Timing.

Someone recently described the importance of full faith in God that His timing is perfect. They used the example of our inheritance. As christians, we have an inheritance. By default, if we truly recognize what it means to follow Jesus, we're investing; either in prayer, in relationship, in finances, in practical help, and in love. The overflow of that is our inheritance. 

When God led the Israelites out of Egypt, He spoke so clearly to Moses; God will provide. However, He didn't give Moses the specifics. Eventually Moses and the people were tired and frustrated of waiting for God's blessing and provision, that Moses struck the rock to find water. Because of this....He was not able to walk into His inheritance. It didn't mean that he didn't have an inheritance, but he was never able to experience it to the full. 

How often do I want to rush God's timing on things? How often to I mistrust Him? Too often. 

I feel as if this is one of the main things God has highlighted to me in the last month or so. He is growing me in patience and trust. Even more so, He's growing me in my understanding of His supremacy. He is supreme. His ways are higher than my own. He is Lord. I am not. 

I have been so blown away by God's faithfulness. He's provided so much for me. He's given me opportunities to get things right a second and third and fourth time. He's shown me Himself.

Yet, I still try to take things into my own hands. 

There are some things in my life right now that I really want and even maybe need. But I can't make anything happen. I can't do it on my own.

God's timing is perfect. My mom used to always say "The right thing at the wrong time, is the wrong thing." I want the right thing.....at the right time. I want my trust to increase. His timing is perfect. His timing concerning family, relationships, future, finances, breakthrough. It's perfect because He is perfect.

He doesn't hold back because He's a mean God. He doesn't hold back at all. He just simply knows what is best for us when.

FFT. 

Back in action //

I am about to begin my second full year as apart of YWAM Perth's full time staff.

I just returned to Perth, Australia after a ten week stent in America both touring with my band and spending a few weeks in Charlotte catching up with family, friends, and dear supporters. 

As a part of my return, I have really been asking God for goals for this year. They all have to do with discipline. One of them being discipline in my communication back home and keeping people fully informed with what I am up to! So, to aid in that, I am making it a priority to keep this blog updated with all the latest happenings here in Perth, with my band Della Fern, and in all the things going on in my little heart. 

I am excited to see God work in and through me this year in YWAM and really have no idea what this next year will look like aside from a few broad things. But before I get into that.... let's recap.

|| R E C A P. ||

Della Fern. My band here, Della Fern, is the bomb. I am so in love with what God has me doing here in Perth. Della Fern being the focus. Music is for me. I am for music. I know that music is what I'll be doing at least for....well.... the rest of my life. It's what I am passionate about. It's where God has gifted me, and its the call on my life. Music and missions. What more could I ask for. 

In the last year, Della Fern has taken baby steps. Large baby steps. We have done both a regional and international tour, and we have recorded an EP. There have been so many doors that have opened up for us and opportunities that we have gotten to say "yes" to that I imagine some bands never dreaming of in their first year as a band. Favor. That's what I call favor. Yes, we have had our hard times and uncertainties, but God is greater, isn't He?

On this last tour in America, God really gave me a heart for my own country. Not just the music industry (which I've always been passionate about) but the actual state that my country is in and the lack of desperation there is for Jesus. Not only did our band get to tour and minister in the secular scene, but we were with a team from our campus in Perth doing ministry in churches, schools, universities, and youth groups -- teaching on the Great Commission mapped out in Matthew 28:18-20. It was incredible to see people's eyes opened that they don't have to necessarily go to Africa or Asia to be a missionary, but to instead can be a missionary in their own back yard. People were called, and people are going. 

I am so excited to see the fruit from this time!

After tour, I was able to go home to Charlotte, NC. I got to spend lots of time laughing and sharing cuddles with my 3 year old niece Avery and her momma who's got another little cute bub growing inside of her. I got to spend a lot of time with my brothers and momma. I even got to be the maid-of-honor in my best friend, Rikki's wedding. What an amazing time home it was. 

|| N O W. ||

Back in Perth, Della Fern is gearing up to spend the rest of the year here in Australia building relationship, networking, and seeking God's heart for us. We will be releasing our EP "The Great Unknown" here in Australia (we had a great response to it in America). I will have the opportunity to serve on our campus, as well as continuing to seek God's heart for myself. I love the community I live in and I love that I get to call Perth home. 

