mobile like the wind

Those are some famous words by Jeff Spicoli. But do you believe me when I say, surfing can be much more impacting than that? See for yourselves-

Surfing The Nations – Sri Lanka from Surfing The Nations on Vimeo.

I had the amazing blessing and privilege to spend time with Johnson Ratnasingham this year as he visited us at Surfing The Nations in Hawaii. I can tell you that I have never met a more stoked, joyful and full of praise person in my life. We spent lots of time making currys and eating with our hands, surfing and sightseeing around the island. His life is a testament that God is using surfing in an amazing way. Its not just about a cold corona and barrels all day, but something far greater.

This video shows me in good spirits on day 4 out of the 7 days I spent in isolation at Sanglah Hospital in Bali for swine flu treatment.

Putting some thoughts into words today..

One of the things I learned while I was away is that we all have an extreme calling that is far beyond what we can imagine, but God has put this deep in our hearts. This potential and plan that he has sits in our heart, inactive. Until we choose to activate it, until we choose to search for God, and until we choose to let God write our radical stories. For most, this potential, this gift, it sits forever in the heart, untapped. Alot of the time because of fear, and uncertainty. Most of the time, us humans settle to live a life in mediocrity. We become okay with selling ourselves short. But there is a select few that grab on to this potential, this radical plan, and in turn, turn themselves over to a wild adventure with our heavenly father. We all have to make the choice to let our past, our fears, our insecurities, to fall into the Lords hands, and go on a crazy adventure with Him.. If you do that, I guarantee you will never look back, that God will take you places in your life youve never imagined.

Taylor vs. Kanye at Trestles from Jarrod Tallman on Vimeo.

Now officially my favorite video..

I remember reading this on my first outreach in Bali. I haven’t been the same since that trip, and I can still see my team leader passing this out to all of us to keep. I stowed it in my bible for a long time, it really inspired me. Obviously it left a mark.. This is where I got the name mobile like the wind. Can you find it?

lots of blessings to all of you this week!

The Vision
-from the Youth of the 24/7 Prayer Movement – England.

So this guy comes up to me and says, “Whats the vision? What’s the big idea?” I open my mouth, and the words come out like this…

The vision?

The vision is JESUS- obsessively, dangerously, undeniably Jesus.

The vision is an army of young people.
You see bones? I see an army.

And they are free from materialism.

They laugh at 9-5 prisons.

They could eat caviar on Monday and crusts on Tuesday.

They wouldn’t even notice.

They know the meaning of the Matrix, the way the West was won.

They are mobile like the wind, they belong to the nations.

They need no passport. People write their addresses in pencil and wonder at their strange existence.

They are free yet slaves of the hurting and dirty and dying.

What is the vision?

The vision is holiness that hurts the eyes. It makes children laugh and adults angry. It gave up the game of minimum integrity long ago to reach for the stars. It scorns the good and strains for the best.
It is dangerously pure.

Light flickers from every secret motive, every private conversation.

It loves people away from their suicide leaps, their Satan games.

This is an army that will lay down its life for the cause.

A million times a day its soldiers choose to lose that they might one day win in the great ‘Well done’ of faithful sons and daughters.

Such heroes are as radical on Monday morning as Sunday night.

They don’t need fame for names. Instead they grin quietly upwards and hear the crowds chanting again: “COME ON!”

And this is the sound of the underground

The whisper of history in the making

Foundations shaking

Revolutionaries dreaming once again

Mystery is scheming in whispers

Conspiracy is breathing

This is the sound of the underground

And the army is discipl(in)ed

Young people who beat their bodies into submission

Every soldier would take a bullet for his comrade at arms

The tattoo on their back boasts “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain”

Sacrifice fuels the fire of victory in their upward eyes.

Winners.

Martyrs.

Who can stop them?

Can hormones hold them back?

Can failure succeed?

Can fear scare them or death kill them?

And the generation prays

Like a dying man with groans beyond talking,

With warrior cries, sulfuric tears and with great barrow loads of laughter!

Waiting. Watching: 24-7-365.

Whatever it takes they will give:

Breaking the rules.

Shaking mediocrity from its cozy little hide.

Laying down their rights and their precious little wrongs,

Laughing at labels, fasting essentials.

The advertisers cannot mold them.

Hollywood cannot hold them.

Peer-pressure is powerless to shake their resolve at late-night parties before the cockerel cries.

They are incredibly cool, dangerously attractive (on the inside).

On the outside? They hardly care.

They wear clothes like costumes to communicate and celebrate but never to hide.

Would they surrender their image and their popularity?

They would lay down their very lives – swap seats with the man on death row – guilty as hell

A throne for an electric chair.

With blood and sweat and many tears, with sleepless nights and fruitless days, they pray as if it all

Depends on God and live as if it all depends on them.

Their DNA chooses JESUS (He breathes out, they breathe in.)

Their subconscious sings. They had a blood transfusion with Jesus.

