YWAM Ships DTS 2023: Papua New Guinea Outreach

Hey everyone, you may or may not know me. My name is Ricki, I'm 18 years old and I'm from British Columbia, Canada. I am apart of the missionary movement called YWAM or Youth With A Mission. It is a worldwide Christian missionary movement full of young people driven by zeal and passion to know God and to make Him known. I'm gonna share with you my story, what God has done for me, and what I'm currently doing today and why I'm making this GoFundMe.

I was born to my biological parents who were severe drug addicts. My mom and dad were so lost and they couldn't take care of me. They ended up leaving me without food for days when I was a baby. I ended up getting adopted the same year in 2004 to my loving family and loving parents today who I love to death and I thank God everyday because He's the reason where I am at today. I went to a Christian private school from K - 12. As a little kid in elementary school, I always believed in Jesus and God but I didn't have a understanding of God or the Bible and what a relationship with Jesus actually meant (I was just a kid). As I grew up and entered into middle school, I started to develop depression and anxiety. My belief in God became less and less the older I got. I started to develop this false lens of who I was and where I came from. I began to develop self hate for myself because to me, if I was given up and adopted, I wasn't wanted by my parents which broke my heart.

My depression and anxiety got worse and stayed with me until I graduated last year in 2022.

In 2021, my oldest brother who lived in Manitoba and had recently gotten married, passed away on Valentines Day at the age of 33 from a suspected drug overdose which hurt me and my family so much. I was in grade 11 at this time and I didn't have a relationship with Jesus so I didn't know how to deal with my pain. I just bottled everything inside and because of that, I turned to marijuana to help me. The following months, my older sister who is 31 got diagnosed with Melanoma Skin Cancer. This really put a burden on my parents and my family.

At this point in my life, I was getting high almost everyday to deal with my depression and anxiety. It carried with me into my last year of highschool. I would wake up and instantly get high before getting ready for school.

When I got to school early in the morning, I would instantly go to the bathroom and get faded in one of the stalls. You guessed it! Any chance I got during the day, I would get high and maintain the high. During my spares, I would spend my time in the bathroom getting faded as well. My brain was so foggy and I wasn't learning anything in school. I didn't feel like living anymore I was that tired and lost. After I graduated in June I stayed the same and started doing more and more because I was so lost. In 2022 from September - November, I started surrounding myself with really bad people and I was getting involved in BC gang activity.

In December, my family had enough of me which in my opinion was really God putting an end to everything. So they signed me up to do the 6 month January Fire and Fragrance Disciple Trainingship School at YWAM, here in Hawaii, Kailua-Kona.

Before I came to YWAM this past January 2023 to do the Fire and Fragrance Disciple Trainingship School, I didn't have a relationship with Jesus even though I went to a Christian private school and graduated last year. I was struggling with drug addiction when I came to do my 6 month DTS in January. I was scared to come to YWAM because I didn't have a relationship with Jesus and I was scared because I thought people were gonna judge me. There were 2 phases of my DTS. Lecture Phase and Outreach phase. The first phase was 3 months, consisting of lecturing and discipling. During my lecture phase, I struggled with my drug addiction during those 3 months because my sister was back in the hospital and she was getting worse. The doctors didn't know how lont she had to live. I didn't realize this at the time but I was going through spiritual warfare. While God was trying to call me, Satan was also trying to call me at the same time.

I ended up not going on outreach with my team who was going to the Middle East, simply because I wasn't ready.

YWAM ended up transferring me to do a DTS with YWAM Ships in March. They ended up not sending me home (which they easily could've said no and set me home). But God said to the leaders that He wasn't done with me.

I ended up getting slayed by the Holy Spirit, getting complete freedom from my addiction and fleshly desire. I learned my true identity in Christ.

Jesus is now my best friend and I wake up with so much joy everyday because I get to praise him.

Today, I am currently doing the Disciple Trainingship School with YWAM Ships.

I am in Lecture phase right now and at the end of June, I will be going on a 5 outreach with my team to Papua New Guinea to share the Gospel and the love of Jesus with the youth and people there.

Currently I am fundraising for my outreach and I am in need of $5,000 for my outreach. By being a sponsor of mine and partnering with me, not only are you partnering and sponsoring with me, you are also partnering with Jesus. By donating, sponsoring and partnering with me and Jesus, not only does it benefit you and I, but it benefits the people and the youth of Papua New Guinea because I get to share the Gospel and the love of Jesus.

By donating, you will be a part of my journey of fulfilling the Great Commission.

I pray that my testimony impacts everyone who reads this. If you are dealing with drug addiction, depression, anxiety, self hate, suicide or anything like that. I hope you know that Jesus is there for you. God puts us through troubled waters during our lives because our enemies can't swim.

God is LOVE and He saved my life.

He is GOOD and wants a relationship with you.

HE created YOU and I in HIS image.

Every human is an imagebearer of God and I hope you know that.