We arrived yesterday at the YWAM base, and I must say, I have missed the beauty of this place. The peacefulness, the quiet, the nature.
We’re debriefing for the next few days. Today we talked about the lecture phase of the DTS and tomorrow we will talk about the outreach phase. It was a good day today, just pretty relaxed and I got to get outside and do some mowing. Weird how you can miss physical labor, but I have.
Sunday will be my last day here at YWAM and I’m not sure if that has processed yet. It’s been such an incredible time of growth and new revelations and new truths. How do you just end something like this?
Please pray for continued direction in the immediate future. I’m trusting God for finances and continuing to lay out my steps in front of me.
If anyone would like to get together and chat about all that God has done in the last couple months, I would love nothing more than to meet with you face to face and talk. You can post a comment on here, or email me at haaronc@gmail.com. Hope to hear from you soon.
We went out last night to the “alternative district” of Chicago last night. It’s very close to Wrigley Field and is home of numerous bars and clubs. Things don’t really start happening until about 10pm or so, so we left around 9:30. Unfortunately, it was raining for about the first hour we arrived, so we spent that first hour just walking and praying for the people we would meet.
OUR GOAL: To encourage people that they are loved and valued.
We specifically we targeting people who looked like they were having a rough day. This area of Chicago is also known for it’s prostitution of both male and female, and so we really felt like they were who we were supposed to offer value to.
We went with about 60 roses all tagged saying, “You are loved and valued!” Obviously we were hoping to get opportunities to share the love of Jesus with them, but we believe just the simple act of giving the flowers was *planting some sort of seed.
As I said earlier, the night started out slow, and there were numerous times we just stopped and asked God for direction. We were really relying on Him to direct our steps to the people He wanted us to see. The first flower we gave out was to a lady in a Seven-Eleven. We passed the store and I saw her in the window working. So we decided to go in and see what happened. When we got in the store she was in the back and it took her a few minutes to come out (which was slightly awkward standing there with 30 roses in a convenient store for no apparent reason), but when she came out she was in her civilian clothes, she was on her way home. We offered her a flower telling her we saw her from the street and wanted her to know that she had value.
I can’t describe her smile to you. You missed out because you weren’t there, but it was beautiful.
It was enough for us to know that God was behind what we were doing. So we continued on encouraged and energized. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you about every flower we handed out. Firstly, because I don’t remember. Secondly, we don’t have the time. But I do want to highlight just a few more things that happened because it will encourage your faith and hopefully your prayer life.
The week before we had been there and I had noticed a few transvestites, and as we were on our way to the area I said a quick prayer that we would see them. Probably three-quarters of the way through the night we did. We were walking down a street and they were coming down the opposite side from an alley. I got super excited knowing that the Lord had allowed out paths to cross. I felt like the Spirit was calling out directions for us, so I did my best to listen. They ended up just stopping on the corner and we made our way over to their area. I felt like the girls on our team were supposed to give the flowers and talk to them so Akram and I just walked passed and waited a few steps away. Our girls said one that one of the girls’ face just lit up, and she ended up being the key for us in being able to hand out flowers to about 6 other girls. It was awesome to be apart of. We have no idea what that did in them but we believe it brought them a little closer to God.
The last story I’ll share is a quick one. It was nearing 2am and we only had three flowers left and we were making our last walk down the street that would take us to the bus stop, I knew we weren’t supposed to take those flowers with us, and so I said a quick prayer out loud that went something like this, “God, please send them our way.” Almost immediately, a guy dressed like a girl storms out of a door about 10 feet in front of us. Akram quickly handed her the flower telling her that she is loved. We were all blown away.
How amazing is our God!?!
At the end of the night none of us had shared to gospel, no one had given anyone lessons on church history, no one had been told they were sinners…but we believe that that area got to see a little bit of God’s love. Our goal was not to take them from A-Z last night, it was to take them from A-B, or wherever they were at. Little things combined make a big difference.
Do some little things to show God’s love today…and tomorrow…and the next day.
*pun intended
This absolutely makes my brain mush:
He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given. – Proverbs 19:17
Go ahead an try to wrap your head around that one…
Yesterday was our day off. We had no agenda except to relax and recharge.
