Exclamation Points

I don't know what it is but I love exclamation points! I feel like I have to use them at the end of every sentence becasue everything I say now has such passion in it! I can't help it! Sometimes I try to take them out and then the sentence just doesn't look right! But I don't really want to go around yelling all the time. (OMG I didn't put one there, I may have to go back and change it!)

Especially in text messages! Sometimes I just text people a message full of exclamation points!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Missions Class

Bro. Jack and Mrs Dyer, world missionaries

Since I am in the Missions Stream of Elevate we get to attend special classes geared toward preparing us for the mission field. Last Sunday we were able to listen to the testimonies of Bro. and Mrs. Jack Dyer, who have over 25 years of experience each. They were already living in Honduras before hurricane Mitch devastated the country. They lived and worked in India for years and taught English using the Gospel while Bro. Jack worked as an engineer to they could legally live in the country. It was an incredible opportunity to ask questions and get real answers, not romanticized stories about the opportunity in the field.

The Dyers didn't go into the mission field until they were in their mid 40's, breaking all the rules of missionary etiquette. Bro Jack was an engineer and a pilot which God used to strategically place them in Honduras and then in India to spread the love of Jesus in some of the hardest environments.

He spoke about the call to missions God placed on His life and how important it is to know that God has called you. It is difficult for us to "know we are called" when it is rarely an audible voice form the heavens saying, "Heather pack your bags you are going to Peru." I really learned a lot about how to decipher the call on my life by looking at my past. Because God's plan for my life was written before the foundations of the earth; so he has been preparing me for this since the beginning. If I can look at my past though God's eyes I should be able to see how he has been preparing me for my future. What am I passionate about? What skills has he developed in me? What drives me? What makes me angry? These are all things God has put in me for a reason, and with God's direction I can begin to discover what they mean for my future. This is the time in my life when God has promised to prepare me for my future.

Bro Jack also said that he didn't create opportunities or relationships or try to manipulate his path. He served God and God created the way. God formed the right relationships. All Bro. Jack had to do was be available.

If you are praying for me please pray that I will have God's perspective when I look at my past and the wisdom to apply what I see to my future. I want to be guided by the Lord and not by my own ideas. Pray that I will be available for the Lord to use me and that I will prepare myself so that I will be ready when God's time comes.

Long Time No Blog

Hey guys, sorry for not blogging in 9 days!!! I think there may be a law in Leviticus that says I have to stay outside of the camp for a week now becasue I haven't been faithful, just kidding. things have been incrediblly busy the past week.

The Healing Place Women's Conference, Live the Dream, is this weekend!! We have all been praying over this conference and fasting for an unbelievable time with God. There will be over 1200 women during the 3 days and we expect God to move in an awesome way.

All the Elevate interns have been working hard to help make this the best conference ever. We have made give-away bags, decorated chairs, cleaned, made signs, and anything else we were entrusted with! But of course having fun is one of the unspoken rules of Elevate so here are a few pics of us having fun in the children's church dress up bin...

Jaime, Kelly, Joy, Shana, Mary Beth, and Hannah workin hard in the gift zone

Joy and I playing dress up with left over Velcro!
Kelly and I having some tea

On Friday we worked at the LSU vs Auburn game to raise money for our missions trip! I know all of you watched the game, right, and it was pretty stressful up until the very end. But we all know God is a LSU Tiger fan so we prevailed again! Here are a few pics from our concessions stand during the game!

1:30am, still in the concession stand and we have to be at service for 6am

I think you have to have a great sense of humor and the ability to make relationships without taking yourself too seriously to succeed in ministry. If you remember Jordan, the Elevate of the Month, you will remember that he is one of those guys that was made for high school ministry. Here are a few pics of him with this awkward mustache that he is growing out for a prank. He also dressed up as a French Settlement coach for our sports themed vision night and I got a pic of him at waffle house...hilarious!!

Ever get a crumb in your mustache and no one told you it was there?

Yes, that is Jordan...looks just like his dad, whom he borrowed the clothes from!

