Renovations

I had to laugh last week when I ended up telling someone I am a volunteer at the Dream Center. Their reply was, "Oh my gosh, are you guys tearing that place down?"

Right now--the majority of the Dream Center is covered in huge black tarp like fabric because the main building (the part that has no one living in it) is under construction to be renovated. From the highway, you can see the whole building and every time I drive by I can't help by think how amazing it is going to be when the building is finished.

Once this building is done, it will more than double the capacity that is being housed at the Dream Center right now. These floors are going to be filled with people coming to dedicate their time to a cause bigger than themselves and people coming to get a second chance at life, people coming to experience God in a more tangible way. These floors are going to be a place of restoration, power life changing tools and home to so many.

Its so exciting to be a part of history in the making.
Pretty soon the floors will be done and people will hardly believe there was a time when we didn't have the ability to house the amount of things we will have there.
I can't wait to see what God does.

Team Season

Right now is the big push when all of the Short Term Mission teams come down to L.A. to volunteer at the Dream Center.
Hundreds of people come for what we call "Team Season." It is a crazy, packed, awesome few months. Because there have been so many new additions to the Dream Center, such as our family floor, a lot of the rooms where these teams would stay have been taken over for something else so there are teams sleeping in the gym!

These people are dedicated, excited and come here to serve because God has called them to be here.

If you've never been here and want to experience what it is like for a week of two, I would really recommend coming down. You can see what all the ministries are like, meet tons of awesome people, see God move and have your life changed while you are helping to change others.

We love STM's, so definitely come down if you get a chance this summer!

Burns

Twice a week, usually on weekends, I work over at Starbucks so that I can pay for school while I am volunteering at the Dream Center. Today I opened at 5 AM--in the middle of our morning rush I was getting someone their coffee when, somehow, the 20 oz cup of freshly brewed 200* coffee spilt all over my exposed arm and where my sleeve was covering. It immediately started stinging and my eyes started tearing up. I began laughing, I think more from shock as my arm was burning. I could feel it begin really hurting as I didnt have time to put it under water because we had a line of 20 people waiting for their drinks.

I kept ringing people up and wiped the tears streaming down my face that came nonchalantly. I wasn't crying but my eyes just wouldn't stop watering. One of my co-workers started giving me a bad time and telling me to "deal with it" and I joked back and forth with him like it wasn't a big deal. BUT IT HURT. So, after the line was gone, I pulled my sleeve up and realize my arm was still a deep pink and had started swelling. The coworker who has made fun of me went into the back and grabbed this burn medicine for me to put on my arm but instead of being grateful and taking it to get rid of the pain, I become proud and said "No, I don't need that." I didn't want to give in because he had made fun of me and made me feel foolish. After about 10 minutes I realized how stupid that was. Why would I sit there in pain if there was something that could take the pain away?

I was walking home with this big yellow sponge like thing on my arm and gauze wrapped around it and I started thinking about how we deal with so many problems like that. We are hurting. We are dealing with something painful. We are in, someway, over our head and don't know how to make it stop. But we are too proud, too embarrassed, feel too foolish to ask for help.
We have the grace of a God that loves us so much that He had his son die for us.
I know we talk about that a lot, but really think about that.
Think about your child or someone's child you love so much--and think about having them be crucified, the most painful and humiliating death, to save a bunch of people who sometimes don't even care or would rather just get by without the help.
Imagine that.
Imagine GIVING UP your child.
Now-- why do we waste so much time being unhappy, being in pain, hurting...when God is there to be the relief? Why do we wait to seek out what will make us better?

Just a few thoughts
My arm feels a lot better.
I know once I take the little pad off, it will probably still hurt, but the medicine helped almost immediately to eliminate the pain. God does not always miraculously make us better right away--but he definitely brings a sense of hope that you can't describe. Don't be too proud to ask Him for help.
He loves you.

Change the way you think

I was reading in my bible yesterday and found a verse that has really challenged me.

