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One of the many divine appointments we experienced in Alaska were Jewish connections with different families on the Kenai Peninsula and in Homer that opened up more revelation and understanding of the call on Alaska. We rearranged our schedule to go where the Holy Spirit was leading us, not realizing breath taking scenery, more revelations and more covenant relationships were to be discovered on this wild treasure hunt God had us on!

We found out the accommodations that were set up for us in Homer were at the YWAM base which was an answer to prayers the students had prayed during the times of fasting and praying before outreach. They had spent 2 lunches a week lifting up YWAM students and the base. This significantly encouraged Scott Smith, the YWAM director.

Another special occasion was celebrating Xaundelle’s 25^th birthday in the beautiful seafront town. We spent the day sight seeing, enjoying local coffee and the infamous Homer Spit! The celebrations continued with the Erev Shabbat dinner in the lovely home of the Hueper family. The view was spectacular over looking the Kachemak Bay where you could see glaciers across the water front. During the evening we had a ministry time over a young man who was visiting from Philadelphia. God definitely set up this divine appointment and the young man left encouraged with prophetic words and scriptures over the calling on his life!

On Saturday Matti, Rachel and Miah were asked to share with other leaders at Refuge church in Homer where a community meets by feeding the poor, worshipping and reading the word. This particular service they asked us to share on Pentecost and the receiving of the Holy Spirit through the biblical revelation that we had received in this season of Shavout. It was a great opportunity to support the local body in Homer and we all engaged in the worship with drums and percussion. Afterwards we ministered and prayed for the different types of people that were attending the evening service including the homeless and lost.

Every moment of our trip from Seattle to Alaska was full of the most beautiful mountains, lakes, and valleys you could ever imagine and here we were in Homer and it just got better! Sunday we took a drive and up the mountains and hiked down to the beach and had great photo opportunities!

Our last day in Homer included worship with the YWAM base, a boat ride with Paul Hueper and dinner with dorm parents at a local Bible School in town. We were amazed at how much God can do when we surrender to His plans and to His timing. The Lord’s schedule is definitely better than anything we can come up with!

Anchorage

After our time in Wasilla we made our way to the biggest city in Alaska where many people gather from all over the world. The metropolitan, port city was a change of pace from the quiet, remote ranch in Wasilla. We explored downtown, walking along the beach where we found fisherman along the river, docks with large freights and the beautiful mountain scenery. The sun stayed high in the sky and we had to keep checking our watches to remember it was 10PM. We walked out over 30-feet of mud towards the edge of the water where the tide had gone out. Around 6pm every night the water comes high and covers the mud. Tourists are warned to be careful around the edge of the water due to the tide coming up 30-feet really fast. As we were strolling through the slippery and muddy ground, Berna began trailing off on her own and got stuck knee high in the mud loosing one of her red-tennies! Luckily we got her out to safe ground before the tide came back in!

Parachutes

Monday night Rachel and Xaundelle prepared a taco feast for an event with teenagers called “Parachutes” which is held weekly at a teen aid resource center. About 15 staff and young people joined us for a family style meal, talking and getting to know each other. Afterwards we moved to comfy couches and the students shared out of their memory chapter for the year, Ephesians 2. Revelation and personal insight were shared and encouraged questions and thoughts from the kids from the center. Dessert was served and hearts began to open. Brad shared a word for the group about God pouring out a Father’s blessing on them and almost every teenager responded to prayer. Our team quickly embraced the at-risk teenagers with love and encouragement. These relationships continued to grow deeper throughout the week in Anchorage.

Kids Camp

Monday-Thursday, noon-5pm our team served at a Kids Camp with 120 neighborhood kids from 5-12 year olds. We were assigned different jobs in the kitchen, science lab, on hikes and playgrounds! We all made friends and God really broke our hearts for the kids and youth we were surrounded by all week.

