HAITI

Well everyone, it is officially official, at the beginning of July i am leaving for Haiti and the Dominican Republic for 3 months. When i was 17 years old i went to a thing called "NYC" (Nazarene Youth Conference) During one of the sermons, i had the strongest calling i have ever felt from God to a nation called "Haiti". I had no idea about anyhing about it, where it was, or anything. I went up to my youth pastor, Nate Roskam and told him about it and he told me to write it down and to pray about it. That summer and also the following summer i got in contact with a ministry that does mission trips specifically to Haiti and i thanked God cuz i got in contact with someone who i knew could help me live out this passion God has put in my heart. It was NEVER the right timing, and i knew God continued to tell me to "wait". When the earthquake happened my heart completly broke. I really felt that i needed to quit my job a few weeks early and go serve there, becuase that is exactly where my heart is, but ONCE again, God told me to wait. Before coming to YWAM, Haiti was not even an option for an outreach location. On friday, we got the official choices for our outreach: Mexico, Haiti/DR/Phillipines/India. The week before we found out, God really put Haiti on my heart and i told God if it was an option, then i would FINALLY know what he meant 2 1/2 years ago when he called me. He has finally revealed himself and i get to go serve in the country my heart is most after for 3 months of my life, it will be so challenging, so please keep me in your prayers. God is going to do somehting amazing i already know it. Thank you all again for everything.

What A Wonderful Powerful Day

Before i left Idaho to come to YWAM, my dad told me that he cant wait to see what God is going to do in my life and the person I am going to become. That statement sort of frustrated me because i had recently really started finally living my life for God. But little did i know, that YWAM would change my life .. completely .. for good. Today though was probably the most life changing day so far. God speaks to everybody in different ways. Sometimes it gets discouraging because you don't always see His results or hear Him right away. I've struggled with this recently. I know God is real and i love Him so much but sometimes it's difficult because i dont hear him the way i expect it. Today though, was different. God revealed Himself to me in a way that i thought was impossible, and it has completely changed my way of thinking about Him. We have a guest speaker this week named Christin Williams. He is a pastor from New Zealand. He discussed many things such as having faith for Christ and giving him our everything. I struggle with some things in my life.. such as my past and not being able to forgive myself, and selfishness, and impatience. I've been trying to give all of these things up to God for a while now but there hasn't been a breakthrough yet. Miraculous things have been happening in people's lives which is amazing but i had such a desire and yearning for that breakthrough and God to completely wreck me. People always say here that on ther DTS they were completely wrecked for the Lord. Which i had no idea what that meant, but finally discovered it today. While our speaker was preaching today (its corporate week so ALL dts's are together n the ohana court) I fely God really telling me to let go of my burdens of the past and of my selfishness and imaptientness in my life. I still didn't believe God would give me the breakthrough yet. Today after his message, we had worship in the background and we had prayer. It was the most God-moving experience i have seen in my life. People were flat on their faces literally screaming, screaming out to God. BEFORE we started the prayer, i told God that if today was truely the day that the breakthrough was going to happen and i was finally going to forgive myself for my past, our speaker would directly come up to me and address the issue i was having. Like God would do this, haha the speaker doesn't even know me. While the prayer was going on , God's presence completely came over me, and in exact words.. he "wrecked" me. I was sobbing forever and i knew God was doing something amazing in my life. The speaker came directly up to me during prayer, laid his hands on my head and prayed a deliverance prayer, telling God, "God, go deeper, go deeper with your love in Emily's life". It was such a divine experience in my life. It was crazy enough that our speaker came up to me and prayed what he did, because it was exactly what i needed. After prayer, Christin went up to speak again and out of the 300 kids in the ohana court, he specifically pointed out 4 people separately, giving them words and such that God gave him while he was praying for us. He told me specifically that he knew a burden was lifted from me, and ill finally be set free. He gave me the word "fly". I can finally go out and fly because God has lifted this burden from me and I can finally be free for God. Also he told me "perfect love" How God's love is so perfect that He can do anything. He told me to meditate on John 3:8 which states:

So don't be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be 'born from above'—out of this world, so to speak. You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it's headed next. That's the way it is with everyone 'born from above' by the wind of God, the Spirit of God.

