I'm Alive

A visit into the mind of Jordan Snowzell.

What’s next…

A lot of people have asked me about my return, so I thought I would write this blog to bring clarity to what’s going on and what I’m doing next…

A very good friend of mine sent me this picture recently and said that they saw this and thought of me. And it is no surprise that I have gained the reputation of having a bohemian lifestyle and that I have been known to go here there and everywhere. I have had the absolute pleasure and privilege of being involved in every Freedom Church plant in some way whether it was being on the ground for weeks or months and I am beyond grateful that I got to be a part of those individual legacies that will continue way past my own existence. For the last 2+ years I have gone from city to city planting and building Church in different locations and it has been without a doubt the best 2 years I have ever had! I have met the most amazing people and have made priceless and irreplaceable friendships with so many. I have grown, changed and learnt an incomprehensible amount thanks to those I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and doing life with over these last 2 years.

But now it is time to lay my roots down in one city, in one campus because even though I have absolutely loved the last 2 years, realistically I cannot build my life on being a Church planting gypsy going from one place to the next. So, I was faced with a hard decision, choosing one place to live, one place to really build my life in. I have never had the privilege of being in such a beautiful dilemma before. To be a part of a Church that has so much opportunity where every option offers an abundance of fruit. But true maturity isn’t choosing between good and bad (that’s common sense) true maturity is choosing between good and great. So, what is the best thing for me right now? Do I live in Siem Reap, Cardiff, Hereford or even somewhere else? It is a hard decision when the best people you know to be alive are split across the world!

Whenever I prayed about it the prospect of moving back to Hereford kept arising, I hadn’t even considered going back to Hereford before now but I couldn’t shake the option of returning to my home city. I listened to my prophecy from 2010 and it said that I had a long leash where I would be able to go out to different cities and different cultures for periods of 6 months (funny that each city I’ve been in has been for 6 months) it said that I would go away for long periods but I would always return because I am leashed to this house. At first I thought the “house” was Freedom as a movement but after hearing it again I realize that the “house” is the hub, the mother ship, Hereford. It talks a lot in my prophecy about being very influential in Freedom movement, not just in a campus and the only way I can do that is by being based in the hub, being based in the heart of things, being at the centre of where all our resources, materials, ideas and vision is birthed and sent out from to impact nations far and wide.

So weird to think that the last time I was based in Hereford it was the only campus. So, in July I am moving back to Hereford. It was a really hard decision to make as I will so so miss Siem Reap and everyone I’ve met here and I flippin’ love Cardiff city and all the incredible friends I have there but I am so content with my decision, I know it is the right thing to do for now.

Although I have to experience that weird juxtaposed feeling all over again of being ridiculously excited and really sad at the same time. Excited to go but sad to leave.

So grateful that Freedom Church is ONE church many locations and that it’s not a full stop or a final goodbye as I still get to be in the same Church and movement as such heroes. Also, very grateful that Cardiff is just up the road, I’ll be ensuring I still see you wonderful people on a regular basis!!

Thank you to everyone who has shaped me, sharpened me and added to my character in an undeniable way, I am now returning to the hub as a different person, I am now returning to the mother ship more dangerous than ever before thanks to you. But for now I am continuing to press into Freedom Siem Reap with all that I’ve got, to see this Church established for a life time, to finish all that I was called to do here before I leave.

Birthday Brain Surgery

^ Photos

Me 3 weeks ago in intensive care after 10 hours of surgery

Me 3 weeks later after having major brain surgery

3 weeks ago today it was my 22nd Birthday. My Birthdays have never been the most conventional and have always been slightly bizarre but I have to say, my 22nd was the most odd/eccentric Birthday I have had without a doubt. I wasn’t woken by friends or family holding cards and presents but actually woke up in a hospital bed in Birmingham waiting to be wheeled into the operation theatre. I know people say I’m unique but who on earth has brain surgery on their Birthday!? - that’s a whole other level of unique! I sat in the empty clinical room reading my Bible…

Psalm 91

‘If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your house. Fore he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways…

“Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honour him.’

