their will be acceptance. We will have no greater joy than in the loving arms of our Father.

Let us hold the hand of our Father as we journey down this path. I don't fully understand where He will take us or what is ahead. But let us trust our Father. He knows what is best. He can see down the road. He knows the way.

Come let us walk with our Father.
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by Dustin Campbell photo cred: Ben White

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True North: The Treasure Of A Compass

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Vulnerability, Shame and Redemption

Building a Contact List for the Long Haul

For Those In Transition

The Ways of Our Father

Are you a Son or a Slave?

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