We’ve just come back from our outreach in Blackpool. We had no idea whatsoever that this would be our destination until about 2 weeks before the end of the lecture phase. We were praying as a group that God would reveal to us where He wanted us to go for the last 15 days of the UK outreach, since it still looked pretty much unsorted. The answer was Blackpool.We were hosted by a church in the most needy area of Blackpool. Their hospitality and generosity were amazing! We all felt as part of a family there. During our time there we were able to pray for the city, considered to be one of the darkest places in England, and speak life onto it. We also prayed for our host church, the spheres of society and people we came across. We picked up trash on the streets, helped out at a cafe that is run by a lovely couple from the church who happened to be my hosts, and got actively involved in activities at the church such as giving testimonies and leading Bible study, Sunday School and Prayer Meeting.

The highlight of this outreach though, was, for most of us, helping out at the Hope Project. The project consists of bringing hope to the homeless people in Blackpool by providing food, clothes and assistance for them. I got in touch with many beautiful and valuable people so full of potential who have gone through lots of pain in their lives. I felt helpless and all I wanted to do was stay quiet, look them in the eyes and listen to them. We were able to pray for the original design of almost everyone there and give them words of encouragement from God. It was touching to see some people with tears in their eyes as we were telling them how precious they are to God. We also handed out leaflets about the Hope Project in 3 big blocks of flats where apparently most drug dealers and addicts are concentrated. It was quite an adventure…

I was so blown away by how much the leaders of the project care for people. There’s so much love in their eyes that, honestly, I just wanted to stay near them just to feel a bit of that love. As I watched people all excited gather around the van to get something to eat, I remembered that passage in Matthew 25 which says: “whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me”. I could visualise Jesus Himself queueing to receive pot-noodles, coffee, a new pair of jeans and love. A massive amount of love.

We went to Blackpool to bless that city but I reckon we ended up being the ones who were blessed the most.

Ester, Brazil

DTS is a time of refreshing, restoration and God’s power of healing in my life. It’s good for me to be in this DTS as God called me and I obeyed. It’s like a process started in my life from the first day I was here, and it’s not finished yet. Every single day I learn something or something happens deep inside me. Sometimes maybe I cry and other times I’m filled with joy. It’s the best time. I’ve enjoyed my relationship with God and have an understanding of being an intimate disciple.

The most significant thing for me was in this past week. I was praying for a new revelation through the teaching about the Father Heart of God. God revealed to me that He loves me as much as He loves Jesus and Jesus loves me as much as He loves God through John 17. I might have read John 17 more than 20 times, but I have never experienced this amazing love of God for me, as He is my good Father and wants the best for me.

Through DTS I have experienced God’s love, caring, providing money for my school fees and outreach, knowing my original design and walking in it, seeing myself through God’s eyes and having my identity through Him.

Mary, Egypt

Inner Healing
We are not aware of how much we are affected by sin until we ask God to show it to us. As we move away from God’s principles, we experience pain. As we go back to God’s ways, we experience inner healing, freedom and joy.
Inner healing is not only about feeling better inside but also helping other people to get healed from the same things we used to suffer from in the past. “But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds” (Jeremiah 30:17). We won’t forget what happened to us, but it won’t hurt anymore.
This teaching on inner healing was very helpful to me as I could deal with the pain that was hidden in some dark and dusty spots in my heart.

Communication
We looked at the eight different spheres of society and how God is revealed to each one of them. In education, for instance, He is the Rabbi. In economics, He’s Jehovah Jireh, our Provider. In politics, He’s justice and wants to ensure equality and justice for all citizens.
The teaching focused particularly on communication (God is the Living Word) and the power of the tongue. Scriptures like “pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones” (Prov 16:24) and “with the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness” (James 3:9) have made me wonder whether the things I say really bless people.

Ester, Brazil

January 08 DTS week 7
Intimate Discipleship and Politics & Justice

Discipleship, that’s what a Discipleship Training School is about.
It’s a great challenge for all of us students.
Why? - watch this!
- Are you hungry for Jesus?
- To love Jesus IS to obey Jesus
- Become who you were born to be!
- Take up your cross every single TODAY!
- Intimacy with Jesus means ultimate vulnerability and ultimate freedom
These are just some of the points we had to deal with.

