... Forever Changed ...

I Need YOUR Help!!!!

lfoster04 — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:02:35 +0000

Good Day,
You may or may not know, but I have been given an opportunity to travel to Northern India on a mission trip with my church down in Colorado Springs. The dates are May 30th – June 13th.
Let me tell you a little bit about the church. It is called theMILL. It is made up of college and twenty-somethings that are in pursuit of Christ and His plan for our lives. We meet every Friday night to worship, learn from the wisdom shared to us through Pastor Aaron Stern, among others, and fellowship in community. Let me tell you that this church has changed my life! It’s not just a church, but a community. Being in such an authentic community with people my own age that are genuine about people and about God has been such an encouragement on this journey called life.
Every year theMILL sends students to various places all over the world. This year there will be teams in Egypt, Peru, Germany, and of course, India! You might wonder, “Why India?” Well, when theMILL announced the places we were going this summer, something tugged at my heart when India was announced. I know people who have gone, and their lives have been forever changed! I believe God was tugging my heart for India for a reason! I am not sure of that reason, but I am stepping out in faith and following His lead!
Although my church is “sending” us, there is still one thing I need in order to go…FUNDS!!! This trip costs $3,000. This may seem like a lot, but if I believe with all my heart that God wants me in India this summer. There is a deadline every month leading up to the trip with 100% needed by MAY 14th. It would be such a blessing if you would consider supporting me in this endeavor. I know times are hard, but every little bit helps!
Another way you can support me is through prayer! Please pray from my team and I as we ready ourselves spiritually so that we can make the greatest impact we can in Jesus’ name! Our hearts are being broken and are continuing to be broken for each other and for the people of India. Please pray for heart sensitivity when we are on the mission field; that we would take advantage of each opportunity to share Christ with the Indian people.
Thank you so much for your consideration! God Bless!!!

All contributions should be made out to New Life Church and can be mailed to…
New Life Church
Attention: Global Ministries
11025 Voyager PKWY
Colo. Springs, CO 80921
!!!!(with my name and india in the check memo box)!!!!!

…OR…

Go to www.NewLifeChurch.org and click the “Giving” tab. then you will create a account to ensure your contribution is tax-deductible. then select Inda mill missions and my name Liana Foster.

THANKS SO MUCH!!!!

Holy Cow; God is Awesome!!!!

lfoster04 — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 08:10:01 +0000

So I know I am so bad with keeping up a blog, but life happens and there isn’t enough time in the day to write about all that God is doing in and around my life. But tonight, God totally rocked my world, yet again, and I stand in awe, amazed at who He is!

So a big thing that has happened in my life, is I have decided to go on a missions trip with my church to INDIA!!!! Holy cow, I am SO SUPER EXCITED!!! I really think that God has called me to step out in faith and to trust Him in this. I am so scared to go, but I KNOW that it is going to be one of the best decisions of my life!! On my church’s fall retreat, I really felt like the Lord was challenging me to face my fears, and step out in faith and trust that He is in control and because of that fact, there is NO reason to doubt or to fear. Thank you Jesus!!

So, my pastor was (just finished tonight…more on that later) doing a series on missions. Although I knew before that I loved missions, and I loved to travel, see new places/cultures, and best of all share Jesus, he really gave a lot of food for thought in his talks. It renewed the fire I had inside of me for the people of the world. I guess you could say it is a confirmation that I am doing the right thing by trying to go to India. ( I have applied, but not heard if I made a team member or team leader)(more on that later)

Ah, so tonight. Tonight was the conclusion of my pastor’s series called “go”. Yes, it was about missions, but it was so much more. Challenging us to live for the glory of God, to mold our lives to fit into HIS plan instead of trying to fit Him into ours…and SO much more. It was so incredible to hear from the women’s pastor and her husband about where God is leading them. They are moving to Cambodia to be full-time missionaries. INCREDIBLE!! Hearing them talk about how they knew they are in God’s will, and that they are living for Him and not ignoring the call on their life is simply amazing, and so encouraging. On one hand, God brought them together for the purpose (one among many) of serving Him overseas. They both have the same heart and they get the privilege of living that out together and with God. I think that it is so beautiful to have two people come together and have the same call on their lives so that they can do life together in every aspect. They will be doing different aspects in the ministry, but still, pursuing a life of missions daily to glorify and bring fame to the name of Jesus…. SUPER AWESOME!!!

