letter to a friend about a new kidney :)

I keep forgetting to tell you an awesomely awesome story about a miracle in me!!

so...

with great suspense...

lol

k. so a few years ago i had a kidney infection in my right kidney and it wiped me out so much they took me to hospital and while i was in there getting all the tests they found that i had the infection and why it was so bad was because my left kidney was the size of a thumb nail and was only outputting 3% kidney function. they said i could live on 1 kidney but that i need to be really careful with these repeated infections because it meant i had no back up.

so a few years later, like 2007, found myself with a odd bunch of people called Bethelites in a little town in northern california. these said bethelites held a youth conference in February called duh duh duuuuh: 'ENCOUNTER'.

while at the conference fun and crazy man named todd bentley pointed into the crowd - at me - and said there was someone there who's kidneys was going to get healed and they were to stand up.

(now i had regularly told God that he could whack me anytime anywhere - i just wanted the whacking - i am foolish lol)


so i stood up infront of everyone and the moment i did i started being shaken like a doll. very cool but also just slightly embarrassing. so after quite a while of violent shaking, i stupidly tried to stop it and was pretty unsuccessful but managed at least to sit down (thinking that then no one would see - duh -not too bright)

my friend emily walker, a 2nd year from norway, Bill j and a bunch of other bethelites had been praying for me - unbeknown to me (due to excessive shakingness). they asked, of course, if i could test the healing - and of course i couldn't :( so really didn't think much more of the whole deal apart from i had truly been whacked :)

k we're getting there i promise...

take a sip of starbucks and blink lots to refresh straining eyes :)...

k the point approaches...

so for a while i have been feeling a little sick and so they ran some test and i went to the hospital for an ultrasound about 3 weeks ago to check my spleen (you will probably actually know what that is - i have no clue. grin). whilst the checked the spleen, they also asked (quite a random question i think) if there was anything else i wanted them to look at. it suddenly occurred to me that i could have them check my left kidney.

the lovely lady took a look and measured it - it was now 6.5cm (the usual being 9cm and my other measuring 12cm because it compensated the other one when i was young). she said it was smallish but that it was in the limits of normal. what she couldn't work out was how it had grown from like 2cm :)


i'm not sure if i instantly got a new 6cm kidney during Encounter 07 or whether its been miraculously growing ever since and will hit 9 cm one of these days. either way - i have 100% kidney function and two, within the range of normal, kidneys.

sweet.

k that was longer than expected - you can now finish your starbucks and i will start mine :)

love you girl xxx

S

Back from the (former) USSR

why do all my titles have to be cheesy references to somthin or other? oh well ;)



OK news from Poland...


So i got back home yesterday afternoon having not slept for 31 hours and managed to stay awakes another 8! i am officially a staying awake genius :)

But lesser news (!!) ...

me and my 3 intrepid companions, traveled 1372 miles in a circle around western Poland visiting 7 churches. We connected with 3 out of a group of 5 church leaders that are pressing into this move of the spirit. Though great apostolic fathers they were very humble in asking us to share with them more on healing and a culture of healing. the message was simple and the ministry powerful. my favorite times were when we could teach them how to pray and make them the ministry team - that was so much fun!

we also ran healing rooms in most places we went, which i found very draining to begin with as the way the team ministered was very different to Bethel culture and we had no time out to get refilled. But after easing up our schedule and being able to operate more freely beacause we had to work more on our own (due to high demand) - it got so much easier! so thank you for your prayers - they were powerful and effective!

we saw many impossible cases which were tough but well suited to a God of the impossible. With some we didn't see an instant miracle and thats always hard, but it's a part of the deal while we are still taking the ground and has to fuel us towards greater breakthrough. However, we were working with a BIG God and so we got to see many awesome miracles :)

One of my favorite was a boy of 12 who had no arches in his feet! Just a couple of months ago i saw the first person get thier arches restored, after hearing testimonies from Bill's trip to Australia. so i just new that God could fix this boys feet. it took about 5 miniutes, first the left one got raised and then the right. The boy's mum alternated between laughing and crying as she measured the difference. Before, she couldn't get her fingers underneath the feet at all and by the end she could get three. His feet looked perfect! This boy escaped from a life of back damage and pain, all because we have a God that is good and powerful!

