Happy New Year!!!!!

Happy New Year!!!! It's much different celebrating New Years in a different country. Here in Siem Reap a lot of tourist come to celebrate the new year. It doesn't feel much like New Years right now. I can't believe how much has happened this year as I reflect back on 2013. I must say so much has happened this year. For starters I graduate high school and now I'm sitting in a country half way around the world. This year has been one of the best years of my life. I remember that the year started out with me and my two best friends sleeping in the baptism tub at our church where me and my one best friend decided that our New Years resolution would be to see each other every day of the year even if that involved FaceTimeimg each other when we still lived only about 15 minutes away from each other. Of course like most New Years resolutions it only lasted for about a week. Also this past years I had one of the best summers. It started with me being a leader on a high school boating trip. Then I ended up working at a summer camp where I met some of the greatest people who really helped me grow this summer and getting to just be at camp was a blast. From camp that's where this crazy wild adventure that I'm on now began. Since I arrived in Hawaii I had learned so much. I really began to learn and this for my self. I've been able to gain experience in situations that I'd never experience and have been able to develope my own worldview outside of what my parents have thought me. I've learned how to live in community which was a huge thing for me to go from never sharing a room to living in a room with four strangers. I've also found God this year and have been able to grow and really have a true relationship with him.  Now as I sit half way around the world I relize how blessed I am for the family and friends I have and for this great opportunists god has blessed me with. I relieze how much I take for grantied. All the days here in Cambodia where I spend counting down the days till I go home just because I'm annoyed by the people I'm with or I'm sick of the food, or I feel like I'm about to pass out because I'm not used to the Cambodia diet. I relize that all those days I take for grantied I should be happy with where I'm at. Cambodia might not have been my first choice for out reach locations,but god told me to go here. God has me here for a reason I have absolutley no clue what that reason is but I want to enjoy every moment of it. Today our team was really able to connect and able to talk about things it was really an answer to prayers then we went down to the main tourist spot to see the crowded craziness of everyone celebrating the last hours of 2013. I really can't wait for what god has planed for me for 2014. 2013 was awesome and I'm so ready for what god has in store for me this year. This year I want to listen and follow god in obedience. Where ever god takes me I can't wait!!

Comforts of Home

When I hear my roommate singing Christmas songs reality sets in. When she sings I'm dreaming of I white Christmas I realize that I won't be having a white Christmas. I realize that I'll have a hot dusty Christmas. When I hear I'll be home for Christmas it strikes me that this is the frist Christmas that I won't be home, and that for my family it will truly only be in their dreams. Here in Cambodia Christmas is viewed so much differently than in western culture. Where as I am used to Christmas being a time for family to get together and celebrate the birth of Jesus and just a time for family. Here in Cambodia it's a mostly buddest culture so they don't really celebrate Christmas. The Christians in Cambodia see Christmas as a time to reach out to the buddest community and minister to them.  As I think about the Christmas store I think about how god could have saved us in any way he wanted. He's God he's all mighty and so powerful he can do what ever he wants. Gods love and forgiveness is such a big consept for me to graspe that some this I sit in awe about how loved I am by God. He loves us so much that he took his one and only son to earth to die for us. To take away any sins that we have. He could have sent his son in any way, he could have sent him to be born in a palace and made it known to the world that he is the son of God so we should turn from our wicked ways and worship him. But rather God hunbley took his son out of the comforts and wonders of heaven and sent him to be born in a stable. I do really miss being with my family and friends during this holiday season. And missing out on the traditions like getting a new pair of pajamas, doing communion, and reading the Jonathan tuomey store that are still taking place even though I'm half way around the world, I realize that that's not what Christmas is about it's about Jesus and his coming to earth and the amazing gift that he gave to us. So I hope that you all have a merry Christmas and a happy New Years!!!

