Powerfully Processing Disappointment.

This blog is a bit different than what I usually write about :)
I am actually going to write about how I deal with disappointment.

I live in two worlds at once.
I live knowing that Jesus paid the price absolutely for all to be healed. I know it is absolutely His will and heart to heal all through us His church. While that is  always my expectation that the one in front of me would receive full healing, this isn't always my experience.
It is so crazy to live in this culture where left and right we are hearing amazing testimonies about what God is doing all over the earth. I think in one week I probably hear more good news than I ever did in the  fifteen years before I knew Jesus!
 I celebrate those who are healed and receive any measure of healing in their bodies; I am also at the same time very aware that everyone that gets prayed for isn't healed.

You might wonder what do you do with that? How do you process that?


I have had situations in my life such as my mom dying at 42 from cancer, friend's children dying, and just this week one of my friends dying from cancer. All of these situations all obviously were hard for me and you have also probably had things like this in your life as well, These types of situations lead me to questions and a DEEP hunger to look more like Jesus. Allow me to explain the process.

How do we live on the edge of breakthrough? how do we press in for more? How do we handle when we pray for people and many many many get well and yet some die? These are questions I have had to ask myself and the Lord lately.

1. Let's say we expect something to happen and it doesn't the way we think it should, whether it be healing finances ect.  When someone isn't healed His nature is never on trial. He still purchaced healing and salvation for all. We first and foremost have a choice to make.. To believe that God is good, no matter what. That it is ALWAYS His heart to redeem His people from all works of the devil, death, sickness, sin, poverty, whatever. When we choose to believe He is who He says He is it puts us in a position to be victorious when we are processing our pain.

2. Be honest with God- process how you feel. Be humble and real with God He can handle it. However as you are real with Him, be honoring towards Him, keeping in mind that He is a good Father! Allow Him to come into your heart and love on any places of pain, discouragement, disappointment, or fear. Choose to not be angry at God, because that leads to disappointment and when we are disappointed with God that leads to a skewed perception of Him and who He truly is and that left untreated grows into unbelief. "Hope deferred makes the heart sick." And unbelief leads us into powerlessness... and powerlessness just breeds disappointment.

3. When we choose to believe He is good.To choose to not be disappointed in God.  We next have another choice to make to not give up. To get in the secret place and cry out for more. Our realization that we don't currently measure up to the life of Jesus was meant to lead us to hunger for more and ultimately to looking like Jesus in every area of our lives and bringing heaven to earth in every sphere of society. Our realization that we must have more should lead us to dreaming, imagining, and stepping out, it was never meant to cause us to feel inadequate or powerless!!


Hunger always leads us to relationship and relationship with Him will always lead us to more love, power, and confidence in Him. This very thing should actually lead us to more of His power flowing through our lives and into the world around us!

Keep Dreaming!

The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of  His Christ; and  He will reign forever and ever.”

Update letter: Travel and support.

Update:

Friends and family here is an update about what I have been up to, testimonies, and travel.

I have been back in Redding for three weeks now:

*my entire tuition for my internship was paid off! Yay God!!!
*I got rehired as a server at Red Lobster (I am working around 16 hours per week)
*I moved into my new beautiful BRIGHT green four bedroom house with my awesome 5 roomies.

* I have had a lot of free time to get in the presence, read, journal soak, and jog

*I have been enjoying the Bible like never before 

*I have been meeting with the healing room leadership team and learning so much in our "healing room family."

*I have been learning so much and seeing God do so many wonderful things!

*I have been developing the healing rooms activation with other interns and my mentor Les Coombs, this is an outreach in the healing rooms where 100 students in the school of ministry join our healing rooms volunteers (650) and partner with us in seeing God heal, love, and restore. I have been helping bring in some new ideas and changes. We kick off the Activation Oct. 22nd.

One of many things God has done this week:

*I taught a class this week at the healing rooms for the first time called How to Steward Your Healing. The class is an hour long class, 40 minutes of teaching and 20 minutes of joy and impartation. During the class a man testified of being healed of 27 years of intense continual pain and neuropathy. due to a chemical burn accident he had at work 27 years ago! He said he always felt like a 90 year old man and for the first time felt normal. He received joy and his wife said, "My husband is a new man." He encountered the Lord during the class and after said to me, "Before I came into the class I wasn't sure if my new healing would disappear, It was incredible to see this man not only healed but dramatically experience God's love and leave with a new mindset!

*In the Healing Rooms this week one person was healed of Esophageal cancer and another woman ovarian! 

Travel:

This year I have been invited on ministry trips where I travel with leaders in the healing rooms and do healing conferences. I am sure on each trip my role will vary but my roles look like, activating churches, empowering students, bringing joy, preaching, teaching, doing evangelism, and seeing God do the impossible where ever we go. 