Their words make demons scream in shopping malls.

Don’t you hear them coming?

Herald the weirdos!

Summon the losers and the freaks.

Here come the frightened and forgotten with fire in their eyes!

They walk tall and trees applaud, skyscrapers bow, mountains are dwarfed by these children of another dimension.

Their prayers summon the hounds of heaven and invoke the ancient dream of Eden.

And this vision will be. It will come to pass; It will come easily; it will come soon.

How do I know?
Because this is the longing of all creation itself, the groaning of the Spirit, the very dream of God.

My tomorrow is His today.

My distant hope is His 3-D.

And my feeble, faithless prayer invokes a thunderous, resounding, bone-shaking great “Amen!” from countless angels, from heroes of the faith, from Christ Himself. And He is the original dreamer, the ultimate winner.

Guaranteed.

I am calling this one scenes from the journey because it is just a buncha moments bunched up, in the hopes that you all get a better understanding of the place that I love! Like I said, I will be going back in January for a 5 month stay. I will have different expenses, like monthly rent, scooter rental, food etc. that I will let you all know more about soon. But please pray about becoming a supporter, i couldnt do it without you all! anyways I hope you all like it.

There has been so much unexpected insanity and crazy things going on in my life since about August, that I am way due to fill you guys in on. I kind of wanted to wait until the dust settled and I had more peace about what I was doing to let everyone know what the news was lately and what’s been going on in my life. I always told my mom, when you stop getting phone calls from me its a good thing, it usually means God was doing so much at the moment that it was just too much to fill her in on. And at around March of this year, that’s what happened. I got settled in Hawaii, and God started rocking my world. From there it was a crazy list of unexpected things I did and experienced, and also unexpected challenges from the Father asking me to step it up, challenging me to really know him. And soon enough, phone calls home became less and less, and I was just living life, enjoying every moment the Lord had given me, and experiencing everything with new eyes, not just the new adventures of becoming a resident of the Hawaiian islands, but also experiencing the Lord in a new way. I think my mom understood why the calls started coming less frequently. I guess I would say the same for my blog. Sometimes this journey in serving the Lord, and the crazy, exciting, and unexpected life it has created is sometimes too much for words, and easier stored away in my heart. But I am going to try to fill you guys in as best as I can, because all of you who read and support and pray for me mean more than you know.

I left for Bali in July with a group of around 50 from Surfing The Nations. While flying over Bali as we landed, although it was dark, I could still find the old street that I lived on last year and could not shake the beautiful feeling in my heart that I was coming home. Getting off the plane and seeing the Indonesians working in the airport, I felt like I was back among my people, well, God’s people. It’s an almost crazy feeling, so crazy that I really learned that my love for the Indonesian and Balinese people was really set in my heart by the Father. After the first couple of days, we went on to outreach in small groups all over Bali and the surrounding islands. The first night into my outreach, I got this instant pain in my throat. It was honestly so instantaneous I thought some type of insect had stung me in my throat. From there on, symptoms grew and the next day I had a horrible fever and I was feeling super weak. I sat down with my group and we prayed out against the enemy, because I really felt with the way this happened so quickly that I was under spiritual attack. That night it got really bad. I started hallucinating and became extremely delirious. We were sleeping outside at that time as well, and I just remember walking around crying and shaking, with such a high fever and being so afraid, not knowing what to do. Thoughts of running downstairs to wake up my mom and dad filled my head, but I was too far away for that. The next morning, I knew I had to go to the hospital. Luckily an Australian girl staying near me needed to go see a doctor as well, so we split a ride. I was thinking I was just going to get some antibiotics, but after getting to the hospital I realized how sick I was. I was sprawled out on the bed waiting for the doctor to come see me, just shaking from the fever and feeling super delirious and just scared. The doctor came in and after what was a blur, I was being sent to an isolation ward in another hospital because I was suspected to have swine flu. It was the most insane scene, local tv cameras capturing me arriving at the hospital, and all the while knowing my parents were having a sleepless night at home not sure of my condition. I praise the Lord that He was with me in that hospital, because I was in isolation for 7 days and it actually wasn’t so bad. After making friends with my muslim Indonesian neighbor by writing notes and holding it up to the window, and hearing everyones prayers for me at home, I was able to put my time in perspective, and praise God throughout. I would actually literally be singing and dancing to Hillsong Music during the long days. As dramatic as the event was, I got better and when I was released I was greeted by a much friendlier crew of cameras asking me how I felt. “I am just ready to be back outside,” was the only thing I managed to say.

