so close and yet so far

"The oceans sing His praise

And the waves yell His majesty

The nations are amazed at the works He has done

Forever being changed by the beauty of His creation

None can fathom His power

None can think as He does, love as He does, and move mountains as He does

He takes the redeemed heart and breaks down walls

He remolds our souls

And He makes our spirits like small children within us

The joy of the Lord is uncontainable

That even those lost in darkness, cannot hide their eyes."

Friends and Family,

This experience thus far has been indescribable. We have continually seen the Holy Spirit move in the people we meet. Our team has focused intently on building relationships with the people here in order that we may shine the light of truth upon them. We have been teaching in the schools, attending weddings, going to festivals, meeting with people at the Mosques, and diving deep into the Turkish culture. It has been a crazy ride with ups and downs, but a learning experience above all else.

Next week we are moving to Izmere to do college work. We are all very excited to see how God is going to use us there. Everyday we have the chance to use what we learned in Belize. We invest our hands and feet into paving, sanding, working in olive orchards, and cleaning. We also get to invest our love and light into one another as we become closer as a team.

The culture has taken a bit to adjust to but as we are getting the hang of things, more opportunities arise for us to reach out even more.

Thank you for all your prayers and thoughts. Continue to shine brightly in your homes. As Ghandi said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world."

Much love from Turkey,

Bekki

turkey!

hello all!

so tomorrow morning, at 7am, 10 of us begin our travels to turkey. we are traveling until monday and are flying in and out of many airports. please pray for safety and endurance for our team as traveling will definitely wipe us out!

i am so excited for this new adventure. i don't really know what to expect and i'm a little bit nervous. i know the culture shock will be great and i won't quite know what to do at times, but i know that He has a great plan and will always be with me. turkey is definitely different than anywhere else i've ever been for many reasons. the biggest being that it is Muslim. this being so, i will not be able to update my blog that often and will be limited on the details that i give. this is because the government keeps tabs on christians/missionaries and we definitely do not want to get in any trouble with the law while we're there.

please pray for physical safety while we're there. we will be sharing the gospel through our lives and the relationships that we make. pray that we are protected from any harm because we are christians.

also pray for team unity as we will be living life together under challenging and unfamiliar conditions.

our ministry will include lots of "dirty work". such as....

herding goats? picking olives? clearing out land? and most of all, building relationships.

for this trip, i am the teams worship leader so pray that i will hear the voice of God and will be the best that i can be.

lastly, i miss all of you. i am so thankful for your support and will continue to keep you all in my thoughts and prayers. may you be blessed.

i will update my blog when i get the chance, i have no clue what internet looks like as of yet.

with love.

whispers

Sometimes at night, when the world is still.
Sometimes at night, when I sit at the end of a dock and look up.

Sometimes at night, when I can't see distance or count measures.

And sometimes at night, when I feel small.

I hear whispers.

Things like..."you are wonderfully made....you are my beloved...you were made for incredible things."

I look up at the pitch black sky and see countless stars...I look out at the ocean and imagine the world living beneath it...I listen to the howls of the wind.

And know that I am loved.

These past few weeks here in Belize have been extremely challenging. Never in my life did I think that I would be teaching 5th grade or leading worship so consistently or memorizing the world or blessing people through conversation and prayer. And that's just the beginning!
I am so blessed.

Oh, how He loves us.

Would you?

Picture this happening to you.

You have climbed up onto the highest point. It's a diving board hanging over a pool (think Olympic Style). Now that you've reached the top, your hands are starting to sweat and your heart is catching in your throat and you're beginning to second guess the decision to climb up so high.

Why did you climb up? Because God asked you to.

But, now that you're up there, you see that there is NO water in the swimming pool. You have been asked to jump into the pool....but, there is no water.

Do you have the faith? Do you trust that God has the best for you in store? Do you believe that He is going to spare your life? Do you have faith that He is going to fill that pool up with water while you free fall down?