Now that I am back, I am also reassessing my finances! If you'd like to partner with me and support me in what God's called me to, click on the DONATE tab at the top, or click here.

Objectives, goals, values, and ferns

Overdue. My blog is overdue, I know. Forgive me? Okay great, glad we're past that.

     So let me fill you in a bit on what has been going on the last couple of weeks! For those of you who don't get my monthly newsletter, I have been officially on staff for around six weeks now! It is amazing how much I feel like I have grown in that time and really been challenged.

     Since beginning with band stuff, we have been heavily praying into objectives, goals, values, and vision! It has been challenging in the sense that as musicians we want to be hands on and get ready to playing, however that has not been God's immediate desire for us.

     In meetings, God has really been revealing His heart to us for music and for what He wants us to do. We really feel called to the Music Industry and to influence it to bring hope and transformation. We have identified the Music Industry as an unreached people group that desperately needs redemption and the gospel.

If you would like to see a copy of our values and objectives, please let us know. 

     Another thing we have been praying into is band names. We wanted to make sure that any name we have will represent who we are and what we do. Finding a band name was for sure a process. We were asked at the end of the week to start praying into it and thinking about it and come Monday with some ideas. We came in that monday and some names were offered, but there was total disunity and even some tension in the room and in our relationships. We could not come up with anything so our leader Sabo, asked us again to take the night and keep praying about it. Tuesday we came in still with some tension and disunity. After praying, we went through a time where we asked each others forgiveness for pride and things, and began seeking God for a band name after that.
     Immediately God gave us the image of a fern. Random, I know. That's what I thought. But we looked up the significance of a fern and the definition we got was hope, transformation, and renewal for the future. HOW COOL IS THAT!? Our mission statement as a ministry is to bring hope and transformation to the music industry! Okay so Fern..... well how do you use that in a band name?
     Luke, the bass player in our band has recently been on this french craze learning new french phrases everyday, so he threw around some french phrases, and we ended up with the french for "of the" which is "de la". But "de la Fern" was lame, so we decided to mash them together, so ladies and gentlemen.....

I would like to announce the band's name......

Della Fern

Besides getting the name, we have also defined roles in the band.

Beau [Australia] - Lead vocals/guitar

Grace [USA] - Lead vocals/some keys

Luke [USA] - Bass/vocals

Joel [Australia] - Guitars

Dean [New Zealand] - Drums

also, Beau and I will share the role of "front man" for the band. The person who communicates with the audience, and keeps them entertained. This will be fun because Beau and I are really great friends so the chemistry on stage will be great!

We were announced to our base, and they laid hands on us and prayed for us, and so now we are all set to go!

We are planning our first mini tour here in Australia for the month of November, and getting ready for BIG things! I am excited to keep sharing with you guys all the God is doing in and through the band! 

Please remember, if you have any questions about what I'm up to/doing, if you would like to support me financially, or even get prayer from me, email me at graceeggers@gmail.com

Home is where we are now.

The other day, I was going out for bubble tea with some friends and there was a sculpture that really caught my eye. It's funny though, because I pass that sculpture often, but had never really taken the time to look at it. But this day was differnt.

"Home is where we are now."

I've been in Perth now for over five weeks, and my time adjusting has been quite interesting. On my discipleship training school [DTS], everything was so new, I was so excited about being in this new place, and I had so many new faces to see each day. Being back on staff is a bit different. I have been here before. I know most of the people. One thing that is very different is the fact that in DTS, even though you are taught to serve, you are also served. On staff I am not here to be served but to serve. This is what God has called me to. God has called me here. And for this time, however long it may be, God has called me to make Perth my home. Home is where I am now. 