God directly answered me, confirming me that i finally can move forward in my life in Him and that he has taken these burdens from me, with the pastor completely confirming it. and this is one of the first encounters of God completely revealing himself to me personally, and it was amazing i couldn't believe it. also my boyfriend told me after i told him all this that at 9 o clock this morning he felt something and he sent me a text saying this:

It's funny because when we finished talking earlier I had a real check in my spirit concerning you and I had the uneasy pukish feeling and I knew it was with you and I was like God what is this? And I told him I was worried and I prayed and then I felt an overwhelming peace come over me and ge said to me that there was a struggle going on right now but I needed to not get involved because he was taking care of it. Unbelievable

It's crazy the ways God works huh
God just gave me so man confirmations this morning about this huge burden in my life, and it is so amazing. God is SO REAL, SO LIVING, SO OVERWHELMING, it is incredible. I also was given a necklace earlier this week from someone in my class that i don't know who gave it to me and its a necklace that has a tree on it that says "live free" with a meaning that the bondage's in your life from God are set free and you can finally live free. God is so good and i am so blessed to come here. And tomorrow i will be writing you a blog telling you the official location of where my outreach will be for 3 months leaving July 1. I need $2500 by May 6th, please be praying for me, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING

-Emily Ann Williamson

God is...

What is God? God is many many things. He is worthy, He is love, God is love, He is just, He is mercy, He is all knowing, powerful, perfect. But most of all, God is HOLY. God is a perfect God and He is always here for us through anything and everything. God provides all things for us. As I said earlier, we are learning about God's character. And today we are really learning how majestic and good God really is. We make God out to be so small, but in reality, He is the most .... gosh words can't even describe it. He is PERFECT. We doubt God and question God too much. Everything happens for a reason and we truly need to "die to ourself" each and every day, and trust in God that he allows things to happen in our lives, everything for a reason, even if we can't see it, and he will never put something in our lives that we cannot bear. God is so good.

Donate Now Button

I just set up a paypal account on my blog. It's on the right hand side and if anyone feels called to donate to my outreach part of YWAM. I will find out exactly where I am going the end of this week, i am so excited to see what God has in store for me wherever i am going. I will let you all know as soon as i find out the end of this week where I will be going on July 1 to spend 3 months overseas, using everything i have learned here on DTS and showing God's love and spreading his word, working with possibilities of AID/HIV clinics, trafficking, and etc. Once again, thank you all for all of your prayers and support.

God is working

For every day that goes by, God is revealing himself more and more. Honestly, i do not even feel that i am in Hawaii. I do not leave the campus other than weekends. Our days are so packed with lectures, worship, class, and fellowship, on a daily basis. Every morning here at YWAM we either have intercession (group prayer), prayer, class worship, or community worship. Then we have 2 sessions of lecture. Every week we have a new topic that we are learning about. Last week was hearing and obeying God's voice, which was amazing. This week is all about learning who God is and His character. So far it has been so wonderful. Today during lecture, our speaker for the week (and one of our leaders), Christian Fox stopped in the middle of his teachings today, and told us he had a weird feeling that he shouldn't go on with what he was talking about and he needed prayer, so we all prayed for him and everyone in the room got the same feeling that we shouldn't continue teaching. We all were not focused, weren't learning anything, and all felt there was something keeping us from soaking in God's word to our heart. So we all stopped, prayed and after that we worship God for about an hour then after that, we all got in a circle outside, wrote on a piece of paper the things in our life that is keeping us from growing us closer to God. I know things in my life that i struggle with are selfishness, expectations, and patience. I know that God can help me with this and completely take these things from me, so keep all this in your prayers. God is doing some miraculous things in my life and in the lives of others here at YWAM. At the end of this week, we will find out where we are going on our outreach, which we will be leaving on July 1. Outreach is anywhere from $4,000-$6,000. I have already raised $1000 and i know and trust in God in whatever way he wants to, he can provide the rest of it. Keep me in your prayers and feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions or wanna talk :) emilywilliamson@u.boisestate.edu

GOD BLESS!