AND tonight was baptisms! EEEEEEE!!! Man, it was so incredible! They had people sign up or what not, but the amazing thing was that is was open to the whole group. People were jumping with with jeans and sweaters….it was so awesome to sit there and see them compelled by and obedient to God. Lives that were forever changed by simple decisions to pick up our cross and follow Him. Stories of physical, emotional, and spiritual healing were such an encouragement and confirmation that the God I serve SAVES His people from the clutches of the enemy. PRAISE GOD!!! Two girls whom I recently met (but instantly knew God has placed them in my life for a reason!!) both, without planning, got baptised tonight. It was such an encouragement to see them living out their faith! I can’t even put into words how happy I felt for them, but also not denying how great God is. It truly blessed me to have the privilege to witness their public declaration of them saying, they believe in God and have chosen to follow Him with all of their heart for the rest of their lives. SIMPLY and TRULY AMAZING!!!

Lover: So I just finished a book called “What Every Girl Wants”. It was a commentary/devotional on the book Song of Songs in the Old Testament. Holy cow, I can’t even go into all that was stirred up inside. The parallel of King Solomon’s marriage and Christ’s marriage to His Bride, is so intense. I cry every time I read this book. The language is so beautiful, so intense, I can’t even wrap my head around it!! To think that God loves me SO intensely and so intently, is crazy. IMPOSSIBLE to comprehend! I love that I can’t understand His love for me. That means a LIFETIME of falling in love with God over and over, deeper and deeper.

I pray that God sends a man to love me the way Solomon loves in this book. What can I say, I am a hopeless romantic. But I am a hopeless romantic who is letting God write her love story and wouldn’t have it any other way. He is the BEST writer!

So moral of the story… GOD IS AWESOME!!!! If you get out of His way, He will bless you beyond comprehension and without reservation!

One More Revelation

lfoster04 — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:16:37 +0000

This is crazy, but God has been reminding me who He is a lot lately.

this morning, i was not ‘feelin it’ as we practiced for service. (i’m no the worship team) and then the worship leader spoke to up before and was talking about how we needed to be present in the moment to allow the church in enter into worship with us instead of being bystanders.

We began with “Trading My Sorrows” and I started to let go of what ever had been holding me back before and jumping into worship, and God was using the words to touch my life…it was so cool. I can’t even count how many times I have sang that song, but this time I was open to the moving of the Holy Spirit and it was AMAZING!!

So we sang a song or two, and then she started to talk to the congregation. Speaking over them, encouraging them to stop paying attention to the distractions and worship in the moment because they will never have that moment back to worship God again.

The song after was so moving. I couldn’t help but look over the people, and the passion on their faces, the lifting of hands to God, their voices lifted high. I couldn’t help but step back and embrace that moment. I have been so frustrated with the way my church worships, and today they blew me away.

And then God used my dad saying that worship is not about singing, but in everything we do, we do it as an act of worship. AAHHHH! I was on stage, and I could not stop weeping. I couldn’t even sing half the songs.

It was a GOD AWESOME moment! I am so thankful that the God I serve is so real, so relevant, and so faithful!

PRAISE GOD PRAISE GOD PRAISE GOD!!!!

Remembering

lfoster04 — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 23:51:28 +0000

It has been one week and one day since the last MILL I was at, yet the feeling are as strong on this day as they were last week. Aaron Stern was finishing up his series on the deadly sins. As were the other sermons, this one was AMAZING!!! I was wondering how he could finish such a powerful series…well he did it in a powerful way. He went through all 7 of the deadly sins and then summed up at the end…with grace; Saying that we must embrace the Cross and make room for the Lord’s work in order to overcome the sin in our lives.