We also encountered a large degree of emotional healing needs from a nation that is culturised by a long and recent history of oppression, fear and horrific war. We saw many people get freed of depression, fear and anxiety (which also released many physically healings in their bodies).

on the first night we met one young girl who had been brought up in an alcoholic abusive home and recently abandoned by her parents. she couldn't look at our male team members and was scared and depressed. I simply told her what God thought of her and we got to pray for her. She was filled with the love and Spirit of God and her whole countenance and spirit changed in front of us. Over the next 3 days she spent more time on the carpet and received more of the spirit from others in the church. She was so full of joy and light it was incredible. Sweet, sweet Jesus!

Poland was awesome. I so loved getting to pray for some these sweet people. If touch is your love language then go to Poland - you will get so many big real hugs you will be giddy! I loved connecting with so many influential leaders, eager for more of God. Things are moving in Poland. 'Poland for Jesus' is growing and bringing new life to this nation. They told me that the Polish spirit is something very unique. Once they believe in something, they get completely sold out - mind, soul, spirit and body. They told me how when the pope died, 2 million Poles got in their cars and drove towards the Vatican. No one told them to and many never got there as they were stuck in traffic jams of Poles across Austria! my friend drove accross Poland that day and didn't see another car until he got to the german border, because Poland was empty of cars! I have made some friends that I hope to know forever.

The strength and devotion of the Polish spirit, once caught by the Spirit of God would be an unstoppable force.

Well guys - i love you and I'm so grateful for your prayers that sustained me.

Keep Burning,

Sarah

From Poland with Love

Hey everyone one of you gorgeous lovely people! Thank you to everyone that is praying - your encouragement is essential!!!!!!!!!!!!

we are criss-crossing the south of Poland visiting churches from good sized modern city churches to small rural churches to groups just simply assembled in peoples homes.It's been busy- back to back meetings, healing rooms and traveling (which provides rest actually - so good). up til now there has been no space for time out with jesus - so the other day i had to opt out of a healing rooms session and go reconnect with papa. it was so good. and the schedule gets less packed out from now on so i get to plug in more.

I've found that listening to podcasts and worship etc. is really helpful - but i don't get really filled up until i can actually sing out worship myself.

I'm learning a lot about my weaknesses and strengths here - and its all good because there is no condemnation only the excitement that papa can work on those areas with me and that we go from glory to glory! I'm also learning to feel the holy spirit guide more and many new things in ministry. my main challange is operating under a ministry that is so different from Bethel culture - both theologically and practically. I really want to bless this ministry as thats what i'm here for, but at the same time can't operate quite how they do.

so i have found myself just stepping back and focusing on heaven- worshiping. making my consciousness of God bigger than whatever is infornt of us. sometimes this alone is a challange as we visit the very sickest in their homes - cancer and MS patients that are close to death, but so not dead yet! its challanging and so that time with papa is so essential.

we make good friends wherever we go. particularly in the first church there were a couple that just so blessed me it was awesome. i was given a prophetic word from them that touched on about 5 other obscure prophecies that i've recieved and what was nuts was that i was just praying a heart cry to God at the time and the word she brought was a direct response! papa knows us and hears us - wherever we are. I want to realise the opotunity i have in my hands.

with so many many people to pray for constantly i have occasionaly found myself hitting apathy or something - where i have to really stir myself to release kingdom and contend for breakthrough. we have seen some sweet sweet miracles though. one young woman was so ecstatic about her knees being healed that we heard her running and shouting and laughing outside for ages after we were praying for the next person! it was good.

one of the things we hit often here is depression- so many people are still effected by the nazi and soviet occupations - and the behviors and mentalitites that the occupations cultivated. its good to see that getting washed off and peace anf joy being given them. so good :)

right now - I'm alone (yey!!! jesus loves me) for a moment with a pc and so i get to write to you :) I'm in a tiny ex-soviet apartment which belongs to a young polish girl i met late last night - we communicate very basically - me speaking english (which she somewhat understands but can't speak) and her speaking German (which i somewhat understand but can't speak) its fun! i tried my german on her and asked her 'hast du leibe auf deutsch?' which means 'have you love in Germany' when i meant to ask her if she has ever lived (laben) in Germany! oh well :)

this is the forth place i've stayed since we arrived - some of them like palaces and some like you would imagine communist places to be like. BUT they have all been warm!!! thank you jesus!!

well i should go and make the most of papa time - love you guys!!!! thank you again for all of you who are praying and sending me such encouraging words

xxx Sarah