Our last day the Kids Camp leader asked us to give the evangelism message and we were ready for the opportunity to share! Sharing out of their own experiences, Becca, Berna, and Calvin brought testimonies and the gospel, meeting the kids where they were at. Becca kneeled down and shared out of Psalm 139 how God had known each child from the beginning and is writing their book. When Becca gave the alter call more than half of the kids responded, giving their lives to Jesus or renewing their commitments to Him. It was a joyous time for our team to see God move in the children!

Afterwards, Brad, Susanna, and Nathan gave their testimonies to the youth who were serving in the Kids Camp beside us all week, giving convicting words of living sold out lives before the Lord. The leaders and staff were touched to see the youth and kids respond to our team’s authenticity.

Although we were certain of God’s calling to Alaska, we were not aware of the significance of our ‘pioneering’ trip to the final frontier.

On our 4-day drive up through British Columbia to Alaska we received an email from Kelsey Boehlender, director of the Zoe Foundation that she had been in prayer for The Call in Alaska when the Lord highlighted a prayer time for Israel during the weekend. The Lord proceeded to remind her of our ministry coming to serve at The Call and to have us be involved in the prayer time for Israel. As we met with Randy and Kelsey Boehlender the Lord confirmed His timing and position for our team. We learned God had given Lou Engle a burden to come to Alaska 60-days prior and typically a Call takes 9-months of preparation! We knew the Lord’s timing for our team was perfect and His hand was in all of this.

Our team was assigned a slue of jobs from video and sound techs to janitorial and registration! It was a delight to see everyone in their designated roles, shining bright and representing GBNW well. Pastors, administrators and the MC group constantly commented on our group’s joy, servant hearts and bright, shining faces.

Miah was asked to share on the Lord’s heart for Israel and the important role to stand as a remnant in the state of Alaska. The whole team was invited on stage for QSP (quick, sharp, and powerful) prayers over Israel, releasing the revelation for God’s eternal promise and covenant to His people. Pastor Daniel from Kings Chapel in Wasilla commented on our teams anointed faces that were dripping with oil as we prayed. We were so encouraged by the connection with a Russian Jewish man in Kenai and a pro-Israel lead in Homer, two cities we had been contending in prayer for and on top of it, a Jewish connection.

One of the keys God has given us as a community in Spokane is to see regional inheritance unlocked. We’ve prayed to see this released in our city and recently we even printed it out on our business cards! On this outreach we realized this has been a strategic time for unlocking regional inheritance, in us as individuals and for our ministry as a whole.

The last week of teaching for 2011 school year was a significant time with Tod McDowell, as passion and love for Israel was poured into our hearts. Tod challenged us not only to pray and think good thoughts towards Jerusalem, but to open our mouths and speak of Israel’s value and the continual covenant God keeps with her. The Holy Spirit moved on all of our hearts and a time of repentance and ownership broke out.

Isaiah 62:1
For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns.

First Aid

During our outreach trip, Gateways’ heart is to minister to the spiritual needs of people and also desires to meet the physical and practical needs that they may face. We have expressed this part by locally serving meals at Union Gospel Mission and the Mobile Food Bank. This year we decided to take a CPR training and First Aid course to better equip us for our outreach to Alaska.

We had a good time with Nicole who works at a fire station outside of Spokane in Airway Heights. The life sized manikins and situations that she walked us through really taught us what to do in case of an emergency. We were CPR certified and taught that the most important thing is to make sure you are safe, secure the scene and call for help.

Nicole shared some experiences being an EMT and how their station receives more medical calls than fire calls. After becoming certified, we got a tour of the station and even got to go inside one of the trucks! All in all we had a great morning.

Later the next week, Rachel’s co-worker who is a volunteer fire fighter came into the Gate and gave us a basic first aid course. We learned how to treat different common burns, cuts, and injuries in an emergency situation while waiting for professionals to arrive. We put together a thorough first aid kit for our trip to Alaska with Josh’s advice. It was an informative class and gave us a change of pace in our schedule. We look forward to more helpful training for future trips and adventures!