Since I have been home from the World Race many people have asked
me, whats next? This year God has shown me that he is going to use me
for greatness and that with him I can do things beyond myself. The
World Race changed my life and I have been AWAKENED. I'm ready to bring
that empowerment to America.
God has put a vision in my teammate, Jessie Miller, and my heart
to go out into America and get a generation up off their feet. Our
generation has been sleeping way to long. So with that said, Jessie and I
are starting a traveling team to go around the U.S. and speak and
churches and colleges. We hope to encourage, love, and empower people
to not just be "Christian's" but be radical for the Lord . We will be
traveling to a new city every week and be leaving at the end of
September. Below is a copy of my support letter.
Mysoul, my heart, and my spirit have BEEN AWAKENED!
My faith has been TESTED and strengthened.
My comfort zones have been SHAKEN.
My heart has been BROKEN.
My human love has fallen short, as I've been filled with the LOVE OF JESUS.
My dreams have become more like the dreams of GOD.
My Vision is CLEARER.
My identity has been SECURED.
My message is STRONG...I have something to say, and I am going to say it for the rest of my life.
These words are from my teammate, Katie Rowland, but they echo the exact words from my heart. I have seen the Kingdom of God alive this year. I have seen the sick healed, the starving children fed, churches come alive, fires ignited, new identities brought to life by Christ, and a world desperately seeking something more. The most beautiful moment is looking into someone's eyes when they realize that the ‘something more' is Christ, and I know that their life will never be the same.
Many people have been asking, "What are your next plans?" I just laugh because God has spoken boldness over me and called me and my teammate, Jessie Miller, to a ministry that neither of us would have ever considered before the race. Our hearts are beating with a calling for our generation. We are starting a traveling team and going on a US tour to AWAKEN our generation! God has asked us to call them out of a comfortable, mediocre, and mundane existence and into a life that is fully alive in Christ. God has given us a story this year and it is our responsibility to tell the world. This isn't just a trip talking about how God has awoken us; this is a MOVEMENT to awaken the sleepers of America!
Our ministry will be broken into three major areas as we travel. We will be reaching out to churches, universities, and one on one meeting's with those interested. Our goal is to go wherever God opens doors and share His truth and our testimonies. I thought my backpack would have a chance to collect a little dust this year but God had other plans. Once again we will pack our bags, load the car, and hit the road starting in September and ending in April 2010, with a break during the holidays.
After a year like I just had, how can I not go and tell the world! God has opened my eyes and given me a glimpse of who He really is and what I saw only makes me hungry for more of His goodness. I want everyone to know that same goodness and desire more of it in their own lives. This year would not have happened without my supporters, financial and prayer partners. The investment you have made in my life was not just in my life, but also in the Kingdom all over the globe. So from the bottom of my fully restored and awakened heart, I thank you!
I am asking you to support me again. I would not be writing you if I did not value the relationship we already have. Please consider continuing to be a part of that-through prayer, correspondence, and finances. My goal is to raise $9,600 to launch and go forth with this traveling team. The money will go towards travel costs, living expenses, ministry, etc. ,.
If you feel called to support me you can do so online or request a support letter and I can mail it to you. Click on the Support Me tab to the left and it will walk you through the online donation process. If you want a support letter mailed to you clicked on the Contact Me tab and you can send me your address for a copy. All gifts are tax-deductible.
One year ago, I pictured myself returning from the race and stepping back into a steady career in America. Somewhere along the road I accepted that my plans are the ones that end up a bad decision and God's plans are the ones that have exceeded my dreams. So I surrender my plans at the cross and step forward into a future that is led by my King. Kingdom work is the most important work we could invest our time in, that is why I am asking for your support both by prayer and financially. By allowing God to use you, you are not only investing in God's family, but you are changing the world.
If
you are interested in partnering with Jessie and I to cover us in pray as
we travel email me at AmyMcAllister@Adventures.org. We will put you on
a pray list and we will send you updates on how you can be praying for
us and how we are doing. Also if you are interested in having us come
speak at your church or hosting us in your home along our travels
contact me as well. Jessie and I would love to have you involved in our
journey. I can't wait to AWAKEN my generation for the Lord.