For me, recharging most always involves me being alone, in nature, or just lost in a sea of people I don’t know. I decided that I would attempt to get up at 5:15 to see the sunrise at 6. I woke up to the sound of rain, and when I looked outside I knew there would be no good view of the sunrise for me. But I decided to go anyway. I boarded the train bound for downtown at 5:30. I had an awesome morning, taking pictures, walking at my own pace, stopping when i wanted to…it was great. I took a break around 10 in a beautiful church across from the Hancock Building called Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago. I just sat and prayed and read a few hymns, it was awesome. I had already been up for 5 hours and felt like I had accomplished so much!
Later I went to Millennium Park for the second time with a couple of the girls on the team. I was taking some more pictures of the bean when a random middle aged man asked me if he could use my camera to take a few shots. He explained that he had a nice camera (and told me all the technical terms which were way over my head) but he didn’t bring it with him, he only brought his memory card. So, he shot a few shots while I stood there and talked to his wife. We mostly chatted about photography and he eventually ended up doing most of the talking. But he started asking me about what I was doing in Chicago and what I was doing after, so I got a great opportunity to share all that’s been going on in the last couple months. I told him what and where I thought God was leading me when I get back to Atlanta and him and his wife were totally into the convo. They ended up telling me they’ve been to Alaska a few times for missions trips and missions in heavy on their hearts. Such a divine appointment!
As we were about to part ways, he reached in his pocket (I figured he would just give me his business card or something) and pulled out his wallet. He told me he had been blessed a few days ago and he wanted to bless someone else. He handed me a $100 bill and said, “The only thing I ask, is that when you get to where you’re going, take your friend out to eat and say ‘God provides’.” And with that, him and his wife walked off.
God has continued to lay out my steps for the future and confirm them without doubt. I’m so blessed and undeserving of His love. I can’t wait to come back to Atlanta and sit down with you all and tell more stories of what God has done.
Please continue to pray for our team as we have a week left of our trip. The enemy is wanting us to slow down because we can see the finish line. Pray that we are strong and finish strong. I love you all.
We went out to do some homeless ministry last night at a park by the lake. Our goal was not just to meet the physical needs, and though that is so important, we really wanted the night to be filled with conversations revolving around Jesus. For the first 20 minutes of our walk we could found only one homeless person, and they were under a blanket and had no desire to talk. So we continued on with no hope for a while longer. I suddenly felt the tug on the Spirit to pray and ask for direction. Literally right after I said AMEN I looked to my right and found a bench that we would spend the next 2 hours at.
There were about 4 homeless guys initially, so we passed out our water and food and found they were very willing and ready to have a conversation. Just being there, showing you care means the world sometimes. The girls got into some great conversations with a couple guys and I didn’t see anyone I was connecting with initially. But not far down on the bench was a guy named Gideon. I figured I’d go see what he was up to. He didn’t look homeless, in fact he stuck out because he was dressed pretty nice.
I asked Gideon what he was doing and why he was hanging out in the park, he told me his landlord had just sent him an eviction notice and it really got him upset, so he came to the park to cool off. Gideon’s from Nigeria and has been in America for the last 7 years. He was very opinionated which made for some great conversation. Our conversation went everywhere, from politics, to religion, to relationships, to racism. I encouraged him not to harbor bitterness in his heart toward his landlord, and instead react the way Jesus would. We ended up chatting about God for quite a while and he had some very good questions that God provided very clear answers for. I was humbled to be a part of it. I was eventually able to share the good news with him, which he was no stranger to.
It was a great night for Gideon, and yet again, God directed our steps to a person who was hurting. And I fully believe that even though we didn’t see the end result of what God will do in Gideon last night, He will be faithful to use the conversation to move Gideon closer to Him.
The other peeps on the team also had great conversations about Jesus. It was an awesome night and I believe God really received the glory.
Be available to be used everyday. When you are tired ask for strength. Do not forget the reason your feet on still touching earth.
And then thank God for using you.
It’s been so cool to see how God has been using our team, and I’ve really started to understand how much God actually WANTS to use us. We just have to be willing and ready to talk when He says to talk, and walk where He says to walk.
Tonight we went to a very creative area in Chicago. People flock there to be unique and at the same time find community. The streets are full of individuals seeking acceptance. Our goal tonight was simply to prayer walk, or in other words, walk and pray. We were in groups of 2 and split up in different directions, just asking for God to change the area.