Means: First to analyse where we are, then to think where we want to be.
To find a way to get there, and finally to accept or to reject the challenge.

One place where the challenge turns practical is the Wednesday afternoon outreach in Luton. We set up a cafe in St. Mary’s, sent some people out to invite, some pray and some host and talk. I had quite some difficulties to approach people on the street and invite them to the cafe, just for the fear of being ignored or laughed at. I say, and I think I mean, that I would give everything for Jesus. However, I struggle to get out of my comfort-zone for that little an issue.

The second part of the week was about Politics and Justice. I think most of us, including me, understood for the first time, that Christians actually should get involved in Politics, as the world is God’s and he wants it to be ruled in his way. Who on earth would know better what God wants for the world than those who follow him?

These are the kinds of thoughts and questions we had to face this week.

Andreas, Germany

I admit I’m one of those people who have to study some thing before they feel justified to participate in it. For months, I read triathlon books, websites, and magazines, volunteered at a few events and meticulously purchased just the right equipment before realizing that the best way to gain triathlon knowledge and experience is actually participating in one. Silly how that happens. Needless to say, sometimes my pursuit of wanting to be an expert makes me realize I have to put ambition and caution to the wind and just jump in without looking back.

Joining this January DTS has really helped me understand how futile a sideline-approach to life can be and how rewarding a life of jumping in is. For a few months previous to coming to England for my DTS, I was absolutely looking at my faith from the sidelines as a lot of people in the U.S. do. Far too often, it is our Christian way of life. Talking about our faith, going to church, going to Bible study, feeling all Christian-y, or what have you. I didn’t quite know how to connect my faith with every aspect of my life.

For me, this DTS has helped me begin to understand how to develop a true discipleship of Jesus in my life. Christianity isn’t all about reading the Bible or going to Church–it is applying what you’ve learned from these important resources and living like Christ in every aspect of your life and this DTS has helped me begin to understand what that looks and feels like. Sometimes it takes a huge leap of faith to dedicate 6 months to God in order to understand. It feels awful right before you take the leap of faith, but, oh, how rewarding it is!

In fact, this DTS has been so much more rewarding than I expected. Our school’s Bible verse is Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” This verse has been incredibly encouraging. But more importantly, participating DTS has helped us begin to realize the love God has for us and just exactly how God is equipping us for doing good works. It really is a privilege to be here to grow closer to 10 other people as we all grow closer to God together.

I recently started a new hobby by purposely diving head-first. It’s a lot like scrap booking–making websites with only XHTML. It has been such a riot to learn as I go. I’ve made dozens of mistakes–alright, countless mistakes–but, wow, how sweet those mistakes make my success when I finally get it right! I think God asks us as Christians to dive into our faith head-first, and fully immerse ourselves in Him. The strength, experience, and success we find in Christ is so very sweet!

Heidi, USA

As I am writing this I find myself hungry in two different ways. One, I am fasting in faith for God’s provision, so, my stomach is grumbling quite a bit. The other is due to my lack of prayer, scripture and teaching. I didn’t even know I was that kind of hungry two months ago. But, since being here and seeing both in the teaching and in the examples of the staff, I have realized what I need to fill my spiritual appetite. Throughout the past 4-5 weeks I have taken ideas, thoughts and theology that I knew and then deepened my understanding of it. I have learned the importance of forgiveness, reconciliation, fasting, prayer, scripture, and humbleness. Back home I knew I wanted something more but, until I started to take in the amazing teaching I had no clue as to how much I had been missing.
The other aspect that I love is the community here on base. While yes, we are YWAMER’s and yes some are even Ovalites, it is an extremely open community. A lot of the events done here on base are open to the public and they are active in the community. Part of that is the DTS’s outreach into Luton every Wednesday. What we do is set up a place for people to have coffee and tea. Then we go out on to the streets and invite people in. We just talk with them. It’s amazing how much an entire city can hurt in the same way. Most people are just lonely and can’t believe that someone wants to pray for them or even just talk. I’m am unbelievably excited to take what I have been learning to outreach in Tanzania in April and look forward to the blessings God will bring. Oh, and for the record, when I’m not fasting the food here is always good.

Jesus loves you,

James Tock