Kingdom of Wonders

 It's been one week since I left the layed back chil island life style and entered into the busy hot crowded rushed life style of Cambodia. The moment we arrived we cramed into a small tuk-tuk and drove in to the craziness of the streets of phnom phen. The streets are filled with tons of cars, tuk-tuks,motorcycle honking at each other driving on the side walks and driving so close to you that you can reach out and touch it.  Our team stayed in phenom phen for three days we visited Russian market where were ever you walk you have a vendor pushing some thing in your face saying you buy. We also visited the prison where the inosent prisoners of the Khmara Rushe where kept, And the killing fields. The Khmara Rushe was a genoside of the well educated Khmer people who had professional jobs like teachers, doctors, lawyers, and people who could read. The Khmara Rushe cased a lot of hurt to the Khmer people. It uprooted and destroyed manys normal lives. One thing for me is that before coming to Cambodia I didn't realize  the Khmara Rushe happened. When I first learned about it I thought that it was like to holocoast and happened along time ago, but I soon found out that it had happened during the 70's. When you look around at the people strolling the streets of Cambodia you notice that you don't see many them. From Phnom Phen we hopped  on an eight hour bus ride over to Seam Reap. Seam Reap isn't as busy as Phnom  Phen. The streets are still quite hectic compared to the traffic that I'm used to, but I like it a lot better than Phnom Phen. On Tuesday we started working with our first ministry. Growing up my worst subject in school was English. I was never any good at it and I was so excited when I finished my last English class in high school. Well the ministry we are working with for the next three weeks is teaching English in a village. The first day was a very scary thing to stand in front of seven 14-15 year old students that don't speak the same language as you. Exspecially when you where told that your first day you would be shadowing a teacher and not teaching your self and then when u get there you are told that you are gonna be teaching a Christian values class. When I first stood in front of the class I had no clue what to teach on and the I felt I should share about Jesus's  miricals  I felt pretty confident about my lesson until one of my students as the translator if they where going to learn about Christian values that day. Since then it has been getting easier even though I can't remember a single one of my students names. The biggest prayer request that I have right now is to relate with the people here. I'm finding it very hard to connect with them mainly because of the language difference. Thank you all so much for support and prayers. 

Off to Cambodia

As I sit on the plane heading to Cambodia I realize that I'm definitely more scared and nervous for what I'm getting myself into mainly because I have no clue what I'm getting myself into. I know that it's where I need to be at this time, it's where god is calling me. One of the hardest parts of all of this is that I'm not gonna be home for Christmas it's not that I'm homesick it's just gonna be weird not  being home.  I think one of the biggest things that I have to remember entering into this journey is to have faith. One of the biggest reasons I struggled with so much doubt is because I never felt god. People would talk about how they felt like god was calling them to to this or they heard god tell them to do that of they where this spiritual high and they where  so on fire for God. I've realized that it's not called feeling and it's called. Faith for a reason. God want me to have have faith in what I can't see or feel. It still gets me down when I feel like God isn't there. I feel someday I'll have those experiences where I'll feel God but as of now I'm living by faith. Faith that will guide me, keep me safe as I go through this journey. I just need to trust and rely on him. I would just like to thank everyone who has been praying for me during this time. Prayer is the biggest things as me and my team head into Cambodia.  Prayer for the safety and health of our team and also as unity as a team. We know that at points we are gonna get sick of each other or be frustrated but we are a team and we will have to get through this and work together. Again thank you all for the prayer and support.

One Week

One week from today I will be leaving the place that has become my home for the past two and a half months and heading off to Cambodia!! I still can't grasp the fact that I'm going to Cambodia. It's exciting to see what God has in store for me and my team there. It's a sad feeling to be leaving Hawaii. I've met some of the most amazing people down here and done some of the coolest adventures. Gods creation down here is just so awesome seeing the coral and the fish at Captin Cook, hiking through the misty jungle like forest to get to the water slides, taking the leap off the side of the cliffs at end of the world into the clear blue water, standing looking over the most south point of America, and driving up into the cold mountains to go star gazing. God has truly blessed me to take me on the life changing adventure that isn't even over yet. I know that there is still so much more to come and many more wild adventures god has in store. Durning the lecture phase of my DTS the biggest thing that I have learned so far is that doing missions work isn't all about going into to a third world county trying to save as many souls as you can and just moving on to the next place god has called you to go.   God has called us to be disciples and go out and make disciples. Don't be a soul saver but rather a disciple maker. Just because someone said the sinners prayer doesn't mean that they have begun a relationship with God.  It's about going at discipling and teaching the people and helping them grow in a relationship with God. Another thing that I have learned since I've been down here is that I fully want to live my life for God. I've learned that all the doubt that I was harboring in was a lie, and that god is real and that he is so awesome and his love is so big that I have trouble grasping the concept that his love is so big. I don't want to fall back into the mind set that church is just something that I don and that prayer is something that u do before dinner and when tragedy strikes and things aren't going your way. I want to seek the kingdom of God first and let the rest of life fall into place behind. I want to be ready for God to ask who shall I sent and I want to answer her I am Lord send me.  It's a sad feeling leavening Hawaii and leaving behind some of the awesome people that I've become friends with and who have helped me grow over the last few months, but I'm ready to continue into this amazing adventure that God is taking me on.
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Happy Thanksgiving

