$450 Mark

This $50 was really surprising. Someone left me an envelope with no stamp (so it was hand delivered) and no address and no name today in my mailbox.

I have 30 Hour Famine tonight. I actually am going 60 hours. But more on that later.

$400 mark/.update

Still at $400 mark :D

I planned on doing this in audio.....I have the audio post, but I haven't figured out how to embed it....

BUT, I am going on another inner city mission trip with Flood (of course) this Saturday. They're short.

‎-[prayer request]- doing two separate homeless ministry outreaches on saturday (trying to do some outreaches each month to prepare for next summer's mission trip: simply going to downtown with a group of people and just preparing snacks and then handing them out to whoever comes to us and talking/getting to them.....then in the evening going to a day shelter called Safehouse Outreach: preparing dinner, leading worship that night, and sharing testimonies. pray for humility, boldness to preach (if appliable), for what we say to be glorifying, team unity...yeah :D

If you see this prior to Saturday, please pray for my team.

This worship song is phenomenal:

In Christ,

Victoria

I'm so tempted to create a "Send Victoria to Mexico" Facebook group, though that isn't the right thing to do. I wish more people would be aware of what is happening outside Alpharetta/Johns Creek, Georgia.

I do wonder how I can get the rest of the money. Praise God that I live in Atlanta, so I don't need additional funds to fly to Georgia.

I wish people would be more receptive to going on missions, and none of this "If we are predestined by God there are no use for missions".

I wish I would be more humble throughout these months. Missions is never a "me" thing but only and forever and always a "God" thing.

7 Bridges to Recovery Recap

Praise God that we had a safe trip to and from downtown. To tell you the truth, I missed it a lot from when I last did it. Here is a recap of the 4 hours downtown.

Here are some pictures Mrs. Scales, the executive director of Flood Student Ministries took.

OFFICIAL BLOG WEBSITE

So I turned in my deposit, and now I'm officially on the Mexico team (I thought I already was....). Anyways, we have a blog website. You should bookmark it for when we leave for Mexico, to get updates throughout the month while we're on the field. You can also subscribe on the left hand box, so new posts can get to your email. :D

I am doing another 7 Bridges tomorrow. We are going to minister on the streets of Downtown Atlanta. If you see this before 11am tomorrow, pray for a safe ride to the area, and for God's will to be done.

God bless.

Victoria

http://11ma0615amb5.myadventures.org/

$250 dollars.

It's time to seek the Lord
Until He comes to rain righteousness on you.
Hosea 10:12

$200 dollars!

Praise God.

In order to prepare for Mexico, I've made up my mind to do more urban ministry stuff. So later today I will be going downtown with a lovely ministry called 7 Bridges To Recovery. We will be talking with their shelter's inhabitants and preparing a yummy dinner for them.

And I, heh heh, actually signed up for all the 7 Bridges opportunity, especially STREET MINISTRY. Estoy muy emocionada, porque dios siempre estaba bueno.

Just some prayer requests (generic?)

Alright. So I definitely don't think the entire team has been gathered. In fact, I only know of one person who is on the team. Pray for the formation of our team. It's a hard decision because it's basically 5 weeks, you know? Some parents are probably insecure about their child going on a mission trip for 5 weeks.

I realized how much crime is in Matamoros. Being a border edge city, pirates swarm the city since it's on the Gulf of Mexico and all. Pray for God's provision over the city right now, because the police system is weak and such, and cartels go in and out of the city regularly. 6 days ago, a grenade struck the city hall. There were injuries, but by God's grace there were no deaths. Recently there was also a jailbreak, so yeah the judicial system is weak.

And I just (a few minutes go) finished reading Radical by David Platt. I realized how much of a risk it is going to Matamoros, but I'm not scared at all, which is astonishing. Well, just prayers that me and Jocelyn's hearts (the other person that is confirmed going) will be in the right place and that we will be going purely to serve. And for financial support, haha.

:) yay. I'll be posting some prayer requests about Mexico, Matamoros, financial stuff, and just trip preparation.

On another note, I have raised enough money for the deposit, praise God. I do need to recruit a prayer team who during our span of 5 weeks will commit to pray each day for our ministry. A lot. Because not all are called to go to Mexico, but all are called to missions in one shape or form.

That's it, I guess.

God bless,

Victoria :]

My Testimony

I guess I'll share parts of my testimony. They're pretty fragmented. Oh well.

My testimony isn't as dramatic as some other people. I didn't have some dramatic epiphany or fall and become blind and then hear God's voice and become radically saved. But this is what God has done in my life.

I was born in Shanghai, China in 1994. A few months after I was born (maybe like 7?), doctors discovered I had hip problems and as a result I was stuck in a full blown cast until I was almost 2. As a result, I didn't start walking until late. A month after I turned 3, I moved to America in 1998 with my mom to join my dad who was already here.

I had a pretty normal childhood. My parents were so loving. When I was almost 1st grade, summer of 2000, I returned to China to stay until the end of the year. China. Communist government. Few churches. Not as high-tech as nowadays. That China. I came back in January, and my grandparents joined me a few months later.

You must know something about my grandparents. They practice a cult called Falun Gong. I wish they didn't. Well, my grandfather's deceased now. So my mother brought me to a warehouse church when I was in 1st grade and I hated it so much. I think the adults who couldn't speak English properly contributed to the matter (I attend a Chinese church). On the weekends, I would go with my grandparents to their Fa Study because I had nothing better to do.

But, I guess all my life I accepted Jesus as Savior. But I didn't like church. When I was in 4th grade I had surgery on my right leg. The knee cap displaced or something like that. I missed school for 3 months and I was bedstricken. When I was well enough, I started going to North Point Church because my church had no ramps for my wheelchair. I loved North Point. Crazy music. Small group counselors. Skits. It was so engaging. I learned more about God than I ever did so far at the Chinese church.

