TICKLED :)

Father's Day weekend was predicted to be our second busiest time of the year at the Sports Authority. And it was quite busy this Friday, the 18th. We had our best line up out on the floor to bring our "A" game. Oh, we brought it. At least I did. On this day, I was the designated greeter. I was the one selected to be the 1st AND last face our customers saw. What an honour!And, oh, how I was tickled! I was having the time of my life. Why? I know not. Logically, it doesn't make sense. Any other time in my life, I would have dreaded having to address people, offereing a "list of our deals going on for Father's Day", and getting stiff armed. Ignored. Denied. Told to "get a real job". And yet, in this moment, I could not stop laughing. Smiling. Beaming. I was absolutely tickled. My coworkers would walk by and comment, "You look like you are having fun up here." I would agree, "I actually am having fun!" Everyone was surprised. Including me. The greeter position, I believe, is often seen as the "whatever" position. Reserved for an extra, unoccupied front end person, or, as in my case, the newbie. It is not a position fulfilled by an irreplaceable. It takes no special skills. Anyone could do it, but not everyone does it. I was thoroughly enjoying it. And then I had a revelation. Which tickled me to the deepest parts this time. As people left the Authority on all things Sports, I got to wish them a GREAT weekend. Which was often, but not always followed with a, "Thanks, you too." At 1st glance, there was nothing in that response that made me excited, except the fact that they did not ignore me. But after maybe the 23rd response, I realized..."They are totally blessing my weekend!" I soon realized that at least 100 people have blessed mmy weekend so I must be about to have the best weekend of my life! As I thought about it, I began to understand that this was the "sowing and reaping" effect taking place here. I was genuinely and intentionally blessing peoples' weekends with no expectation of anything in return. For me it was an honour to be able to do this. But how good is the Father? He saw me and decided to bless me in return. So good! Thank you, Father! For 5 hours straight, there was a beautiful exchange of blessings. Realized or unrealized. This was happening. And I couldn't help but be tickled from the inside out :)

OOPS...I LEAKED!

The other morning, I decided to go for a run. I had just bought new Wave Rider running shoes and was exceptionally excited to put them to use. I headed over to the River Trail to behold the beauty of the Creator while I gave my new kicks a whirl. It was just a splendid morning. The sun was bright and cheery. The wind. Blew carelessly as if it were hopelessly in love. The hawks. Soared high above with their majestic, black, silken bodies and love coloured beaks. The river. Flowed as if there was no place it would rather be. The flowers. The berries. The trees. Carried a sweet, invigorating aroma that I could almost taste and couldn't get enough of. And then it happened...I couldn't help myself. It just happened. I didn't do it on purpose. What began in the subconscious soon made manifest in my thoughts...I was leaking!

I could not help but wave and say "Hi!" to every adult, child, animal that I passed. I must have shared a hundred good mornings. I couldn't contain my smile, save a few moments my legs were burning. I made it to the bridge. And as I rounded the corner to cross the droopy bridge with sweet lines, there He was. My Jesus. At the other end. I saw Him walking toward me as I moved toward Him. Butterflies in my stomach. My Love was coming to meet me. The look on His face...aaah...the look on His face. That man is so in love with me! He met me in the middle. Where two lovers choose to surrender all for the sake of the other. And KW narrated it best:

There is no love, sweeter than the love You pour on me.
There is no song, sweeter than the song You sing to me.
There is no place, that I would rather be,
Than here at Your feet, laying down everything.

All to You, I surrender,
Everything, every part of me.
All to You, I surrender,
All of my dreams, all of me.

If worship's like perfume, I'll pour mine out on You.
For there is none as deserving of my love like You.
So take my hand and draw me into You,
I want to be swept away, lost in love for You.

I stood there. On that bridge. Overlooking the Sacramento River. With arms stretched out. Wind blowing intensely on my face, through my hair, past my clothes.

No turning back, I've made up my mind,
I'm giving all of my life this time.
Your love makes it worth it,
Your love makes it worth it all,
Your love makes it worth it all.

I open my eyes and am overcome by awe, wonder, such incredibly intense love for my Savior, my God, my Father, my Best Friend. His love makes it worth it all. Worth surrendering everything, every part of me. He just loves me! I stood there, unable to move. Captivated by His beauty and love. Sweet little birds played in the wind. Swooping here, swooping there, going high, going low to scrape the water, hanging suspended mysteriously in one place. Snow capped mountains off in the distance. Does it get any better than this? It's really hard for me to imagine such a feat.

