Life is Not For Sale!
Posted by Brittany Hurst on Thursday, January 31, 2013
A new journey has begun for 70+ students that have arrived in Townsville over the weekend. I find it to be such a privilege that I get to be a part of their walk as they discover more of who God is and His love, as well as gain understanding and an opportunity to grow in who they are too. More specifically, I'm staffing our 'Not For Sale' Discipleship Training School (DTS) - focused on bringing justice and hope.
I know it's kind of long, but below is the vision of the Not For Sale DTS for the next 6 months, we'd love to have you jump on board and support us - through prayer, finances, encouragement, etc. Let me know for more information!
..Not just the privileged...not just the upper class...not just the men, or the developed world, or the educated
...BUT ALL!
All people have a right to life – and life to the full! We are Not For Sale and We Want to Live.
Just off our doorsteps are nations full of culture and diversity, made in the image of God and created to reflect his glory. In these same nations, injustice thrives and the value of life is thrown aside. People die daily from malaria, many drink out of dirty ditches, children are sold, women are beaten, it’s common for mother’s to die in childbirth –
This is not God’s heart and This is not okay!
It’s not okay that just 150km north of Australia is a country where it's not unusual for the reason behind blindness to be a beating, and it’s not okay that every day lives are lost in the midst of violence -that gang rape takes place and the church talks about it but largely does nothing; that it’s become acceptable that widows are available for exploitation. It’s not okay that even when health services are available that people don’t have the fuel to get there, and it’s not okay that in many cases they just simply are not available. It’s not right that babies die because their mothers can’t breast feed and no one steps in to help.
We each have a right to life. We are Not For Sale. We have a life to live, to stand up - to step in to. As the Not For Sale DTS our lives have a purpose. We have been created for more than just to watch and stand by!
These women deserve to be loved, these villages need equipping and training, these communities need help and development, this nation need warriors of prayer....
Not for Sale DTS, we have heard their cries and we will go. We will love unconditionally, we will work together to see the value of life restored. These nations have an inheritance in the Kingdom of God, a true calling and purpose. The Lord has anointed us to bring good news to the poor, to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes and gladness instead of mourning.
Our lives are worth more than a price tag and should not be determined by the cash we have. Your life - their life has immeasurable value. This is why we will go.
We will impact the nation of Papua New Guinea as we work to see communitities developed, we believe in the fight for justice and in seeing an end to human trafficking in south-east asia. We will put love into action in indigenous communities across Queensland and will call young Aussies to look beyond themselves and advocate for the poor and needy. We will see lives radically rocked and changed, prevention and awareness take place, and hope restored.
For me, growing up in a Christian home created a tendency of falling into religion. I knew Jesus but I also knew the right things to do; my actions weren't often motivated by a deep love for God but rather a desire to not rock the boat. Throughout high school, I had the opportunity to go on a few mission trips, my first being to Mexico. Not only was it my first time to get exposure to another culture but it was also during this time, that I realised that God is an extremely personal and always pursuing Father. It was then that I began to see that God is a God who wants to intervene, respond to prayer and that He sees me where I’m at. Over the next few years, I took steps forward and backward with my relationship with God but knew at the end of the day, that there was so much more that God had for me compared to what I was walking in. Traveling to Australia for DTS, was me taking a few giant steps forward to strengthen my relationship with Jesus. I came, fearful but hopeful and longing for God to use me and mold me. It was no longer okay for me to be satisfied without His purpose for my life, it was no longer okay for me to believe the lies of who I thought I was, it was no longer okay for me to succumb to doubt or fear. My love for the nations only continued to grow throughout this time. I am still definitely on the journey, I’m not sure we ever fully ‘arrive’ but as I continue to seek God I am more and more convinced that the nations, the hurting, the broken are SO on God's heart.
For me injustice isn't just a word. it's a thousand faces. Faces that have looked me in the eye full of pain yet longing for hope and love. A hope and love through Jesus, that I've found. So I wonder, will you let God lead you to where He wants to take You? Will you let Him mold your heart and give you eyes to see the things that make His heart cry? And as you walk in the freedom of who you are in God, will you be a catalyst for others to find freedom too?
Not For Sale DTS - Our GOD is ABLE! Let's not wait. Child labour exists primarily because people don't know or don't believe it happens. Domestic Violence thrives because no one speaks up, they don't believe they're worth it. Human Trafficking takes place because what should never be sold gets priced. Let's get their stories out there, lets work to bring change.
The world needs to know the truth. Every day, the poor, the hurting, the oppressed, the weak...they are worth it! Their voices need to be heard, their stories need to be told, their circumstances need to change, and we have the power to do that.
