Day 8: in Yaviza!!! (day 8 part 2)

Going through the town was fun! we saw a very old catholic church, a soccer game, and everyone walking around in a good mood, stores open, it was so awesome!! Today happens to be a national fiesta day of some sort, so everyone is in a good mood!! we found a long bridge that we crossed. It wasn't nearly as stable as i would have liked. {it wobbled way to much to be hanging over a wide river so HIGH in the air!!!
Once Jesse {S} realized that i was afraid of the bridge {and very ready to get OFF of the bridge} he started to swing it back and forth!!! he would jump on it and i was so mad!!! {we had to walk in a certain fashion: girls in the middle and surrounded by the guys, as a safety precaution, so Jesse was placed behind me :P} I was so not happy with him!!! everytime i'd turn around, he would laugh adn move the bridge again. At least marcus was on my side, he didn't like the bridge either!! Jerryman was just amused. :P


on a more serious note..
God really revealed himself in a whole new way to me today. I've been fine all day, and then out of nowhere Chris is looking concerned and asking me if i'm okay. "Of course I am!" I tell him. and why wouldn't I be?? Then, a little before i'm to go up and sing, Jessica and Pastor David come up to me, and tell me that God hears my prayers and answers them. {They also told marcus, but we were both under the impression that the entire team was individually told this.} Before going up to sing, the room seemed to get dark, even though the lights were on and it was bright in the room. it was like a black fog surrounded the brick walls. It was like there were more chains around the room... very strange.

Then I stopped breathing.

I was barely taking in enough air to survive on my own.. but i recognized this- Spiritual warfare. It was a challenge for me. Would i still sing and worship God and carry out the rest of the service if i couldn't even breathe?? would I try and do this on my own or ask God for help??

I prayed for God to pull me through, for him to {once again} but the air in my lungs, open my mouth, adn sing for me. I asked that he would pay extra special atttention to make the worship that night most effective. I was able to talk to Leah and to Angel about it all, quick enough to ask them to pray for me too, and then I had to sing.

It felt like someone had laid me on my back, and placed heavy boulders on my lungs. The harder i tried to breath, the less air i took in.. but God had enough air in my lungs to keep me going. I sang flawlessly....
after worship, i was able to breath a little better, until dramas began. then i couldn't breath again. then spanish worship, it happened again. same with service and ending worship. However, i was paying attention. I kept praying. I had other people praying.
I could see the darkness fading more and more... Whereas before, i could look out the door and see nothing but pitch black.
I also noticed that we started our service with only 2 families and a few strays, and we ended service with a full house and people standing even outside to watch!!! {that was an extra blessing.. remmber how i said that it was a national day of fiesta-ness??? would you go to church on a party day?? exactly!!}

It wasn't until everything was over, and we were packing up our stuff that i was able to breathe easier. {still, my breaths were shallow.} Then.. I felt totally in teh presence of God. I got the shivers down my neck, spine, and throughout my body. {I get this everytime i feel in the presence of God.} I took the biggest breath i had ever taken in my entire life... it was like someone was forcing air into my lungs, and large amounts of it. That happened twice. I knew that God was filling my lungs with air, and afterward i was breathing perfectly fine as if nothing had happened to me at all.

I know it was a spiritual attack, but i was greatful for it!! How awesome to be tested so heavily, and to overcome the challenge at that!!! It was amazing, looking around the room with 'spiritual goggles' and knowing that God just won a battle in the war. To succumb completely to God, trust him with your life, and to be used like a tool in such a way, it was miraculous!!!

Remember from earlier? Marcus was the only other person to hear from Jessica and Pastor David the words that were spoken to me. {we didn't even know this about each other until later.}
he was also heavily spiritually attacked that night. He suffered from severe loss of money {when you are in a foreign country and still have a few days before heading home, the last of your $60.00 is a lot to lose!!} and an even more severe case of heat exhaustion. I really didn't know too much of what happened to marcus, but i know God pulled him through in the same manner that he pulled me through. Something happened that Marcus was able to get some {or, most?} of his money back so he could last the next few days. After service was over, he also felt fine and was cured from his heat exhaustion. God is Miraculous!!!


It was, in my opinion, a good ending to a good day XD