Once I finally worked out how to tie up my surgical gown the consultants came in not wishing me a happy birthday but reiterating the dangers and risks of the operation. They reminded me that this was such a rare case and explained that it was pioneering surgery that I was at the forefront of. As they listed the dangers of this and that from being potentially paralysed, to maybe having brain damage and to be reminded that death might occur, no fear swamped me, no doubt crippled my faith, peace surrounded my mind with a sense of purpose wrapped around my heart. The Doctors then asked me to sign the form smothered in dark prospects, there wasn’t much room to put it down so they lay it on my open Bible. I smiled. Signing that form over the Word of God, signing it over the numerous Promises that He has for me made it as easy as signing a Birthday card. They then marked my nose where they were going to cut it and then left me with black lines dotted on my face. I then waited to be called in. I’m not saying I wasn’t a little bit scared, I’m not saying that I wasn’t at all nervous. It says so many times in the Bible to be “Bold and Courageous”, to be courageous isn’t to not fear anything, it’s to rise up without being intimidated by that current fear.

Finally I was wheeled through the hospital on my bed (feeling like an extra in ‘Casualty’) and was taken to the anaesthetic room. They didn’t do the whole count down from 10 thing, they just asked me if I had any plans for the future? I told them that I was going to Cambodia in the new year, they asked me why so I said I was going to set up Church there and make a difference then after they replied with a surprised expression asking ‘really?’ the last thing I remember saying was “Yeah, I’m going to change the world.”

Then I fell into unconsciousness and handed my body over to strangers who were doing something they hadn’t done before.

I had 10 whole hours of major brain surgery… Then I woke up. I made it. Success was written all over the operation. I wasn’t paralysed, my head wasn’t cut open meaning keyhole surgery was successful, I knew who I was and most importantly I was alive.

I was still pretty drugged up, I woke up to see my parents who were finally allowed to come see me. They gave me a Birthday balloon which gave me the cue to sing Happy Birthday to myself, my singing seeping through an oxygen mask for my parents to see that I was still me and that I was okay.

Now, fast forward past my time in hospital which had plenty of stories within itself such as having a doctor nearly inject my bum thinking I was a different patient, more than one friend fainting on their visit, feeling like Bane from Batman, finding my leg had been shaved!?, getting used to the fact I can’t taste anything for now and talking to the nurses about God.

3 weeks later hear I am, writing this blog (which means that my brain is working - great times!). The absolute success of my operation was a miracle alone but the speed and smoothness of my recovery has also been phenomenal as well. The professionals were shocked at how well I’m doing. I went to the wedding of two great friends a few days ago and no one on my table knew that I had had brain surgery just a few weeks ago. Originally they were going to operate through my head meaning I would have severe scarring on my forehead forever more but after consistent prayer they decided that they were able to operate through the nose. The scarring under and on my nose is already healed to the point you can hardly see it which is an incredible blessing. Since being out of the hospital I have been bombarded by gratitude for this life that I get to live, literally ‘everything is a gift’, life is so good and I charge you to never forget it, to even have breath in your lungs is a gift freely given to us and yet we struggle to let a thank you leave our lips.

I wanted to say a MASSIVE - words don’t say enough - THANK YOU to all the prayer and support I have had during this crazy journey! I have been genuinely blown away by the love, faith, generosity and encouragement from literally thousands across the globe. I am amazed by the unbreakable unity within the darkness of a storm. Since Feb 2012 where I first found out I might have to undergo major brain surgery I have not cried with sadness or disappoint the only time I have been brought to tears is when I have found out that people who don’t even know me have been praying ferociously on my behalf, when people like Perry Noble and his leadership team who lead thousands look at me as an individual and have prayed fervently and relentlessly for me along with the rest of Newspring. And then having my arms lifted up by my friends and family has been so powerful. There have literally been people in every continent praying for me. That blows me away. I have never ever felt so loved, honoured and appreciated in all my life. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you. I am so grateful for my Church family across the world.

Thank you to every prayer warrior who fought in the heavenlies for my future and for my health. Thank you to those from England, from Wales, from Belgium, from the U.S.A., from Uganda, from Ukraine, from Fiji, from Singapore, from Cambodia, from Australia and more. I know that the success of my operation and the speed of my recovery is the result of answered prayers from you guys and I don’t know where I would’ve been without it.

Because of my faith, because of my relationship with Jesus, I have been able to stand upon something so strong that I have not been shaken during this unpredictable flood. I have had a peace that doesn’t make sense in such circumstances and a hope that cannot be beaten. The strength that people have seen is not my own but is the strength of my saviour, the strength of my God. My heart is broken for the numerous people that have to go through such storms without knowing the One who loves them beyond all comprehension; my heart is broken for all the people who go through such darkness without wearing their helmet of salvation.

You can never assume you know what people are going through; they need to know their Creator much more than you realize.

