Blessings From Above...

Wow...
I know it's been a while since my last post but life has been a little out of control lately. I haven't had time for anything!


Anyway here's an update...
God is good. The $3000 financial goal that seemed to unattainable a few months ago is finally becoming a reality. With only $750 left to raise this trip is finally becoming a reality! I have been so generously blessed by friends and family. To all of you who have contributed, THANK YOU! You have no idea how much your support means to me. I know that you are supporting me with more than your wallet, but your heart and that I am ever so thankful for. Please remember to keep India and the work our team will be doing in your prayers! We are selling rubber bracelets as a team to help raise the remaining money. They are imprinted with "Pray for India" and come in yellow, orange, pink, blue/green, and black. Let me know if you would like one! I am praying that God will provide the remaining $750 still. If you feel led to contribute, you can make a donation here!


We have gotten a bit of information as far as what exactly we will be doing in India. Things are always changing but the latest I heard was this. We will fly into Delhi where we will spend a couple days adjusting to the culture and such, then our team will depart for Jammu where we will be assisting a newly planted church. After a few days there we will head to Kashmir where we will be working with a childrens baseball camp before returning to Delhi for our debriefing and departure. For the most part our schedule has been left open ended to allow God to do his work through us and guide us where he wants us to go. We are leaving it up to him to point us in the right direction. We also have a team website that has some more information, check it out!


God has also been working in my heart as he prepares me for this great adventure. I have a feeling he has big things in store for us! I can't believe we leave in 41 days from today, it's coming so fast! I AM SO EXCITED! ...as if you couldn't tell :)


Please keep praying!

I'm Coming Back to the Heart of Worship...

Distraction. 
Such a simple term for such devastation. If only we could give everything else up and just live for God. I know it breaks God's heart when I turn to other things before Him. I know that it's not right and I know that I've been doing it a lot lately. I've become so caught up in doing "christian" things that I've lost a little bit of that personal relationship with God that I yearn for. But now that I have come to that realization, I've decided to make God even more of a priority than before. I know it won't be easy and I will need support and encouragement, but it's something I've got to do. He is bigger and more important than anything else I could possibly devote myself and my time to. He deserves my sacrifice. He deserves it more than I will ever be able to comprehend. 


Hebrews 12:1-2 says we must focus on Jesus: "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

I love that passage. I love the analogy of running a race toward Jesus. I guess what I need right now is the endurance to continue pursuing him. I need to set everything aside and focus on the marathon of my spiritual growth. I need to push forward, closer and closer to the finish line. I need to turn to him out of weakness and desperation. I need to give him everything I can and transform my life into a never ending act of worship. Where are you in this spiritual marathon? Are you at the start, on fire, and full of motivation? or are you struggling to even take another step? are you pacing yourself and running strong? are you about ready to give up? Have you been refreshed at the water station and regained your focus? That is where I am right now. I feel like I took a bit of a break, but now I want to keep running more than ever. I'm back on course and pushing on.


When the music fades
All is stripped away
And I simply come
Longing just to bring
Something that's of worth
That will bless Your heart

I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart


I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus


King of endless worth
No one could express
How much You deserve
Though I'm weak and poor
All I have is Yours
Every single breath

I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart


I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
And it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus
I'm coming back to the heart of worship,
And it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus
I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it
And it's all about You,
It's all about You, Jesus

BRACELETS!

Fundraising is discouraging sometimes, but I think I have come up with a solution to at least part of my problem. I will be selling handmade hemp bracelets to raise money for India! I have been making a bunch of bracelets for friends lately, so why not use my skills to help me get to India? I will make a custom bracelet for anyone who wants one! I will be selling them for $10 and 100%of the profits will go into my India account. In fact, I will never even see the money. All donations will be made directly to the account at New Life Church. So just let me know what kind of bracelet you want and I will make it that same day. I will also ship them for free if need be! If I sell 50 of them, that's $500 towards my trip. If I sell 300 of them I could pay for the entire trip with just these proceeds! Below are some images of the materials I have already. I am open to any requests so just let me know! You can place an order by leaving a comment on this page, sending an e-mail to kphalin@uccs.edu, or calling or texting me at 970.389.7230. Buy them for yourself, give them as gifts, and tell everyone you know!

Hemp

Glass Beads

White Letter Beads

Wooden Beads

A few examples of some different bracelet styles

Colored Letter Beads

Whether you support me financially or not, I can use all the prayer support you can give. Please keep the entire team in your prayers. Pray that we will be prepared when the time comes for us to leave. Pray that God would use us in great ways while we serve him in India. Pray for safety in our travels and health as we go to a foreign place. Pray that God would provide for us financially and physically. Pray for strength and courage as we face unknown challenges. Pray for the people of India that we will be interacting with. Pray that the Lord would open their hearts and minds to the gospel. Pray for protection. Pray for peace. Pray for love.

God Is My Rock

The first financial deadline came and went. At this point I haven't received any support so I am relying on God to help make this work. I wish money wasn't such an issue. What would our world look like if we had no concept of money or cost? I think it would be a very different place.

