Journal Entry #1 (Over the Bering Strait)

As you have noticed my failed attempt in updating my blog this semester, I will begin recapping my trip into the depths of Mordor... I mean Mongolia.

Chinggis Khaan International Airport Ulaanbator, Mongolia

June 17, 2011
"Well, there's no turning back at this point, I'm guessing we'll be in Mongolia in less then 8 hours. I am really surprised I haven't felt any fear, anxiety, or nervousness, all I feel is peace and excitement. Sitting on a huge Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet filled with people from all around Asia is like a slow warm up to our integration into the culture we will be immersed in soon. I've never been somewhere outside the US or around any other native language for an extended amount of time. I am curious if Mongolian culture is at all like most of the Asian cultures I've experienced. One thing I don't know if I am prepared for is that we don't have a wilderness or survival guide. I feel like I am the only one with any extended outdoor/survival situation experience, even what I have had is pretty slim. If I would have known about his a month ago I probably would have had a real problem problem with not having a survival guide, but at this point there isn't any room for anything except for faith. We are in God's hands at this point, He is the great Provider and Protector. Having the confidence in knowing that God is gone before us has taken away a lot of my anxiety about this whole situation. I am just curious to see what mom's reaction will be when I she finds out. I do feel bad though because I feel like I am really behind on reading articles and memorizing scripture for our trip. At this point I've got a good 5-6 hours of flight time to practice and catch up on everything. I do wan tot write down a few things I expect from this trip:

1. Redefine in Christ, that doing this I can carry this over into my floor next year, and continue to chisel out the man I want to be.
2. Change my mindset to living by God's standards and not the world's
3. I'm hoping that all this time on the missino field builds a better understanding of the Holy Spirit and my awareness to what He is doing and saying.
4. Through dying to my flesh I hope to get a clearer vision for what God wants me to do with my life, because I am really questioning Physical Therapy at this point, and a good part of it is due to grades and lack of passion.
5. Most importantly to grow in my prayer life and intercession

I am so excited for this new adventure and what God is going to do in all our lives."

Blake

Mongolia... The full length feature film is here!

Hey Guys,

I'm so sorry for the lack of posts... Sadly, school has taken its toll along with a busy semester of other activities. I had planned on recapping the trip afterwards, and I still will try and do it, maybe during Christmas break though. Until then, here is the video that Frank made from the trip. I hope you enjoy it, and if you have any questions regarding the trip feel free to e-mail me and ask! God Bless!

Blake

PS For some reason the link isn't working, not sure why, so here's the physical URL. You can copy and paste it into the search bar or something like that: http://vimeo.com/32183371

Every Good Gift is from God

Well we're back in UB, a little hairier, scrawnier, hungrier, and encouraged by the work God has done in the lives of the Mongol people in the valley above Tairilin. This post is what the Lord has laid on my heart, but I hope to upload pictures and share more stories in the next day or two.


I can't remember the first time I sat in cushioned chair. The couch at Baska's in UB was lumber with a strip of fabric over it, definitely not one of those "plop down" style couches; your tail bone will remind you that it's still there. We've given up all comfort. It makes me laugh to be excited to jump into my tent to get out of the cold Mongolian wind, snow and rain when back home I could just walk into my house into immediate warmth. It's interesting how quickly we adapt to what we have and we even then continue to cut down on what we need, less calories, And less stuff in general. Having a bathroom with walls is a luxury here, so we've all gotten used to seeing each other popp'n a squat or running into an occasional herdsmen doing some business. I feel like I have caught on well to the whole 'no shower' thing, the closest thing to a good bath is the rivers created by the snow runoff from the mountains. Anyone could experience the outdoor part of this adventure in America, beyond the missions side of our trip, but it's the missions side of this trip that makes this sacrifice so worth it.


