Travels of Taylor Pool

Throne Room

I just wanted to share a cool story about how someone was touched by a photo of mine that I had taken in Ethiopia. Below is the story, and below that is the photo to accompany the story. Please give me feedback or questions if you have any.

[ Photo taken in Mombasa, Kenya. In support of a local school for children who have AIDS/HIV and who live on the street. ]

“When I think about the day when you showed me the photos and then T H E picture came, I could cry again. It is such a miracle for me. On that day God reminded me again, why he called me to go to Africa, 5 years ago. And your photo showed exactly the same situation like I had when I was in God’s throne room (or however this is called in english). Acutally it was the room before the throne room. I was there, it was a room with golden walls, and God tolled me told me that he called me to be a mother to motherless children. Suddenly there were around 50 children, most of them were black children. They were all hungry, so we went to a big table to eat. A wonderful meal was prepared at the table. While the children were eating, Jesus came and took me aside. He told me I’m not just supposed to give children the physical food, but also food which will endure in their lives, stay. I asked how. He brought me to a huge sack. The sack was filled with beautiful precious stones, golden and silver ones, diamonds and so on. The treasures are values I should bring children, principles for their lives. Things about God and his greatness, about his love for each of them,… Later I started handing out the precious diamonds. There where so many children, but the sack got never empty!!! God said: “The sack will never get empty! Give generously always!” We were standing in the room before the throne room and one child was standing in front of the open door to the throne room. Super bright light came out of that room. So, and that’s the picture you shot!”

Commitment

Hey friends,

I have not really written lately, just because there is nothing really to write about that is too exciting.

What has been going on in my life is…
+ Preparing myself for Intercession School that starts in one week! (goes on for 4 months)
+ Working at a global conference here in Herrnhut for 3 weeks.
+ Trying to figure out my life as of now and how to take the next steps.
+ Putting my photography together from the past year and figuring out what to do with it.
+ Trying to not put my hands in multiple situations at one time…

With this, I need a lot of prayer for. A lot of hope, boldness and faith to believe that things can work out in life. Trying to juggle dreams, commitments, family problems, relationships/friendships, money, photography, and the daily life of a missionary. Its pretty crazy. Or, as you could say, “krass.” This is a German word I love to use when things are really intense and pretty powerful, so, life is “krass” as of now. 

I’m really ready to go back to school again and learn. Simply to learn, and to listen. To understand more of myself and of God. To have a teachable heart and an open heart for new things to come in. To experience school, once again with my 2 brothers, Rene and Alexej (my roommates and friends from last school). I’m ready to experience a more intense lifestyle and teachings as well.

When school starts, I believe it will be more interesting to follow. Until then, I’m working as staff in YWAM, hanging out with a lot of the new students, and simply waiting for the next to come. 

Hopefully Thailand in the fall of this year… I’m hoping and praying…

Taking A Stand

Hey everyone,

Tonight has been a very special night for me. Tonight I determined my future as an artist, as a person and as a Christian. My dream has always been a person who inspires the world. Who changes nations, youth and generations to live a better life, full of love. To find something meaningful in life and to fight for what you believe in. I have always wanted to be an influential leader in some sort. When I moved to Germany, joining YWAM Herrnhut, God finally showed me what He wanted me to do with my life, and with my photography. I finally found the real way to live, to be honest. I finally found the best way to live as an artist, and the way that God wants me to use my photography. He wants to use my photography to fight injustice in this world. I finally found out why I am blessed with the gift of photography. It’s not for me, it’s for the world, it’s for the unfortunate. The ones who suffer from war, from prostitution, from extreme poverty, from HIV/AIDS, from sex trafficking, from cursed traditions. It is to give a voice to the ones who are weak and dying. I finally found a way to see the beauty in the ones who are called worthless. I found a way to bring hope to the hopeless, and give light in the darkness. Upon finding this passion, this answer to the search of what God wants me to do, I now want to live it out. I want to live out the calling that God has placed on my heart to live out. I want to walk out in faith, and believe that God will end extreme poverty by using me, my camera, and most importantly my new family I am a part of. The Red Sea did not part before Moses took the first step. God told Moses to go, Moses went, in faith, knowing that God will provide. And when Moses reached the sea, God parted it. I personally believe that God would have never parted the sea if Moses never took the first step of faith, believing that God will follow him the whole way. This is how it is for me. How can extreme poverty end if we never take the first step of faith and believe that WE ARE THE SOLUTION. We always pray for things to change, for God to “do this and do that” when we are honestly the answer to our own prayers. We pray for people to help victims in wars, to help extreme poverty families, when we are simply the answers to those prayer requests. I realized that I am the answer to ending extreme poverty when I pray for it. If I don’t take a step up, who will? God will ask someone else to do it, but what if they don’t? This is when I know I can become the leader God has always wanted me to be.