The last five weeks feel like four years to me with the amount of stuff I have been doing. In that, I apologize for the amount of time I have let by without posting a new blog. [If you would like to receive my proper news letter, you can email me at graceeggers@gmail.com and I will send you a separate letter!] The first week that I was here, I was able to go two hours south of Perth to a town called Busselton to visit a couple that I met on my outreach and spend some time relaxing with a friend here from YWAM and my friend from home, Kauleen who came to do a DTS. It was a great time to sleep off the jet lag, eat Kangaroo Steaks, and to spend with Christine and Steve. 

During my second week, I was back on base in Perth, and was able to help out in the Design Team on our base. Because the leader of my band, Sabo, was not back from holiday in Nigeria, I was assigned to help with Design. The Design team is in charge of beautifying the base, putting on events, and drinking lots of coffee. They build much of our furniture from scratch, and all have a very artistic eye. I was given a few odd jobs such as painting new rooms for the new July quarter training students. Oh man, was it challenging. I really felt God was growing me a lot this week in many areas, one being the area of humility and servant hood. Because I was not doing anything with music, which is what I came to do, I felt a little impatient, and God just continued to remind me to serve and serve with a happy heart! It was tough. 

The third week, I got an awesome opportunity to work with our youth ministry on base called Nexwave. Thirty staff [Nexwave ministry plus other random staff] headed down two hours south east to put on a Winter Camp for the school holidays. We had 120 campers ages 12-18. I got the opportunity to lead small groups, lead an activities group, help in the kitchen, and love on a lot of kids. We played heaps of games including a version of the tough mudder, a black-light scavenger hunt, and smoke-screen dodgeball. It was so great! I have to say it was a super challenging week however. As staff, we weren't in bed til after 11:30 PM and all up at 5 AM or before. I really felt like God challenge me in many areas, especially patience!

The next week, I was finally on base, and about to begin Band ministry. We have been meeting as a band for two full weeks now and are into our third week. Currently there are only 3 out of 5 of us in the band here, but it has been great. We have been doing things that are necessary to pioneering a ministry. Objectives, goals, values, and vision have been the things we have been praying into mostly, and using our afternoons for research on venues, equipment, but also have been doing some individual practice and group practice. We have been pumping out original songs left and right, and have just enjoyed being together as a band.

The other two of our band members get here later this week, and it will be great to feel like a complete family. One of my favorite things about this ministry is the fact that the guys in my ministry are some of my best friends, and brothers.

In the coming up months, we will be commissioned by our base and base leaders as an "Official Ministry" and then begin to play shows!

Thank you so much to those of you who has been supporting me not just in prayer, but also financially. It really means a lot to me. I am currently not up to my full needs as far as monthly support, but am trusting God. If you would like to be someone to give to me wether one time or monthly, please let me know.

In other exciting news, my band may be doing some international traveling here soon.... maybe somewhere near you.....

I also would love to send you my monthly newsletter if you don't already get it! Please let me know by commenting on this or emailing me at graceeggers@gmail.com

The call to home...

In the south-east of the United States, is a small state called North Carolina. On the south-central border of the state is a city called Charlotte. Four hundred thousand people call Charlotte home. I am one of those people. That means there are 399,999 other people around me. That is 399,999 who may or may not know who Jesus is. That is 399,999 people that Jesus gave His life for. 

Thinking about this makes being home make much more sense. There were times when still in Perth, that I would have rather just stayed there. So why am I home?  For the 10.5 weeks that I am in Charlotte, my call is home. Charlotte, being in the Bible belt, is a city with a church on every corner. But there are so many unchurched people. I am home to be Jesus to Charlotte. 

I am to be Jesus to my friends
I am to be Jesus to my family
I am to be Jesus at Chick-fil-A
I am to be Jesus at Planet Fitness
I am to be Jesus in Easthaven Neighborhood
I am to be Jesus at Charlotte United Christian Academy
I am to be Jesus in Charlotte
I am to be Jesus anywhere I am.