While it has been frustrating to try and come up with these large sums of money on my own, God has been using this experience to teach me a whole lot. The main thing he has been showing me is that I need to lean on "the rock" that is my God and wait on his provision. During my quiet times the last few days I have been stumbling across all kinds of verses that talk about God as our rock which we can rely on. He is the solid foundation of our lives and with out him our lives would be built in quicksand. 

Ironically, this morning at church, one of the worship songs was all about God being our rock and that without him everything else would be lost in quicksand. (If anyone knows what the title or artist of that song is please comment!) It really drove it home for me. I need to be sure that he is my foundation at all times, and from that everything else will come together.

Once again, if you feel led to contribute and help me out with this financial burden, please use this link to Support Me! If you have received a letter from me, I'm glad you have taken the time to check out the blog! If you have any questions, want to know more, or just want to chat, feel free to contact me! I would love to share with you!

First Deadline is Approaching!

Hello All!
As you know I am trying to raise funding for this trip to India. As of right now I have been funding myself, but the first real deadline is quickly approaching. I need to have 25% of this trip funded by this coming Friday!  If you have been contemplating supporting me, I urge you to help me out as soon as possible! If a lump sum is too much to ask, we can set up a payment plan online so you can make weekly or monthly donations. Every little bit of support helps, no matter how large or small. I am relying on the Lord's provisions and have been praying that he would somehow help me come up with the money I need. I hate asking for money, but I really have no choice. If you would like to become involved with what I am doing, and you feel led to contribute, please either contact me, or visit NewLifeChurch.org and click the giving tab (there is a link to the giving site on the left side column of this page as well). The support letters have been sent, so now I must be patient and wait on the Lord to see what he has in store! I look forward to seeing what God has in mind!

And The Fear Sets In...

So far, as I have been thinking about India, I have been so excited that I hadn't really thought about the kinds of risks I would be taking. That was until almost everyone I talked to told me "you will get sick. there's no way around it."or "I went to India once. I almost died." Just what I want to hear...

For the last few days I've really been thinking about this, but really it's not about me. The fear of getting sick is not going to keep me from going on this trip and serving the Lord. I know that He will surround us and protect us, and even if we do get sick he will be there to comfort us. Worrying about it isn't going to make things any better. Matthew 6:34 says "Do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." We must trust that God will care for us and keep us healthy. Its a risk that must be taken, but I believe it's more than worth it! As I continue to work at "living by faith" I am realizing that this fear of sickness is just a way that God is testing me to ensure that I am up for the challenge. I just have to trust in him that everything will work out. As Psalm 55:22 says "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall." Maybe I will get sick. Who knows? Only God knows what lies ahead and we just have to trust that He will take care of us. There is no sense worrying about this now. Worrying won't get me anywhere. If it happens, well then it happens, and I just pray that we make it back safely. "Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you." Exodus 23:25

A Living Offering...

So as I continue my attempt to read through the Bible in 90 days, I have found myself struggling through Leviticus and Numbers. I just couldn't see the point in reading all about how to precisely prepare an offering. 


Then my eyes were opened.


I was reminded that these things were included in the Bible for a reason. To these people at that time, offering livestock and other valuables was a great sacrifice for them. Their lives revolved around their livestock and to give one of their sheep or goats meant giving up their pride and joy. Then it hit me. While i might not be preparing an offering of my possessions, I was preparing myself to be a living offering. I remember back in middle school when one of our youth leaders gave us the visual of literally crawling into the offering plate and giving up everything for the Lord. I don't know what it is that keeps me form letting him have control of everything but I hope that eventually I will be a living offering to him. By sacrificing my time and money to go to India, I am investing myself in his plan for the world. I just need to give it up. 


I would like to ask that any of you out there reading this would keep this challenge in your prayers. I, and the rest of our team for that matter, need your support to help our mission be successful. If we all can just hand everything over to the Lord Im sure he will use us in great ways. Once again if you feel financially compelled to participate in supporting us, please visit:


www.NewLifeChurch.org
Click the Giving tab and then create an account. Select India Missions 2010 - The Mill and then select my name, Phalin, Kelsey from the list.


Any and all contributions are appreciated! 


This song came to mind as I thought about being a living offering. These lyrics sum up where I want to be completely:


Lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary
Pure and holy, tried and ture
With thanksgiving, I'll be a living
Sanctuary for You

It is you, Lord
Who came to save
The heart and soul
Of every man
It is you Lord
who knows my weakness
Who gives me strength,
With thine own hand.

Lord prepare me to be a sanctuary
Pure and Holy, tried and true
Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com
With thanksgiving I'll be a living
Sanctuary for you

Lead Me on Lord
From temptation
Purify me
From within
Fill my heart with
You holy spirit
Take away all my sin

Lord prepare me to be sanctuary
Pure and holy, tried and true
With thanksgiving, I'll be a living
Sanctuary for You

What are we getting ourselves into?