-Emily Williamson

We are reading through all the gospels in the new testament during our three month lecture phase. Our first part of Matthew is due tomorrow, so a few of us from class read everything together tonight. I was not excited to read it at all, because all i remember from the gospels growing up in the church for them being boring Bible stories, and thats it. And that is why i have exaggerated this reading until tonight. But after reading through all of it, i could not believe the amazing things God has placed in these chapters. A few things that really stood out to me while reading all this Was that we are the salt of the world, and if it "loses its saltiness" we need to make the world "salty" again. I've read this scripture a hundred times before, and it never really clicked until tonight. God's love and word dies out sometimes in our society, and the ones who know it and truely believe it, it is our job to go out and spread the salt in the world again, making God known. It's so powerful and God has such a purpose for everyone. Another thing that really stood out to me was how God does not want us to boast about fasting, praying, or giving. He wants us to do it in "secret". He does not want us praying in the corners of the streets for attention, using God to make us look good, nor does he want us telling everybody that we are fasting, once again, using Him to make us look good, and most of all does he NOT want us boasting about what we give to people or who we give to. All these thigns are a gift from God and He wants to bless us frmo them, and wants it to be between us and God. Strictly. He loves us so much and has so much in store for us. PS. here are some pictures i took today ;) enojoy!

Sex Trafficking/Female Genital Mutilation

Being here at YWAM has already changed my perspective of life just in the matter of one week. I am doing the Discipleship Training School for PhotogenX. Most people don't get the concept of how you can do missions and photography together... and i didn't really completely get it either, till today. The issues going on overseas, and even here in the United States will absolutely blow your mind. Things that have been revealed to us in the past two days has completely made me NEED to live my life differently. There is no way i can go on living my life working a normal job, making money, buying tons of things that are absolutely worth nothing to me, while knowing such things are going on as they are. My leaders, Paul and Susi Childers have been to so many countries, and they have seen almost everything. They gave us their entire testimony today, on hearing the voice of God and obeying, and it was absolutely amazing. God led them to start the program and now it's a book and video type thing called "Voice for the Voiceless". Susi got this phrase from God and she had no idea what it was for, then her husband told her they needed to go to North Africa. They obeyed God, and while there, they were in a place where every girl had to be circumcised. The girls gave their hearts out to Susi, explaining the pain that they are in. The female genital mutilation is so big there, and every female is required to get it, or they are not allowed to get married. A female's wedding night and the day of the birth of their children are one of the most painful and horrible days for them. Also sex trafficking is extremely big over there and also in other countries such as Cambodia, India, Thailand, Amsterdam, and Ethiopia. Over 27 million people are sexually trafficked, a year. Being trafficked and prostitution are two completely different things. Trafficking is when you are literally forced or abused into being sold into sex slavery. You make no money, but you are under authority and have no choice but to follow their leadership, and have sex, or they will kill you. The way they get younger kids is they lure them in by offering them a better lifestyle, a job, money, a stable marriage, a house, etc. This way, the girls fall into it, and then after the men have control over them, or go through the marriage ceremony, they sell the girls into the trafficking system, leaving them with nothing. With prostitution, the girls willing (most of the time) choose this lifestyle for them. Alot of girls involved in prostituion have been abused as a child or involved in trafficking, leading them to this being the only lifestyle they know. It's up to us to make this issue known nationwide, and do something about it. It is such a serious issue in our world, and hardly any one even cares about it. While we are here in America complaining about the weather or us not having enough clothes or not enough food, kids and women around the world are being sold into sex slavery, being forced to have sex with 20-30 men a day, getting nothing from it. America hears about it, but thinks its just overseas and there is nothing they can do about it, so they dont, and they go about their lives. Think about it, and act. To learn more you can go to:http://www.photogenx.net orhttp://photogenx.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=8&Itemid=93