Before I left on the race I wrote a blog
inspired from the song, ‘I Saw God Today' A few days ago on the beach thanks to
the shuffle setting I heard it on my ipod and I opened my eyes to all around me
in Santorini. Every day I look around and I feel like I am in a movie because
it is almost too beautiful to believe that I am here. It is easy in this
setting to tune out the world and face it, isn't that the point of a vacation. That's
what I used to think.
This year has taught me to be intentional at all
times. Well, I choose to ignore God's voice a lot, but it is always there. A
lot of people we have met this year were excited to meet missionary's, which
made talking about it easy. Here in Greece there are a lot of American tourists
we have met. For the 1st time in awhile I am getting the ‘Ohh you
are a missionary, well umm, hmm. What does that mean?' and then trying to get
out of a God focused conversation quickly. Despite that, I have seen God in every
situation.
I saw God present when I talked with one of my roommates
at the hostel. She was telling me about her travels this year and then she
mentioned this small, awful town called Pattaya in Thailand. She taught English
there for awhile and had a hard time living in a city like Pattaya. God moment!
I told her about my experience and how God set me on fire while I was there and
how God called me to return one day. The crazy thing is she is moving to
Atlanta to go to grad school. It was no coincident in meeting her, it was a
God-incident.
I saw God present in a conversation with a guy
from the Coast Guard on break here in Santorini. He stumbled into our room to
invite us out and tell us how we were the most beautiful women on the island.
While I can't argue with that, it is always nicer to hear from someone
completely sober. He heard we were the missionaries staying there because word
travels fast. He opened up and told us how he believes in God and told us some
miracle stories from his family. He started talking about how he feels so alone
because on a ship of 180 there are only 2 believers and he feels lost most of
the time. He broke into tears talking about how messed up his life is and how
one day he wants to get his act together. He drinks to forget the pain but in
the process has lost himself. I trust that God used our words to encourage him
and for him to hear and believe that he is not alone. I saw a lost man who is
searching for significance, searching for a purpose, and searching for more. I
heard God say I am the answer.
God is everywhere and in everyone. Then again so
is the enemy. He knows our weaknesses and struggles and his one plan is to
kill, steal, and destroy. Even on the beautiful island of Santorini we have to
rebuke the enemy and call on Jesus to give us strength. My struggles have been
thrown into my face and satan has been trying to overcome me. He thinks now
that I am off the race things will change and I won't live my life boldly anymore.
He thinks I will now shut up and not talk about how awesome my Savior is. All I
have to say to that is...go to back to hell satan because you cannot overcome me
or my God. We win, bottom line.
Some folks
started saying the phrase "I love my life" while they were in Africa and needed
motivation to make it through the hard days. The phrase stuck with me. I say it
with all seriousness now...I really do love my life. This year has been the most
amazing gift from God. It seems a little funny to call it a gift because this
year was not easy all the time. Sometimes I wanted to run away from the pain
and hard conversations. Sometimes I wanted to close my ears to the lessons God
wanted to teach me. The overwhelming truth is that it was all worth it. Every
lesson, hard conversation, every tear was worth it.
I haven't
blogged about team 5 Alive in awhile, so here is the truth. We fell apart in
the end. Things got hard, feelings were hurt, and we did not know how to move
past the pain. So for over the last two months we have not operated as a team.
Sometimes we were there for each other individually; but it wasn't the same.
This year we lived in community the way Christ intended His children to. We
went deep with one another from day one, so the more you invest the more you
have to lose. When one person was struggling we rebuked satan's schemes and
declared God's truth over them. We loved through the hard times and prophesied
of those to come. We were Christ to one another.
The kicker I
have learned about community is that it does not happen naturally. Every single
person must chose individually to live in true community or opt-out. When we
came back together at final debrief things were still rocky. It did not sit
well with me that my family was not going to end the year on good or God's
terms. For months I and many others prayed for reconciliation. We tried to make
it happen on our time and of course, that did not happen. Freedom fell on 5
Alive the night of our final worship. The Spirit fell on all our hearts as a
team and individually. The chains were broken, arrows were removed, and no
scars remained. Christ healed what was broken and restoration occurred.
Our family of 5 was ALIVE
again!
