Do you ever have one of those years that sneaks up on you? Catches you by surprise? Despite all your careful planning, big dreams & intentional building, it still does what life does sometimes & catches you off guard?
It has been one of those years for me. Not long after my big update mid-January, my Business With A Mission partner announced her intentions to move on from YWAM Los Angeles. She had been here for going on 5 years, & always had a dream of attending one of YWAM University of the Nations 9-month Bible programs. Upon returning from Mexico in November, it had become increasingly clear for her that the time of being in Los Angeles was coming to a close, as the door for her Bible school dream opened up in Amsterdam. Of course, I wanted to be happy for her. We had become friends in our 2 years of creating & running seminars throughout Los Angeles, as well as staffing a school together in Mexico. But it caught me off guard. I was planning for a SOTB school this year, however, I could not do this without her. And so, 2 years of pouring my heart into something that I feel passionate about, came to a somewhat abrupt close.
I would be lying if I said it did not throw me through a loop. However, from the beginning of my journey in YWAM, I had consistently made it my prayer- "Not my will, but Yours." If this was a door that God was closing, I had to trust His way is better than my own.
What this did was redirect my focus & prayers- Father, WHAT do You desire out of all this?
Pretty quickly, I began to feel the Father's gentle leading towards digging into the things He had been speaking to me during my 2 months in Mexico.
He began speaking about my business plan, about the people He intended for my life to reach. He began speaking about the reasons for the growing passion of finding solutions in the name of God, that would ultimately speak about who God is to those who may never know otherwise. All of this terrified me. But since when did anything God-sized come easily, or in our own strength?
And so, I reached out to one of those connections God had highlighted- The LA Dream Center- & was invited to be a part of a meeting with all of their ministry heads to share the vision & business plan God gave me. I was floored, & shaking that this door would open so easily! What came out of this meeting was an opportunity to a future partnership, as the vision I feel God gave me fills a gap they had for years- where do people go once they complete their programs?
This is where this update currently finds Me-- in the place of prayer, seeking Him for the next steps.
In this season, He has made it clear that I will remain with YWAM LA for the foreseeable future. In this time of prayer, I remain faithful to what He entrusted me to steward!
The Aviva Cafe that my friend & I reimagined, & reopened a little over a year ago, I continue to manage & build, with the vision to create a space where community can thrive, artisans can be supported by selling their goods, justice can be upheld- as every cup of coffee supports a local anti-trafficking organization who created a roastery, & the vision of Business With A Mission is upheld. A core value of YWAM is "Do first, then teach" & so I am living this out practically daily!
I continue to work with the many teams who come through- most recently a team of 90 missionaries from every corner of the globe who lived at our base for 6 weeks, sharpening their language skills as those who are translating the Bible into languages that have yet to receive it. I also continue to manage guest housing, where we prepare & receive guests from all over who are coming to, or through LA! All of these positions I am able to actively implement what I learned in Business With A Mission!
I continue as well to give leadership to our worship teams- organizing & leading our weekly times of community worship. I participate twice weekly as well with worship teams for Pasadena International House of Prayer as part of my local ministry outreach, & was recently invited to participate in the recording of their new album, which I will share as soon as it is released!
This year has been a deep-dive of healing, resetting, prayer & remembering my 'why'. Life is never consistently easy, but with God it is possible to take what looks like impossible or difficult circumstances, & turn them for our good & His glory!
I invite you to pray & talk to God about the places that perhaps caught you off guard this year. I am certain He has a lot to say about it, & I am convinced there isn't a thing that escapes His notice or won't be turned around when surrendered to Him.
If this ministered to you in any way, or struck a chord, drop me a note!
I am SO thankful for your support, your friendship, & your lives!
Please let me know how I can be praying for you?
God bless & hope to see you soon!
Jo
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