I went back to my church in 5th grade because a new building opened, where the church presently is. It got better but it still was awful. I liked the Sunday Schools but I hated Children's' Worship.

In 6th grade, my grandfather's health got worse. Something about bladder problems. We made the decision for my grandparents to go back to China because health care was cheaper. He eventually died in China in January 2007. Because he believed Falun Gong would save him.

In 7th grade, I was old enough to get out of Children's' Worship and go to English Worship! Initially it was boring because it was the same thing every week, but it got better. Occasionally I saw some people raising their hands and I wondered why. I joined the youth group and the people there were so welcoming and loving. I began to embrace church. I made the decision to get baptized in November and started attending baptism classes. So I got baptized December 16th, 2007.

I went on my first mission trip to Nashville spring of 2008. I saw new light in homeless people. They're not what you think they are. God began to give me a heart for the ones that society disregards. That summer, I went to the Shocco summer retreat. I was amazed at God's sovereignty and how He turns the bad around. The speaker was formerly a street biker. One of the bad guys. He was arrested and sent to prison for something, I forgot. When in prison, he was placed in solitary confinement. God turned him around in that dark hole. When he was out of the confinement, he asked for a Bible and immediately learned how to read, having been illiterate prior.

I'll fast forward some. Satan wants to kill the faithfulest. I experienced some heavy spiritual warfare in 2009. From like uh May to July. But God redeemed me.

Fast-forward to July 2010. Oh. Well prior in April I went on my Nashville mission trip. Got to meet up with some friends from a year ago (low-income and elderly individuals). And homeless outreach. Okay. July was Shocco. The speaker was one of the awesomest ever. Among many other things, he gave a call to missions. I accepted that call.

And here I am. Hopefully going on Mexico 2011 if I raise enough funds.

Prayer Letter Number 1

Victoria Yang

420 Park Creek Drive

Alpharetta, Georgia 30005

(678)297-3833 Home/(404)993-1598 Cell

toribandit@gmail.com

Dear family and friends,

Praise God for all that He does, all that He has done, and all that He will do. I am very excited to share with you with what God has been doing in my life. After going on my third Nashville mission trip this past spring, I feel that I have been called to go beyond the United States. Nashville is an urban mission trip that my church youth group partakes in annually, and I have been able to go on the past three. Among many other things, it has given me a heart for the the ones overlooked in society but yet so loved by God. After much prayer and researching, I recently applied and have been accepted to serve on the 2011 short term Ambassador Matamoros (Mexico) mission team. I will be going with 7 to 9 other high school teenagers as part of the missions’ organization Adventure In Missions (AIM). Adventures In Missions are located in Gainesville, Georgia. AIM is an interdenominational missions organization that focuses on discipleship. They emphasize prayer and relationships in their work amongst the poor. By God’s grace, I will be leaving on June 15^th, 2011 and returning July 23^rd, 2011.

Matamoros is not far from the United States, but rather it’s just across the US border. It is the largest city in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The presence of maquiladoras, which are assembly plants run by the U.S. or other countries, accounts for a rapidly growing population as workers migrate from the interior to the border region looking for better jobs. Matamoros is known as a city to only be known by those within the city and forsaken by those in the outside. Although only being a few minutes away from the United States, Matamoros is a city filled with people with hurting hearts.

The first 6 days of our mission trip will be spent in Gainesville, Georgia preparing for the mission trip. We will be learning short drama performances known as DRIMES, preparing VBS activities, getting to know each other, but most importantly we will be preparing our hearts for the mission trip through prayer and worship. During our time in Matamoros, I know that we have come to share the Gospel through building relationships and doing relational ministry. We will have many opportunities to interact with the children through VBS and simply playing with them. We will also be conducting feeding ministry and might reach out through music, preaching, and other practical skills. Whatever we will do, may God’s Kingdom be revealed and eyes be opened throughout the weeks.

Setting our feet on the soil, we can’t do this alone. We desperately need those who will come with us spiritually on the mission trip. Without constant prayer, our mission trip will fail. That’s where you come in! Although you are unable to come with us to Mexico, I hope that you will join us in the trip through prayer and financial support. Updates and news about the trip will be sent via email or by visiting either my mission trip blog (http://matamoros-victoria.blogspot.com/) or the team blog (will be announced later). Secondly, you can join us by contributing financially. Prayer is vital, but without the necessary funds I am unable to go to Matamoros. The total amount needed for this mission trip, which covers air travel, food utilities, and housing is $1875, On October 13^th, $100 is due, and the rest is due in small fragments monthly. Unlike previous mission trips, you have the opportunity to contribute electronically

· Go to http://www.adventures.org/give/.

o Click “Mission Trip Participant”

o Click “Choose A Program” and select “Ambassadors”

o Please contribute to “Li Wen Yang” (My full name)

· You can also contribute through mail via the support slip. Please make checks payable to Adventures In Missions, or if you want to directly hand me a check still make it payable to Adventures In Missions..

Please prayfully consider whether you are led to contribute financially. However, prayer is what we need the most.

I would also like to thank you for your faithfulness in supporting me on the past three Nashville trips. I can only wonder how God will use me through missions after I graduate from college.

I will be sending out more letters as the time for my trip draws closer, to update you on things. Also, I will give the website address for the team blog, which you can read and know exactly what we are doing while we are in Mexico. Thank you for you time, prayers and support! I pray God richly blesses you, as He has blessed me!

In Christ,

Victoria Yang

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"

And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" Isaiah 6:8