To the ladies of
5 Alive, to the ladies who have changed me, I honor you. I started the trip in
tears because you didn't understand me; while now a year later I am in tears
because you will no longer be with me every day. You ladies have inspired and
challenged me more than I thought possible.
To Ali: You are
my NEW sister in Christ. You are a different woman now than you were 11 months
ago. You are a bold, fierce woman of God who is going to bring Kingdom to the
world and especially Colorado!
To Sara: You are
walking in such freedom with Christ that it is contagious. Your exceptional
resume lists your gift of healing, capturing others with the spirit of
laughter, and bringing joy and truth into the Kingdom.
To Melanie: The
old is gone and the new is alive. You are God's beautiful daughter who has the
responsibility to tell others of your transformation. You will change the world
through your gift of joy, comforting, and wise counsel. This is just the start
of your new life.
To Natalie: Your
gentle spirit has touched my soul this year. I see a warrior ready to go to
battle. You are armed with the gift of prophecy and speaking bold truths that
pierce souls. Yet a soft prayer that humbles others to life change.
Each woman of
God I have spent the year with is now entwined into the story of my life. I now
have a new testimony to tell and it is because of God's direction and your love
that has brought this story to life.
God is amazing! I am overwhelmed by God's beauty that surrounds me here in Santorini, Greece. Four of us decided that after the race we were going to travel around Europe for a few weeks before heading back to America. I have been here in Santorini for almost 5 days now and it is drop dead beautiful. As I lay on the beach and relax I have been trying to get into processing mode instead of just passing out on my lounge chair. Here are some of the ending thoughts I have after the best year (so far) of my life. Please stick with me readers through this processing stage, I will have more blogs to come. I still will be posting about my month in Moldova soon. I return to AMerica on June 13th, so see you soon!
I leave the race with these truths:
*I met a God this year I did not know
before. I saw a God who loves the lost and breaks our hearts for what
breaks His. I saw a God who wants to wake up the sleeping nations and
bring restoration. I met a God this year that awakened my soul to who
He really is.
*God is CRAZY in love with us. Despite
our flaws, short-comings, and failings God will always love me. I can
never lose His love.
*The Holy Spirit is alive and active.
Life in the Spirit is not just something that happened in the Bible.
The same Spirit that was alive in Paul is in me as well.
*Christ gives us His authority. The
authority that Christ had to cast out demons is the same authority
Christ gives me. It is time we believe miracles and healings are real
because God wants us to be His mouth of truth, His hands of healing,
and His love that is alive through our faith.
*God is asking more of every single
person. We have a responsibility to share Christ with the world, with
our family, with those we don't know. Deciding to live for Christ
is the hardest and the best decision we will ever have to make. A
life with God is signing up for rejection, hardships, and one hell of
a life in freedom. If this was easy everyone would give their life to
God. We have not signed up to sit on the sidelines and let ‘that
stronger Christian' do the work...the work is for you and for me.
*I have lived this year with the fire
of God within me and I am addicted. God has given me His goodness and
I chose to live within it for the remainder of my life. God set my
mouth on fire with His truth. He gave me His words and confidence to
be able to stand in front of others and offer His freedom to anyone
who is hungry. His Spirit struck me to the ground and gave me the
gift of tongues. I will edify my God with these words and by my life.
*The call of a life in Christ has been
offered and I say YES. My life before the race was a life of
searching. I was searching for fulfillment, acceptance, love, and
basically myself. I am no longer searching. Christ has told me who I
am in Him and what my role in the Kingdom is. The ‘American Dream'
that I pictured for my life is no longer there. I see a life of
igniting our generation to rise up and be the women and men of God
that we are called to be. I see a life of breaking the chains of
bondage that are holding the bar girls captive in Thailand. I see a
life with Christ that I could never imagine for myself...I see
freedom in Christ wherever the road takes me.
"How do you pick up the
threads of your old life? How do you go on? With a new heart you begin to
understand there is no going back."
-Frodo Baggins, ‘Lord
of the Rings'
This is it. The race is over. 11 months have come and gone
and so has the old Amy. I have been thinking a lot about going home, what is it
going to be like, how will I adjust. I wonder if anyone will be able to see the
transformation that has occurred within me. I am the same Amy as I was before
but with a completely new understanding of who I am in God and of who God is. I
have met a God on this trip that I did not know before and I am madly in love
with Him. He has wrecked me, kicked me in the butt, and shown me more love than
I knew was possible.