Leviticus 5:1 says :if you sin by not stepping up and offering yourself as a witness to something you've heard or seen in cases of wrong doing, you'll be held responsible.

Don't we as humans use the excuse that "I'm only human" when we do things wrong? We think that because we are flawed and we fall short, that it almost gives us the excuse to do things wrong? Now, this isn't all the time or with everyone, but I think a lot of people can agree with me that we fight for reasons to avoid feeling guilty. so when my friend said this to me tonight..it almost made my heart hurt for God.

How do we make Him feel when we aren't even willing to try and go that extra step for Him? How do we make Him feel when we don't even think what we are saying, or doing, or thinking, is wrong? Why AREN'T we willing to go to that extreme?

It boggles me that, when we KNOW, the things God can do...we STILL aren't willing to try and change.

Romans 12:2 says "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."
We HAVE to change the way we think.
WE HAVE TO.

If we don't change the way we think...if we don't 'renew our minds' we will continue to find ourselves in the same situations feeling like we just aren't willing to go any further. We are responsible for the things we say...but we also are responsible for the things we DON'T say and SHOULD have said.

Start changing the way you think---The closer we get to God, the more what HE wants becomes what WE want.
Isn't that the best place to be?

Creativity

You know what I have learned (over and over and over again) while volunteering at the Dream Center?

You can never be more creative than when you are in-tune with your Creator.

God created each of us with unique talents, gifts, attributes, personalities....and the time, I think, that those REALLY shine is when we give up our own agenda and adopt God's.
It's hard. Trying to live for an audience of one is TOUGH. But wow--is it freeing.
Suddenly you have new perspective, new motivation, new desire.

So just a little something to think about---
Are you following your path and trying to take God along or God's path and following blindly?
One may sound scarier than the other, but I bet one is also more rewarding.

Happy Tuesday!

Join the Cause

Every night in Los Angeles, someone goes hungry
Statistics are a mind blowing thing.

But nothing compares to being able to see those statistics first hand.

I have the opportunity to work at The Dream Center and be a part of the Adopt-A-Block program.
I see the need here everyday, overwhelming the streets and hearts of people who are hanging on to their last string of hope.

We have the chance to make a difference in their lives.
Not a difference that will take place a year from now or next week, but a difference that will take place RIGHT NOW.

By donating, you provide these families and individuals with food, a place to stay, mentoring, hygiene needs and most importantly, the chance for us to continue to go and tell them that we love them and God loves them even more.

I don't have statistics for you but I do have my first hand experience. Los Angeles is in need. The people are in need.

And you can be their hope.

Wouldn't you agree that RIGHT NOW is a good time to make a difference?


Visit this site and JOIN THE CAUSE!!!

www.dreamcenteraab.ning.com

Find more photos like this on Adopt-A-Block

Homelessness

Did you know that California has the highest amount of homeless people in our nation?

Our state has more homeless people each night than some states have in PEOPLE all together.
(Maybe I am exaggerating) The last thing I read, said that there was 80,000 homeless people A NIGHT in Los Angeles.

How is that even possible?

We were extremely blessed to have three photographers come down to LA and shoot for us all day today. They have been here since 8:30 AM and they are great. I have been telling them about the Dream Center all day...but you know what has been the most amazing thing for them?

I sent them all out on different sites today with Adopt-A-Block. One of the girls came back and she told me, "I had no idea there was this much need here. It is so beautiful and moving what you guys are doing..."

Do you KNOW?
It's so hard to SEE it sometimes, isn't it?
Even for people who are in these neighborhoods everyday...for those of us who live here...we see it everyday.
But do we REALLY?

Do we let ourselves see the need here? Do we let ourselves see the hurt? Or do we become desensitized and distracted?

If you want to volunteer, if you want to come see what's going on here, if you want to come and have your life impacted and REALLY impact other people's lives, PLEASE contact us.

The need is real.
And we really can help.