Students are coming in 3 weeks!

Hey everyone! I hope you’re all doing good! Sorry for the late update- I had written this newsletter but my computer suddenly stopped working so I’ve had to rewrite it!

Anyway! I have been in Kona for 3 months doing leadership track! It has been such a good time with God taking me through a journey and teaching me so much!! Through different amazing leaders and classes, we have delved into servant-hearted leadership, GenZ, discipling students, conflict resolution, team building, culture setting, having a biblical worldview and how to lead students through freedom!

This has included a lot of practical training and activation! One example is a class called “Scenarios,” where leaders set up real-life situations that we might encounter on outreach. For instance, we had scenarios like leading an intercession when students are disengaged, meeting with difficult outreach contacts who are demanding and micromanaging, buying groceries in India amidst chaos, or navigating immigration in Saudi Arabia.

In each scenario, we were randomly paired with co-leaders and given a few moments to strategize before tackling the situation. The leaders went all out to make the scenarios realistic! For the India scenario, they played loud music, tried to scam us, steal our money, or pressure us into buying unnecessary things—it was complete chaos!

In every case, they threw us into the worst-case scenario to test how we would respond under pressure. Afterwards, we debriefed, discussing the ideal course of action and receiving both feedback and encouragement. We learned so much through these experiences, and it was an incredibly fun way to train!!

All in all leadership track is to teach us how to lead students in 1-on-1 settings, and small groups and how to plan and lead an outreach! But there was also a big focus on personal development and intimacy with Jesus! I had lots of time in the prayer room in prayer, conversation with God, reading the bible and processing. We’ve had such amazing leaders and guest speakers with so much wisdom who were great to lean on, ask questions and learn from!

We also did a LOT of intercession, prayer for students and each other, worship, serving on campus, as well as evangelism in the area! I LOVE that YWAM values worship and prayer so highly! Something I can’t shake is the fact that while prayer may seem passive, it is the MOST effective tool of life ever! We can try to do so many things in our strength, but to submit and partner with the one true living God who so loves and cares for His people is 1000% better! We get to partner with Jesus on the right hand of the throne who intercedes 25/7!

Romans 8:34 says that Jesus “is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” In 1 John 2:1 we read that Jesus is our “advocate with the Father,” and from Hebrews 7:25 we learn that Jesus “always lives to intercede” for us

Jesus is on the right hand of the Father on the throne interceding for us 24/7, and we get to partner with Him!!

In Luke 18 it talks about an unjust judge and a nagging widow, and even she got justice in that system! How much more does a loving, heavenly Father give justice to His chosen sons and daughters! God does more and faster because we ask Him! He can do it all himself but he chooses us to partner with Him! It doesn’t make sense, but God's world-saving plan was 12 teenagers and 1 man doing ministry for 3 years without any money or literally anything!

This is your sign to intercede for healing, breakthrough, friends, family, unreached nations and everything!! He hears your prayers!!

We also had the privilege of having Robert Thatch, a missionary in Central Asia, speak to us! Robert has such a heart for Matthew 28-  seeking the face of Jesus and then to just ‘go’

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19-20

His life is a true testament of wholehearted surrender to God and laying his life down to see every people, tribe, language and nation know Jesus! We were able to ask him so many questions about being a missionary and we all left so very inspired and a step closer to going!!

Some key things he said:

Get fascinated with Jesus, because if you live your life like this (a missionary in the unreached in full surrender) without believing in Jesus, you are foolish. For example, the lady in Matthew 26 who anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume- people said it was “a waste”, but Jesus said it was a “beautiful thing”.  If you are not doing it out of the overflow of intimacy with Jesus, it is a waste.

Get caught up with a heavenly, eternal perspective!!

• not knowing Jesus = ETERNAL suffering

• VS everything else that is earthly suffering

• Life on earth is a BLIP- have that perspective for you and everyone else on this planet and devote yourself to you and everyone else knowing Jesus in that blip so we have ETERNAL life with Jesus.

PREFER OTHERS and your problems will be solved!

• Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves”

Count others before yourself!

Prior breakthroughs need to happen before the big breakthrough!

e.g.: God saving the Jews out of slavery to a land of milk and honey - BREAKTHROUGH

but to get to that point there’s the burning bush and Moses.

Moses said no but God delivered Moses from fear and then he delivered the Jews.

e.g.: Jonah’s deliverance from fear first before breakthrough to preach the gospel.

“You thought it was a preparation time for your students

NO - it’s a preparation time for you

For you to get breakthrough before the students”

Over the last month, we’ve also had a couple of interest nights at Andy and Holly Byrd’s house (YWAM leaders). One was for people who think God is leading them to stay in Kona for 5+ years and one was for people who think God is sending them to long-term missions in the nations within 5 years! I went to both. In this, Andy cast vision of what it looks like to commit to this, as well as answered questions and having a time of prayer! While every day I feel God nudging me to pick a different direction, I have full faith that God will guide me and that I will be a missionary for the rest of my life. The second meeting particularly burdened my heart, before my eyes I saw GenZ PACKED into a living room, in full surrender to go to the nations to make Jesus known! To live off God’s provision in people’s generosity, to sacrifice all career or life goals, to learn another language and to live in another culture they do not know. Wow, I love GenZ!!

ALSO, WE RECEIVED OUR OUTREACH LOCATIONS AND CO-LEADER!!

A couple of weeks ago I was officially asked to staff Fire&Fragrance! As staff, I will be planning and leading an outreach of 10-14 students to another country! With one co-leader, we will be fully responsible to plan all travel, accommodation, ministry, visas, schedule, team time and budget. Then in December we will travel with these students to a country we have never been before and oversee all team management- schedule, ministry, logistics, budget etc. As well as discipling and supporting students - helping them grow in their faith and relationship with God. And guiding and leading by example in spiritual disciplines, encouraging students to develop habits of prayer, intercession, Bible study, worship, having an evangelistic lifestyle and reliance on the Holy Spirit.