First I grabbed a delicious cup of coffee from Dunkin Donuts (freakin yum) and then we just scoped out the streets. I went out with my friend Akmad from Egypt and every once in a while we would stop on a street corner and pray for the area. We believe that with the prayers that were prayed tonight that area started to see a little change. God cares about what His children care about.
So, nearing the end of our time there, we were walking down a street and I saw this random art gallery with some interesting stuff in the window. I wanted to check it out. My eyes were draw to this one piece in particular. It was a rectangular shaped canvas, the top half painted blue and the bottom half painted white. That was it. Nothing more. There happened to be a girl standing right beside us as I started to poke fun at that piece. She started laughing a little and we struck up a little conversation. Her name was Veronica and she owned her own restaurant and painted all the artwork in there. I noticed immediately that Veronica had been crying before we came. So, after chatting for a few, I told her I noticed and asked if we could pray for her. She proceeded to tell me that she had JUST broken up with her bf and it was over for good. She was totally and completely open to us praying for her. So, we prayed that she would feel worth, and that her worth would come from God and not what people thought of her. We prayed that through this tough time she would turn to God and not things that cause more pain. Akmad also gave her some beautiful words of encouragement after I prayed. I know that I know we were supposed to meet Veronica tonight and I could see the difference in her eyes when she left. I know God was tugging on her heart and will continue to the whole night.
He is amazing!
So, again, God wants to use us. He loves using humans to accomplish His purposes, because He is all about relationships. And if you’re not convinced yet that God loves using humans, think about this: ”When we needed a savior, God sent us a human.”
Well, we’ve arrived back in the USA after a grueling 31 hours of travel in the last two days. We took a 14 hour train ride, numerous buses, taxis, shuttles, planes, subways, and plenty of walking…but we’re here. And I got to sleep a full 8 hours last night. Hallelujah.
I won’t be able to write everything that happened in China in the last month obviously, but I will throw in stories to let you know how faithful God was. It was an incredible trip, and God really moved. Without going into too much detail, you should know that God is doing a massive work in China. They are so open and responsive to hearing about Jesus. They just need people to tell them.
I am continually humbled by all the God did, and I will soon be sharing about it. But for now, more rest. My body and my brain are tired.
“Thank you” does not express my appreciation enough for your prayers and support. I am privileged to have friends like you all.
So, this is it. Our team will be flying out tomorrow at 2:20pm and we’ll be arriving in Tokyo, Japan at 5:00pm. And no, that does not mean it’s a 2.5 hour flight. We’ve got about a 2 hour layover there and we arrive in Shanghai, China at 7:05pm.
We will be teaming up with an English teaching school in another part of China. I’m not exactly sure what we’ll be doing, but we’ll be working with kids between the ages of 13-18. They all want to learn English at a young age and it’s good for them to be around people that speak English as their first language. I’ve heard that they will want to spend time with us after school, so we’ll just be looking to form friendships as quick as possible in hopes of sharing Jesus with them. We’ll be doing things normal kids do: Sports, movies, eating out, and hopefully some sightseeing.
Also we’ll be doing what we call “English corners”. I’m not sure of all that’s included in this, but I believe we’ll be on a corner with a list of questions (in english), and hopefully get in to a spiritual conversation, again, to share Jesus with them.
Everything about this trip is centered around relationships. We will have a lot of freedom with our time and I want to use it wisely. Here is a few things you can be praying for (along with the things God reveals to you personally):
- Pray that friendships form quickly, and Jesus comes up naturally.
- Pray for quick trust with the students.
- Pray that we would see where God is already working…and join Him.
- Pray for boldness.
- Pray for divine appointments.
- Pray for unity among our team.
- Pray against the strategies of the enemy.
- Pray for fruit. Ask God for it.
- Above all, pray that God is glorified through this month-long adventure into China.
If you pray for these things, you will be a part of what God is doing in China. If you believe prayer changes things, then I ask that you lift us up constantly. Then enemy will want to attack us from all sides, but your prayers can hinder his strategies and advance God’s movement.