After what seems an eternity, though clearly it was not, I continued my run. Smiling, waving, good morning-ing, but this time with a bit of a pep in my step. The pep being a little extra dose of the ecstatical love. Aaah can't get enough of that stuff. I was made for it. What can i say? And then a thought came into my mind. How am I changing people's lives this morning? I could be out "packaging bandages for Bosnian refugees" or "having my eggs harvested". I kid. But you get the picture. No. Instead I am running, with my brand new kicks (which were not cheap, mind you), on a gloriously beautiful day surrounded by the glory of His imaginitive creation. At first I felt a little selfish. I could have been "surrendering all". But wasn't I? I gave up being near family, friends, soccer, the beach to be here in Redding. So once I convinced myself it was all well and good that I was enjoying the very presence of my precious Love (after all, that is the greatest command, "Love the Lord your God"), I came back to the question, "How am I changing people's lives this morning?". And then it hit me. I had an epiphany. I am leaking the very presence of God all over each person I smile at, each person I wave at, each person I squeak out a "Good morning" to. I carry the glory and the kingdom of God and I release it to everyone I come in contact with. Whether I have an hour long conversation about the goodness of God, a 5 minute conversation about treadmills, the World Cup, kettle bells, or frisbees, or even if its just a nod of the head. The Kingdom is released. Realized or not. Felt or not, seen or not, heard or not. Its a done deal. I am a powerful person and I get to enjoy the fullness of the beauty of His presence and Christ in me, the hope of glory, and leak it all over everyone and everything I come in contact with. Amen. Hallelujah! I ended my run on yet another bridge...seeing my Jesus move toward me from one end as I walked toward Him from my end. We met in the middle where Lassen stood, snow capped and framed by sweet lines of a railroad bridge with the river running under it. And the sweet little free birds swooping, diving, stalling, and suspending. All, in this moment, was just for me. Thank you Jesus :) I love you!

A Friend's Prayer

Psalm 20

May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble;

May the name of the God of Jacob defend you;

May He send you help from the sactuary

And strengthen you out of Zion;

May He remember all your offerings;

And accept your burnt sacrafice.

Selah.

May He grant you according to your heart's desire;

And fulfill all your purpose;

We will rejoice in your salvation,

And in the name of our God we will set up our banners!

May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.

Now I know the Lord saves His annointed;

He will answer Him from His holy heaven

With the saving strength of His right hand.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses;

But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

They have bowed down and fallen;

But we have risen and stand upright.

Save, Lord! May the King answer us in the day we call!

BEST DAYS -- not good, but great!

I find myself living the best day of my life....everyday. Yes, life is beautiful. Most days something significant happens (i.e. Auryan Rose, my niece was born, I ran a half marathon through the Redwoods, etc.). Dreams are being fulfilled. Prayers answered. Father is lavishing me with His love. Through friends. Through natural beauty (Spring in Redding is absolutely glorious!). Through music. And while all those things carry the potential to bring me pure bliss and enjoyment, even in the absence of all those things, even when there is nothing significant to mark the day with, I still have a best day! Because its not about those things. It is, but it isn't. Let me explain. Its about loving and being loved. I was made for love. And when I allow myself to be loved I am able to receive love. I am only able to love to the extent that I am able to receive love. I find myself surrendured to love. No longer rejecting His love. No longer withholding my love. Its a beautiful exchange. And when love is present, everything is beautified. Its like I am looking at life through love coloured glasses. Yes, great things are happening. But even when the day would have seemed dull, love is exciting! Love never fails. Love always makes a way. Love covers all. Love casts out all fear. Love is being perfected. It is impossible not to have a best day when the God of the universe loves you! Think about it...our job is just to be loved. That's it! We dont have to do anything else! Jesus already did it all. Now we get to rest in Him and be loved. Aaaah, beautiful! So be loved. Let love take you on adventures into pure bliss and ecstasy all the days of your life. Sit back , relax, know you are loved outrageously, and have the best day of your life!

PS- I will post updates on my trip to Africa soon. Sorry to all who have been breathlessly waiting...I've been busy having the best days of my life.

13.1 miles through the Redwoods...best day of my life!

Ate Logo!!!

"See you later!!"

I am finally leaving for Mozambique tonight at midnight!! Yeeeew! :) We fly to DC, then to Johannesburg, South Africa (spend the night there), and then we'll fly up to Beira, Mozambique. Then its another 2 hour drive to our final destination (Gondola, Mozambique).