Today, when I was on the train in Brighton, London, I thought of the saying “I’m a lover, not a fighter.” I was thinking how I am more of a lover than a fighter. I don’t know how to fight, and I love to love people more than fight people. But then God gave me understanding how this saying is a lie. How we only have to choose one or the other in this saying. How it is “not allowed” to be both. How the world puts us in categories, how we are “this and not that.” I realized that I am a lover AND a fighter. I am becoming more a fighter everyday when I wake up. I’m fighting for my friends I’ve met in Ethiopia. I’m fighting for the ones who have no hope, and have seen their dreams disintegrate into the mud that they live in. I’m a fighter for God’s heart and God’s dream for this world. To bring His Kingdom to everyone I meet. I am a fighter for hope and for dreams. I want you to have dreams and hope in your life.
With this, I have joined Pick-A-Pocket on April 4th 2009, with faith and belief that this war I’m fighting is a war I’m going to fight til death, or until I have won. Period.

Right now, Pick-A-Pocket is based out of Herrnhut, Germany. We plan on moving to a major city in Europe or America within the years. Wherever we decide to move, I move with them. Whatever we decide to do, I am with them. I have the freedom to start projects, to start movements in Pick-A-Pocket to help end extreme poverty. I’m not just a second hand helper, I’m a leader in this group, along with everyone else who is in it. I will live off of support basically my entire life. I am in Pick-A-Pocket until God calls me out of this ministry or until I die. I am in this for the long run, to see extreme poverty end. 

I hope you all can take a stand with me, and fight the battle alongside me. I hope you all have hope. Simple enough. Hope is what keeps us waking up everyday still, hoping that today will be a better day than the next. Believe that you are a part of my life as much as the people who I see physically everyday. With your prayers, your love, your encouragement, your thoughts and your support, you are changing extreme poverty just as much as I am.

I love you all. I hope you will respond back with questions about this lifestyle I’ve chosen to live, and how you can possibly help.

I’m ready for change in this world… so I’m stepping up and going out. 

It’s going to be worth it.

Taylor Pool

Stirred Up

Hey friends,

How can I begin to explain what is happening here? Well, it’s actually kinda easy.

I have never, ever, been this inspired in my entire life to be a better artist or photographer. Walking around in London, being able to free my mind and heart, seeing and soaking in the city, taking photos, meeting random people and hanging out with them and simply just being here is so captivating. The first day, 3 friends and I went to the city of London, since we are staying outside of it, and just went to explore. There are some riots going on right now because of the G20 conference. So we were so excited and curious to see what was going on. Since we are all adventurous and danger makes us excited, we wanted to try to take some photos of the riots. But, unfortunately, they all died down by the time we got to London. If we were here 2 days earlier we would’ve seen the climax of them. After that, we went to pubs, had fish and chips, walked around the city and just took fun photos of us being kids. Very rad and simply inspiring.

The 2nd day, today, we had team meetings all day. Meetings about our futures as artists and photographers. What God wants us to do with our ministry, Pick-A-Pocket. What we can do, as youth, to live out Gods dreams. It was a day long meeting. Time to all sit around, individually share our dreams and personal goals in life, and what we expect out of this retreat in London. This time was so freeing. My heart felt like it had a 50 pound weight on it taken off once I shared  my heart to a group of 30. Being filled with inspiration and direction after being here for 2 days, I was needing some time to process and seriously think about my future as a photographer. It was scary, it was intense, but so much more colorful than I could have ever expected it to be. I still feel a mysterious weight on my heart. A feeling like something pinnacle is about to happen to my life, to all of our lives here in London. That God is going to simply ask something of us on this trip, and we have the choice to say “yes” or “no.” We have the choice to deny Gods dreams for our lives and walk away, or to take up the cross and walk. It’s such a scary lifestyle to live as a Christian. I realize this everyday. Knowing that I live to die. I live to deny myself and give up everything I have every single day. Who would live a life like this? Only the radicals, only the crazy people. But I have not yet found a better, fulfilling lifestyle than this. Knowing that when I deny myself and my wants, give up everyone and everything I know to follow God, I receive the best results for my life. It’s amazing and unexplainable with words. It’s actions. It’s a lifestyle.

This is what I’m experiencing right now in London.

Prayer Requests :
+ More clarity and direction over my life as an artist
+ More “want” to deny everything I know to follow Him
+ More inspiration to become the best photographer that I can be

With love from the Everlasting,

Taylor Pool