Now I have the privilege to sit in a bed back in my hostel in Ulaanbatar and talk about the adventure we all partook of. Nearly four weeks of trekking through monotonous terrain and perpendicular valleys and my mind is lost in a maze of thoughts and analyzing every detail from every person we met. I don't think I could even tell you at where I am at in this maze, yet the only direction I want to point my finger is up; past the deep blue skies of Mongolia, through the vacuum of space, into the very throne room of the one and only God, holy, just, and sovereign. God has never ceased to move within me to see people with the very love His son Jesus showed us upon the cross. I have been so humbled to be the very mouthpiece used by God to share the melody and harmony of the most beautiful story of Jesus and the choice he made to come to earth as God, be hated, persecuted, and murdered by the very men he aimed to love. He came as God yet did not hold onto His rights as God but chose to serve us (Phil. 2:5-6). The Message we brought received many responses. We shared the Gospel with 13 gers and over 70 people, we saw people laugh at the depiction of Jesus our Gospel pamphlet showed, other people told us they didn't want to hear another word. 17 of those people rejoiced in the news, of recognizing that we are sinners in need of a Savior, and only Jesus' blood could deliver them from an eternity of separation from God. Many people would look at the outcome and numbers of this trip and some would be dismayed, but I left with my head held high, confident that we did exactly what God wanted us to do and served every person that God wanted us to. 2 Tim. 2:25-26 gives us the hope that our Message will not fall on deaf ears as long was we delivered it with gentleness and God will take His message and soften the hearts of those so they can take part in repentance and be set free from the evil one. All the comforts that are so convenient in the United States were so worth giving up for this trip. Its always easier said than done to give up everything you know for something you think is worth the cause. Its a dilemma I have seen in many peoples lives, and a dilemma I know I have played games with. "Well God, I could give this up because it doesn't control me, but since it doesn't control me I don't need to give it up." I think many of us have had that conversation under our breath to justify our idolatrous behaviors. God has been so gracious to me through the lack of physical comforts and has brought me back to the basic necessity of realizing that He is the Great Comforter and Provider, two characteristics that seem to allude recognition in American culture since we are so independent and self-sufficient we are able to provide for ourselves and find comfort in the things we own and the people we know. God wants us to rely on Him as Provider, not ourselves, because we begin to funnel God's vision through a tunnel that we are familiar with and miss the other tunnel that may end somewhere different but was apart of God's will.


God as Provider has been the characteristic of God I have seen so blatantly from this trip and the characteristic I feel I have overlooked too often. He was providing long before I saw it. Kyle and Miles were breaking their backs trying to get in country contacts and a translator yet no leads came until our final weeks in the states. We were desperate as a team, praying fervently God would provide for us. By the time we were in Ulaanbatar we had an older Christian man yearning to go with us as our translator. Once we reached the country side, we were two horses away from starting our month long adventure into the mountains looming behind Tairilin. We spent the better half of the morning asking anyone that we spotted who had horses. By lunch time our search was being shot down, the harsh Mongolian winter had killed many horses and no local families were willing to sell horses to us. It was so easy to become dismayed and to lose heart as we had one horsemen show us his horse then tell us he would not sell him, while another horse was brought to us that was a young colt that was more wild than any roller coaster I had ever ridden. After I had tried to get near him and gauge how he felt I quickly realized that they wanted to sell us a horse that was useless to them. Yet God came through, after a discouraging lunch and mulling over plan B, our answer to prayer rode by us on the way out of town. An older man riding a black horse stopped to talk with us and within five minutes he said he would sell his horse to us. This was like stopping someone on the way home and asking them to buy the very car they were driving. As we waited for the man to get home with the horse, our excitement for things coming together grew but we needed one more horse. As we waited in a small quaint church tucked behind the local club in the dust and water-worn dirt roads of Tairilin I couldn't help but smile when I realized that this is all in God's hands, and anything we try and force will be in vain. Within 15 minutes of sitting in the church our second horse was brought to the church. One of the men in this small and quaint community heard we needed another horse and brought his 19 year old buckskin horse to us (and as things turn out it was the older mans son-in-law). I can't even articulate how I felt as we entered the valley by 5pm walking with 2 horses God had brought forth in less then 3 hours after lunch, and in less then one day of entering a town where we literally knew no one besides the Pastor of the church. God constantly throws little things in our lives that point to His Provision, yet we take them for granted and only give thanks for the big things that seem to matter, a car, a job, safety, health, etc. yet God is putting little things in your life right now like a bread crumb trail that leads to Him, yet more times than not we think we were able to do it by our own means. I read the book "The Year of Living Biblically" by AJ Jacobs. As the title gives it away, he lives according to the Bible for an entire year, every single Old and New Testament law. First Thessalonians 5:18 says to "give things in all circumstances" and the AJ tells of how relieving it was to notice all the small things in his life and give thanks for them. He alludes that it makes you appreciate the small and simple things in life, as cliche as that sounds. By giving thanks we begin to create a heart of contentment and appreciation of all things God has created and given us. Watching God provide so mightily for us on our trip was so humbling. God, the creator of the very ground we pounded with every step, takes enough interest in us to provide for us, and ultimately provided His own son as the final atoning sacrifice for our sin so that we may receive God's mercy and salvation. This went beyond me as we met with more and more people, I caught a glimpse of the global perspective (I have naively overlooked) God has for every person to come to the knowledge of the Truth. Every drunk horsemen to every hardworking family, God was providing for them, but they just couldn't see it because the selfishness sin causes that blocks their view. The time we have on earth has been provided to us to use wisely, so what are the things that God has provided for you in your life? Has it been that moment of frustration as someone decides to do things there way instead of yours where you realize that you need to work on patience and grace? Was it the person who you talked to in line at the store that you were able to encourage? We must learn to see God's provision outside of receiving things directly, but that God may be providing in ways we may not even perceive as provision, they may just be outlets to share His love with others. He may be providing you with tests to build up your strength, your memory, your own testimony to share. On those days where you feel alone or that no one cares look at what God has given you. Don't lose track of God's provision and you will continually be amazed by grace and love God continually shows us.