Human Trafficking

Tonight we learned deeply about human trafficking and sex and money. That is the entire reasoning for PhotogenX which is the DTS im a part of. Wherever we go on our outreach, we will be working with these types of issues, through photogrpahy and ministreing to them. This is a huge issue, please wacth this video, it will greatly impact you. Thank you.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjEFtjVMCHY

Hear and Obey God's Voice.

This week in lecture, we are learning how to "Hear and Obey God's Voice". Some of the different things we have learned is that one we hear His voice, we need to go beyond it and act upon it. Even if you do not know the outcome, or how everything will fall into place, God does and he will provide. Hearing God's voice enables us to live our lives in submission to God, self sacrifice, live with purpose, walk with confidence, and break out of our natural way of thinking. Some things it will not gaurantee are as follows: immediate success, pain-free life, financial success, good reputation, and that God's word never changes. If we doubt what God tells us the first time, it might cuase confusion and not allow us to understand that God's first answer was the right answer, which is normally is. Another thing we have learned is that God communicates. It says over and over in the Bible how often and the various ways that God communicates to us. God is so amazing and if we truely listen and obey Him, he will provide everything. I still do not have hardly any money for my outreach and i still would like to have 2 more lenses for my outreach to get various pictures and such during my mission part of this jounrey. After YWAM i would like to use the photos i have taken to hopefully do a type of ministry, but God knows, and once again, He will provide. Thank you all again so much, for everything.

God Is Good

Being at YWAM in Kona, Hawaii, God's presence is everywhere imaginable. He is so good and is definitly beginning to do some amazing things here. Corporate worship in the open Ohana court is ansoltley breath taking. No one cares how you worship God, everyone is there to spend one on one time with God, not for others. God connects with us on a personal level and truely reveals himself to how good He really is. Since yesterday was still the beginning of all the classes and such, so we had the afternoon free. Most people went to the beach or to town, which sounded like a good idea. I felt God telling me I needed to rest and spend time with Him. We have whats called a "prayer room" where its a room near my room where you take off your shoes, enter and spent alone one on one time with God. There are poverty pictures around, a world map showing nations that are unreaches, and instraments to play worship to God. There was worship already going on yesterday when i came in, and spent a couple hours there just spending my time with God. It is so amazing to be around others experiencing God in this deep level as well, and it is just one more proof of how amazing God really is. I know that this is exactly where God wants me, and He is already starting to change my life even more, for His glory. Thank you all for everything.

YWAM

April 8, 2010 at noon, i arrived here in Kona, Hawaii and came to the University of the Nations. The moment i stepped foot on campus, i felt God's complete presence and knew exactly why God had me come here. I had such peace and felt an overwhelming power of God's love. First day here was registration day, paying fee's, meeting people, and of course getting used to the Hawaiin humidity and heat. The second day here was orientation. Third day here was beach day where we went to Hapuna Beach, then we had a Luau Dinner then the Hawaiian people gave us a presenation of welcoming us to the land. Today was another free day where we went to town, explored, went to the farmers market, and explored various beaches and seeing God's beauty. Tomorrow officially starts our normal schedule. Monday thru froday We have breakfast at 6am then we have "jesus time" then worship then we have 2 lectures during the moring adn afternoon then photogrpahy classes. Our lectures have differnt speakers every week speaking on differnnt topics such as God's love, purity, listening to His voice, and so on. I am so excited to see what God is going to be doing in my life here and i already know that he has me for specific reason. God is so good and thank you all for everything you have done and are doing for me.