So I realized that I really don't know much about where the team will be travelling and what it will be like when we get there. I decided to do some research using the book Opperation World by Patrick Johnstone and Jason Mandryk. I love this book. It's set up like a daily devotional that highlights the different nations of the world and explains the status as far as missions go in each country. Oddly enough the section on India is meant to be read from May 31-June 16. Almost the same dates that we will be there. (Coincidence? I think not!)


I know that there is a lot of religious controversy in this region especially but I didn't realize just how extreme it actually is. 64.2% of the population is Muslim, 32.2% is Hindu, 2.2% is Sikh, 1.2% is Bhddhist, and only a very small 0.16% is Christian. I guess this really is a region that hasn't been exposed to the gospel. I can't wait to get there and love on these people...

Living by faith...

As some of you who are reading this may know, I have decided to join the congregation of my home church, Dillon Community Church in Dillon, Colorado, in reading through the Bible from cover to cover in 90 Days. 90 days may seem like a decent amount of time, but in reality that means reading at least 15 chapters every day! It is a challenge to find the time to sit down and commit to this reading schedule, but I know it is going to be one of the most spiritually intense times of my life. Most of the people I have told about my plan are shocked and their first question is "how do you have time for that?" Well, my response is that its not about MY time, it's Gods time and he deserves to be a priority. I'm not saying that it is easy, and trust me, with an overwhelming course load and a very busy schedule I have to get creative with my time management, but to me this is so much more important than anything else. 


It's kind of like the tennis ball analogy. Imagine a plastic container as the time you have in your life, the tennis balls as your time with God, and a cup of sand as everything else you have to get done (school, work, homework, family time, friends, etc.) If you try to fit the tennis balls and the sand in the container by filling the bottom with the sand, then there is no way all of the tennis balls will fit in. But if you put the tennis balls in and make them your priority, then the sand will easily fill in around them. It's all about priorities. If you put your time with God as number one on your to do list then everything else will just have to fill in around that. 


By making my time with God my priority I am slowly learning what it really means to "live by faith". For instance, today I was reading through Exodus 16-17. After the Israelites left Egypt they were wandering around in the desert. They had no food to eat, yet Moses trusted in God and he provided bread for them each day. Then they had no water to drink, so the Lord provided Moses with the power to turn a rock into drinking water. Talk about the Lords provisions. What would it be like if we really had to rely on God to provide everything? We take so much for granted because it is so readily available to us, but what if we really had to live day by day in faith that the Lord would provide? What if we had to rely on prayer to receive nourishment and sustenance? Thank the Lord that we are so richly blessed! 


I related this story to the way I am trying to raise the money I need to go to India. I should trust in the Lord that he will provide and make it possible. It is not my job to worry about money, after all when it comes down to it, this trip is not about the money at all. I am praying today that I would be able to focus on God and what he is calling me to do in this time of preparation, rather than the funds I need to make it possible. 


Alright I have rambled enough and i'm sure you have better things to do with your time than to listen to me babble on, so this is all for today!

And so it begins...

Alright...

So here's the story:

After moving off to college I was overwhelmed with an intense urge to travel and explore the world. I was seeking adventure and could not help but dream of all the amazing places I would visit someday. Ever since I was old enough to comprehend the vastness and magnitude of this world God created, I had set a goal for myself to someday visit each and every country on the globe. I had now developed a passion for the nations and my heart was breaking for the lost people of this world. My days were spent in prayer about this odd drive to travel. As I prayed the words travel and adventure kept rolling around in my head. I couldn't shake this new obsession. I had never felt so passionately about anything, which was almost scary. I had all this motivation and optimism, but I had no clue where I would go with it or what it would turn into, that is, until I attended theMILL at New Life Church one Friday night.

That night was the first time I had been to theMILL, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The message that night was about missions. I know this was no coincidence and I believe that it was a tool God used to communicate his message to me. I was brought to tears and humbled that night. I found out that theMILL is sending missions teams to Germany, Peru, Egypt, and India this summer and that applications were due the following week. Without thinking about it I grabbed an application and that's where this "Leap Of Faith" began.

I have been accepted to travel to India May 29th-June 13th 2010. I am scared out of my mind, but I know that God is in control and that this is where he wants me this summer. The purpose of this blog is to let everyone know the awesome things God is doing in my life to prepare me for this upcoming challenge. I have a hefty sum of money to raise to make this experience possible. I will need to raise $3000, and as overwhelming as that might sound, I am at peace with confidence that God will provide.  If you feel compelled to make a donation you can do so online here: 


www.NewLifeChurch.org
Click the Giving tab and then create an account. Select India Missions 2010 - The Mill and then select my name, Phalin, Kelsey from the list.


 Any and all support is appreciated! Every little bit counts. I would also like to ask for any of you out there who are reading this, to support me in prayer. I believe in the power of prayer and would feel extremely blessed if you would keep my preparation and the trip itself in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you to everyone for the prayer support so far, it means so so so much to me!