A Little fun at Class

Every now and then we have to have a little fun at class with all of the evenings students. So tonight we kicked back and took some time to play a game between some of the sessions. The rules were simple...find a partner, form 2 circles - you in one and your partner in the other, the circles move in the opposite direction with music playing in the background, when the music stops you have to find your partner and do whatever the emcee says over the microphone.

This turned into so much fun I had to take a little video and share it with you guys. So here goes...I think the action in this video was ... "put your nose to your partner's neck..." Keep you eye on the left hand side of the screen at the two guys (they will remain nameless) who weren't gonna let anyone beat them!

HP Women

Every other Monday night @ 7pm some of the coolset ladies ever get together to earn more about God and grow closer to him. Tonight Mrs. DeLynn's mother spoke about Excellence. It was a powerful message that made every one in the service feel like they needed to spend time at the altar, and in fact we all did!

She used Daniel as an example and pointed out 7 things that showed he had the spirit of excellence:
1) ho would not defile himself but remained holy even when threatened
2) he was faithful to God
3) he had a strong prayer life
4)he was thankful to God
5) he had the fear of the Lord
6)he lived a life that caused others to worship and know God
7) then he prospered


I am so often critical of others. I so often get offended and ask "what about me?"She said one thing that I will carry with me for a long time, and I think every woman should wrte this down and keep it where they can see it..."The attitude is the paintbrush of the mind, it can color any situation."

I want my attitude to paint life. When I am faced with a tough situation and I have chance to either complain or be thankful i want to fall on my face and thank God for the opportunity to trust him and to build within me the spirit of excellence!

Vision Night

Vision Night @ HPC was awesome!!! Just Listen to some of the things we have been a part of in the Past 10 months...

Attendance has increased 17%
323 Baptisms
769 Salvations
1600 Volunteers Serving on Outreaches
203 people sent on mission trips to 13 countries
680 families assisted
1300 hospital visits
13 million hits on the website
>5500 counseling appointments
140 widows/week served

HPC is definitely not about numbers; each one of these numbers is a life that our church has had the opportunity to touch and a person that we have been able to serve!

Pastor Dino Shared an amazing message with the vision that God has given him for the net year of HPC's life and what it is going to take to get there. Check out his blog@ dinorizzo.com

Progress Reports

We will get our first progress reports next week when we find out our grades from the final exam.

I think the test went well, I had a few moments where I thought my brain was going to melt (that's what I get for being an over-analyzer) but overall I think I did OK.

I'll post my grades (only if they are good - just kidding - or am I?) when I get the progress report!

Have the best day ever!!!

First Final Exam

So I have my first final exam tomorrow morning... it is 11:46pm...we have had too much coffee and the study group is starting to lag...Lord help us cause we will need it!

I'll let you know how it goes...

Spot Light

The Spot Light is an award that is given to a Second Year Elevate Intern who has demonstrated an unequaled passion to be all that God has called them to be. These interns face so much in their daily walks with God. I look at how the world sees me for quitting my job and doing elevate this year and I can only imagine how is sees them for sacrificing yet another year of their lives for God.

The Spot Light Award went to Angela Musso....

Spotlight of the Month

Angela Musso

Angela is a second year full time Elevate student and is hard to contain because she is full of passion to make Jesus famous. She is bold and outright blunt about making sure His name is known. She is an Esther of this generation – determined to grab hold of her “for such a time as this” moment and will persevere through anything to make it happen. She can lead anyone into an intimate time of worship, and knows how to serve it up in the inner city. She is determined to go into the depths of the world to fulfill what God has called her to do. She serves faithfully and with a contagious enthusiasm. Make sure to thank Angela for all that she does.

Elevate of the Month

Every Month the Elevate Staff gets together and decides on one intern who has gone the extra mile. During September Jordan Gautreau did just that. I wanted to share with you the kind of people that I have the privileged of serving with here at HPC!