I am beyond excited to do this and have so much faith in the guidance of the Holy Spirit!!

After being accepted as staff, leaders asked us where we wanted to lead an outreach, so we submitted continents and words of the Lord, and a few days later they surprised us with our co-leader and location! While I cannot reveal where I am going publicly, (contact me and I can tell you!) I am going to a Muslim nation, and I LOVE working with Muslims!

ALSO, I went to the Philippines!!!! As a track and campus, we attended a YWAM global gathering in Manila, Philippines!  4000 people from 110+ nations around the world came together as a YWAM family in prayer, worship,  and to stand united and reminded of our values, beliefs and the original words from God spoken to our late co-founder Loren Cunningham! It was so amazing to stand in a room full of missionaries, people who have laid down their lives in full surrender to see the unreached reached, the lost saved, and to say “yes” to Jesus and follow Matthew 28!! The testimonies, stories, the thousand saved and healed and powerful moves of God from the people in the room were so unbelievable. Even the fact that 99% of people in that room were fully financially dependent on God through financial support was crazy! Missionaries from all over the world including the most unreached nations in the world- Central Asia, the Middle East, Somalia, India, Pakistan, North Africa!! It was so amazing!!

We even had the privilege of hearing Darlene Cunningham speak at the conference. Since Loren‘s passing almost a year ago has been very sick, being in and out of the hospital and only having a couple of good weeks since. As a YWAM family, we came together in lots and lots of prayer over her throughout the year, especially in the last month to see Darlene come to the Philippines with everyone! And she did! Praise God!! There are so many amazing things I can say about this woman, who is such a woman of God, who laid down her life, listened and obeyed and didn’t give up! And while she has seen much fruit, I am very sure this is only the tip of the iceberg of what is going to come from her life.

Some things that stuck out over the gathering:

“You’re either a missionary or a mission field “

“Airplanes were invented to fulfil the great commission”

“There is an inadequate prayer life to spur the prophetic

For us to be an apostolic movement, we must first be a radical prayer movement”

“He’s calling us to arise and take the land”

“People asked Loren who will take over as leader once he passes and he always responded “The person who has always led… Jesus! He has always and will always be the leader of YWAM””

“There is no substitute whatsoever for fervent, faith-filled, focused prayer for the nations as I have taught it over the years... Some leaders think they are on the cutting edge but don't make intercession for the nations at all. What they think is cutting edge is not cutting it with God.”- Joy Dawson

Over time we had lots of incredible testimonies as well as a big focus on initiatives over Africa, OMT (Oral Mother Tongue Bible translation), prayer and intercession, the most unreached and adoption!

To end we were commissioned out by the elders as the next Joshua generation of our movement! I have so much faith in the moves of God we are going to see!! A word of the Lord spoken over YWAM is that 200,000 missionaries are going to be sent!

4,500+ people, 110+ nations, many peoples, tribes and languages represented and worshipping the only one worthy!

It was the closest glimpse of heaven I’ve ever experienced!

Revelation 7:9 -10

“After this, I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

The big question leaders have asked us this season is what our “why” is. They have emphasised the importance of knowing our “why” so much. Why are we here? Why are we doing what we’re doing? Why are we following Jesus? Why are we a missionary?

It’s so easy, especially where I’ve grown up in a Christian household, with such faith-filled, Godly parents and grandparents to follow Jesus, do ministry and be a missionary, without my own “why”.

Well, this is my “why”:

Jesus has been with me from the beginning, protecting, providing and watching over me with such grace.  He has burdened my heart with the reality of the 3.4 billion people who do not know Him, who do not have the love, joy, peace and hope I live by every day, who do not give the worship deserved to God and who do not live in their identity as a son or daughter of the Most High or living in the call of God on their lives.

I have committed my life to surrender and obedience, allowing the Word of the Lord to guide all my decisions. God has spoken to me multiple times about my move to YWAM Kona, with the purpose of:

A) Being trained and equipped to be a missionary in the hardest and darkest.

B) Encouraging others to step into the call of God on their lives.

C) Highlighting the importance and joy of missions and train and send GenZ to impact the nations!

We have 300 students coming in 3 weeks!! (Including my sister!!) I am so excited to full send into this next DTS but on the leadership side!! I would so appreciate your prayers! There is so much power in prayer, genuinely prayer moves mountains and I've seen the power of prayer become reality, so I value having people who are willing to pray and intercede for me, my students, and my team, and for the unreached and missions in general! Prayer warriors are so important!!!

Prayer points:

• Over my co-leader in our planning, that every decision would be led by the Holy Spirit!

• That God would continue to teach, equip, and grow me to be able to lead! That he would pour out wisdom, discernment and love so I may support and disciple students to His will and perspective!

• Over the 300 students coming in 3 weeks! That they would fall in love with Jesus more and more every day, and that God would cover, protect, provide and encourage them in the lead-up! And the enemy would have no hand over them!

• For the students in my room! A covering of joy, love, peace and friendship in the room!

• For provision in finances of full-time missions! I am currently 25% to my goal of monthly support!

• For favour, peace, and joy in this season to face the unexpected!

• To continue to cultivate good friendships and community, both with students and staff!

• For Central Asia!!—that God will reveal himself to his people, in dreams, visions and encounters, so that they may know the truth and love of Jesus.

• Pray for more missionaries to rise to go to the unreached!! That people will “go”. Matthew 28:19-20 is a call to all people from Jesus to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Thank you for being a part of this story and helping sow into my calling, and the Lord’s plan to further the Kingdom.

I love you all!!

Olivia