Notes from class.

WHY HEAVEN IS THE STARTING POINT FOR UNDERSTANDING NIGHT & DAY DEVOTION

A. The Center of All Things

1. God's Existence

• In the revelation of Scripture God Himself is the ultimate center of all things. He dwells in the glorious solitude of self-existence and compared to His absolute necessity all things are feeble and frail-a vapor that appears and vanishes; grass that withers away in a moment.
• From the smallest insect to the most brilliant man, all are on a level plane in that they hang dangling over the abyss of non-existence, upheld only by His sovereign word. This in and of itself requires a profound shift in our thinkng because we tend to view the world, our lives, and everything in between myopically and egocentrically.
• In truth His identity is the unshakable rock of certitude with which all must reckon and find their orientation. This radical, all-encompassing centrality in all things means that only by throwing ourselves into Him and moving outward can we discern the truth about anything.

2. Contingency & Reality

• The consequence of this truth is that the further a creature drifts from the will of God, the less real they become. "Real" here doesn't denot any metaphysical qualities but simply that the greater the discord from God's commandment and design, the less relevant they are in the ultimate sense.
• This is due to the fact that only God has meaning in and of Himself because His existence alone is essential. Consequently any significance creation possesses is a bestowed or derivative signigicance and not inherent to them.
• In other words, the importance of someone or something hinges solely upon its relation to the Creator of All.
• This requires quite a shift in our thinking because we typically do not view the world from this perspective. Though the political, economic, and military leaders of the earth appear to be so influential, in God's eyes they are but a vapor that appears for a moment and then vanish.

With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding? Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the scales; Look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing...It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless. Scarcely shall they be planted, Scarcely shall they be sown, Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth, when He will also blow on them, and they will wither, and the whirlwind will take them away like stubble. "To whom then will you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal?" says the Holy One. - Isaiah 40:14-15,22-25

Partner with Him!

Thousands of years ago, the prophet Isaiah saw a vision of a worldwide worship movement in the last days whose extent reached into the remotest and most difficult-to-reach places (Isaiah 42:10-13). He saw the islands of the earth lifting up their voice in song to the Lord. He saw the coastal regions declaring the name and glory of God to the nations. He witnessed the dry desert places and nomadic peoples exulting in their Lord. He caught a glimpse of the Arabian peninsula singing a new song to Jesus. Even the tops of the mountains (think: Nepal and Tibet) would shout to God and declare His praise throughout the earth.

But how will this happen? How will Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and pagan peoples turn to the one true and living God and lift their voices in worship to our Lord Jesus Christ?

We believe that the day of western missionaries is not over with. Over 100 years ago, God raised up the Student Volunteer Movement out of the West where 20,000 young adults abandoned their pursuit of the so-called “American Dream” and were ignited to proclaim the Gospel in foreign lands and give themselves to “the evangelization of the world in this generation.” Today, God is again raising up the best and the brightest in this generation to reach the hardest and darkest places so that the Lamb who was slain may receive the reward of His suffering.

To that end, the Antioch Center for Training and Sending (ACTS) is a training program designed to equip a new generation of cross-cultural intercessory missionaries to plant worship-based prayer furnaces in the hardest and darkest places of the earth. ACTS is a convergence of prayer and missions equipping a new generation to finish the task of world evangelization, disciple the nations, and pray back the King.

A lot of you know me, and you know I have always been a person of faith. I have wanted so much to move God's heart, even at a young age. This is why I sing. This is why I try. I look back and I can clearly see that little girl from a small village in Alaska crying out to worship her Jesus. I truly believed that He was MY Jesus. I still believe it. I thank Jesus for putting this desire in my heart. I know this was all for his glory, he was preparing me for the work that was set before me. I have joy in knowing that He is calling me to the nations. He is putting me in a place where I am learning to seek him out for every need. During this season of my life at ACTS he is providing. And I trust Him for all of my needs. But now I know that he is grooming me to walk in the ways of his kingdom. And in this kingdom we are interdependent.

I am raising 2,500.00 for my plain ticket and vaccinations for my mission trip to Thailand. I need these funds by tomorrow. I know this is so last minute. And they are willing to work with me until the end of the month.

I desire to worship God where he is recieving none. I know he is worthy of it.

I am going to Thailand to build a house of prayer, do door to door evangelism, and to see that He recieves the Glory due his name.

I want to invite you to be a part of it. I want to invite you to see souls brought into the kingdom and minds renewed and revelation spread to hill tribes in Thailand. I want to thank you all for your love. I want to thank you for your support in the past. I only ask that you do what you feel lead to do, even if that's $10 or $100.

Thank you.

August in Kansas City

It is already the middle of August everyone! that means I've been in Kansas City for one month. This has been a very busy program, we have classes every day and our day usually ends at about 9 PM (See My Valuable Time post). The Lord has been really moving upon my heart, even in my weakness I believe he is there. He has been speaking to me about myself. A lot of times people talk about "self-discovery" and they take extended trips to buddhist temples, to masques in muslim countries, or they simply take drugs. I was speaking to the Lord and told him that I don't want to walk a path of self discovery. I just want to walk on the path of truth. Alanna doesn't belong to herself. The life she livesshe now lives in Jesus Christ. I pray that I would awaken to that truth more and more. It's never by might nor by power. I can't be interesting enough, I could never have enough influence or strength to change myself, and I can't change any region, person, country with these either. All things are His and everything is in existence for His pleasure. He is the only one who can do any kind of change. But to him it's not really change at all. It's restoration. He gets to restore the broken things and all the stuff that looks lost. He gives beauty for ashes. And I get to partner with Him. I get to be his friend and watch Him do justice, watch him display his beauty. It's awesome.

And I finally have photos to share!
These were taken by a guy in my group named Peter Telian :) I love his camera!

This is some of the students from ACTS, were having an awesome time in worship in this photo.

Me and my Korean friend Victoria having a devotional afternoon. She can really pray!

Kansas City lightning, it lights up the sky. And it is SO LOUD! One evening all the girls woke up because of the loud sounds.

Helping my friend Kate from New Zealand order a smoothie, she seems to be having a hard time deciding.

My valuable TIME!

ACTS Schedule

Week 5: Theology of Night and Day Worship

7AM- Breakfast

7:30AM- Morning Devotionals
8:00AM- Prayer Room
9:00AM- Prayer Room
10:00AM- Prayer Room
11:00AM- Prayer Room
Noon- Lunch
1:00PM- Core Class with Stephan Venable for this week
2:00PM- in core class
3:00PM- in core class
4:00PM- Small Groups
5:00PM- Dinner
6:00PM- 9:00 PM: Homework, Study Groups, Drive Home.
10:00- Curfew
11:00- Lights Out

This is a typical Monday Schedule....it's not as packed as the rest of the week. On Tuesdays we have Harp + Bowl Clinic in that 6PM-9PM block, we also use that time on Wednesdays to have e-12 groups (where we study eschatology together), and Thursdays we have Support Raising Training.