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We just completed our last week of teaching.  This school has been so amazing and we can all hardly believe it’s coming to a close.  But with outreach just days away, who better to have come encourage us in the ministry of the Holy Spirit than Joaquin Evans, director of the healing rooms at Bethel Church (Redding, CA) and Jahi’s brother.  Along with friends Nolan Vaught (Joaquin’s travel assistant) and Rebecca Urban (a graduate of Bethel’s School of Supernatural Ministry), Joaquin not only taught us, but also showed us that operating in the supernatural power of God really is easier than we think.  Miracles, signs and wonders do not depend on how well, long, or hard we pray-they come out of a friendship with the Holy Spirit.  When we cultivate God’s presence in our lives, the miracles will follow us wherever we go.  For healings do not come out of our striving, but through our surrender to what Holy Spirit wants to do.  He wants to heal His children more than we want Him to heal us.  As we head into Ethiopia, we all desire these truths to become a reality of love in our hearts.

Nolan and Rebecca also shared with us the things that burn in their hearts.  Nolan shared with an honest sincerity that is rare in our generation.  His heart knowledge of love and relationship with the Father impacted us all deeply.  Rebecca talked about the importance of leaving a legacy by making a conscious effort to be a part of things that will last.  She drew revelation from the life of David and exhorted us to walk in the calling and anointing that God has given us.

Friday night was a special time for us all as we came together to celebrate our last community Shabbat of the year.  Grilling outside and enjoying the beautiful weather, we entered into the rest of the Shabbat with a great deal of joy in our hearts.  Looking back on what God has done in our lives over the past four months, we all found plenty of cause to celebrate.  As the sun set and we feasted, the mood was definitely festive.  And, of course, it wouldn’t be a Gateways Shabbat without a little bit of singing and dancing!

As we are completing our tenth year of the Gateways Training School, we have been reminiscing and praising God. Our hearts are full of thankfulness for what the Lord has done in each of us and how he has formed this community. Saturday night was a very special evening as we had a time of commissioning and blessing the Geneva team-Bedig and Rebekah Nassanian and their three girls Taline, Lily, and Cedar; Sam and Ashley Arnaud and their son Isaiah; Rena Brand; and Marie Dawant. Eyes full of tears and hearts full of joy, we all took part in a moment that this community has carried in their hearts for the past ten years. The sadness of saying goodbye was overcome by the joy of sending out this team into the destiny and calling of the Lord. We send them forth with our deepest love and with the blessing and grace of the Lord.

Wednesday, May 20, we leave Cyprus and make our journey to Ethiopia. We go forth as burning lovers of Jesus, ready to shine His light and serve His people. We know that we are about to receive so much even as we pour out and that our lives will never be the same. We appreciate your prayers deeply while we are on outreach. Be blessed!

The GTS Blog Team

Blog Writers: Hannah B. and Chelsea N.

Photo Editors: Marissa H. and Gwen P.

Blog Editors: Hannah B. Marissa H. and Gwen P.

Keep Hoping O Cyprus…

The last two weeks have hosted waves of God’s refreshing and brought in a tide of hope for this island. Last week, we participated in the “Catch the Fire” conference brought by John Arnott and the Airport Christian Fellowship in Toronto, Canada. This is a ministry known for being completely abandoned to God’s presence and for waiting on the Lord to do His work rather than directing the flow of His Spirit through programs and schedules. For the believers here on this island, this was a crossroads juncture at which they looked at their own fears and traditions and chose to step out into the unknown depths of His Spirit and love. They took a chance and God met them with fiery love and the promise of new life and the expectation of revival.  Look out world! This ancient land of sending and receiving missionaries is aligning herself with God’s own heart and purposes for her.  Gateways Beyond was privileged to lead worship many times, and we were all blessed and stirred up by the teachings from Heidi Baker, John Arnott, and Gordon Robertson. But we were most stirred and encouraged by looking around and seeing the hungry hearts of Cypriots and the many internationals that have come to call this land home. Seeing revival in their eyes only fans the flame in our own.

Teaching with Charles Stock

Charles Stock, pastor of Life Center church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, joined the community this past week to impart the revelation he holds to our first year students.  Unaware that this year’s theme is SHINE, Mr. Stock charged the students to “Arise and Shine,” from Isaiah 60.  In three power-packed days, he unfolded this message of shining-encouraging the students to fellowship with the Holy Spirit because His presence leads to our radiance.  Through the work of Yeshua on the cross, we can partake in the divine nature of God.  As we live in love, we live in God, and our lives become naturally supernatural.  Mr. Stock challenged the students on a new level to live out their class theme.  And with outreach just around the corner, the students are ready to SHINE!

Gigue

Our second Gigue of the year was a great success. Community members arrived arrayed in the colors of India for our Bollywood themed Gigue. We laughed and cried to our hearts content as we took turns entertaining each other and displaying the creativity that God has placed in each of us.

