ENGAGED!! + Israel and the Elav conference, August 2009

As most of you would have heard by now, I'm engaged! To an incredible man after God's heart from England named Will Moore. We met in January 2008 in New Zealand while doing a YWAM DTS (all of you that helped financially for me to go to do that DTS - it was worth it!), and we've been in a serious relationship now for almost a year and a half. We've both been in Israel for the month of August, and on August 2nd, 2009, Will proposed to me by leading me on a treasure hunt with beautiful handmade cards and directions into the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem, leading to the roof of the Upper Room - a dome that has spectacular panoramic views of the entire city of Jerusalem. He timed for me to arrive exactly at sunset, and had a trail of roses and rose petals leading up the stairs to get to the roof where he was waiting with a guitar, and began singing a song he written for me (!) as soon as I turned the corner. He had set up the area with candles and scarves and cushions and a little table with champagne and glasses, and after he finished the song he helped me up to the top of the dome and proposed to me in the midst of the spectacular sunset over Jerusalem!

It's an exciting time, and this month has been a flurry of excitement and planning and emotions. To add to all the excitement, we soon turned our attention to helping and praying for a big worship conference called Elav (which means Unto Him in Hebrew) that our house of prayer and worship in Jerusalem, Succat Hallel, does every year that is aimed towards the youth and young adults of Israel. People of all ages and from all nations are welcome, and we have many international guests that come from all over the world, but it's been exciting that over the last 3 years that we've done this conference the attendance of Jewish and Arab Israelis has steadily gone up every year, until this year we had about 600 Israeli youth and young adults (500 Jewish Israelis, and 100 Arab Israelis) and 250 internationals and volunteers. This was an incredible time of reconciliation between Jews and Arabs, the spirit of adoption pouring out, and a new revelation of the body as one new man - Jew, Arab, and Gentile together in unity praising God.

We had amazing times of worship and teachings during this conference, with guest worship leader Matt Gilman (main singer for Misty Edwards and worship leader from IHOP in Kansas City) leading two worship sessions and Israeli and Arab worship teams leading the others, and guest speakers Heidi Baker from Iris ministries in Mozambique, Africa speaking for two sessions and Joaquin Evans (head of the Healing Rooms at Bethel Church in Reading, California) and Israeli and Arab speakers for the others. Will and I had the opportunity to lead a worship time together at the conference, singing songs we've written together and leading mainly in Hebrew. We had a lot of great feedback from people about it, that many got touched during the worship and felt like God has given us an anointing to lead worship together. It was a sweet time of intimate worship, and confirmed the calling we've both felt on our lives to lead people into a deeper relationship with Yeshua (Jesus) through leading worship together as a couple.

I also was part of an Israeli team that led the main worship session for the last night, made up of worship leaders from around the country and singing new Hebrew songs that we've written and compiled into a professionally recorded, mixed and mastered CD of 12 new Hebrew songs. One of my recent songs is on this album, and can be listened to or bought from Succat Hallel's website, www.jerusalempraise.com.

To get more information about the conference and the prayer room, feel free to go to Succat Hallel's website, above, and to see pictures of the engagement (!) and of our engagement photoshoot on my facebook page, go to these links:
(Engagement Part I)
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2031305&id=1267740110&l=51ce948ba8
Part II
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2031306&id=1267740110&l=ac8ab17083
Engagement Photoshoot
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2033314&id=1267740110&l=d9213ecfac

We've been having an awesome time here getting to see YWAM friends again and hearing stories that makes want to go back out to the nations, and having guys from Bethel church in Reading staying here, seeing healings regularly on the streets of Jerusalem!
Will and I will be flying back to England via Latvia on the 11th of this month, so if you could please pray for easy times through the infamous security checks of the Tel Aviv airport, favour with the customs officials for me to come back into the UK without a religious workers visa, and for things to go smoothly with applying for the visa to stay once back in the UK.
Thanks for your continued support, much love from Jerusalem!

Starting a new chapter - Bath, United Kingdom

Greetings from the United Kingdom!

The last few months have been a frenzy of life decisions, changes, and new beginnings - and I'm happy to say that I've finally settled in the beautiful city of Bath, England. I'm going to start a year-long Worship and Creative Arts internship at an amazing Spirit-filled church called Bath City Church in the next week (website: http://www.bathcitychurch.org.uk/, youth and young adults website of the church: http://www.canyouhearthesound.com/), where I really feel that God is placing me to get foundational teaching and grow in the areas He's shown me. I feel like God's highlighted three main areas as my vision: Worship, Media, and Mission. As I was praying about what the next step would be, I felt God say that I really need to have a strong foundational base in these areas, especially in leading worship. Soon after, I visited Bath and found out about this internship and church that I'm excited about becoming a part of.

