CAMPPP<3

Ohh Camp Gilmore, love of my life. ahhaha.

So after Turkey and YWAM was all over, I rushed right over to camp. My amazing friends Karly and Lindsay drove to Vegas from California, so right after my graduation from YWAM we made the drive to Malibu for camp! It was a really long summer since I had no chance to rest before camp started, but it was an amazing summer none the less. I had the chance to have a lot of campers that I had last year in my cabin again this year. That was super fun to see those girls again and see how they'd grown and matured in a year. I almost didnt go to camp this summer because I was afraid that I wouldnt be able to handle 7 months away from home. But I'm sooo glad that I went and I know that I made the right choice.

Turkeyyy!!

So this is a bit over due. Long story short, Turkey was AMAZZINGG!! I've never been somewhere with a foreign language, a different culture, different main religion, and I think I'm hooked:). God was able to use us in incredible ways. The people in Turkey have soo many questions about Christianity and no one to ask since 99% of the population is Muslim. It was hard to answer all their questions since most Turks speak pretty sketchy english, but we did our best and handed out lots of incils (new testaments in Turkish). We also handed out lots of tracks that gave them access to free materials that explained the gospel message. Here's some pictures of Turkey!!

Get the tissues ready.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rF7Bv9Rjl0E


Click on the link above to watch one of the most inspirational things you'll probably ever see. Ricky has cerebal palsey and a passion for sports. He wanted to run marathons so his father agreed to run with him. And when Ricky asked to run the Iron Man triathalon his father didn't hesistate to say yes. Even though it is the most grueling triathalon you can compete in, his love for his son was so great and he wanted to make his son's dream come true. Many people asked him, "Why don't you compete without Ricky? You could win without him!" But he responded "Without Ricky, there is no reason to compete".


I had seen this video at church before, but it was even more powerful when we watched it in lectures today. I started crying the second it started and didn't stop until after it was over. At first I was crying because I have a dad who is just as amazing. I know he would do anything for me, and I admire and respect him so much for that. I love you dad! And I was crying because this video is such a beautiful representation of God's love for us. Of course he doesn't need us to run the triathalon, but he wants us to be involved. Like Ricky's dream of running an iron man, we all have dreams that God wants us to experience. He wants our dreams to come true and promises to be with us every step of the way. Because, like Ricky, we can't accomplish our goals on our own. While I was watching the video I could hear God telling me that that is how much he loves me. All I have to do is tell him my dream, get in the raft, get on the bike, and he'll pull me the whole way. It will be difficult, it will be long, and it will get dark, but he'll never even think about leaving me. God was telling me, just get in the raft! I'm ready! You're ready! Get in the raft and let's do it! So I'm getting in the raft. I have a dream of working with orphans, inner city kids, poor kids, kids who don't get the opportunities that I got. Kids in India, Uganda, and the ghettos here in America. Kids who are born into a battle zone and their main goal is mere survival. I want to change that. I know that they have dreams too and that God just wants them to get in the raft. Brenda Lewis, our speaker this week, told us that if every christian family adopted one orphan, every orphan would have a home. I know that adoption is expensive and difficult and inconvenient, and I know that not everyone feels called to adopt a child. But what are you called to do? What is your dream? What could you accomplish if you simply got in the raft? Its a scary world and we're all concerned about protecting our families from the evil people in it. But whose going to reach those people? Whose going to take care of the orphans and the widows? We like to think that someone else will do it, but seriously, would the world be so messed up if someone else was dealing with it? So I want to challenge everyone, including myself, no matter how big or small your dreams may be, get in the raft. Can you imagine how beautiful a world we would live in if every christian was fulfilling their christ given destiny? I get excited just thinking about it. And I know the enemy will try and thwart me. But he will not be triumphant. Because I'm in the raft, and my father is protecting me. My father is a hero, a champion, and will not be defeated by a rat. Yes, I'm in the raft. Are you?

The countdown is on: 2 weeks!!

Hellooo everyone!!

Sorry its been so long since I've updated this blog. In fact its been so long, I dont really know where to begin. I guess I'll start with this weekend. Saturday we all piled in the van and drove to Scottsdale, Arizona to visit the kids who came to the base for mission adventures. It was really fun to see them all again! We went to their school, Scottsdale Christian Academy, and watched a baseball game and had a pizza party. Then we all went to a mall and hung out with the kids. Then me and 3 other ywamers stayed at Elliots house. It was so amazing to stay at a real house for the night! I didnt want to leave... Sunday we went to Elliots church and then his family took us out to brunch. Elliot and his family are AMAZING and I'm SO grateful for their hospitality! Then we all met back up and we to Seyler"s (one of the SCA teachers) house. We lounged around the pool and most of the canadians got sunburned. I am happy to say that I only slightly burned ; ) Then we went to this cute little western themed tourist town and spent the rest of the afternoon there. It was a really fun trip but today I am soo tired!!