Student Led

Tabitha shared from her own personal experience about a life of consecration and the fiery love of the Father.  Speaking with authority in her voice and tears in her eyes, she imparted a revelation of love to her classmates.

Abigail spoke from Paul’s letters to the Corinthians on the empowerment of grace.  From this posture, our own testimonies become effective tools for God’s Kingdom!

In our Israel blogs, we left out one of the student led services. We want to include them now so that you can be encouraged by them.

Ingrid shared about the importance of knowing the goodness of God and releasing His goodness to those around us; we can do this through prophecy and the fruit of the Spirit.

Caleb spoke from his personal testimony about the redemption of the Lord. Speaking from his heart, he encouraged us that God will restore what the devourer has eaten.

Many Blessings,

The GTS Blog Team

Blog Writers: Hannah B. and Chelsea N.

Photo Editors: Marissa H. and Gwen P.

Blog Editors: Hannah B. Marissa H. and Gwen P.

“Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days! Make us glad according to the days in which You have afflicted us, the years in which we have seen evil. Let Your work appear to Your servants, and Your glory to their children” (Psalm 90:14-16). God is turning things, shifting and moving the hearts of His people into the place where we can move past the hurts and divisions and, by His mercy, together see His work accomplished and His glory revealed. Unity is the cry of our hearts. This is why we are so blessed to serve the believers in Cyprus by hosting and facilitating island wide gatherings for the Body of Christ to seek the Lord in unity. Last year, Peter Prothero was the speaker at our very first “Streams in the Desert” event, and once again he brought life-giving words from God’s heart. A major theme of the evening was that God’s house is a house of restoration. People’s hearts were like sponges soaking up the beauty of God’s presence and receiving prayer for restoration in their personal lives. God is truly at work in Cyprus!

Sunday night’s Streams event gave the students a sneak peak of Peter’s profound, yet practical revelations from the life of Yeshua-building great anticipation for what his week of teaching held in store for them.  Peter taught the first and second year students on how to use the tools of our faith to draw people into the Kingdom.  He focused on personal testimony, the prophetic, teaching, and acts of service.  The students really connected to Peter’s easy going manner (with a bit of British wit), and were greatly touched by the times of prophetic ministry and insightful Biblical teachings.  Not one to shy away from a joke or personal story to drive home a point, Mr. Prothero has left the students deeply impacted and inspired.

Streams of God’s heart

The streams of God’s heart that were highlighted on Sunday evening continued to flow all through the week. In worship on Tuesday morning, God did a very special work amongst brothers. God is into details, and so when someone realized that we had Remi, Sam, and Baptiste (3 brothers from France) and Norman, Ruben, and Joel (3 brothers from Germany) all together in worship, that there was something important God wanted to do. The brothers faced each other and began to repent on behalf of their nations for prejudices and hard feelings, and prayed for and blessed each other. It was work of the Holy Spirit, and we know that the effects of these times of repentance and prayer go further and produce more fruit than we could really know.

The school’s outreach trip to Ethiopia is quickly approaching.  With less than three weeks to go, preparation is in full swing!  The first year students have begun work on a drama, presenting the gospel with effectual power, while the second year students have taken on the children’s dramas which will be performed at orphanages and feeding centers.  Thursday morning Jahi taught the basics of preparing and preaching a gospel message, stressing the importance of a personal testimony.  The students went to work writing out their testimonies and drafting the gospel messages that, in a few short weeks, will be heard by hungry ears that have yet to know the love of Jesus.  To top off a busy week, the first wave of students traveled down the mountain to the hospital in Limassol for their Yellow Fever vaccinations.  Although there was a fair amount of joking and tall tales of terrible needles, everybody was quite brave when it came to the small prick!

Community Headlines:

• The view has just opened up here at the GBI base as our large orange container that has been sitting on the property for the last ten years has been moved to its new home on our land. For all of you alumni that remember it so well, you will know that this is news indeed.

• We love alumni, and we have been greatly blessed this week to spend time with Ruben and Melissa Heidel from Germany and Denise from Holland. Ruben and Melissa have been serving in Alexandria, Egypt and it was wonderful to share our hearts together again. Denise is a student from last year, and her fellow classmates have been so excited and blessed to spend time with her again.

• It’s a girl! Chandy and Sarah Thomas welcomed their new little baby Kashmir Yarden Rose early Saturday morning. She is absolutely beautiful and we are so happy for the Thomas family! Children are the great joys of our community.

We are full of thanks for all that the Lord has done, excited for all He is doing, and full of faith for all He will do. He satisfies us and makes us glad and we say, “. . . let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hand.”

Blessings,

The GTS Blog Team

Blog Writers: Hannah B. and Chelsea N.

Blog Editors: Hannah B. and Marissa H.

Photo Editors: Gwen P. and Marissa H