He had us on our knees confessing each of the deadly sins …pride…envy…gluttony…greed…sloth…wrath…lust…

At first it was like…ok let me seek a little and try to figure out what to pray about. But then by the 3^rd…4^th..5^th one I was in tears. Between this rush of confessing, and receiving grace and forgiveness; the load was lifted. A load that I had been carrying so long, I didn’t even realize it was there. I don’t think I have ever come before the Lord so humbly, and actually thought about what I have done. God has been trying to get my attention, and I have been blowing Him off. That’s so sad. So appalling to think that I turned my back on the One thing that can satisfy me, who saves me, who loves me with no reserve.

Every week Aaron would say that spiritual problems can only be solved with a spiritual answer, the Cross. The sacrifice of the Spotless Lamb gave us the ability to choose life through the body and the blood of Christ.

We took communion, singing “Jesus Paid it All”, and “You Gave Your Life Away”. Remembering the sweetness of that sacrifice had me in awe and wonder. Why don’t we talk about the Cross? Why don’t we remember what Jesus did for us? It has been taken for such granted that it hurts when you actually sit, be still, and ponder the magnificence of it all.

Words can’t describe the feeling I felt afterward. I felt freedom in a whole new way! Incredible! Simply amazing! So undeserved. So powerful. So beautiful!

It’ll be Alright

lfoster04 — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 18:36:16 +0000

As my mom and dad love to tell me in different ways, but it’s all the same, “It’s gonna be alright. You’ll figure something out.’

I have to admit that although I fully trust and believe them, sometimes it’s a bit difficult to do so. Not because of the content of their words, but because of the burden of no longer having a full-time job. I know, thousands of other people are in the same boat, and are worse off than me, but I actually think that it’s ironic that it took this long to affect me. I feel so blessed that I am still at home with my parents! They are so supportive! I could not and would not be where I am today if it were not for them! Geographically, emotionally, spiritually,…and all the other ly’s you can think of. I owe them a lot!

I think most people who would be or are at the place that I find myself in, may be a bit freaked out or what-not. But I am strangly optomistic! I don’t carry it as a burdan, but a blessing. God has planned this time in my life for a reason. I of course do not know what that reason is yet, but in due time, I will be on the same page as the One who is writing it.

I was talking with my dad last night and I thought…it’s actually not bad. I’m taking two pretty hard classes this semester and I will need all the time I can get to do assignments and read…so, it’s all good for the moment.

A little faith goes a long way…

What a Day!

lfoster04 — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 04:52:50 +0000

Oh dang. I can’t believe that January is almost over! And I almost don’t have a job L

It’s been a long week. Philosophy is kicking my butt! It’s so hard to grasp the concepts and the vocabulary. It’s insane. Apparently it gets better but, for now…it’s hard and un-enjoyable. I have an interview tomorrow…for a staffing company. So we shall see how that goes. So far, no other calls about other jobs. L

I’ve been really enjoying the music on my iPod lately for some reason. Sometimes I get fed up and want to buy new music, but it’s been pretty good! I never noticed how much worship I have on that thing! It’s great, but odd. I was thinking about all the people that wear headphones at work, and at the gym. How many of them are rocking out and working out to…worship? Granted I have some kick butt artists that never let me or my heart down like Desperation Band and The Red Airplanes, even Shawn McDonald chills me out and helps me focus on Greater things.

Of course there’s the not so worshipful worship like Thousand Foot Krutch, Since October, MuteMath, Emery, Family Force Five, and Flyleaf…and the contemporary like Downhere, TenthAvenueNorth, and Switchfoot. But it’s all worship to me! When ever the Bible mentions worship, like people in the act of worship in the temple or in heaven, it’s loud and people/angles are dancing and shouting…having a GODAWESOME time!!! Now that is something that I cannot wait for! So I don’t! J

I usually have a space around me when I worship so I can just … aaaahhhhhh go crazy in the Spirit!! Nothing held back…all out for God and His glory. It’s amazing to have that time of intimacy with Him, there’s NOTHING like it. and there is not place I would rather be…then at His feet. I long for the day where I will forever be singing His praises in heaven! Oh! I LONG for that day!

What’s Wrong with the Fish?

lfoster04 — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:40:23 +0000

**this is in response to http://thelovinglistener.wordpress.com/2009/01/13/fish-fury/**

What’s wrong with the fish? I don’t think that by putting a fish on my car I am forcing my faith onto other people. You mentioned the Darwin fish with little legs; if we as Christians are accused of forcing our views on others because of our fish, it same must be true for the rest of it!

