Outreach Update & What's Next for Me!

I am officially done with my DTS! I cannot believe how fast time flies. I just experienced some of the greatest 8 months with the Lord than ever before. Thank you for following me on my journey and supporting me throughout this season. I am overjoyed when I think about what the Lord was able to do in and through me. What a mighty God we serve!

I'm sure to no one's surprise...I was terrible at updating while I was in Europe. But my team had an awesome time as we traveled and shared the gospel in the Netherlands! We spent 3 weeks in Amsterdam working with the local YWAM base and with long term ministries in the city. We evangelized, prayed for 100s of people, served at the homeless shelter, hung out with teens at the youth hostel, and prayed at The Tabernacle prayer house which is located in the heart of the red light district. Amsterdam is such a beautiful city and it's an odd parallel to the darkness that resides there. The red light district seems unimaginable. My heart broke over this area and for the men and women trapped in lies and lust and confusion. A love is being sought after than can only truly be fulfilled by Jesus. But no matter the darkness, the drugs, the sex, etc. God is still bigger and He loves Amsterdam! Just in the last week I found out that the government is in the process of making it illegal for tourists to buy marijuana! That's just the beginning of the fruit we are going to see from the seeds planted by the Jesus loving missionaries who are laying their lives down to see Jesus glorified in Amsterdam! One thing I loved about this city is how easy is was to talk to people. When we would evangelize I found it much easier to get into conversations with people who were interested in keeping the conversation going. Part of it may just be tolerance...but people are open! They are longing for Jesus and He is pursuing them! Keep praying for this wonderful city and the Christians who live there!


(Photos by Ryan Lister)

We then traveled north to a city called Groningen. I think I can say on behalf of my entire team this was by far one of our favorite outreach locations. We stayed at the Helperkerk (Helper Church) and were treated with such love and hospitality by our hosts that we felt most welcomed to their city. We partnered with the church and their leadership team to evangelize at the local university, spread the word about at their weekly meeting called The Community specifically designed for non-believers, hangout with and pray for their youth group, and encourage the believers to keep going! Our time here flew by and before we knew it we were off on another train to Berlin to join with Burn Berlin (Burn 24-7) and the Magnet family. It was the best way to end our outreach as we got to lift up Jesus for 24 hours straight over the city of Berlin. We were also able to encourage and pray for ministries there and then just rest in God's presence. I love Burn Berlin and I love the Magnet's!

That is obviously a really brief update for what God did over 2 months...and that was just my team! Our 4 teams went to all 8 Ivy Leagues, Washington D.C., and Europe. Overall our school saw salvations and healings, and was able to do a lot of practical service as well, helping long-term ministries and churches stay encouraged, and teaching local believers how to walk intimately with God.

I am excited to announce that I will be staffing this next years Fire & Fragrance! Our staff will is traveling to Kona, HI for 5 weeks to attend the Circuit Rider Seminar where we will worship Jesus and have awesome teaching and training before heading back to Pennsylvania to start out next school September 20! (If interested apply here: Harrisburg F&F DTS) I'm excited for this next year as a whole new crew of radical young people give 8 months of their lives to grow in intimacy with Jesus and spread the gospel to the Ivy Leagues and wherever else the Lord leads!

Please continue to pray for me as I continue on this journey! I also need to raise financial support for this next year, so if you would like to partner with me financially email me at JessicaRams@gmail.com! Thank you for your support this past year & I look forward to whatever God has in this next one!

Heellooo from Boston!!!

I know, I know...I'm so behind on my updates! So I'll try to make this short, but you loyal readers know it probably won't be :)

So, it's week 3 here in Boston. All 4 of the Fire & Fragrance outreach teams are here to do ministry. 3 of our teams are staying in one house...meaning 1 bathroom to 12 girls. Yikes! But we all have different schedules so we don't even really get to see the other teams. I'm really enjoying this city...but when is snows on the first day of spring...it's just a bit too much winter for me! But all in all it's been a great city to be in.


(The whole Fire & Fragrance crew on the day we left for Boston.)

So now on to the stuff you really want to read about: As you know...in this life we aren't always handed the 'EASY' button. Well, evangelism would be the one area in my life where I wish I could use that! I'm definitely being stretched in this area and being moved right on out of my comfort zone. I know God can use whoever...and for now He's chosen to use me, who in many instances tends to be a slightly awkward vessel. I've been recently reminded of the verse in 1 Corinthians 12:9 that says, "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me." Therefore, I will be obedient and trust that He knows what He's doing and that His power will be made perfect through tiny 'ol me.

