Author: lucasneraasen

Luke here, This year is going to be HUGE!

We began this summer by refreshing our facilities here at YWAM Northwoods. I was a part of a big bathroom remodel project that we finished a couple of weeks ago. We are hoping to remodel the Mens portion of the dorm, and replace all the windows and siding on the main lodge. We don’t have a start date for those projects yet, but we hope to see them happen in 2013. Cheyenne is also one of our “campus decorators” now and has been making a lot of awesome changes to our surroundings here.

DTS (Discipleship Training School) (Discipleship Training School)Discipleship Training School)

We are also taking a lot of summer time preparing for our upcoming DTS in September where Cheyenne and I will still be serving as Discipleship staff. So if you know anyone interested in a Discipleship School with an overseas outreach, let us know! We are really excited about the direction our school is going. Being a part of discipling young people and witnessing them finding a deeper relationship with Jesus is an incredible and humbling thing.

And here is where I let Cheyenne tell you about a new summer program she is spearheading;

INFUSIONnfusion

Hey all! This Summer I have the privilege to begin a new Summer program here at Northwoods. It’s called “Infusion”. It is a 10 day intensive Discipleship program for undergrad students (14-19 years old). Since I’ve seen our DTS change post-graduates lives I have had a desire to offer the same taste of DTS to the younger teens of our generation. Why wait? Highschoolers do not need a diluted Gospel with no call to action on their lives- they need a jump start on what it means to be a Disciple of Christ in our world. Pray for myself & Luke and we prepare for this! Our first annual “Infusion” will begin July 28th and run through August 9th. You can go to our website for more information at http://www.ywamnorthwoods.org, look under the “schools” option.

THAILAND!
So as I said, we are excited to be working with the Discipleship Training School again this fall. There hasn’t been a single school where we haven’t seen God change lives is a radical way. We are doing this all while planning for our 2014 THAILAND TRIP! We are beginning the process of getting visas to stay in Thailand for 6-8 months instead of 2! Our plan is to leave in January 2014 and return in July or August 2014. We will be teaching English in Nahong, distributing bibles, discipling believers and continuing the work to bring the gospel to Northern Thailand. We will tell you much more about our 2014 Missions trip as it approaches.

We love you all so much! Thank you for being there for us and being a part of our lives even if sometimes we can’t see you as much as we would like.

Hebrews 12:28-29 “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” A kingdom that cannot be shaken! God bless you all,

Peace.

Luke here,
Wow, so Thailand was a pretty crazy experience again.
God taught me a ton through it. He taught me about sacrifice, trust, deeper faith, joy and humility.

First of all, ministering in Thailand is WAY over my head! That being the case, it is awesome, and humbling to see God at work. That He chooses to work through me, He doesn’t need me but He chooses me. God’s grace is truly something to be in awe about.

Cheyenne asked me what the high point of our 2013 trip was. There were highs and lows as God continues His work in Nahong Thailand.  The high point for me this year, was seeing how you can build a relationship with a friend, just by loving. Through a love that only God gives and breathes. So much of the time I can’t communicate or I can’t understand. But the love God has given me for the people there has created so many awesome relationships. This year my highlight was going way deeper in those relationships, being able to pray with people in Nahong (!!!) and taking the opportunities the Lord put before me to make him known.
Jesus is so relational! Teaching English with the kids was a blast too! 🙂

Chey here,
Our 2013 trip was one word… “Success.”
Through what? The constant sickness we fought? The Pain of Urt’s Family sending him to become a Monk? The people we prayed with? Talking with the old man whose daughter died after giving her life to Christ? The tears and laughter I shared with LaMode? The helpless feeling of being alone in a village on the other side of the globe? The time able to share the love of Christ with Teachers in the lounge? Telling my “kids” from the 4th grade class why I came back every year? Seeing those kids grow up into teens who stand out from the rest of the village? Watching LaMode’s Buddhist Mom pray to YAWEH while I was sick in bed?
There were no Baptisms. There was no massive influx into our Bible Study.
There was good, hard Discipleship.
What is “success”? Seeing a Thai teenager become confident in her faith, regardless of her friends and circumstances. Seeing that Family watch us suffer and still praise the LORD. Connecting Nahong with a group of Christian Thai’s (Lord willing, pray with us, please).
Having God speak clearly to Luke & I that we need to come back and Disciple Lamode and the others for a longer period of time? The Church of Nahong has been PLANTED. Now let’s go water it.

On a logistical note: The English teaching was phenomenal, the Children are learning and loving it. The Villagers are grateful, and now treat us as one of their own. Praise God.

Thank you all for praying with us! It’s is quite literally what got us through.
Love to you all! May peace reign in your homes.
Blessings,

Cheyenne & Lucas Neraasen.
Youth With A Mission Northwoods.