July 8th, 2016:
Okay, so I made it. And they were right when they said "Welcome to paradise." I am facinated with the culture here and the spiritual history of the way the Lord has marked this land in years past. When I set foot on the campus I, and 6 others on the van from the airport with me, were greeted by a lovely young porcelain red head by the name of Libby who welcomed us by jumping up and down, arms flailing, yelling "hooray new students, new arrivals, welcome welcome!!!." (The campus is so large, I have yet to see her again).
I was then led to the registration table and celebrated with cheer and applause as I approached my check in area. The rest of that evening is mostly a blur because of the jet lag, but my first night in Kona was surreal.
Moving on to today...
The day started early and the sound of new students introducing themselves echoed through the cafeteria. "Hi my name is..." "Where are you from?" "I'm here because..." "How old are you?" I am lucky enough to have already begun to know my fellow interns and I am beyond excited to spend the next 6 months with them.
We then were welcomed on to the island by the natives here at "Island Breeze" where we were required to remove our shoes and present them with gifts from our "native lands" as a sign of honor and respect to them and their beautiful island. It was so sacred and impacting, I couldn't help but be moved to tears. Once the ceremony was finished we moved onto orientation and then our meet and greet with our DTS.
After dinner we went on to our night service or as they called it "Aloha Night At Ohana Court." I am just going to be real and honest here, I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I said yes to YWAM Kona. And I feel like the Lord is saying "just you wait Awn, cuz I'm about to blow your mind." Hawaii is know for their huge ocean waves due to the lack of continental plates, and I don't think it's any coincidence that I feel overwhelmed by the wave of His presence here. I spent the evening weeping before Him undone by the fact that because of His goodness He brought me here. He brought me here to minister to me, to teach me, to train me, to love on me, to reveal to me secrets of His heart, treasures in His word, and discover His heart for ALL of the nations of the earth. And all I could say in response was "here I am, I give it all to you, I give you everything." Though I will not do it perfectly, my spirit is willing and tonight I said yes for the rest of my life.
-Awn
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