Nothing but Wilderness

I have ten minutes to tell you what I've been up to with team Mongolia.... Go!

We've been backpacking in some brutal terrain for the past 12 days in a valley next to Tairilin Mongolia. The country is beautiful. We got snow on the 4th of July which was a new thing for us as we sat huddled in our tents trying to stay warm for most of the day. We've met with 4 nomadic families and have had some of the greatest experiences of my life spending time and serving them. We've helped shear their sheep, milk their goats at the break of dawn (which comes around 5am here), castrated their sheep, ate their sheep inards, chased down runaway horses, crossed torrential rivers, been sick and sore from hiking and food, but all of this has been so worth it to share this experience with 6 other sold out guys for Christ. We've been able to share the Gospel with people that have never even heard the name of Jesus and experienced some of Mongolia's finest hospitality. Please pray for us as we head back into the valley tomorrow for another 9 days as we plan to visit the Hotung tribe a little closer to the mouth of the valley. Sorry this is short, but hopefully I can give you a better update. Until then God Bless!

Wifi? Out here?!

Well here I am in the middle of nowhere and I have Internet that is faster than my own home... This trip is tougher than I thought... Haha right now we're waiting in a Ger in the town of Terilin at the base of the valley we will be hiking through in the next 25 days. We left ulaangom at 7am this morning and our host here in town is a pastor that really reminds me of Papa (my late grandpa). He's out looking for horses for our trip right now. The horses are so small here! I'm pretty sure ponies are bigger in America. We had a lady make us two hand made saddle bags that are beautiful. I hope to bring some home. Our team grew last night by one. We had a 17 yr old boy from ulaangom ask to join us on our trek to learn English but little does he know we'll be discipling him as well. Part if our goal of this trip waste inspire young Mongolian guys and to be a witness to them, and there is no greater opportunity than this to let a young man come with us for 3 weeks. 
God has continued to prove Himself as the Great Provider in this trip. We've had so many connections with missionaries and christian Mongolians that have given us information and encouraged us. God has also been providing a lot of strength and equipment for us. Right mow we do have a couple guys not feeling well so please keep them in your prayers. We're so excited to start our journey to spread the gospel to people that have never hears the good news.
Mongolian culture is so fascinating, they're so hospitable. Right now we're sipping fresh milk tea (made with goats milk) and eating Aruul which is a sharp goats cheese but very good (the closer to the country side we get the fresher it is and the better!). We're anxious to try Airig which us fermented mares milk... We hear it runs right through ya if you know what I mean. Yesterday we climbed a large red mountain inthe outskirts if ulaangom called ulaanoll (ooo) on the way we passed a horsemen herding his goats, reminded me of the cattle drives with cows except with goats... Ya you get the picture. The horsemen here are legit guys and look way cool in their traditional clothing (they wear it daily still, it's like a long over coat that wraps around the front and buttons on the right shoulder). One thing I do wish came easier is the language, Mongolia is one tough language with weird syllables and noises! It's funny how comforting the landscape is. It reminds me a lot of my grandparents ranch in Nevada, the valley with the mountains in the side. Who knew home could feel so close! I'm getting excited to have the horses though, it will be fun putting the knowledge i have from growing up with horses to the test! Well I apologize for any spelling errors, I've typed this on my touch in the middle of nowhere so my keyboard is on my big enough for my thumbs. Hopefully one of the gers will have free wifi, who knows! Mayb e I can update you all some more! Until then Bayarahtay (good bye in Mongolian!) and God bless!

