Jovial July's Update...and tomorrow is my birthday.

Hello my friends.

I feel like I have not updated you all in so long. Actually, I am on time though. Maybe things are just moving at accelerated speeds here in Perth. 16 students. 7 nations. So many visions growing. So much radical, concentrated development of character.

Although we are the Birth Attendant School (BAS), we are only the eyeball of a much larger body. Currently there several happenings, including a music and mis*sions school, 2 entry-level disc*ipleship schools, a Bib*lical core course, English for mis*sions, teaching English and then us. Not to mention many separate mini*stries cultivating at the same base. We are one small piece of the mosaic.

This week launched a vision that G*od has been speaking to our base leader about. Perth's base has been here almost 25 years and she and her husband were the ones to pioneer it. Shirley is our leader's name, and on Monday presented us with the debt that the base's staff owes. 306,708 dollars. G*od has been leading us as a base into greater things, and part of it is corporately trusting G*od for the provision of the staff debt. Not everyone at the base has monthly supporters, we all come from different countries involved in different ministries, but we're all expected to make monthly payments like the rest of human beings on this earth. Anyway, the base has grace on those who can't pay their monthly fees and always is discipling in finances, but Shirley felt that this season is specifically to see the accumulated debt erased. The strategies for this begin every morning at 7am until 8am for those in debt to pr*ay together. Then each day at 3:15 for 15 minutes, no matter what we are in the middle of, everyone stops to pr*ay for the staff debt. In accordance to the action, we are receiving a number of teachings on fa*ith and finances.

On Monday, 7000 dollars came in. Tuesday 14,000 dollars. By Friday the number was down to 250,000 dollars. Thank you Lo*rd.
I think that these are the mountains Je*sus is talking about moving when we have the fa*ith of a mustard seed.

As I have arrived on staff, it is required that I do the basic leadership school (BLS...we love acronyms). Each Monday I receive teaching, really applicable teachings about being involved in staffing a school. I am learning to fuel my gifts into places of leadership and developing the weaker skills. Turns out, you don't naturally become a leader after you complete a school :).

Last week we had a speaker on the character and nature of G*od. If you don't know G*od, your whole life is going to be based on skewed perspectives. You must view the world through the nature of G*od and then peer into your circumstances. The moment we look through our circumstances into G*od's character, we become confused, bitter, dazed, apathetic (you name it) followers or non-followers of Jesus. This is such a necessary principle for life.
To look at the situation of a baby dying at birth... Is G*od unloving? So, I can look at G*od through the situation, which would mean, Yeah, G*od is unloving. But, if I look at "G*od is love" and then view this situation I can recognize, there is evil in this world, there is improper transport for women to get to a local hospital, there isn't always resussitation equiptment, etc. A lot of time, we are the cause of the pain, SIN is the cause of the pain... NOT G*od. I repeat NOT G*od.
We have to know G*od personally. Reading the B*ible isn't going to cut it. Hearing people's stories isn't going to be enough. Talk to him. Know who he is in these real-life tough situations.

Other than that, I am absolutely enjoying my responsibilities of leading the students, caring for guest speakers, learning from my leaders, participating in the life of the base.

Yesterday we shared with the students about outreach locations. In September we will depart for Tanzania until January, from there we will return to Perth for the 25th Anniversary of our base. We will be here for some days before we depart for India (YAY! Megan) and then to the Phillipines in April and back to Perth for our debrief.

Through all the teachings we are receiving, I feel excited for this time of fund raising. You can be including it in pra*yers, for strategy and boldness.

Thank you for reading this months update. Of course feel free to shoot back some questions or comments, I love to hear from you.

As usual, still blogging at www.bekah29.blogspot.com

Bekah

week one and two.

Hi everyone. It is the end of week and I'm so glad for the Saturday rest.
Last Monday I arrived and from the airport, we came to lunch and orientation for the students began after that. At one point during orientation the students came up and pra*yed over their staff...They possibly were thinking that I was a lunatic who needed pra*yer...at least I was in the right place to have pra*yer. Hehehe...