We've been worshipping on Harvard's campus and talking to people about their beliefs or asking if they need prayer. We've, of course, had a mix of responses. Some people don't take to us well. Jina, a fellow team member, and I talked to a guy who is a professed atheist and an evolutionary biology major...by the end of our conversation, I kid you not he was running away from us and we were jogging behind him to keep up with him...not too long after we just stopped and said bye. It had me laughing to myself the rest of the day. However, we've had plenty of good conversations as well. That same day we talked to a design major named Irene who grew up Catholic and said her mom is now Buddhist. She isn't sure what she believes anymore but thinks there is a higher power or "energy". We talked to her on her way to class about the gospel and told her that Jesus really is real and how much He loves her and has a plan for her life and said we'd be praying for her. She was pretty receptive and said it was really great to know that someone would be out there praying for her. I also got to give a Bible to a Chinese girl who had never heard the gospel and didn't grow up with any religion. We've been keeping a list of people we've met and are still in prayer that God would continue to pursue them. Each team has been evangelizing on campus, so a mission force of about 30 is going out almost everyday and telling people about Jesus!


(Harvard)

Also, while riding the bus to the Cambridge area with my team, I sat down beside 2 college students Lena & Mimi. I heard God so clearly say to me, "I want you to tell them about me." I of course respond like I know He does but I don't know how to bring it up. I'd already introduced myself to them and asked about the instruments they were holding and where they went to school, so after that I just waited on the Lord. I started to overhear Lena tell Mimi about about a book in Russia and I heard the words 'devil', 'hell', and 'Jesus Christ'... I joined their conversation and asked them what they believed about all of that. They both had Catholic Orthodox backgrounds and Lena said she saw Jesus as a philosopher and that hell was made up to bring fear to people. So right there on the bus I got to share the entire gospel and that everything in the Bible is true and straight from God! I was informed later that they could hear me in the back of the bus...so I hope that more people got to hear :)

I wholeheartedly believe each one of these meetings is a Divine appointment and God is calling each and every one of them into relationship with Him. So far we've seen 1 Harvard student come to Christ and a whole lot of seeds planted! So like I said earlier, this job hasn't come with an 'EASY' button, but as someone encouraged me the other day...we have no idea what our being here and exalting Jesus in this place is doing in the spiritual realm. God's heart so moves and longs for His people and I guarantee revival will come to the Ivy Leagues and America.

We've also had the opportunity to join with some Christian fellowships here. We've evangelized with some of the YWAM Boston staff members and had some teaching by their director, Doug Tunney (who was our speaker on evangelism during lecture phase). The team that isn't staying in our house is staying at the Justice House of Prayer (JHOP). We've gotten to join in with them on their weekly worship and prayer meetings and it has been such a refreshing place to go and worship Jesus with them. They are a super fiery group that has laid down their lives for however long God asks of them to interceed and stand in the gap for Boston and surrounding college campuses. I've so enjoyed our time with them.


(Harvard Awakening Church)

Every Sunday we've gotten to attend the Harvard Awakening church held at Bob "Uncle Bob" Weiner's (Weiner Ministries) penthouse. It has a wonderful view of Cambridge and Uncle Bob has so kindly opened his place for college students to cram in every Sunday night to have a church service. It was there that we met Lynn. Lynn is from China and is a student at Northeastern University. She leads a Bible study group for about 6-7 Chinese girls every Friday. These girls have only been in relationship with Jesus for about 3-6 months, even Lynn. We've led 2 of their Friday Bible studies and I've quickly fallen in love with these girls. Lynn, Megan, Elaine, and Hanna are the regular attendees and have been the 4 at the study both weeks. The first week we taught on loving God and others and on hearing the voice of God, and this past Friday we did an exercise on hearing the voice of God by doing 'Original Design' prayers. It's how I first started learning to hear the voice of God. We prayed for the girls one at a time and waited on what the Lord had to say about each of the girls and who He created them to be (reference Psalm 139). Then whoever got a word, picture, or scripture would share it with whoever we were praying for. It's always fun when the word is repeated by someone who got the same thing or just when it encourages that person. The girls were so encouraged with every word they got and it was so fun to see them realize even more just how much God loves them and that He has a plan and purpose for each one.

