Fasting and Prayer

In connection to the church that I have been attending - Church of the Redeemer in South LA - and in preparations for the beginning of our upcoming ministry project in the neighborhood, we have been going through a time of 40 days of prayer and fasting. We are about 1/2 way through, as this was week 3 of that time period. During this time period, God has been bringing up many different things for me that I need to be praying through, and really just lean in to Him more for wisdom, strength, patience, and peace! Some of those things include difficulty at work and asking God for more patience, compassion, and love for the students....dealing with the difficulty of previous deaths of loved ones in my life and healing, fears, and forgiveness through that...satisfaction that I have found in food, that really needs to be changed and my satisfaction should be in God alone! ("Why do you spend money for what is nto bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance." -Isaiah 50:2) This morning at church I was reminded that as a believer in Jesus Christ, we are in a spiritual battle...in which satan will use opportune moments to try to tempt us, or make us feel worse about ourselves, or make things difficult....pretty much do anything that will take us away from furthering God's kingdom. So as it has been difficult and emotional with certain things that have been brought up in my life during this time of prayer and fasting, I am glad that God is so powerful and is right here with me and is lifting me up to press more into Him and put my full dependence to God...not myself and not others, but in the everlasting God who I can always rely and depend on! I am excited to see what God will continue to do during these 40 days of prayer and fasting, and how He has been at work through people in our church, through the neighborhood where I live, and throughout the area of South LA. :-D

Some exciting things that have been happening include being invited to our neighbors' wedding that was a few weeks ago. It was a very joyous and celebratory time to be there! It was quite funny...we were getting ready to leave because we didn't really know anybody else besides the bride/groom and another couple of neighbors that were there....but we passed by the groom's family's table, and they stopped us, insisting that we stay. When we said that we didn't really know anybody, they start introducing us to lots of people and just make us feel very welcome...and then also bring over the 8+ eligible bachelors at the wedding! Ha ha.... but it was quite a good rest of the evening getting to talk to the married couple and their relatives.

I also got to pray with one of my neighbor's also when her younger brother had been injured and they were on their way to the hospitable...in the rush of finding all that out, Ashley (our neighbor) was a bit shooken up, and I just knew that God was stirring in me to pray with her. So after going in my apartment, I went back outside and got to pray with Ashley before she headed out with her dad to the hospitable. We prayed that night that the family would return back at a reasonable hour...and it was only about 1 1/2 hours after they left, that they returned...with having to go to ER and getting stiches! I believe that was a work of God because when you go to ER, you're on a list waiting based off of priority to your injury, and getting stitches is typically not a top priority...so praise God for answering that prayer and helping to meet their family in the midst of worry and concern.

I continue to get to see Iliana (really spelled - Liliana...but it sounds like Iliana) about 1x/week on my way to work with my co-worker and fellow SP buddy, Scott. We purchase tamales, champurrado, and get to talk with her. She recently suggested that I go to her house for a meal...so please pray for wisdom and discernment about when that might happen and for the opportunity to get to know and her family better! :)

Thank you all for your continual prayers...God hears them and has been at work in this city and in my life! Please keep praying...pray for good health among my team and people at my workplace and people in the neighborhood...pray for God's spirit to be moving in our neighborhood and for people's hearts to be softened as we will be soon getting to know more people in the neighborhood and having conversations and sharing about Jesus...pray for compassion, patience, and love for me while I am at my workplace, and discernment/wisdom about what I will be doing for work during the summer and for the next school year (they are going to open a new middle school....so not too sure if I will move also and work with the middle schoolers, or stay at the elementary school where I am at)...pray for God's kingdom to come forth and for this area of LA to be a place where God's name dwells! Thanks sooo much for your prayers!!! <3 :-D

Some pictures!

People that I enjoy spending time with! Hosting some SP friends at our house
for food and prayer!

Taishia's wedding....Regina, Sierra, and me

At Taishia and Philipp's wedding...all decked out! :-D

At Daniel and Casey's LA Wedding Reception...the PLN Crew