I understand the argument, but I don’t think that they hate us as much as you are letting on in this blog. There are groups out there that hate us far more! I don’t think that it’s because of our outspokenness. I think that it’s because of our views that differ. They don’t like what we will and will not support or stand for. Atheists do not hate Christianity because “we shove it down their throats”. They hate Christianity because they hate God and the idea that they are not in control of their own lives. The whole point of atheism is not believing in gods.

Are you saying that it’s wrong to be bold in our faith? Isn’t that what God commanded us to do? To not back down? God have given us the courage and the authority (among other attributes); for what reason should we back down? We are not exposing anything that people don’t already know or have seen.

Other groups such as the homosexual community are doing the same thing to America that you accuse Christians of doing. They are forcing their lifestyle upon the nation by asking for rights above and beyond what the average American has; their lifestyle saturates the media, movies, and television. I could hate the homosexual community because I could say that they are forcing their lifestyle on me and because I do not agree with it that is an excuse to hate them. In reality, do I hate them? No! I love homosexuals for the people that God crated them to be…because God commanded me to do so…and so I do, gladly! (I do not believe that God made them homosexual, but that it is a choice made by each person who lables themself as such. But this is another soapbox for another time.)

I don’t think that the point needs to be that we need to be more accepting, because frankly, I don’t think we need to accept them. Love them, yes. They are two different things. By accepting their lifestyle or that of anyone else that disagrees with my faith is telling them that it’s ok and that I support them in that. We cannot approve of SIN. That’s what it is, and it is not a pretty thing. We are called to be a light in the world, not pat them on the head and say…”it’s ok. I accept you.” No! We are here to love them, but also to tell them the TRUTH, in love, about God, His justice, love, mercy…but the truth not through rose-colored glasses. It’s hard! Jesus did it! And He has enabled us to do it as well!

My favorite quote: You have to stand for something or else you will fall for anything!

Satisfaction

lfoster04 — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:44:34 +0000

Wow! I never thought that a sermon on gluttony would be so…awesome. Aaron Stern is an amazing man of God that tells it like it is.

Although most people think of food when the subject of gluttony comes up, Aaron explains it as an excessive appetite for pleasure. Being lead by your feelings and the constant search for excitement and enjoyment.

Well obviously, that is not what we are supposed to do. That’s not what our pursuits in this life are supposed to be. God is the end of our pursuits, not enjoyment, not pleasure; God! God provides the ultimate newness, the undeniable joy and excitement. It’s Him!

I wish I could realize and remember and live out tha God is the only one that can satisfy my EVERY need! After all, I belong to Him. I am his child! I am his bride!

Oh, Ok

lfoster04 — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 03:12:38 +0000

Well, now that Christmas is over, and I have had time with my family, all is well. I didn’t have a very good day at work on wed…duh, but after getting home, going to church, family dinner…i have forgotten about it all.
All is well for the moment I can’t really complain, had a great Christmas, a chill out day friday, quiet evening at work saturday, and a run-around day today. Like a said, can’t really complain.

off to bed i go, i’m tired with a wonderful day back in hell tomorrow….oh joy! *she said sarcastically*

Merry Christmas?

lfoster04 — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 17:58:02 +0000

I love the fact that God gave me a job right after I had lost my previous one, however, I am finding out that working for the government is not all that it is cracked up to be. It simply amazes me the unhuman-ness that surrounds me this Christmas season. First, I had asked to work through breaks and lunches so I could get off early to go sing at church…well that was turned down in a heartbeat. LAME!!

Then today, the VA is giving employees 59 min of AA, then after I hear about that, the supervisor from my company comes over and tells us that it does not apply to contractors. BULL!!!! After the Chief of the division tells us that she wants to make sure that we are treated like everyone else during thanksgiving…and then all of a sudden that cannot happen. For it being Christmas they are sure doing a lot to get us out of the happy holiday mood.

I just think that it’s absurd the fact that my boss will be paid for that time….yet I have to make it up or work til 4…when the REST OF THE VA is off early… RIDICULOUS!!!!

but Merry CHRISTmas to all!! May God bless you tremendously this season!