The creator of the universe has asked you to step out in faith, to trust Him, to believe that He has the best in store for you. He sent His son to die for you, and has always loved you unconditionally and faithfully.

This being so...

Would you?
Would you jump?

A Test Of Faith

Something crazy happened the other day.
It was in the middle of the afternoon and the entire team met up for a session. During this time we were to write down what we were holding on to and things that were holding us back.
Know what mine was?
I had a problem opening up my hands and saying, "here, do what you want, i trust you." Notice the was and had.
We prayed and we cried and we had intense revelations about the chains and things in our lives that were keeping us from experiencing the love of God. It was in this moment that I prayed, "i trust you," that my entire life radically changed for the better. You see, I have this amazing opportunity placed before me.
As most of you may know, I have been living in Belize for the past 7 weeks attending a DTS (Discipleship Training School). It is here that I am learning how to be a leader and impact my generation through truth and love. At the end of the 12 weeks, a team of us are embarking on the next leg of our school in Turkey.
Okay, ready for the exciting part? While we're there we are just going to love. This outreach is meant to put our experiences into practice. To show grace, love, honesty, and integrity to a culture completely different from ours.
While to some of you this may seem dull or easy, I have some news for you.
Turkey is a country where 98% of the population is Muslim. And that right there, is all the more reason to spread love through the light of Jesus. This is definitely not hitting people over the head with Bibles or pounding the word sinner into anyone's mind! This is building relationships with love and trust as the foundation...allowing the light of Christ to show through us.
As St. Augustine said, "we should share the gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words."

Would you please partner with me? The team needs prayer for wisdom and guidance as well as strength and unity. Prayer is an incredibly powerful tool and is so often forgotten, so please, join me on this outreach for love.
I have a remaining $2200 to raise by March 1, 2011. The need is substantial but I fully believe He will provide through those who feel called to support me. If this is you, please contact me as soon as you can. Any amount whether it be $10 or $100 will allow the love of our Father to reach those in Turkey.

Miss you all.

His perfect love

"Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love." 1 John 4:18

Our God is a relational God. He is not beyond our reach or beyond our understanding. He is not "upstairs" toying with strings and turning His back when we go through times of struggle. He doesn't love us better when we become better. He loves us 100% right now. There is nothing we can do to make Him love us more...because He loves us 100%....100% of the time. Whether we have plans to become better or not.
He loves us where we are right now.

The only thing that changes is our ability to receive His love. He is waiting for us to receive the love that He wants to lavish us in. His love is perfect. There is NO condemnation in it. This is what true love is. This is perfect.

Friends, I have the opportunity to travel to Turkey this spring. The Lord has laid it heavy on my heart to bring His "missing children" home. But I need your help, my fellow brothers and/or sisters in Christ.

This trip will cost $4675. This covers roundtrip airfare, living, food, accommodations.

I will have more information up soon....but as of now the due date for these funds is March 1st.

If you can support this cause in any way, PLEASE talk to me.

My email is bekkibergeron@gmail.com

Thank you Thank you Thank you.

I will have more details up soon!

inseparable

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love." Romans 8:38

I've been in Belize for 2 weeks.
Is that it?

With everything that's happened, it really feels like I've been here for at least a month. The relationships that I have with the people here, the lifestyle, the everything...it feels broken in (a good thing). Although sometimes, the clock goes by so slow and I realize just how hectic my schedule was back home.

I've read through the book of John 5 times and realized just how ignorant we are about God.

I've been waking up at sunrise and diving deep into the scriptures.

Every morning there is a time of worship and intercession.

And this week, is about finding freedom in Christ.

Lot's of forgiveness, and tears, and sweat, and resentment, and hidden things being brought up to the surface.

Ouch.

Yet even in the midst of it, there is joy. I like to call this "laughter through tears." It's almost like a high.

It's the strangest release...sensation...emotion...combustion that I know of.

On another note, I was incredibly blessed this week with generous donations from an unknown donor. THANK YOU.