"Well, I don't want to kill myself anymore!" That was not the response I was expecting to hear when Mia was asked at a staff meeting interview how going through discipleship training and serving at our mission affected her life! As we applauded her answer, I realized a lot was packed into that simple arresting statement.

We are so proud of our students here at YWAM Tyler. Please read Rose's story of how God set her free from self-harm and a slow suicide. God is so kind and so gentle to lead us from our dark situations to places of freedom, and being able to minister to others. 

Before being saved, I was in and out of treatment centers, on and off of drugs, putting myself in deadly situations, searching for love and validation through people that never ceased to disappoint me.

As many are commenting on the overturn of Roe Vs. Wade, we had the opportunity to hear from a YWAM Tyler missionary who has walked through some of the trauma related to this topic first hand. We are thankful for her vulnerability, as she shares her story with us.

Fear can be so debilitating in our lives, but it doesn't have to be. If you're struggling with some type of fear in your life -- fear of failing, fear of deep relationships, or fear of the unknown, there is is hope. God loves you.

Watch this short message from Nate Evans [1:12 video]

I first went to Vegas in the Spring of 2016. As we were walking, I passed some show girls and told my grandparents I wanted to stop and talk to them, but they told me to just keep walking. I boarded the plane shattered, knowing I should have stopped. 

A couple years later, during my YWAM Discipleship Training School, we were being told our outreach locations. Vegas was going to be one of them for the West Coast. My heart leapt for joy, and I started praying. I prayed for an encounter.

As I started this Crossroads Discipleship Training School (CDTS), I would meet with God in my early morning devotions, before our daily breakfast duty, and pray these words from Ephesians 3 . . . .

ME: Who am I?

GOD: Marina: Sea Harbor ~ one who leads people to the living waters

ME: What does that even mean? (rolls eyes)

GOD: Allow me to show you.

The searing heat is awful, and my dry throat longs for water; unfortunately, I left my water bottle in the van. It’s Friday morning; two days before I am to go home. The Texas sun is relentlessly beating down on me. Each step I take makes my glasses slide further down my nose, and my feet ache. Sweat beads start to pool on my skin, causing the dust to stick to me. The piercing honks of the passing cars startle me. I really wish I was anywhere else but here. Yet up ahead, I see my friends turn around and start another lap. If they can keep walking, I can too.

Recently, I was able to participate with an organization called YWAM, which stands for Youth With a Mission. For the first three months during class time, I learned about the character of God and how to have a deeper relationship with Him. We were discipled, so we could go out and disciple others as well, applying all the things we learned to the cities that we were traveling to.

 YWAM Tyler has the privilege of hosting several ministries in the East Texas area. The Journey is located right off Interstate 20 and is a unique ministry seeking to bless people with good drink, delicious food, and most of all loving and gracious service. Everyone is on a journey of some sort, and it is the desire of those who run this coffeehouse that as they step into this business, God's love will be encountered in a special way. Many have entered this business to receive a warm drink, but they've left with warm hearts. 

I've always heard sheep are dumb, but I disagree. I think they're really quite smart and have something to teach us all!

Everyone always told me YWAM is a great place to meet someone. The day I told everyone I was going to do a DTS, many people said, “Well, Misti’s going to come home engaged.” At the time, I just shrugged it off and laughed to myself. Yeah right, I haven’t met anyone in the last 23 years; I doubt three months in Texas is going to change much.