Since the end of the Discipleship Training School that I did with YWAM in Oxford, New Zealand, God led me to do several short term things such as working in Chicago, USA for two months, and then back to Jerusalem for three months to lead worship at the 24/7 worship and prayer house there, Succat Hallel. While I was there I was privileged to lead the youth and young adults watch at Succat Hallel that is now seeing rapid growth as a youth group called "אליו elav" (Unto Him) 24/7, as well as lead worship at a national youth Hebrew worship night sponsored by Succat Hallel (where about 150 youth and young adults came to worship for four hours and where the Spirit fell mightily), disciple and mentor some of the Israeli youth, and help out with childcare and cleaning for my sister and her husband, Bethany and Adam Rosenfeld, who need it as they have 5 children under 5 years old!

The Israeli Youth/Young Adults worship team

This was a busy and fulfilling time that really drew me closer to God, but due to visa problems in Israel, I had to leave the country after my three month tourist visa expired. While this seemed like a door was closing on me in the country that is most on my heart, that I've lived in for 10 years and that I feel God calling me to long term, I realised as I prayed about the next step that this is actually an opportunity to have time to really form a strong foundation in the areas that I know God is calling me to make a difference in.

1) Worship - This has always been a calling on my life, and even though I've been leading worship for 6 years, I feel there is much much more that I need to learn in this. The internship that I am going to do with Bath City Church is a practical, hands on learning experience that I am confidant is going to give me a strong foundation in every aspect of worship leading, and will take me into deeper intimacies with the only God worthy of worship.

2) Media - I feel that God has given me a strong calling to be part of a new youth-led media movement that is committed to spreading the love of God into the darkest areas of our culture, raising awareness about issues of injustice and unrighteousness and showing youth that nothing the world has to offer can compare to the abundant life our God has promised. I believe that media is a powerful tool that should be used more to reach the nations, and hope to play a part in this by using the means of photojournalism and songwriting (more about these later).

This is a media project I have done that combines photos that I have taken around the world with a song I've written about combating injustice, intended to inform and challenge people to look into these issues that too often go ignored by us in the west:

3) Mission - Since doing the Around the World DTS, God has laid the nations on my heart like never before. After traveling doing outreach through Southeast Asia, I knew that short-term missions to the nations was a part of the plan that God has for my life, and wasn't sure of how it would tie in to the calling I knew God has on my life to be involved with the Israeli youth. The long-term vision God has given me now is to take teams of Israeli youth to fulfill their ancient calling to take the love of Yeshua to the nations on short-term missions trips, before they do their mandatory army duty to give them perspective on what is truly important in life.

How all of these will tie in together I don't know yet, but please cover me in prayer as I take the first steps to fully living out the vision and calling that God has put on my life.

Some other prayer requests for the coming months:

- Moving to Bath for the internship: The internship, while mainly focusing on worship, also includes training in creative arts such as dance and drama. This could tie in to the media aspect of my calling, so please pray for wisdom and that God will make the way clear. Please pray that I will settle in quickly, that God will use me during this time for His glory and that this will be a time of growing closer to His heart. Also, while most interns get a part time job alongside the internship to get finances during this time, since I don't have a visa it looks like I won't be able to get any source of income to live off of during this time. Accomodation and food is provided, but for anything else I'll be relying solely on support. I would like to ask you to prayerfully consider supporting me, and if God leads you to make a one-time donation or a commitment to monthly financial support, please send a check to this address:

Light to the Nations

PO Box 406

New Cumberland, PA 17070

(please include a note that it is for Esther Ridings)

- Wisdom in knowing how to move forward on other projects: While in Israel, I started recording an album of songs that I have written for a mainstream audience, songs about life and issues that, while they don't overtly mention God, all have an undertone intended to challenge the listeners to learn more about their Maker. These all are songs that can be and have been performed in coffee shops or bars or the like as a form of evangelism, and a recording of the album would enable the songs to reach wider audiences. This is something that I feel very strongly God has given me to reach those who are lost or are simply too comfortable in their lives, as music has a unique ability bridge over barriers and to speak into people's hearts.
Shortly after starting recording in Israel though, I contracted laryngitis and was unable to finish recording the vocals before I had to leave because of my visa, and things came to a standstill. I am hoping to be able to find a studio to record the rest of the vocals as well as some of the piano and guitar needed for the tracks, but right now do not have finances available to do so. Please partner in prayer for this, and also, if you could, pray for an opportunity to come up to record a worship album of songs I've written as well. If you feel led to contribute for these projects, please feel free as you're led to send a check to the above address, with a note as to what it is for.

To listen to a demo of one song to get an idea of what the songs sound like, please go to www.reverbnation.com/estherridings.

- Visa situations. When I left Israel, they said that I would not be allowed back in for the remainder of this year, even though Israel is where I've spent the better part of 10 years and I feel that it is my home more than any other place. On top of this, even though the doors have opened for me to stay here in England, I do not have a visa to stay here past August, and I feel strongly God is calling me back to Israel to help with the annual international youth and young adult conference that Succat Hallel at the end of August. Please pray that I will be allowed back into Israel for the month of August with no interference or difficulties, and that I will be allowed back into England with no problems in September to continue on with the internship. Such is the life of a 3rd culture kid!

I know this update is criminally long, but there's a lot to make up for! Thank you all so much for supporting and praying for me, and hopefully this website will make it easier for me to write updates regularly. I'll write again once I know more details about the internship. Thank you all again, God bless!

Much love,
Esther Ridings