Last month my Moldova team and I watched the Lord of the
Rings series (yes we are aware we are dorks). When we heard Frodo say this at
the end of the movie after he returned to the Shire we cracked up laughing
because we now relate to a hobbit. I know exactly how Frodo felt. You return to
your old life, but you are not the same, I am not the same. The normal that I
knew before will no longer be my normal because I don't fit in. God has turned
me into a passionate woman I was not before this journey. The exciting part is
I find a new ‘normal' now. I get to find out how this new Amy translates into
the American culture and that excites the heck out of me. I have a heart for
America, for my generation. I have a desire to share what God has done to me
with as many people as possible when I get home.
I am at final debrief and finish up in a few days. It is
hard to say goodbye to what has become home. But God is now calling me back to
America to share the stories that he has given me.
This is not the end, just the beginning of a life long
journey....
My teammate Katie Rowland made this video as a favor for me.
My singles group I was a part of in Atlanta is having a retreat and the theme
is community living. This year on the race my community has changed me. They
have challenged me, loved me, and been Christ to me. My singles group in
Atlanta was the community God placed me in to prepare for my journey this year.
They as well sharpened me and loved me like Christ loves me. There is not one
community in the world that is perfect, every community needs constant
refinement that is where the challenge comes in. After literally living in
community 24/7 this year I learned that Christ asks more of us than most of us
are willing to give. Are we willing to bear our hearts, share our struggles
with one another, and love others when all I want to do is smack them?? I
realized I was not living as intimately with others as I thought I was before
the race. Christ has shown me that I had more to give than I was offering
before. It was not the community's fault, it was my fault. It is every single
person's decision how deep you are willing to live in community. Living in
community can be a comfortable thing if you decide to take the easy
route...that is not what Christ asks us to do. My hope is that every person
makes the personal decision to live in community, let your community transform you
through Christ's power, and to love each other unconditionally even when it is
hard. Wouldn't Christ ask the same of you??
Here is a beautiful look at the people we have fallen in love with this month. Katie did an amazing job on this one!! Enjoy
We get on a bus this evening and head for Moldova, please pray for safe travels and an safe last month on the race. Half of the squad is in Moldova and half is going to be in the Ukraine. Yes folks, LAST MONTH ON THE RACE. I want to cry and jump up and down at the same time. I am excited to end this race well and fall in love with yet another country.
I love you all and thank you for joining me on this journey!
(the good photo's are Natalie Montgomery's and Katie Rowland's)
We helped a lot of the neighbors prepare for Easter. Everyone brings their carpets down to the river to clean; and that is some hard work!! We also helped prepare some land for farming and had a little bit to much fun in the process.
We put on a children's program last week. We told the Easter story, sang songs, made crafts, and loved on the cutest kiddos!!
On our last day we gave the kids a huge surprise by having a face painting party and an Easter egg hunt. I think for most of the kids that was their first egg hunt. It was awesome!
One night all us girls learned how to dance like a gypsy. The secret is to wear twirly skirts that do all the work for you.
A Romanian birthday tradition is you take a bite out of your cake and then they smash it in your face. Sandu and I share the same birthday so we both had a yummy mess to clean up.
Here is a look at Romania through my teammtes, Natalie and Katie's, lens....enjoy!
These words are from my teammate, Katie Rowland, but they echo the exact words from my heart. 
Every day I look around and I feel like I am in a movie because
it is almost too beautiful to believe that I am here. It is easy in this
setting to tune out the world and face it, isn't that the point of a vacation. That's
what I used to think.
To Ali: You are
my NEW sister in Christ. You are a different woman now than you were 11 months
ago. You are a bold, fierce woman of God who is going to bring Kingdom to the
world and especially Colorado!
To Melanie: The
old is gone and the new is alive. You are God's beautiful daughter who has the
responsibility to tell others of your transformation. You will change the world
through your gift of joy, comforting, and wise counsel. This is just the start
of your new life.
To Natalie: Your
gentle spirit has touched my soul this year. I see a warrior ready to go to
battle. You are armed with the gift of prophecy and speaking bold truths that
pierce souls. Yet a soft prayer that humbles others to life change.
