Loving the Least.

And the King will say, “I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!”

- Matthew 25: 40

Hello everyone,

What an eventful month it has been! I pray you all had a beautiful end to your summer and smooth transition into this fall season.

The leaves are beginning to change color here on the YWAM campus. What a beautiful imagery to what God is doing in our hearts.

Updates, Testimonies, + What Have I Been Doing Here?

Firstly I just want to say thank you to everyone who has greatly encouraged me, supported me (prayerfully and financially), and just has been faithful in following along on this journey. These testimonies below are shared to not only magnify God’s faithfulness, but also your partnership with what He’s doing. Through our very first bonfire campaign, we were able to raise $221.18 for outreach in our neighborhoods! I hope you all love your t-shirts and hoodies. I’m excited to continue sharing the testimonies of what the Lord has done through your contributions!

I am pleased to say not long after I last wrote to you, the Lord worked greatly in my heart while still in Springfield in preparation for this season. I found a huge group of young adults (some are even ywammers!) in Springfield that I began tagging along with to do evangelism in downtown Springfield. This group has been an answer to not only my prayers, but to prayers of men and women who have been contending for the gospel to go forth in Springfield. Through compassion and consistency, the fields are looking more and more ripe. I also started going to a monthly worship night hosted at Echelon Coffee in Springfield. There are several gen z’ers there that come with a pure hunger for Jesus. What I saw there could honestly be compared to my time at Asbury University earlier in the year when revival broke out. The simple gospel and wholehearted adoration for Jesus is changing our cities. Within this little ordinary coffee shop- people had physical healings, were delivered from strongholds, gave their lives to Jesus, and I personally was healed from a gluten allergy. This common area became holy ground.

August 21st I celebrated 7 years since I asked Jesus to take my life and on September 21st I celebrated 7 years since I first shared my testimony and the gospel. It feels like a full circle moment as I am not only in another transition, but I have just as much of a need and desperation for God than I did then.

For the past month I have been back on the YWAM Kansas City campus in leadership track, where I’m learning what a godly leader is and developing not only my external vision of “where do I serve?” but my internal vision of “what is my heart posture in serving?”. We started out our time here by going on a leadership retreat at the lake of the ozarks with the YWAM training team. We stayed there for 3 days. I was blessed to fellowship and form friendships with so many familiar faces I had only seen around campus from my time in DTS. Daily we worshiped and waited on the Lord together. We pressed into intercession over the nations and many were stirred to be the answer of their own prayers. To not only contend for laborers to be sent, but to be the ones who cry “Here I am Lord, send me!”

After the retreat we returned to base and began our lectures on leadership, our times in the prayer room contending together for the nations, our weekly assignments, and our work duty! Last week we learned about spiritual disciplines and this week the topic has been servant-hearted leadership. Books we have begun to read so that we may complete our assignments (and ones I strongly recommend!) are ‘Values Matter’ by Darlene Cunningham (the wife of Loren Cunningham, founder of YWAM), ‘Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools’ by Tyler Staton, ‘The Deeply Formed Life’ by Rich Villodas, and ‘With’ by Sky Jethani. We are also assigned scripture weekly to meditate on and memorize. This week the goal is to have Matthew 5 in both my heart and head by the time I recite it on Friday. I am also currently working in the kitchen to help prepare lunches and dinners and once a week I get to work all day in our coffee shop. It has been so much fun getting to learn how to serve people with food and getting to better know those who are on campus!

On Tuesday evenings I’ve been going with friends to a gathering of youth and young adults called ‘Roots’. Roots began about a year ago, in response to a prophetic vision the Lord gave to two brothers who were separately serving in YWAM Kona before they returned home. They are now beginning to see this vision come to fruition. Roots began in the home of these boys, as they along with the rest of their family have welcomed anyone with open arms for fellowship, worship, a word, and deep discipleship. People are surrendering their lives to Jesus weekly at Roots and are finding family within the kingdom of God. There’s been stories of people finding salvation and immediately going out to share with others on the streets. There have been people who have gotten baptized and then have turned around to baptize the person right next to them. God is raising up people who are not only being set free from sin but are also walking in authority, driving out the darkness that they now take no part in. This last week a young girl shared about how she’s given her life to Jesus and was baptized but is struggling with depression. A group of fiery women surrounded her in prayer and encouragement. A young man also opened up about lies that have been spoken over him his entire life and how he doesn’t understand how God loves Him if He allowed these horrible things to happen. He also shared that he has tried to take his life and is severely depressed. You could see a great weight over him the entire night and it was very evident that the enemy had been tormenting him for a very long time. When the night came to a close the Lord opened up a door for my friend Anna and I to share our testimonies with him and pray that He would encounter the love of God and be set free from darkness, just as we both were. I was able to share with him that God didn’t inflict pain on him, but felt everything he felt. That God’s heart is grieved when He sees injustice. He began to confess many dark practices he had done and knew that he needed to be delivered from the grip Satan had over him and filled with the Holy Spirit. Through prayer and the presence of the Holy Spirit we witnessed a great weight come off of him. By the end of the night he was smiling, saying that he felt “warm” and giving hugs. Glory to God! Jesus still makes every demon tremble and flee! Please be praying for this young man and the man that is discipling him as there is still a process of further freedom he will be undergoing. Pray for his situation back home, that he would begin to really know what love is and have it for others!

What’s God Doing In My Heart?

These last few months I’ve seen quite a pattern in the people the Lord has been breaking my heart for and bringing into my life. Jesus has been breaking me for the outcast. For the people that truthfully are hard to love at times because they aren’t always so loving back. He’s been giving me insight into the lives of people who may be on the outside looking in and telling me “stop for them.” Jesus is going after the unseen places and people. He continues to pursue the very ones that break His heart. He touches the untouchable leper. He cleanses the dirty. He sits with sinners. He speaks to Samaritans. He sets free the bound. He goes after the one lost sheep. He welcomes the prodigal home. He sets a table and invites us all into it. What culture discards and distances from, the Kingdom of God embraces and rejoices in.

Prayer Requests:

The 18 year old homeless boy I met while in Springfield has relocated to Rolla, which is a much safer place for him to be, and he’s also applied to jobs, but he’s still living on the streets! Please pray that his family and him would reconcile and be set free from addiction. Please also pray of course, that he will surrender his life to Jesus.
As noted above, please pray for the 20 year old man I met at Roots that needs continued freedom and discipleship.
On Halloween my friends and I are going to do an outreach in Kansas City. We will be worshiping, sharing the gospel, and testimonies. Please pray for people to come to know Jesus!
I’m praying that God would open the door for me to get a car within budget. I’m currently driving a 2005 Toyota Corolla that has been a huge blessing to me but has just been through a lot and its life is near the end. Please join me in prayer!
More announcements to come soon! As always: please pray for wisdom and direction

Sincerely,

Jessica Lawrence

A Thankful Heart For A Faithful God.

Perseverance and the Promise.