Two Journal Entries from our L.A. Missions Trip

August 30, 2012

We have been in L.A. for four days now. it is Thursday morning but unlike the other early mornings I am not packing up to head to the DreamCenter with the rest of the team. Em got really sick last night, and I am staying back with her at the hotel. The past few days have been great, but in an unexpected way. It wasn't exactly how I pictured it to be. The first day we loaded trucks full of food and brought it to a community near by. When we arrived there was a line down the street of people with grocery bags waiting for the food. They were mostly all Hispanic, but they differed in age. There were families and babies as well as some elderly people. We unloaded the truck and began to hand out the food to the assembly line of people. Usually nothing more than a "Have a good day." or "God bless" was spoken since there were so many to be served, but it was a prospective killer. Last night we went to the beach and four of our team members got baptized. As we left the beach we passed by all these people, dining and laughing in the fancy restaurants. It hit me there that these people consumed and forgot. That I can consume and forget. Forget the faces that I had seen the first work morning, and what life looks like to them. Even in close proximity it is worlds different. These faces at the beach laugh and forget , and I am struck at the thought of what I will chose. Which faces will I be around, how will I serve and which would Jesus? I truly do not want to go home and consume and forget.


August 31, 2012

I have so many emotions, stories and information to sort through tonight. Today was a complete overload. In the morning we had chapel, then two sessions at the DreamCenter. God has just been speaking to me through every single person I've encountered and I am trying to sort through all of the messages. In our prayer afterwards I just kept talking at God, truing to figure everything out. I finally become too overloaded and I felt God whisper to me "rest for a moment." I laid down and pictured myself how I always do; laying on the forest floor with my Jesus, but this time I turned and saw Mike. Mike was a man I met on Skid Row, a beautiful man who had zero teeth and an amazing attitude. He made promises he would get himself into the DreamCenter, I need to pray he keeps it. Then I looked past Mike and saw Dante, Michelle and Doris and all the other beautiful people I met today. God stopped me in that moment, He made me smile as He showed me He has it already overcome. These are His children and it is not on me to become overwhelmed, it is not on me to figure out. It is on me to trust my Father and to live for Home. I laid there with these people, God continuing to show me His desire is for them as well. I need to share my Jesus, because He is a good daddy and His love is perfect and can overcome all. Trust, Carli, trust.

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