Now, how has this turned out for me? Have I succeeded in every area perfectly? No, I haven't. Being home has been hard. There have been things that the enemy has thrown at me. There are things that I should have said no to, but haven't. Paul was put into prison countless times. He was persecuted and laughed at. That is because God never said it would be easy. And it is not, but anything is possible with and through Him who is greater!

Missions is a spiritual battle.
America is a spiritual battleground.


My home is Charlotte, NC in America.
This is my mission field.
This is my call to home.

The start of something new...

Half way. 

I am at the half-way mark of my time at home. I have been home 5 weeks as of today, and have just a few days over 5 weeks before I return to Perth, Australia. 
It's been such an interesting ride being at home. Initially it was very strange. In once sense it felt like an eternity since I had been home, in another since, it seems like I never left. My house, my car, my dog, being with my mom, and driving around Charlotte seemed like things I had never left. But in fact I left them for a long while, and now return looking at them differently.
Yes, Charlotte is my hometown, but it no longer my home. Not for now. My home is Perth. Charlotte is temporary for me. However, I am called here for this time. But why? That is what I am still asking God to reveal to me everyday.

Since being home, I have done so much. This last week, one of my very best friends came to stay with me for a week from DTS. It has been over 8 months since we have seen each other, and it was wonderful to be back with her. I have also been working a lot at Chick-fil-A. Talk about a mission field. I have several co-workers who are muslim, and many who are apathetic to religion. My heart yearns for them.

The other day, my co-worker said she had been going to the Muslim Mosque

to pray with her dad, because at "regular church" she didn't  feel anything

This made me want to cry... obviously she has had the wrong view of God... our relationship with God is not based on feeling. This really fired me up, and made me want to reach out to those who have a wrong view of who God is!

It has been tough being home, I would be lying if I said it's been easy. Not being in the routine of the daily life in YWAM, not being with my friends (most of them away at school) and having to be SUPER intentional about quiet times has been rough. But I have the future to look forward to..... And this is what it is......

BAND MINISTRY

If you have read my blog, you know that I am going to be joining full-time staff ranks with YWAM Perth at the end of June/beginning of July. I have shared my heart for missions, and I have shared how God called me, but one thing I have not shared are the specifics! So here they are (from what I can tell you)

When I join YWAM Perth on staff, I will be apart of a ministry. Now this ministry does not have an official name yet, so for now it is the "band ministry." When I was in music DTS, I was put through a sort of audition per say. There are four of us, one already on staff, and then three of us apart of the music DTS. The other three are boys, and then me. Two Aussies, and two americans. We will be forming a band.

Now the heart of this band is to change the music industry; to write secular music with a Christian world-view and biblical foundation. We know that there is a need for christians, missionaries even, to be in ever aspect of society. We are the ones reaching out to those in the music industry. Writing this kind of music not only reaches out to fans, but to others involved in the industry. 

We will be spending time in the word and in worship coming up with vision, goals, a band name, and then begin to write music. With the music written, we will begin to record and market ourselves. Then comes the performance. 

We have the oppertunity to get involved in Perth in public and secular venues. Using performance as a way to bridge the gap between believers and non-believers, and cultures to cultures. We can use music to form relationhsips with people who own these venues and a way to evangelize. 

When we go on overseas or farther outreaches, we will be able to not only perform, but to serve in the local communities and churches! It is going to be amazing to see God move in the music industry, and in our own lives!

If you know me, you know this is a PERFECT fit for me. This is what I have ALWAYS wanted to do, and if anything, doing this under the protective covering of YWAM is the way to go! Who knows what God has in store for me....

It's a journey, and I'm ready for it!

If you want to know more, or know how you can give towards this cause, email me at graceeggers@gmail.com

Seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly...

     The last nine months have been the most wonderful, but most challenging ever. I don't know how to accurately sum them up. Today I had my final one-on-one with my school leader [accompanied by Erika who staffed my school]. It was a chance for me to process the last nine months. However, it was only about fourty-five minutes. How do you unpack nine months in that time? I was able to share what God has done in my life, things I have overcome, and my future plans/goals. It was amazing.

