Somewhere In The World Today
It’s pretty amazing when you think about it…somewhere in the world today, someone will meet Ashley. Thanks to the generosity of her family, her story is being told in dorm rooms, class rooms, Bible study groups, church services and who knows where else right this very minute. It’s not unusual for us to hear stories like this one, which came to me on Facebook last week. It’s a little long and involved, but stay with it and remember that nothing [not even death] can stop God from using our lives to make a massive and lasting difference in this world…that is, if that’s what we want Him to do. Ashley is very much alive today, both in heaven with the God she loved and in the hearts of people around the globe.
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Hi. I just wanted to introduce myself and tell you a story. My name is Vanessa and I am a graduate student at Georgia College and State University. I first got connected with Passion and your team by coming to 722. At that time I was in school at a junior college and once a month the college minister at our church took us up to 722. Believe it or not my first experience was quite unique as the service was completely silent from beginning to end and we even had the Lord’s Supper. The whole time I thought wow incredible, how can someone pull this off? My second thought was does this happen often…Ha. Well I got numerous chances to come back.
In 2006 and 2007 I attended the Passion Conferences and they were incredible, but I have to say that I only got what I put into them. Have you ever just been a body in a place…yeah you fit, look right, but your heart just is not there. That was me until I got to my senior year of college and that is when I really found myself and who I am in Christ. It has been a battle day in and day out as I begin to revert back to old habits but it does not have to be for I am free through Christ. You see I was saved when I was 17, and yet I understood what that meant in some ways but I did not completely understand what that meant for God.
The past week has been amazing….you know God really wants you to get something if he brings it to your attention over and over again. I am a part of a small all girls bible study and we have an incredible teacher. On some nights, Molly (our teacher), passes out verses for each of us to read that supplement our study. Well, I, being late that night due to other circumstances, did not get a verse so when we were going through the study Molly realized that she neglected to pass out a verse on a card so because I did not have a card I volunteered to read the verse…. I read 2 Corinthians 5:21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Immediately I began to sing in my head the song Jesus Messiah, which is an incredible message. I love it when I can connect music to a piece of scripture and Chris Tomlin’s music is so incredible that I find that connection quite often.
The story does not end here though. The next day was Good Friday, and two friends and I were going to the Good Friday service at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater and I totally had no clue what God had in store. The crazy weather, the intense darkness did not keep people away nor did it cancel the event as you already know…Haha. I believe that the delay just added to the excitement of the event. Well what do you know, when you got up to speak Friday you covered that same verse 2 Corinthians. 5:21 and the verses before it and I was floored and probably my jaw was dropping at this point….God really must have wanted me to get it. I have to say that the service was probably the best I have been to just because in comparison to Passion Conf. I have been to, my heart was finally in the right place. I would usually leave a venue like this and be on a high for a few days and then go back to something else, but that is not the case here.
If those two instances were not enough I have more. Tuesday I was listening to the song “Mighty to Save” and I tell you it just gives me chills. I love the part that says “Shine your light and let the whole world see, we’re singing for the glory of the risen King.” That is us, that is what we are called to do and when you realize what God has done through Christ it is not a matter of this is my duty, but instead it becomes your desire. I know this is getting long, but I am coming to my last part of the story. Last night, Wednesday April 15. I go to a fairly small church in Milledgeville where I go to school, but they have an incredible college ministry. We usually do small group bible study sessions but not this night. You see when I walked in there was a screen and on that screen it said Louie Giglio so I thought cool we are going to get to watch you speak. At this point you may be able to guess….yes the same verses and you started with 2 Corinthians 5:21 and then you went back and read verses 13-21. I had chills, but not only that you read from the journal of Ashley, the student whose short life as a believer is impacting lives all over.
At Good Friday you mentioned her name, but you did not tell her whole story and when I saw the video Wednesday, it was like an intricate puzzle that God had so thoughtfully pieced together. It hit me then and there. It does not matter what I do or where I go on this earth if I let Christ live fully through me amazing things can happen. I guess that is something I needed to hear one, two, even three times over. I have looked at the cross and been moved by it and what it means for me, but what about for others. Everyone has the same opportunity but it takes others, like myself, to plant those seeds. I look at Ashley’s roommate and think how her small yet powerful actions led to something incredible. As I am about to graduate from grad school in less than a month I am faced with the pressures of finding a job and determining what I want to do. I just wanted to share this with you and I am so thankful that God has created this ministry that you lead and it is so cool how he has used you. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
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Thank you Mike, Anna, Jeff and Jacob for allowing a college group in middle Georgia [and people throughout the world] to hear such an authentic and beautiful journey to faith. Our gratitude, love and prayers surround you today!
Louie
April 21st, 2009 at 10:03 AM
What a story! It is so encouraging to know that God is still at work in the lives of people… to think that this all happened just in the past two weeks. Things are never lost with Him… even when it feels like it, He can take the most devestating situations and turn them into a canvas for His glory and the good of His children. I don’t know how He does it, or why He chooses to use some of the methods that He does, but nevertheless He does. What a glorious Savior! It is good to see that Ashley’s death was not in vain and that she is alive more than ever now… in that she is in the presence of Jesus, basking in the glow of His face, and also that her testimony is being used to change the course of lives all over the globe. But my heart still goes out to Mike, and Anna, and Jeff, and Jacob and those who knew her for who she was- as a person… God is the only One Who can heal such a hurt, and even then I’m not sure the pain ever goes away… its more like He uses the pain to bring us closer into himself. The greater the love, the greater the pain, and the greater the grip of God in the midst of it… and that was never more truly showed than in the life of Jesus on this earth. Praise God for His surrender, that He was willing to know more pain of separation than we could ever imagine so that, no matter what, we could have the ultimate hope of never, ever being left alone! It is one of the amazing paradoxes of Christianity that God is the One Who allows pain to be inflicted, and then steps in and takes the hardest blow of it upon Himself… that’s why His grace is so amazing.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:21 PM
Wow what a great story, Louie thanks for posting that. Good stuff
April 21st, 2009 at 4:30 PM
I saw this message in my church in a small Oregon town and Ashley (well God through Ashley) :) changed my life!