I could hardly sleep last night! I am so excited!! I am part of a focus group that is going to focus on ministering to the children. We've spent some time asking Holy Spirit for ideas of what games to play with them and what to teach them. We got 15 soccer balls to take over there and leave as a gift, some paints to paint on their faces and to teach them how to do prophetic art, bubbles, bouncy balls, balloons, etc. They are going to have a phenominal time! Our goals for the kids are:

1) for them to enter a relationship with Jesus,

2) that they would know Father God and that they can trust Him,

3) for them to know they are loved by God unconditionally,

4) for them to understand their persona (what heaven thinks about them) versus their personality (what people thing about them),

5) for them to understand that they are powerful,

6) to activate the kids.

We want to activate them in:

Prophecy

Healing

Preaching and Sharing

Worship

Encounters with God

We expect our time with the kids to be profoundly impactful and to see God do innumerable miracles!!!! We believe we can see a whole nation saved in one day!

Be praying for an open heaven, for an outpouring of the Spirit, for their land to be healed, for favor, and for saftey.

You all are awesome! Thank you for your prayers and support! Next time you will be hearing stories from Africaaaaa :)

Deus te abencoe!! -- "God bless you!!"

Obrigada!

Obrigada means "thank you" in Portuguese, which is the official language in Mozambique.

I want to thank everyone who has supported me financially and is continuing to support me through prayer....even you generous peeps who gave to me while standing on the street corner! I love you all and am excited to have such an incredible group of people empowering me to live my dream!

Each one of you who has generously and cheerfully given into the Kingdom of God will reap what you have sown! The testimonies that my team and I will experience are your testimonies as well because you have copartnered in sending us out. How cool is that?! So I bless you and I thank you and I cannot wait to share what God does on this adventure!!

P.S.- Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium is one of the best movies I have ever seen!!

Mozambique Missions Trip!

I leave for Beira, Mozambique in about a month (March 4-17)! I am beyond excited for this trip!

"...Greater signs than these you will do also..."

Many years ago, I knew God was calling me to Africa. As I sat in a high school Bible class watching a documentary on a couple of missionaries teach an entirely remote African tribe of 300 about Jesus, I knew that someday I would be doing the same. I watched as an entire African village celebrated their new life of freedom by dancing and shouting and I cried because I wanted to be like those missionaries but I didn't know when I would get my chance. Now I am at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry and am headed to Mozambique on a mission trip. Now is my time!!!!


The culture at this school is preparing us to walk as Jesus walked, destroying the works of the devil and bringing the Kingdom of Heaven into reality. We are learning that Jesus did the miraculous as a man, so that we (through the power of the cross and the Holy Spirit) could do the same. The best part is that he promised us that "...he who believes in me, will do...even greater works!" (John 14:12)

Already since being here there have been people raise from the dead in the street! People getting out of wheelchairs! Deaf ears opening and blind eyes seeing! And it is all being done by ordinary Jesus loving people who believe in who Jesus said they would be and love people to bits!

I really believe God is going to use me on this trip in ways I haven't experienced yet!

For me to be accepted into the Mozambique trip is a miracle! First year students don't normally get into Africa trips. However, the lady who heads up this trip prayed and really felt that I should be going! So I am really excited to know that I am meant to go, and also that God is going to extend His Kingdom in and through me on this trip!


We will be joining Bethel missionary Tracy Evans (who sees over 600 children fed by faith each week!). She is amazing and has survived gun attacks, witchdoctors and even seen corn raised from the dead! On this trip we will be getting opportunites to minister in a local prison, in the markets, to village children, and at local and bush church plants! We will also pioneer an open air church with 150 people from Tracy's clinic!

I want to invite you to partner in spreading the Kingdom of Jesus Christ in Beira Africa with me!

We are believing to see people healed, set free from demons, people discipled and people resourced. I can't wait to prophecy into people's identities, see them healed, see them saved and see them set free!! I really believe that this trip is God ordained and that He is going to bring together a strategic team of people who will spiritually and resourcefully support this trip and ensure its success!


For all who would like to partner by praying, I will be giving an update and sharing testimonies of what God did during the tirp when I return! To sign up as a prayer partner email me at samanthahire@gmail.com. If you would like to give into the trip (I need about $1200 more before February 10th, plus I am aiming to take a gift) you can make a tax deductible donation online at: https://www.ibssm.org/?action=donate&target=missions&student_id=210324


I really appreciate your belief in me and in the power of the gospel of our amazing Jesus Christ! Thanks so much for your gifts, prayers and partnership! I look forward to the lives that our team will see transformed!


God Bless Heaps!!