Hey kids... We're here!

Well this will be a short post due to many factors. 1.) I have/had limited internet access, 2.) I have to pack 45lbs of stuff into a 70 ltr bag 3.) I'm soooo tired... There's probably a fourth but I won't go there.

Team Mongolia has been in country now for 4 days and we have been staying in a small apartment with a AMAZING Christian family in Ulaanbatar. We have been so blessed to have made this connection with this family. Baaska is the father and is a passionate guy who loves the Lord and loves to meet and talk with people (which became evident whenever traffic was at a standstill it wasn't long until he was chatting with driver that was madly blaring their horn at cars that weren't going anywhere in particular). The first day here Baaska took us to his ministry which is a children's ministry for orphans or poverty stricken children. We literally stepped off the plane onto a tarmac that looked like it was built during World War II, dropped our bags off, and went into the poorest part of Ulaanbatar (UB) and spent the rest of the day hanging out with children that had nothing... literally. This was the only place they could come for refuge, food, and clean water, and that is when Baaska's love for children became evident. Within the first half day of being in Mongolia, I realized it was nothing like what I had expected. It is a lot more third world than I expected. You will see multi-million dollar skyscrapers being built and you'll see all these small Gers lying around the base of it, the roads are a mess, and I won't even mention the driving (especially so I won't concern my mom if she reads this). Overall, within the first day, my mind was blown at what I saw, and the couple hundred pictures I took don't even seem to capture it all.

So tomorrow our backpacking adventure begins. We fly to Ulaangom at 4am and will be there for the next 4 weeks backpacking through the mountains of Ooves (English pronunciation). We have a translator that is a retired pastor who's whole ambition is to reach the people of his home country with the Gospel. Within the first hour of meeting him he was giving us ideas and structure to how we should go about talking to the Mongolian people. Along with that, we met the guy who had led previous teams to the same area we will be going too and he gave us a lot of helpful information on weather, safety and other things. I have so much I want to type, but not nearly enough time to give you a decent picture.

When we get to Ulaangom tomorrow we will be purchasing a couple horses which I will be in charge of since I'm the only one with any horse background, so I'm excited to put my equine upbringing to the test in rugged Mongolia! As of now I ask you to pray for me in the area of wisdom in finding a good healthy and level headed horse and that I will be able to work with these horses well. Secondly, that our team would continue to work well together and glorify God through each individual personality. Lastly, I ask that you would pray that our team would stay 'regular' in the sense of bowel movements... I know that may be too much info, but its an honest request. As of now we're all a little blocked up, and as of tomorrow, we're told that we'll all have diarrhea of some sort in the next week or two. I hope you are doing well and I pray that the Lord will bless you as He has completely blessed me (something I didn't see in a larger perspective until I got to Mongolia). God Bless! It will be another 4 weeks or so until I am able to give you all an update on our adventure, and I hope by then I can upload some pictures!

What am I doing?! Even better, What's God going to do?!