     I was asked what the biggest thing God has done in my life is. Immediately I knew the answer: Fear of the Lord. Fear of the Lord is something that, praise the Lord, I have been filled with on DTS. Now, fear of the Lord? You may be asking what that is... shouldn't we not be afraid of God? Of course. God is not a scary God, but as Christians, we are called to love what he loves, and hate what he hates, to be passionate about following Him, and above all else want to honor Him. When we have these things, we are more aware that God is literally with us at all times. So this should effect your speech, your thoughts, and your actions. 

     I realized that before DTS, I had no fear of the Lord. Yes, I went to church, grew up in a Christian home, went to youth group, led worship, and even was a "spiritual" leader for some of my peers. But did I follow God? Did I want to honor him in every aspect of my life? No. Before DTS, I cannot tell you ONE time that I had a quiet time, or read my Bible outside of bible class. I cannot tell you a time when I let the fact that God is always with me stop me from having an inappropriate conversation, judgmental thoughts, or doing something foolish or unwise. 

     But now I understand, I have had so much revelation at just how BIG an omnipresent my God is, that I want to honor him above all. If it means looking like a fool to my friends, being bashed for standing up for the truth, walking away from a situation, stopping a conversation, changing the radio, turning off the TV, then so be it. Honoring, and serving my God is a million times worth it, and better than all those things. 

Then I was reminded of scripture that God has been using to speak to me since day one....

"What does the Lord require of you?

 Seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly

 with your God"

- Micah 6:8

Seek Justice -- Outreach was filled with this. With so much injustice around, how could I not seek justice for these people? To do what we do best here in YWAM Perth, intercede on their behalf. Why should I be so blessed and get to know about Jesus so freely? They deserve to know as well! Yes I know technically we all deserve hell, but why should I keep what I know silent? They are my equals. Just because they live in a different part of the world, their houses may look different [or just their toilets], or they eat different food or speak a different language; they should know! The injustice they suffer, it's the least I can do. I can at least share with them about the love, security, and blessing that comes with knowing Jesus.

Love Mercy -- You know when you spend time looking for your glasses just to find out they were on your head the whole time? Yeah this is how the whole mercy thing was for me. I am supposed to be like Christ. Christ loves mercy. I should love mercy. Right? Well darn ole selfishness often gets in the way of that. I want what I want, my comforts. But why don't I want comfort for others? I say I do in my words, but I do not in my actions. But God turned that around and really gave me a heart for HIS people. They are His and He has chosen them and ADOPTED them and longs to extend His mercy to them. So I should love them, I should be Jesus and show them that. And that is what [with God's help] I was able to do. God has TOTALLY given me a heart for the broken, lost, and searching. He has given me an even bigger heart for the unsaved. Those in my family who are unsaved, those around me in my life and shown me the reality of what it means for them to not be saved and the importance of loving them. They deserve my prayers, they deserve my time. They deserve mercy.

Walk Humbly -- This has probably been the biggest thing for me. Humility. Something I have never really had. Wether it's tooting my own horn, putting myself before others, not wanting to serve/being selfish, or having false humility. God is showing me what it means to be humble. There have been days where He has challenged me to even not talk about myself. It's a lot harder than you may think. God has challenged me to be humble in the small things; admitting when I'm wrong about the smallest thing, asking for forgiveness for the smallest thing. It is so important, cause even the SMALLEST thing that we may thing is no big deal, is. Like we are taught, sin is sin and even the smallest thing is equal to the biggest. There were many times on DTS where I had to eat that delicious slice of humble pie. The thing that hit me the most with humility is that "HUMILITY IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING TO GOD" Why wouldn't I strive to be humble? 

So those are just a few things that I have really taken away from this experience and more. But God is so faithful. When I fail, when I am slow to learn, He is the best teacher. He has the most grace, and He has the most patience. It's been the most amazing ride. It's been the most life changing experience. And even though It may not have been God's "plan" for me to be here 9 months, He took my mistakes, my redemption, and truly worked them out for the GOOD for His glory. 

PRAISE THE LORD!