This next month I am going to Vancouver Canada with Les Coombs and interns, also I am going to Nebraska with one of my personal heroes Joaquin Evans. I am also invited in November to go to England with Joaquin.

Please prayerful consider sewing into these trips, all gifts are tax deductible 100% of your gift will go towards my travel and will  definitely change those cities and nations. 
To Give Online:

https://www.ibssm.org/a/donate/secure-form?student_id=208333&target=travel

To Give by mail:

The Lewis House

4130 Lewis Ave. 

Toledo, Ohio 43612

make sure you put my name in the memo of your check.

To keep in touch/testimonies:

my blog: http://extravagantbliss.blogspot.com

naomigracewest@yahoo.com

Thank you!! 

I want to thank each and every one of you for being my friends and partnering in what God is doing in my life! I want to thank you for believing in me, your hugs, prayers, and all of your support. I am daily reminded of your love and that none of this would be possible without you. God is a God of the impossible and a God who fulfills dreams. Thank you! 

My prayer for you is that you would be blessed beyond what you could ever ask, think, or imagine!
May Your hunger lead you into places in God's presence and realities in His Word that you never knew existed!

With love from California,

Naomi Grace West

For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield. Psalm 5: 12(NKJV)

Favorite Song...

This song is like the song of my life..
I find myself singing the chorus 24/7..
Especially when I get a free second at work..
"I want to know You
Let Your Spirit overwhelm me
Let Your Presence overtake my heart" <3

update: life is a bit different

Somethings God has said to me lately, that I want to share:

"I am just as big in the small things as I am in the big things."

"There is nothing I could reveal about myself that you don't have access to."

"Everyone longs to know the Bible is true."

I have been back to Redding for less than two weeks yet it feels like there is so much to talk about.

*my entire tuition for my internship was paid off! Yay God!
*I got rehired as a server at Red Lobster (I wasn't eligible for a transfer)
*I moved into my new beautiful BRIGHT green four bedroom house
* I have had a lot of free time to get in the presence, read, soak, and jog


Being back has been so refreshing catching up with friends and family who live here who just got back from their homelands all over the globe, but mainly my time back has been a very intimate chill time with me and the Lord. The Bible has come alive to me like never before in my life. I am learning so much and just enjoying being in God's presence.

Did you know the word rest is mentioned in the Bible 296 times?
Psalm 116:7
Return, O my soul, to your rest;for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.


I really have been enjoying resting. Honestly, I always felt like the Biblical command to rest never really applied to me. I never would of said that though, because I was unaware I felt that way. I think somewhere inside I felt like resting was for those who were very task oriented to take a break, or those who were more on the lazy side or enjoyed things slow pace. That resting was for them, but it's for us all!

But I have intensely caught the urge to rest, and to be.
It's so beautiful, peaceful, and incredible.
As I am in this season and place, I have lost my need to be around large crowds of people and hangout a ton. It's very weird and strange because if you know me well you would probably know that is one of my favorite things, but right now that very thing feels uncomfortable and unnecessary. I am sure at some point that will change but right now it is quite different.

I still am enjoying being around people it is just very small scale and simple right now and that is what I need right now. It is such a contrast from my massively busy schedule in second year. But this feels right for this season right now. I am enjoying being in His presence like never before. I would always consider me definitely a person of the presence but it has consumed my life and really is my only priority right now. (obviously my internship and work are priorities and I def know the presence will and has consumed those places too!)

So here is my simple update: rest

Your hunger leads you to places in God's presence and realities in His word that you never knew existed!

Crooked nose straightens out!

I thought this was a really fun thing God did for a man..

On Saturday at the healing rooms me and my friend Richard were having fun just blessing people with joy, laughing, walking around and talking to people and not trying very hard. We were drawn to this young guy from Hawaii who was in his late 20s. We asked if anyone had prayed for him. He said no and he wasn't sure if he wanted prayer. Which was funny because he had a form filled out for prayer and everything. We assured him it would be easy and fun. HA.

He was like sure. He said his nose was punched two years ago by one of his friends and had never healed properly. The top of his nose on his left side was missing cartilage and on the right had a large bump. Also the ball of his nose was twisted to the side and noticeably off center. We prayed and laughed and he started to breathe better out of his nose as well as he received new cartilage in the left side of his nose. When this happened we all started to thank the Lord that he could breathe better....

THEN...

 I watched the ball of his nose moved from the left side to the center of his nose. IT WAS CRAZY!! Oh man God is so good!! He and his family were very touched by God and his goodness. This guy said his nose was at least 30-50% better, he said when he looked in the mirror his nose looked different!

God is better than we think, He is really good at healing the sick.. which is great because HE IS HEALER! God's goodness blows me away!