Now, because China is closed to the Gospel, I am limited as to how I communicate from there. I will not be able to update my blog because there is WAY too much on here about God (amen!). I had to get a new email that I would like to give you: aaroncoury@ymail.com (please note that it is “ymail”, not “gmail”.) You will be able to email me, but there are a few guidelines before you do. It is extremely important that you follow these guidelines for the safety of our team and the school we are working with. You cannot use any of these terms: God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, Pray, Bible, Missions, Church, and no Bible verses…in fact, if it sounds spiritual, don’t use it. However, I did talk to a lady recently who lived there for a year and she gave me a great code for emails. I would love, love, love to hear from you, but if you could just use this code when you are emailing, that would be awesome.
- God/Jesus = Dad
- Pray = Chat/ Rap
- Bible = Text
- Missions = M&M
- Church = Building
Please don’t be scared to write emails, just use common sense and discretion.
I titled this entry “PRAY”. I don’t think it’s a secret that this is the greatest thing you could do for us. The more you pray back here, the more God can do over there. I want to give you a list of the people on our team:
- Aaron
- Aimee
- Greg (leader)
- Katie
- Sarah
Thank you in advance for all of your support, and being the ones “holdin’ it down” back here. I can’t wait to come back and tell you all what I have seen and heard. I believe God is going to do some incredible things over there, I’m humbled I get to be a part of it.
But as we have been approved (allowed) by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts. – I Thessalonians 2:4
I’ll probably only have time for one more post after this. We’re leaving Friday for China and I’m getting really excited. This has been such a great week here in Atlanta. We’ve been teaming up with different ministries around Atlanta and it’s been so encouraging. I was sitting with some great friends tonight talking about this week, and I was just saying that a lot of times I get discouraged because it doesn’t seem like, as christians, we’re DOING that much. But this week has been great just to know there are people out there doing the dirty work and reaching out to the poor, needy, homeless and hopeless.
…and we’re left with the option of just watching…or joining. What will it be for you?
I know what it’s going to look like for me. When you see what God is doing through normal people surrendered to Him, you have a tangible choice to make. I can’t wait to tell you all what and where I believe God is leading me after YWAM, but it’s not completely confirmed yet and I still have two months of prayer in store. Plus I don’t want to get ahead of what God is doing TODAY. I don’t want to miss this amazing opportunity I’ve been given.
Take no thought of tomorrow.
Redeem the time.
Now is the appointed time.
This is a little bit of a challenge for you today. What are you not doing, that you know you should be doing? What is holding you back?
So last night YWAM teamed up with Midtown Church and went out on the streets. I can honestly say I was blown away by their boldness. We were with their ministry called NightLight that goes out every Friday night and prays for people in the tough areas of Atlanta. They’ve been ministering to prostitutes and pimps and dealers.
But before we went out we met at the church about 3 hours early and talked about the week and prayed and prayed and prayed. I learned a lot about really seeking God’s heart for ministry before you head out. We just kept pressing in, begging God to move. Then we split up into 3 teams of about 8 and went out. There was definitely some stretching going on in all of us YWAM’ers. As I said, it was so encouraging to see the boldness these guys and girls had. They knew God was protecting them, and they walked that out.
The group I was with had some incredible responses. We got to pray with over a dozen people and had some very encouraging conversations. The one that will stick with me the most was this girl (19yrs old) that had come down from Mississippi for her sons birthday. She wanted him to have a good birthday so her cousin talked her into going out on the streets with her.
And then God stepped in.
One of the girls on our team had a vision of a girl in pink shoes (we didn’t know that until later). Our team had stopped in front of a church to pray for the church and here comes these two girls, one in all pink head to toe. Our girls approached them and the girl in pink was very out of it. She had been drinking because she totally did not want to be out there and she was a bit out of it.. Long story short, 3 of our girls prayed for her and encouraged her about how much worth she had in Jesus Christ. It went on for a few good minutes, and at one point the girl they were praying for started singing worship songs.
Unbelievable.
After talking a little while longer, the girl said she couldn’t be out there and she didn’t want to. God had changed her heart. Praise the Lord! God wants to restore the broken and heal the wounded. Please pray for her, she is here this whole weekend and heading back Monday. Pray that she stays off the streets and surrenders her life to Jesus.
It was such an encouraging evening. If you have ANY interest in seeing the real world for what it is, you need to go check this out. The people at the ministry are so inviting and so in LOVE with GOD and in LOVE with PEOPLE.
And it is contagious.