And on another even more exciting note, we leave for Turkey in 2 weeks! I absolutely cannot believe it. Its coming up soo fast! I'm doing my best to learn some Turkish before we get there because most people wont speak english. I just know the basics like hello (merhaba), how are you (nasilsiniz), please (luften) and thank you (teshekur ederim). But I know even the little I know will come in handy! I will do my best to keep updating my blog before I leave because I dont think I'll be updating it while I'm in Turkey. We will be sending a group email update every week though, so if you'd like to be on the mailing list, send me an email at ziannweston@live.com and I'll be sure to get you on the list! I love you all and thank you so much for keeping me in your prayers!

gobble gobble gobble

So its official, we're going to Turkey!! We just bought our plane tickets and I am SO excited. We leave Las Vegas april 20th and come back june 15th. So please just keep praying that everything works out and that finances come in so that everyone on my dts can go on outreach.


So now for an update on what I've been doing the past couple weeks. Last week Scottsdale Christian Academy brought some of their freshman to our base for a mission trip and we got to lead it. It was amazing to see God work through those kids. They were so on fire for Jesus and it was totally contagious. I got to know some of them pretty well during the week and now we might get to road trip down to Arizona to visit them! The highlight of my week was when a boy in my small group, who I'd been praying for all week, came to know Jesus. It was AMAZING and is possibly one of the greatest highlights of my life.

grand canyon

On saturday we all piled into a van and drove about 5 hours to the grand canyon. I left washington hoping for warmer weather, but to my dismay, it was snowing. The view was amazinggg, but it was kind of freaky because of the ice. I was pretty scared that I was gonna slip right into the grand canyon. Other than almost crashing in the van a few times, it was a great day. First we stopped at the Hoover dam, which is pretty close to the base. They're building a new bridge, and its so freaky! I think I would rather die then have to work on that thing! Anyways, things are going great here in Vegas. The family came to visit me last week and we had lots of fun. But now I have to get used to not seeing them all over again, which has been kind of hard.

OH, and I almost forgot the most exciting news of all. We decided on Turkey for our outreach!! I'm reallllllllly excited. Please just continue to pray for me, especially that God will provided the finances for this trip. I can tell I'm where God wants me to be, so I know he'll provide a way. I'm just not very patient, or good at trusting. Also, the dts that was here before us left for Afghanistan last week for their outreach. We all miss them like crazy, so please just pray for their safety and that God provides them with amazing opportunities!

Conquering the mountain

This past saturday we went up to red rock to do a little hiking. It was the most "hike" of my life, if you can even call it a hike. A lot of it was spent scaling mountains and rock climbing while trying not to fall of the side of the mountain. Still not sure if its my cup of tea, but I did have a lot of fun. I wish I could have taken more pictures, but I was too busy trying to stay alive.

the strip

So I had my first official tourist outing in Las Vegas. Last night we went to the strip and I had so much fun. The casinos are crazy! They put so much crazy stuff in there to attract tourists, but hey, it seems to be working pretty well. The DTS has been going great this week. We have our first assigned book to read and its so great that I'm already half way through it. This is amazing because unless its harry potter, I really don't do too much reading these days. Everyone on my dts is super nice and the staff is great. Please keep praying for me and the rest of us on my dts, and I hope you liked the pictures!

so, I'm here.

So my flight went well and I made it to the base safe and sound. Unfortunately, I couldnt find my camera cord while I was packing so it will probably be a while before I can post any pictures. Although, since I've only been here for half a day, its not really a problem yet. Today I've just been unpacking and getting settled in my new home (in the ghetto). We had a bbq to get to know everyone better, and that was fun. I also went to Ross and bought a blanket. Tomorrow we officially start our dts. Hopefully I will have more interesting things to write about in the rest of my blogs...

numero uno

So this whole blogging thing is kind of new to me, but I'm gonna give it my best shot. So yesterday I got FANTASTIC news that I got accepted to the winter DTS at the Las Vegas YWAM base. I will be leaving the 25th of January and will be coming back in mid June. For those of you that aren't familiar with YWAM (youth with a mission), I will explain what this means. A DTS (discipleship training school) is six months long. The first three months is the lecture phase, which will be spent at the base in las vegas. During this time we will study the bible, and hear speakers, and just gain a better understanding of God and our faith. The last three months is the outreach phase, which is spent evangelizing and spreading the word of God. Our group will be doing our outreach in Turkey. I am extremely excited for this amazing opportunity that God has plopped in my lap. I can't wait to test myself, to grow, to become even more indepent, to travel, to love my neighbors, and of course, love jesus. I hope to keep you all updated through this blog, so hopefully I'll have lots of time to write amazing entries. If not, I apologize in advance and I promise to do my best!

Please, keep me in your prayers. Firstly, pray that God will provide the funds for me to pay for the outreach phase of my trip which is going to be roughly $3,000. Pray that God will speak to me and show me the direction he has for my life. Pray that I will make lots of friends with the other people that are going on the DTS so that we can all grow in christ together as a community. And pray thank you to God for this amazing opportunity!!









If you are able, and would like to make a contribution to my trip, God bless you and shoot me an email, and I will tell you how to make a donation to my trip. This blog is not something I created to try and get your money. I hate asking for money and don't feel comfortable with it at all. But God is already teaching me to be humble by showing me that I can't make this trip happen all by myself. So if you feel God prompting you to donate towards my trip, then please do. If not, then please don't. Your prayers and love are the most important things to me, so please send lots my way!!

My email address: ziannaweston@live.com