After that, I had a week long boat trip with Surfing the Nations bringing clothes and aid to small villages in Lombok and Sumbawa. The days went by quickly and next thing you know STN was heading back to Hawaii. I had made arrangements to stay an extra 2 weeks and help out with Elevate, the Bali Community Youth Center that Shoreline supports. I also ran into some old friends that I met when God has just lit the flame for Bali in my heart. It was two radical surfer girls who God had led to open a place called the Bali Surf House, a place for surfers to outreach to the surfers of the island. Already not having a place to stay, they opened up a room to me. For the first time in 7 months I slept in a room by myself, and it was such a blessing. I spent the two weeks splitting my time between the Bali Surf House and Elevate, getting involved with both.
This was the time that I became aware of the true passion I have for the people of Bali. I was spending amazing time with the Lord, and felt that every day, He was sending me on sick adventures where I would end up making a new friend, or meeting someone I knew he has purposed for me. Probably some of the best times of my life were in these two weeks. My friends at the Bali Surf House really needed more full time help, and quickly noticed my passion for the people and the language of Indonesia. I felt in my heart that my time was coming to make the move, but I returned back to STN in Hawaii just as planned. It was probably the hardest plane I’ve ever had to board, but I knew that God’s timing is perfect, and when He desired it, I would be back.

Although feeling in my heart that change was coming, I pushed through and jumped into work in Hawaii. But after a month, something crept up on me. See, when I flew home I had this mean infection on my foot from a reef cut I got from surfing. By the time I was in Japan for my layover, my foot was so swollen it was jiggling. I know, gross. When I got back I never went to the doctor, I just cleaned my cut until it healed up. Well in September, I had new infections break out on my face and chest. I started to realize that this was not normal, and that I had staph again. At that time I had been praying alot about my future and couldn’t shake the feeling that God was making some changes. Next thing you know my car engine blows, my face is swollen on it with a knot the size of a golf ball, and I had some praying to do. After meeting with friends and leaders, I really felt strongly that I needed to come home, and my parents, after hearing about my infections, agreed. When I got home I saw a doctor immediately, who told me I had staph, ringworm on my scalp, and high blood pressure from the stress of all of it. My body was telling me to slow down. I realized that after a 7 day bed rest and isolation in Indonesia, jumping right back onto a boat and throwing caution to the wind wasn’t the best idea. I was really thankful I came home.

After feeling better, I met with my dad and Pastor Sam to talk about my future. I told them of the things I experienced in Bali, and the things I was going through in my heart. I fasted and prayed and at the end of it felt that I will not be returning to Surfing The Nations.

So what’s next for me? Right now I am currently in Destin, and freezing my butt off in the cold! In January a small group from Surfing the Nations will be here to do a movie premier of Jedidiah and Surfing the Nation’s new film, “Gum for My Boat,” a story about the Bangladesh surf team. I am going to help them around the state, and I am super excited to say that we were planning a premier here in Destin. It’s an amazing video that I hope you can all come out for. At the end of January, I am finally using my return flight to Hawaii to pick up the rest of my things, and heading off to Indonesia, where I am spending 5 months volunteering with different groups there, continuing to study the Indonesian language, and having time to continue to build the strong friendships I have made. I am also really going to be praying about where and what kind of ministry God wants for me there.

When I was walking out to board my plane in Honolulu to come back to Florida, I felt God whisper something in my ear- “Your path will not be the same as the rest.” So after hearing that, I am just allowing my Father to take me on this ride. I am not sure where I will end up, but I have faith that He will do big things.

Thanks for tuning in.
shooootz!

There was a girl I want to highschool with, she was a year younger than me, who I found out was diagnosed with cancer when I came home from Hawaii. I had heard stories of Holly’s strong fight, and her mothers faith to see Holly healed. I was blown away with the stories I heard of her and her family’s strength. She even sent my mom a text, while she was in the hospital battling this deathly disease, to ask if I was doing okay after hearing I was in the hospital. That amazed and humbled me. She was fighting for life straight on, and she cared about my little flu.

I just want to say that Holly you will be missed, beautiful girl. And to Carol and the rest of the Burke family, my prayers are with you. I am happy to know that Holly is with her Father in heaven.

Rest in peace.

I led my moms bible study this week because she is out of town and it really blessed me. We were studying ruth chapter 3 this week and at first I was like, what the heck do I take from this. But then it just spoke to me exactly where I was at! I am amazed by Ruth’s faith and trust in the Lord to know He was going to take care of her!
Have you ever heard anyone say, “want to make God laugh, try to tell him what your plans are.” Its kind of cheesy, but so true in my life right now more than ever. Sometimes we are asked to go to to the “threshing floor” where god can strip the wheat from the chaff. Where he really tests our faith! I am in Florida, the last place I ever thought (or wanted) to be. But I want to be like Ruth and sit at his feet and trust in everything my father does, knowing He has my best at heart.

And that picture just cracks me up hey? Like, I cant believe I had a 103 degree fever at that point and on my way to an indonesian government isolation hospital and I could still muster up a thumbs up? Ahh it is my heavenly Father who gives me that sense of humor, I think. He is the only reason I made it out of there with my sanity!

By God’s care for us!!

sometimes I feel like I can feel his hands cupped around me, protecting me, carrying me, guiding me! He’s a good father!