April 22nd, 2009 at 2:19 AM
Thanks for sharing this message! I agree that God always calls us especially our mind is wandering off. I like that the way He calls you and I. Sweet & Gentle…
He gave us space to live.. and when we are just gonna slip, He’ll call you and I again. It’s like “Hey..careful… ” and then all His Words will come so intimate.
I love HIM !!
Love,
Celine – KL – Malaysia
p/s: After waiting for such a loooooooooooooong time, I finally got hold of fruitcake & ice cream DVD! :) I’ve been chasing the christian shop here eversince I heard of the DVD. They took so long to get the stocks in!! Well..good things come to those who wait! :)
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:10 AM
I always underestimated God. Most of the time I’d ask for peace, which is the best thing to get from him I think, no matter what the situation. But it was only because I didn’t expect more. I watched the Hope DVD for the first time about two years ago at our home group and since then Ashley’s story has touched me more every time I’ve heard it, whether at Passion Jozi or the Fruitcake and Ice Cream DVD. Mighty to save was one of my faves at Passion Jozi and the chorus confronted my lack of belief, that God can do literally anything. I am expecting much from him and especially in SA, where a lot of people like to look into the future with doom and gloom, it’s amazing to know that this country is capable of whatever we expect God to do and more. He is mighty to save, way beyond what we can understand.
he is just plain freakin’ awesome!!!
April 23rd, 2009 at 10:42 PM
All of this week, the story of Ashley and Christa has been on my heart, even with the date “mix-up.” Tonight at Bible study, people who were not at Passion and don’t know the story were telling parts of it without realizing it (not the details of course). I wrote down “Fruitcake” in my notes to remind myself of what was being talked about. My friend, who was sharing my Bible and my question sheet, saw that and wanted to know what it meant. I’m going to tell her the story as soon as I can, hopefully tomorrow! :)
April 28th, 2009 at 3:00 AM
I was so touch by Ashley’s story and feel that we need to share her story with more young people in South Africa God Bless
April 29th, 2009 at 7:34 PM
Wow what a cool email! Thank you for sharing that with us Louie. I particularly liked what the person said here:
“…when you realize what God has done through Christ it is not a matter of this is my duty, but instead it becomes your desire.”
That is so very true!! I really love how Jeremy Camp expresses this kind of thing in his song ‘My Desire’ :o) This is something that has really been happening within me lately ever since I heard you preach on 2 Cor 5:21 (and the verses before it) at Passion Sydney. I can identify that as a significant turning point as in the last 6 months I have had a continuing desire to actually get into God’s Word more regularly instead of sporadically (instead of feelin like its a task i have to check off) and to work out with God how to practically apply the things He is teaching me in His word, to my life :)
And thanks also Louie for making this a week long thing of remembering Ashley & her testimony/life story! so cool reading other people’s stories of when they first heard about Ashley and how they were deeply impacted & changed by it, whether it was through the Fruitcake & Ice Cream dvd or at one of the Passion World Tour conferences :) I got really excited when my young adults small group watched the Fruitcake & Ice Cream dvd as I was at Passion Sydney where you shared Ashley’s story. Alot of people in the group were really touched by it & we had an awesome discussion afterwards :)
God bless,
~Priscilla
June 15th, 2009 at 1:14 PM
I want to respond to your “Hope” DVD… if I may… I have a hope story, a real Hope story… May 24, 2007, my husband and I went on a short term mission trip to Port Au Prince, Haiti. He’s a respiratory therapist and an orphanage wanted his expertise. I was to rock babies, they had forty. For three weeks I walk around holding an HIV/Aids baby and another baby who didn’t have AIDS but was sick with a virus. These two babies were two of three which had not been adopted out. We could not adopt the AIDS baby but we felt God telling us to adopt the other baby with the virus. She was six months old, someone had simply dropped her off at the orphanage. She was beautiful but no one wanted a sick baby. Her lips were heart shaped and her eyes and eyelashes were stunning. There was no way my husband and I were adopting because our boys were college aged and we were ages 52 and 50. God told us to give this baby a home so we couldn’t say no. For the past two years we have been going back and forth to Haiti, taking the baby back to a hotel and parenting her (spoiling her) until our adoption finalizes. Well, to try to make a long story short she died this past January (2009) of an unknown virus which she could not fight off because her iron levels were so low (she was two years old). We know God had a reason for taking her home to be with Him and we know God is sovereign. God works through life and death. Look at the stoning of Stephen, why would God take him right after he’d become a deacon, and a wonderful servant. Thank of the good he would’ve done. But God chose to be glorified instead through Stephen’s death. Oh, by the way, our little girl’s name was Esperancia, which means, “Hope.”
Thank you for all your wonderful videos, we’ve been blessed beyond words.
Love, Robin