Almost needless to say, this has been my favorite part of outreach thus far. I just love those girls so much and they are so hungry for the Lord. And to top it off, it's tradition for them that when someone leaves they have a big feast for them, so they are making a homemade Chinese dinner for us on Monday at their house! Elaine is going to get baptized then too!! I will truly miss them when we leave...I wish I could pack them in my suitcase and carry them with me!

Side note: The guys on our team have been going to the guys Bible study at Northeastern and yesterday they took them out evangelizing and led a Chinese student, Rocky, to Christ! Woohoo!


(Northeastern girls Bible study -- Left to Right: Back Row: Megan, Hanna, Kara, Cara Lena, Amanda {YWAM Boston staff}, me, Jina. Front Row: Elaine, Lynn {Bible study leader})

My team of 8 leaves Boston on Tuesday and we head to New Hampshire to go to Dartmouth! I am so excited to see what the Lord has for us in our few days there.

I have so much more I could say...but this has gotten pretty long so I'll leave it here. Again THANK YOU soooo much for all your prayers. They are much needed, as you know Spiritual warfare can really heighten in these times. I feel so blessed to have so much support both prayerfully and financially and that the Lord has led me to be a part of Fire and Fragrance and to travel and share His name and strengthen other believers. He's teaching me so much!!

Love and blessings to you all!

February Newsletter & Prayer Guide!

Here's last month's newsletter! It gives you a tiny update of what's been going on and then some prayer requests for our outreach that we have officially begun! Thanks for taking the time to read this and pray for me!

Blessings to you!

February 2011

Revival is a Reality!

I've been terrible at updating my blog!

Things here are going great! I'm still learning a ton and God is turning my heart more and more towards Himself and to His will. It's been a beautiful process.

2 weeks ago I had the wonderful blessing of 2 friends coming to town to sit in on the teaching by the AMAZING Amy Sollars. First my roommate, Kim, from Nashville who now lives in NYC came over...it's lovely having a friend only a train ride away! Then my bro, Josh, flew up for a few days! I'd say it was timely for all of us. It was so great to be able to see friends and family from home and I knew God would have some things of His own for those 2! The Lord was so faithful and good to bring refreshment to all 3 of us! Thank You, Jesus!

So now we're down to the final stretch. Only 4 more weeks until we head out on outreach!!!!!! Erik Fish & Brad McKoy were just here to talk to us about church planting on college campuses. Visit StudentChurch.org. It was such an awesome week!! They stirred up so much hope in me that WE CAN SEE REVIVAL on college campuses!! It's all about being bold in Jesus and in our faith and making relationships. I can do that...I like people...and I like making friends...and I love Jesus. So yea..I can do this. I want to be a willing vessel for God to do whatever He wants on these campuses. I can't wait to see Him move...a few from our team had the opportunity to meet 8 students from 8 of the ivy leagues and there is already a stirring on the campuses -- Revival is a reality.

Just to update you: We leave after the first week of March and make our way to Harvard for 4 weeks. Then after that my team of 8 goes to Dartmouth for a week. We'll connect with some of the Christian groups on campus but mainly we just want to make relationships with people who don't know Jesus yet. We're praying to meet 'person's of peace' who we'll find favor with and give us an entrance into their lives. Have coffee with them, hang out, read the Bible, talk about Jesus. So be praying for that we find favor with the students and that even more their hearts and minds would be open to hearing about Jesus and that they would know Him! We want to see these campuses turn back to their roots of sending our missionaries and ministers! (If you are interested in knowing about the origins of the ivy leagues, God on Campus, is a good book to read about their history and revival history as well.)

The beginning of April my team of 8 heads to Amsterdam! We'll be staying at the YWAM base and joining with current ministries. Pray that our time there would create a lasting impact and that the name of Jesus will be exalted over 'the city of tolerance'. We'll also be traveling to Paris for a few days and then to Berlin to join with the House of Prayer Berlin to do a lot of worship and prayer for these cities. Pray for Divine strategies for our ministry time in Europe. That we would find ways to effectively share about Jesus and that people would come to relationship with Him...because Jesus really is the best!

Oh also...click on this link! Fire and Fragrance Podcasts --You can listen to all of our teachings from the past 4 months (and a few more to come) -- there are some life changing teachings on here!

And seriously...thank you again for your continuous prayers and support for me! I couldn't do what I'm doing without you!!! Love you all so much (and miss you!!)!