Anyway, it has been such an incredible experience hearing the stories of each students battle to get to Perth. To hear where they have come from and the vision they are with G*od for. For such a time as this, G*od has brought this amazing group together. Last week we learned about anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive system, the pelvis and the fetal skull. The girls have dove into the the lectures and homework, they are a group of go-getters. These weeks have been laying a foundation for the next eleven months. We have spent time learning about becoming a G*od-fearing midwife along with the character and nature of G*od.

Along with helping the students along, I am so blessed to be in the lectures again. There is so much I have forgotten or was on overload last year and couldn't take in, but now, I am fresh and ready to take in...

My responsibilities are in hospitality (preparing cakes, cards and tables for the birthday people, three so far... and getting drinks and snacks and preparing/maintaining the guest flat) making a guest speaker book with info about each student, facilitating assignments, correcting homework, being in class and leading out in inter*cession and wor*ship times. We as staff found out about outreach locations this week, but we are still pra*ying throuh details, so I think by next week I will be able to share with you. Let's just say, I am having a hard time not leaking the locations through this blog.

Yeah, I really want to share about this week lectures. Give me some time to pull some stuff together. It has been an intense little week.

Love you guys. Thanks for reading. I would really love your pra*yers over my finances and the finances for the school. We are gearing up for fundraising. I'll keep you posted.

here i am.

Guys! I made it to Perth. It was a nice trek and I have hit the ground running. So excited to be here, still feeling quite homesick. Somehow stuck in the middle but pra*ying to jump the gap soon. I will post a more detailed update soon, I still don't have internet access, but I did want to let you know I am alive and very well.

my 100th post.

This is my June update. For those of you reading my blog who would like to have my monthly updates sent to your email, feel free to leave your email in a comment or email it to me at bekah29@yahoo.com or keep reading them here each month!

First things first everyone, I got my visa! Thank you for your support. It has been an awesome time of seeing G*od's power. So many people have told me they are pra*ying for me or they are waiting to hear what is going to happen and because of that I have again seen how being in need brings people to their knees and brings them closer to each other and G*od. So lovely, G*od knows what he's doing. So, I will return to Australia on Saturday.

Over the month, I have shared with the missions board at Northlake, shared in the ch*urch services, shared in the youth service and an inter*cession time in the junior high. G*od has been faithful (as always) to provide opportunities and brought gl*ory to himself through the stories of miracles and healings and through seeds that have been planted.

Well, this past month has been absolutely incredible. I have been able to see many of you and hear about your families and what has been changing over the year first hand. I can't tell you how refreshing it is to see your faces, store away what everyone looks (some people have changed) and refill my tank of new memories.

Thank you to everyone who came over to the Dinneen house. It is beautiful to see community here in Everett...loving together, eating together, sharing together. I hope that it was a time for you to look again at who our G*od is and how he is moving through the nations.

So there isn't too much to share about this month, my family has been relaxing together--Mariners games and days at the beach, but actually more like me relaxing and everyone else finishing school, working and vbs... I was able to meet Wisdom, our exchange student from Ghana, which was excellent because he helped me to adjust back to the culture :) ... and Dad and I got to share our first experience of jumping out of a plane.

Just a brief message about what's next...
I leave on Saturday to return to the new Birth Attendant School (BAS) of 18 students. I will be staffing for the next two years, which for the next three months look like: covering the school in pra*yer each morning, holding discussions for the students, leading small groups, correcting homework/tests, planning for outreach.
I also will be taking a leadership school while I am in Perth, that will continue as independent study on outreach. I am looking forward to stepping out into leadership and bridging the gap of once being a student to leading in the school. Once a week we meet in class and have a speaker and outside of class have weekly requirements to meet. Once our eight month outreach is upon us again, roles will look a little different.

I am still looking to cover my monthly living fees in Australia. I am about halfway there! In our organization, Y*outh with a M*ission, we are all volunteers, from base leaders to new staff like myself. If you are interested in donating monthly or a one time donation, you can reply to this email and let me know.

I am also interested in starting some kind of fundraiser to involve a wider group of people, extending the word of what G*od is doing from people in the chu*rch to those in our neighborhoods. If anyone has some ideas about this, I am anxious to hear!

Thank you guys for your continual support. I am grateful to know each of you and have been blessed to connect with you all over this month. Please feel free to respond because I love to hear from you!

Bekah

And as always, I am still blogging at www.bekah29.blogspot.com atleast once a week.