Random Mongolia Fact
Mongolia's currency is called Tugrik pronounced just like it looks. Check out exchange rate and you'll see why I'm so excited to take money there haha! Mongolian Currency Exchange

Scriptural Meditation
Psalm 59 is one of my favorite Psalms, and as dark as it may seem, its so promising and uplifting and is a Psalm I draw my strength from especially today. Psalm 59

Well, t minus 14 hours and I will be on a westward bound plane the size of a giant blue whale with the destinations plans for Beijing. I really wanted to add China to my list of countries visited, but sadly, we can't leave the airport without a Visa, so we'll sit in the airport for 3 hours waiting for our flight to Ulaanbatar. A few minutes ago I was talking with fellow team member Geoff Nelson and asked him how he felt about the trip being this close. He mentioned he was a little nervous, yet in me asking that question I realized, I have no emotion or 'pang' of the heart so-to-speak. I know that I am excited, but I don't have a tinge of nervousness... yet. But only time will tell! I can't lie in saying I am not questioning my decision on this crazy adventure, but I look at everything the Lord has done over the course of the past few months in my life, in my team mates lives, and how He has affirmed this trip in so many ways. At the beginning of this trip my dad encouraged me to look at this decision realistically and see that I am in college and I need to make money, and this trip will hinder me from making much money this summer. For the 2 weeks I was home, both Best Buy and Townsquare Media let me come back and work a few hours, which was a huge blessing to be able to make a little money to put towards my trip. Along with that, I believe that I only need $400 to pay off my... check that only $199 left as of RIGHT NOW to pay off my trip Praise God! That in itself shows how God is providing for this trip. I've grown so much spiritually through this, in no way I do I regret my decision this far for my trip for what I've learned from God. My faith has already grown a TON when looking at how God is providing financially. The choice I made to go on this trip could set me back a whole year in school, meaning one more year of tuition and college expenses, and seeing how God's provided for this trip, I know that He will provide mightily for school.
But seriously, I'll be halfway around the world talking and ministering to people that I have no way to connect with... If that doesn't sound crazy, I don't know what is, but I know God has gone before us on this trip. God is moving across Mongolia. Seeing the explosion Christianity has had in Mongolia is encouraging, but I just found out that there is another missions team from the LA area going to Mongolia as well as a team of moms with Mom's in Touch International. I feel so humbled to know that I will be a vessel to show the people of Mongolia the grace, mercy, forgiveness, and grace of Christ. Mongolia is spiritually hungering, and God will use us to feed His people. Just as Jesus called Peter to feed His sheep, so we take part in the great commission to feed the sheep of our Father's pasture. Wow... I am so utterly humbled by typing this, all the things that I have put before God in my life, the sin that has stained my soul, the times when I lived in my carnal flesh, that even in my lowliness, God will still loves me enough to use me. If you're reading this and you feel like you aren't worthy of God's love, you're wrong, a lot of people have joked as I grew thinking that I've lived a 'Holy' life, well the cats outta the bag, and I've lived a not so holy life with some of the decisions I've made, the way I've let time, money, academics and other things control my life. Every time I decide to go back to my sin, I play the harlot with God, I tell God that I want my pride more than I want Him, that I want my instant fleshly gratification more than I want eternal life with Him. (Read the book of Hosea and see what he went through or download Tim Chaddicks podcast series on Hosea, it has changed my life and my walk with Christ.) Yet even through that, He is merciful and He still loves me, He still loves you, regardless of where you are in life. Paul breaks this process down through out the book of Romans, even through the tough to read parts of realizing that we are not holy, that all of us are sinners, that all of us are not worthy of God, Paul reiterates that God Still... Loves... Us... He is righteous in all of His ways, and by seeking Him we get to know Him, by knowing Him we fall in love with Him and see how He loves us more than anyone wife or husband could ever love us. He loves us more than we can fathom (as cliche as that is it still holds true).