Together we can empower a nation, together we can speak up for the voiceless, together we can bring hope.
Their lives are Not For Sale and and they want to live!
I know it's kind of long, but below is the vision of the Not For Sale DTS for the next 6 months, we'd love to have you jump on board and support us - through prayer, finances, encouragement, etc. Let me know for more information!
..Not just the privileged...not just the upper class...not just the men, or the developed world, or the educated
...BUT ALL!
All people have a right to life – and life to the full! We are Not For Sale and We Want to Live.
Just off our doorsteps are nations full of culture and diversity, made in the image of God and created to reflect his glory. In these same nations, injustice thrives and the value of life is thrown aside. People die daily from malaria, many drink out of dirty ditches, children are sold, women are beaten, it’s common for mother’s to die in childbirth –
This is not God’s heart and This is not okay!
It’s not okay that just 150km north of Australia is a country where it's not unusual for the reason behind blindness to be a beating, and it’s not okay that every day lives are lost in the midst of violence -that gang rape takes place and the church talks about it but largely does nothing; that it’s become acceptable that widows are available for exploitation. It’s not okay that even when health services are available that people don’t have the fuel to get there, and it’s not okay that in many cases they just simply are not available. It’s not right that babies die because their mothers can’t breast feed and no one steps in to help.
We each have a right to life. We are Not For Sale. We have a life to live, to stand up - to step in to. As the Not For Sale DTS our lives have a purpose. We have been created for more than just to watch and stand by!
These women deserve to be loved, these villages need equipping and training, these communities need help and development, this nation need warriors of prayer....
Not for Sale DTS, we have heard their cries and we will go. We will love unconditionally, we will work together to see the value of life restored. These nations have an inheritance in the Kingdom of God, a true calling and purpose. The Lord has anointed us to bring good news to the poor, to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes and gladness instead of mourning.
Our lives are worth more than a price tag and should not be determined by the cash we have. Your life - their life has immeasurable value. This is why we will go.
We will impact the nation of Papua New Guinea as we work to see communitities developed, we believe in the fight for justice and in seeing an end to human trafficking in south-east asia. We will put love into action in indigenous communities across Queensland and will call young Aussies to look beyond themselves and advocate for the poor and needy. We will see lives radically rocked and changed, prevention and awareness take place, and hope restored.
For me, growing up in a Christian home created a tendency of falling into religion. I knew Jesus but I also knew the right things to do; my actions weren't often motivated by a deep love for God but rather a desire to not rock the boat. Throughout high school, I had the opportunity to go on a few mission trips, my first being to Mexico. Not only was it my first time to get exposure to another culture but it was also during this time, that I realised that God is an extremely personal and always pursuing Father. It was then that I began to see that God is a God who wants to intervene, respond to prayer and that He sees me where I’m at. Over the next few years, I took steps forward and backward with my relationship with God but knew at the end of the day, that there was so much more that God had for me compared to what I was walking in. Traveling to Australia for DTS, was me taking a few giant steps forward to strengthen my relationship with Jesus. I came, fearful but hopeful and longing for God to use me and mold me. It was no longer okay for me to be satisfied without His purpose for my life, it was no longer okay for me to believe the lies of who I thought I was, it was no longer okay for me to succumb to doubt or fear. My love for the nations only continued to grow throughout this time. I am still definitely on the journey, I’m not sure we ever fully ‘arrive’ but as I continue to seek God I am more and more convinced that the nations, the hurting, the broken are SO on God's heart.
For me injustice isn't just a word. it's a thousand faces. Faces that have looked me in the eye full of pain yet longing for hope and love. A hope and love through Jesus, that I've found. So I wonder, will you let God lead you to where He wants to take You? Will you let Him mold your heart and give you eyes to see the things that make His heart cry? And as you walk in the freedom of who you are in God, will you be a catalyst for others to find freedom too?
Not For Sale DTS - Our GOD is ABLE! Let's not wait. Child labour exists primarily because people don't know or don't believe it happens. Domestic Violence thrives because no one speaks up, they don't believe they're worth it. Human Trafficking takes place because what should never be sold gets priced. Let's get their stories out there, lets work to bring change.
The world needs to know the truth. Every day, the poor, the hurting, the oppressed, the weak...they are worth it! Their voices need to be heard, their stories need to be told, their circumstances need to change, and we have the power to do that.
Together we can empower a nation, together we can speak up for the voiceless, together we can bring hope.
Their lives are Not For Sale and and they want to live!