Happy thanksgiving everyone!!!!
Probably the thing that I'm most thankful for this year is the opportunity god has blessed me with. I'm just so thankful that god has sent me here to Hawaii to do this discipleship training school. I've just learned so much about God and about who he really is to me and I'm so thankful that I have chosen to follow God. In just under two weeks I will be boarding a plane and heading off to Cambodia for  two months. My team and I will be working with different children's ministries and helping with organizations that pull women out of sex trafficking. It's still a scary feeling for me to go but I'm also very excited to get there. Thank you all so much for your prayers and support!
Love,
Courtney
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The Adventure has Begun

A month ago I boarded an airplane headed to Kona, Hawaii to begin an awsome adventure following Jesus's calling for this new chapter of my life. leaving behind the life I have know for the past 18 years of my life, for 5 months steping into the blind unknown of the world out side of my little bubble. I've joind a program called YWAM Ship, witch is a missionary training school through the Univeristy of the Nations.
     Since I've been down here God has totally rocked my world. With in the past few years i've struggled with doubting God. I questioned weather or not God was real or not, I struggled with never hearing God, never getting any signs from him, or never feeling God. It came to a point where  I knew that God exsisted but a relationship with him was just a distant thought that I felt that I could never have. After struggling to decided what to do with life I came acrossed YWAM or Youth with A Mission as I started to look into the programs that their school, University of the Nations, offered I came acrossed YWAM Ships dicipleship training school. The second I saw it I knew that thats what I was going to do. I had always had a passion for sailing and boats, and I had know clue what to do in life so instead of going to college I decided to come down to Hawaii to sail and do missions work. With in the fisrt coupe of weeks I struggled with not really having a realtionship with God. I felt like I had to have a super deep relationship with God, and I was no where near to having that. The third week we had a speaker that spoke about the fears that we have in life and how those fears are lies and that God can take those fears away. He had us all take those fears and write them down on boxed and take them out to smash the boxes and smash those fears. Before we smashed the boxes we had to say what our biggest fears where and then we had to tell the truth about those fears that we can find from God. My biggest fears was that I would never have a relationship with God and that I will always doubt God. The truth that I said to it was that god is real and that he will be there when I open up my heart to start a relationship with him. After I said that the speaker ask me if I was ready to open up my heart to a relationship with God. I knew that it was time I knew that it was time to let go of those fears and let go of those doubts and that I could truly have a relationship with God. In the weeks since I fully committed my life to God I've been so amazed by him I've still had my struggles and some times getting down on my self because I still don't feel or hear god but its ok because I know that God is there and that I can relay on him.
  I'm excited to see what God has in store for me for the rest of this adventure and the rest of my life. A few weeks ago I found out that for the outreach part of my discipleship training school that I will be heading to Cambodia for 2 months to do missionary work. I'm going to be on a team of 11 other people in my class.  We are not sure yet of what exactly what we will be doing but there is a possibility of us working with orphans, mercy ministry, and sex trafficking. The biggest prayer request that I have is that God will continue preparing my heart for Cambodia and for finances to come through.  I'm not sure yet how much the full trip will be but by Friday I need 2,500 to cover my plane tickets. Thank you all so much for your prayers and support.
Love,
Courtney
If you feel God calling you to support me you can go to:
  https://ywamships.wufoo.com/forms/on-line-donation-and-payment/
Selected outreach phase funds and please put that its for Courtney De Weese in the box that
Says details concerning your donations and payments. 
If you feel called to sent a checks please  make all checks payable to “YWAM Ships Orange County” and put a note saying that it is for Courtney DeWeese in the Ships DTS and mail to:

YWAM Ships Kona

75-5851 Kuakini Hwy #260

Kailua-Kona, HI 96740 
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