Well, that went a route I didn’t intend to go, but I believe that this was meant for one of you to read. Some of my friends have been asking me, what am I most excited for in this trip, or what do you expect God to do in this trip. Right now my mind is split, one half with the fun adventure this trip holds, and the other focused on the purpose of spreading the Gospel. Physically, I want to push the boundaries of my bodies so that I may bring it into submission, so that I can grow spiritually as Paul talks about in 1 Cor. 9:27. I want God to continue to knock me off my pedestal of pride so that I can be used by Him in ALL areas of my life, physically, mentally, financially, relationally, etc, and I know that is a dangerous thing to want cause it can and will hurt me in all those areas according to the worlds standards. The worlds standards, thats another thing I want to focus on letting go of, not to care what the world thinks but what Christ thinks. I want God to reveal His vision for my life in a few different areas. What I need to do academically as far as major of study. How to disciple specifically for my floor next year as an RA in Stewart. How to love people the way Christ loves us, regardless of the manipulation and the hurt. And mostly, how to become a Man of God. I am hoping to journal on these points on my own and hopefully I will see God moving but who knows, its all on God’s timing, and we may not see things the way we want to see them until God reveals it to us. But seriously, I'll be halfway around the world talking and ministering to people that I have no way to connect with... If that doesn't sound crazy, I don't know what is, but I know God has gone before us on this trip. God is moving across Mongolia. Seeing the explosion Christianity has had in Mongolia is encouraging, but I just found out that there is another missions team from the LA area going to Mongolia as well as a team of moms with Mom's in Touch International. I feel so humbled to know that I will be a vessel to show the people of Mongolia the grace, mercy, forgiveness, and grace of Christ. Mongolia is spiritually hungering, and God will use us to feed His people. Just as Jesus called Peter to feed His sheep, so we take part in the great commission to feed the sheep of our Father's pasture. Wow... I am so utterly humbled by typing this, all the things that I have put before God in my life, the sin that has stained my soul, the times when I lived in my carnal flesh, that even in my lowliness, God will still loves me enough to use me. If you're reading this and you feel like you aren't worthy of God's love, you're wrong, a lot of people have joked as I grew thinking that I've lived a 'Holy' life, well the cats outta the bag, and I've lived a not so holy life with some of the decisions I've made, the way I've let time, money, academics and other things control my life. Every time I decide to go back to my sin, I play the harlot with God, I tell God that I want my pride more than I want Him, that I want my instant fleshly gratification more than I want eternal life with Him. (Read the book of Hosea and see what he went through or download Tim Chaddicks podcast series on Hosea, it has changed my life and my walk with Christ.) Yet even through that, He is merciful and He still loves me, He still loves you, regardless of where you are in life. Paul breaks this process down through out the book of Romans, even through the tough to read parts of realizing that we are not holy, that all of us are sinners, that all of us are not worthy of God, Paul reiterates that God Still... Loves... Us... He is righteous in all of His ways, and by seeking Him we get to know Him, by knowing Him we fall in love with Him and see how He loves us more than anyone wife or husband could ever love us. He loves us more than we can fathom (as cliche as that is it still holds true).
Well, that went a route I didn’t intend to go, but I believe that this was meant for one of you to read. Some of my friends have been asking me, what am I most excited for in this trip, or what do you expect God to do in this trip. Right now my mind is split, one half with the fun adventure this trip holds, and the other focused on the purpose of spreading the Gospel. Physically, I want to push the boundaries of my bodies so that I may bring it into submission, so that I can grow spiritually as Paul talks about in 1 Cor. 9:27. I want God to continue to knock me off my pedestal of pride so that I can be used by Him in ALL areas of my life, physically, mentally, financially, relationally, etc, and I know that is a dangerous thing to want cause it can and will hurt me in all those areas according to the worlds standards. The worlds standards, thats another thing I want to focus on letting go of, not to care what the world thinks but what Christ thinks. I want God to reveal His vision for my life in a few different areas. What I need to do academically as far as major of study. How to disciple specifically for my floor next year as an RA in Stewart. How to love people the way Christ loves us, regardless of the manipulation and the hurt. And mostly, how to become a Man of God. I am hoping to journal on these points on my own and hopefully I will see God moving but who knows, its all on God’s timing, and we may not see things the way we want to see them until God reveals it to us.

Please be praying for team Mongolia! Thanks and God Bless!