Some friends from Copenhagen and Hamburg who came to support us!
A couple weeks ago I returned from spending New Years in Helsinki, Finland. I was there to be with friends and to worship in the new year with a 30 hour Burn. Needless to say, Finland’s not the easiest place to get to and since I wasn’t able to go this summer on the Burn Wagon I wanted to go when I got the opportunity.
This last fall I made it point to try to be more intentional about taking trips and visiting my Burn family in Europe which involved trips to Norwich, England and Paris, France (probably should have blogged about that…sorry). Recently God has started to change my mandate for traveling. Over the summer I traveled a lot of places and I felt like the main reason was simply to build family and to encourage the body. While that hasn’t changed, I feel like God has commissioned me to be more intentional to release what he has given me and be confident that I have the authority to do so.
Praise the Lord I didn’t have to lead in Finnish, honestly one of the most difficult languages I’ve ever seen!
I arrived in Helsinki at about Midnight and hadn’t slept the entire flight over from the States so needles to say I was a bit jet lagged. I would nap a bit, go up play some piano for a friend for a couple hours, go back and sleep, go back up and play again etc and all the while I had the mind set that I was just there to help and support in any way I could. After one of the sets we were discussing who was going to do the last slot that would bring in the New Year since the person scheduled had to cancel last minute. I agreed to lead and some musicians in the room jumped in as well!
Strangely beforehand I was a bit unsure, thoughts like “shouldn’t a Finnish person do this” or “I haven’t prepared at all, this could be a lame New Year’s set” or “Man I’m freakin tired!” started to come into my head and it wasn’t until I got on stage that God reminded me that I didn’t just come to help I came to bring and release something that only I could do.
What followed was over an hour and a half of non stop dancing. There was so much joy in the room and it was such an incredible environment of thanksgiving for the last year and hope for the new one. Hearts were healed, people found freedom, and we all had a stonkin good time with our Father.
Afterwards I was in the shower and I felt like God started to speaking to me (as is somewhat normal) about the importance of giving away what you have. Not just the fact that we need to give away what God has given us but a bit deeper to the extent that what we don’t give away we don’t actually own.
Giving something away verifies ownership.
A beautiful picture from the harbor in Helsinki as the sea was freezing over
I would even go as far to say that there might not be proof you’ve received something from God until you’ve given it away. Of course, I’m speaking in the spiritual sense where giving something away doesn’t mean you lose what you have, but it means you gain more in the process.
Jesus did it. He gave up his authority, came down as a servant, and through it gained more authority. And that’s our example.
I also believe that’s what set apart the early church form the rest of God’s chosen people throughout history. They weren’t just receiving and recognizing the Holy Spirit, they were laying hands on people to receive it!
It’s a very strange thing being around a Christian who doesn’t feel like they have anything to give. It’s a bit depressing and even more so confusing. Granted I think many times we believe we have something to give but because of false humility (“no I’m not the one”) or over analyzing (“I don’t know if he’s the one to give it to”) we fail to do so.
I’ve seen this in myself and realize that many times people have missed out on what God had in store because I decided not to give something away. I don’t regret these moment, instead I actually try to find them encouraging. I love that God doesn’t look on our past decisions as just right/wrong or blessing/condemnation. He continually reminds us who we are in him, who he is, and what he has given us.
There’s a good chance that if we’re wrestling with what God says about us and struggling to accept his truth, we’ve also stopped giving what we have to those around us. There’s a strong connection between the two, and the great part is that God’s thoughts for us never change!
2015 Is gonna be a powerful one!
What's God's Point? 
Awesome Allan! Beautifully written and explained, giving us all hope for this year and thanks for the past one God gifted us.
Thanks so much for the encouragement Haley, so much hope (especially in our part of the globe!!!!)