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Day 19

Part 1 : spiritual part
Part 2 : update on my life
Part 3 : photos

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PART 1 : The Valley of Slaughter

God has been teaching me a lot about repentance lately in the book of Jeremiah. If you’ve read my past posts, you would know I’ve been studying in Jeremiah. But everyday He leads me back to that book to get the idea of what repentance looks like and what it looks like if His people don’t repent.

First, I’m going to point out some verses to you guys on how God reacted towards Jerusalem and Judah when they did not repent. Then just tell you my thoughts. Remember, all of these verses talk about repentance, and how His people did not repent to Him for what they’ve done against Him.

Jeremiah 2:19 “Your wickedness will punish you;
your backsliding will rebuke you.
Consider then and realize
how evil and bitter it is for you
when you forsake the LORD your God
and have no awe of me,”
declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty.”
Jeremiah 4:22 “”My people are fools;
they do not know me.
They are senseless children;
they have no understanding.
They are skilled in doing evil;
they know not how to do good.”
Jeremiah 4:23-26 “

23 I looked at the earth,
and it was formless and empty;
and at the heavens,
and their light was gone.

24 I looked at the mountains,
and they were quaking;
all the hills were swaying.

25 I looked, and there were no people;
every bird in the sky had flown away.

26 I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert;
all its towns lay in ruins
before the LORD, before his fierce anger.

Jeremiah 5:6 “Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them,
a wolf from the desert will ravage them,
a leopard will lie in wait near their towns
to tear to pieces any who venture out,
for their rebellion is great
and their backslidings many.”
Jeremiah 5:7-9
“Why should I forgive you?
Your children have forsaken me
and sworn by gods that are not gods.
I supplied all their needs,
yet they committed adultery
and thronged to the houses of prostitutes.

8 They are well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for another man’s wife.

9 Should I not punish them for this?”
declares the LORD.
“Should I not avenge myself
on such a nation as this?
Jeremiah 5:21-22 “
Hear this, you foolish and senseless people,
who have eyes but do not see,
who have ears but do not hear:
Should you not fear me?” declares the LORD.
“Should you not tremble in my presence?

Jeremiah 6:22-23

22 This is what the LORD says:
“Look, an army is coming
from the land of the north;
a great nation is being stirred up
from the ends of the earth.

23 They are armed with bow and spear;
they are cruel and show no mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
to attack you, O Daughter of Zion.”

Jeremiah 8:17
“See, I will send venomous snakes among you,
vipers that cannot be charmed,
and they will bite you,”
declares the LORD.

Jeremiah 9:13-16 “The LORD said, “It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law. 14 Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts; they have followed the Baals, as their fathers taught them.” 15 Therefore, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “See, I will make this people eat bitter food and drink poisoned water. 16 I will scatter them among nations that neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will pursue them with the sword until I have destroyed them.”

Ok, all of this just talks about how WE NEED TO REPENT from our sins against the Lord. Why would we not repent in the first place? Why would we act out in our stubbornness and be blind to His love and grace of repentance? A lot of Christians talk about how God is so loving and so caring, which is COMPLETELY true! But, I don’t think some Christians get the point of how he is also JUSTICE! He will pay back for what others do against Him. It doesn’t mean the Lord is just going to be “a-ok” if you serve another god. Yes, He still loves you no matter what you do, but He’s full of justice. There are consequences for your actions. There are punishments for how you act out against Him.

This all relates to just the week I did act out against the Lord of drunkenness and other such things.

He wanted to make it clear to me how repentance is NEEDED in the Christian life. He wanted to show me all these verses to tell me what he can do with his Justice and power to people who do not repent to Him.

The Lord sometimes has no mercy on His people, for all they do is serve sin.
Check out this verse in Jeremiah 6:11-12

11 But I am full of the wrath of the LORD,
and I cannot hold it in.
“Pour it out on the children in the street
and on the young men gathered together;
both husband and wife will be caught in it,
and the old, those weighed down with years.

12 Their houses will be turned over to others,
together with their fields and their wives,
when I stretch out my hand
against those who live in the land,”
declares the LORD.

I just think people need to know how the Lord is, and who He is as a God. Yes, he is so loving, caring, gentle, compassionate, and full of grace. But He is also a God full of justice.

Jeremiah 9:24 “…I am the LORD, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight,”
declares the LORD.

Tell me your opinions, thoughts and wisdom on this subject, if you have reached this part of the message :-P. I hope to hear your thoughts! Pray about it and see what the Lord reveals to you.

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PART 2 : DAY 19 : NORDERSTEDT, GERMANY (YWAM BASE)

Well, I now currently live at the YWAM Base in Norderstedt/Hamburg, Germany. I left Johanna’s house 3 days ago, her mom drove me to the base and I’ve been here since. It’s so nice to meet people around the world who have the same desire and passion to serve God as you do!

This is my 3rd day, and it’s amazing here! This YWAM Base is about 2 years old, and is in a 3 story house. It’s a super small YWAM base, 8 staff and 12 students. Although, the students come in mid Sept, so they aren’t here now. Since YWAM DTS (discipleship training school) hasn’t officially started here yet, we are just hanging out here everyday, shopping, praying, talking, sharing stories, watching tv, and cooking all day! It’s really low key and chill. Nothing to special. It’s awesome to hear how this base got started so soon and just to hear the staff members testimonies and what they do as a ministry here in Hamburg.

The new friends I’ve made here are : Dominik (German), Luba(German/Russian), Romana(German), Alex(German/Russian), Dane (German), and Ingo (German).

Yesterday we went grocery shopping for me. Since I’ll be here for 8 days I need to get some food! I felt like such a baby shopping. I couldn’t read anything obviously, I constantly had to ask Dominik to translate words, to show me where certain foods are, and to just hold my hand basically ;-). Dominik and I realized that after I paid for everything, I got the most American food ever for 1 week. Frozen french fries, 3 pizzas, pasta, ham and cheese sandwiches, and 2 kinds of soups. The cheapest food there was! But it’s still good! How can I not be American? I AM ONE!

Yesterday I also learned a lot about American Christians vs European Christians. When I say vs, it’s not like we are battling, just the differences between them. Very interesting, nothing to drastic, but, if these European Christians lived in the midwest, things would get very complicated, fast! So, now I just have to have an open mind and pray for one, because this is their culture, and it’s “ok” with them on what they do as a European Christian. It’s honestly not that big of a deal at all.

I believe I’ll be staying here til the 4th or 5th of Sept, then I’ll be taking a train to Herrnhut, Germany for YWAM PHOTO DTS SCHOOL! WOOT!

Til then, I’ll be having great times here with the staff. I believe some friends of theirs are going to take me to youth group tonight. :-)

I’ll let you know what’s up with me soon!

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PART 3 : PHOTOS OF EUROPE AND FRIENDS!

Finally! I’ll be able to show you guys my friends in Europe so far. And just of where I’ve been traveling as well!

FRIENDS :

Johanna, Hamburg, Germany
She went to school with me at Northwest High School in Wichita, KS a year ago.

Lorenz Hargassner, Hamburg, Germany
He was my seat partner on the way from Vienna to Hamburg. He’s also a professional sax player and tours around Europe.

Adam Vonyik, Bac, Slovkia
This guys went to school with me at Northwest High School 2 years ago.
Adam and I both agree that this photo looks like the movie Signs