Jordan Gautreau

Jordan is a one of a kind leader. He has jumped right into Elevate with determination to make the most of it. He is learning to grow, be stretched and challenged. His teachable spirit and humble attitude is what makes him a valuable person for anyone to have on their team. He has a passion for the next generation to be world changers and he is unstoppable, and is on his way by serving faithfully in Refuge every day. He is determined to live the life God has called him too, no matter how hard it gets, no matter the sweat that is required. He has excelled in Elevate and been an example to strive for. Make sure to thank Jordan for all that he does.

Lamentations

I have had a rough day today. It has been one of those weepy days where my soul just feels wounded. I haven't had a day like this in a long time. It's my own fault though...I prayed for increased faith, and God delivers, He is faithful till the end.

It seems like He always answers the prayers for trials and testing a lot faster than He answers the ones for blessing! Funny guy...a friend pointed me to a few verses in Lamentations to help me out:

I definitely feel like I am lamenting right now; I looked it up and it means "wailing, moaning, and weeping." But if I in the book of the bible with that name...buried there after the cries of Jerusalem, a city who was so low it is likened to a woman that was so full of shame... all she could do was cry and hide her face, there is the story of God's faithfulness...

Lamentations 2:22-26
The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is His faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, "The Lord in my inheritance; therefore I will hope in Him!"
The Lord is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him.
So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.

I need fresh mercy today. I need a love that never ends. I need to be reminded of my inheritance. I need to hope in Him.

But most of all I need to depend on Him, and that is so hard for me to do. I don't know why, so if you are praying for me pray this: Father, hold Heather in your hand and pour your mercy over her. Let her experience your never ending love. Remind her of her inheritance in Jesus Christ. Give her peace because you have good plans for her that are full of hope. Reveal to her anything that she may be holding on to that is keeping her from depending on you. Show her how to release these things so she can fully embrace the future you have for her and rest in your arms.

Vision Night

Hey we are having a Sports Themed Vision Night @ Healing Place Church on Highland this Sunday at 7pm!!! This is a great opportunity to se what God's vision for HPC's future is. I can't wait, I didn't get to go last year because of work so I am pumped!!!

God Tube

So you may have noticed that I have been putting a lot of video links up the past few posts. And I am actually about to post another one, so buckle up. But first I thought I'd explain why.

Many of you may know about YouTube, a website where anyone can upload any kind of video and the whole world can look at it. I have found this website called GodTube, which is pretty much the same thing but a little cleaner. You can search for all kinds of videos on all kinds of topics.

Because I don't have a lot of time to do pleasure reading anymore (I am doing tons of great required reading though) I have started watching these videos when I get a few spare minutes. They are quick, most of the time, and they are either touching, inspiring, funny or passion filled.

So I am sharing some of the ones I really like with you guys. They have either made me cry like a little girl, made me choke on my coffee because they were so funny or convicted me so hard I had to press pause and repent right there at my desk.

This one is the funny kind; A Mac Vs PC Parody with Fear Vs Faith...enjoy

Man in a Hole

This is a great video! Check it out!!!
http://www.godtube.com/view_video?viewkey=9dc6f227f9133ba2dfd3

Distorted Beauty

Check out this video that shows one reason why our vision of beauty is so messed up!

http://www.godtube.com/view_video?viewkey=5a2ccb30e7bbafc011b0

Preach!

So I had my first preaching situation this morning! I got to speak to the Denham Springs Freshman High Character club this morning. We are doing a series on The Race of Life and I had the privileged of doing the second installment.


It was really awesome to be able to speak to ~40 freshman about setting goals and defining the "win" for themselves. I wanted to share with them some of the struggles I have faced while training for the 5k we will run in April.

There were 4 principles I left them with:

1. Don't compare your race to someone else's - God made you for a specific purpose
2. You might have to run the race alone - Sometimes you have to say no when everyone else is saying yes
3. Sometimes it's not fun - You have to sacrifice to accomplish anything significant
4. Set your goal and stay focused - setting smaller goals may help build your confidence and stay focused on the way to the "big win"
   

I had a great time! It was amazing to truly be a vessel of God and let Him minister through me!