The Divine Lorraine: Building Faith

The LORD will guide you continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Those from among you Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. Isaiah 58:11-12

A few weeks ago, me and some friends went down to Calvary Chapel North Philadelphia to help clean up a YMCA center. On the way home, we took a strange turn and stumbled upon this beautiful building. It's called the Divine Lorraine Hotel. It was built in the late 1800's, and used as a Hotel, food kitchen, and a place where Father Divine preached his sermons. The building is on horrible shape and currently not being used. Our Vision is to buy it, and fix it up. We want to see it restored to what it once was... We would love to use this building to open up a woman's shelter, a food Kitchen, and a school of ministry. It would also be a place for missionaries to stay to do work in Philadelphia. The building currently costs about 4.1 million dollars. It's current owner bought it with the purpose to turn it into condo's, but with the economic problems, this never happened. We know that this is no challenge for our Lord, so please do pray that our faith would not fail in spite of a big challenge.

Right now we are praying about contacting the owner, so please pray that the Lord would open His heart, and that he would be willing to talk to us. Also pray for us as we are beginning the process, please pray that we would know the will of the Lord, and that this would only come about if it's His desire.

Philadelphia Love.

I really do Love Philadelphia, and I am so glad that the Lord is working here. I know I am leaving soon, but I have been so blessed here.

This past weekend we held a flea market at Calvary Philly and had some woman from a shelter in the city come and get new clothes that had been donated. It was amazing to see how blessed they were. It amazed me that God set up this whole thing for them. At least 50 woman gave up their weekend to set up the flea market for them. That is the beauty of the body of Christ.

The theme verse was Luke 12:27-28: "Consider the Lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He cloth you?"

Now, to be honest I have never lacked in the clothing department. Really, I have never really been in need. So I was challenged to think, if all of a sudden I had nothing, do I believe that God would provide? Of coarse I say yes, but do i really believe it? I've seen God give me money for College, and I seen Him continually providing. I think we walk through life not realizing what God has provided for us. We thank our parents, but we forget to thank God. George Mueller said "If God doesn't provide for me, it will be the first time." I've been reminded of all that God has given me, and further more convinced that I have deserved none of it.

The Senior High Prayer retreat was this weekend also. I went very well! I was personally so blessed as I know the kids were as well. The Lord was good!

Surf Camp.

So a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to be a counselor at Surf Camp. The Lord didn't let the fact that I could not surf keep me from meeting some amazing girls.

We had a great weekend and we were totally blessed.

I was very blessed by the teachings, the Lord really confirmed to me that for a season i do need to be home. It's sad, but it's exciting. There is so much joy to find in "counting all things loss" for the purpose of knowing Jesus Christ. God's ultimate purpose for our lives is our sanctification! It's about who we are, not where we are or who we are with. He loves us that much, that he purposes to get us alone with Him! I don't want to despise my Brooke Chareth. God may train us in strange ways, and in places we didn't expect. Paul's greatest desire was to get to Rome, but God had things for Him on the way. I may feel like I'm sidetracked, but the Lord knew it all along! You know your in the Lord's will when you are a continent away from your own agenda.

This passage I read in my devotions today really encouraged me. When God gives us a vision for a certian place or work it becomes so easy to try to make that vision happen. But we need to remember to wait on the Lord.

"God gives us a vision, and then He takes us down to the valley to batter us into the shape of that vision. It is in the valley that so many of us give up and faint. Every God-given vision will become real if we will only have patience. Just think of the enormous amount of free time God has! He is never in a hurry. Yet we are always in such a frantic hurry. While still in the light of the glory of the vision, we go right out to do things, but the vision is not yet real in us. God has to take us into the valley and put us through fires and floods to batter us into shape, until we get to the point where He can trust us with the reality of the vision. Ever since God gave us the vision, He has been at work. He is getting us into the shape of the goal He has for us, and yet over and over again we try to escape from the Sculptor’s hand in an effort to batter ourselves into the shape of our own goal.
The vision that God gives is not some unattainable castle in the sky, but a vision of what God wants you to be down here. Allow the Potter to put you on His wheel and whirl you around as He desires. Then as surely as God is God, and you are you, you will turn out as an exact likeness of the vision. But don’t lose heart in the process. If you have ever had a vision from God, you may try as you will to be satisfied on a lower level, but God will never allow it."
Oswald Chambers