'Reaching forward to what lies ahead'

Currently as I write this blog I am sat on a hospital bed ready to have major brain surgery tomorrow (surreal times) but this blog is not about that. ‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil.’ the point is this is a valley that I’m not staying in, I’m waking through it - bye bye. So this blog is actually about what’s on the other side of the valley. This is about the glory that is waiting to be revealed on the other side of the storm. In Philippians 3 v 13-14 it says “I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” NASB it talks clearly about not focusing on the darkness that Is currently in sight but focus on the ordained greatness that is waiting to be seized! I am currently in hospital, tomorrow is my surgery, but I strive to what’s a head and soon I am going to plant Church in Cambodia!! Now that excites me and that is what I am reaching forward to! Even though I haven’t had surgery yet I have already booked my tickets for January and am pressing toward the goal, delving into God’s call on my life. I am looking over through this valley and I can already see something extraordinary awaiting me on the other side, please join with me in great expectation for what lies ahead in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Asia. If you want to partner with me in this and donate a certain amount or sponsor me monthly then PLEASE get in contact, it will make all the difference. For those of you who don’t know what to get me for my birthday today - just put some money towards my plane ticket!!

Thank you for all the prayers, love, honour and support that I have had from literally all over the world absolutely blown away by the unity of the Bride. When the Church does what God designed it to do it is the most powerful, beautiful and unstoppable force in the world - one to be reckoned with.

Seriously, thank you so much.

So grateful that I can go into surgery knowing who I am in Christ - I am a victor.

Jordan Snowzell

Please watch - https://vimeo.com/51331011

Josh In Uganda: 90 Day Challenge

joshinuganda:

I have been blown away to the point that when writing this I could barley hold back tears and that’s the truth.

I don’t really like asking for money as I know how much people already give toward this movement and to their other things but I knew when writing my previous blog that in giving…

(Source: joshuacooke)

Off to Cambodia…

So it’s official I am moving to Cambodia in January to be a part of the Church planting team to set up Freedom Siem Reap!

Oh my goodness I am so excited!!

It is going to be tough, unpredictable and challenging but it’s going to be an adventure that will never be forgotten where we will see God move in unimaginable ways.

Cambodia has been on my heart and my mind ever since Jan Blondeel (from Belgium, Cambodia Campus Pastor to be) told me about it and since then I have always known that I have to go there one day, I didn’t know why, how, what or when but I couldn’t deny that God was putting Cambodia and that nation on my heart. After I made the decision to go out and be part of Freedom Siem Reap I listened back to some prophetic words that have been spoken over me in the past which really confirmed the decision that I had made…

“I see you travelling East, and there are going to be some Countries that are closed up that have been resistant to the Gospel and God is going to hook you up with a team that’s going to be able to go in and you’re going to be doing some covert operations; special ops says the Lord. You’re going to be able to establish some base camps for Jesus.”

2008

“You’re going to go out for long periods, I see you going and living in other Countries for maybe 6 months, I see you doing sort of like training in other cultures and I see you exploring and writing, exploring and writing. There’s this real time of stretching that God’s going to put you out there.”

2010

I remember first hearing my prophecy and thinking how will that happen, how will that come about, how does that relate to Freedom Church (as our only campus was Hereford then) and now before I know it I have a date in my diary to leave the Country and move to Cambodia even though I’ve never even stepped foot in Asia before!! People have this preconceived idea that Church is boring, restricting and sucks the life and adventure out of any living thing but actually being in Freedom Church has been the most releasing thing ever and I am able to live out the dreams God has given me, I’m not only encouraged to have a Christ centred adventure but am being sent to have one! I am living a life that would not be possible if I was not part of Church. I am not going on some charity trip to just help less fortunate people I am going to another nation where not many people at all understand the concept of grace and true forgiveness and where not many people have heard the Gospel in its truest form. I am going as an ambassador of Christ offering hope, purpose and eternal salvation through Him. We are not forcing the Gospel upon anyone, we are just unleashing it. We are simply going in with stories of how Christ has changed our lives and are letting them know that He can do the same for them, that they can have an intimate relationship with the One who created them.

Punching above our weight - “In order to impact our society with the Gospel we will act in audacious faith, set impossible goals, take bold, confident steps and watch our God move.”

I am so grateful that the dream to ‘Change the world’ isn’t just a dream anymore.

http://www.freedomchurch.co.uk/news/2012-09-02-freedom-goes-to-the-far-east

The Heart Condition

“Do you remember that annoying phrase that your mum would always say to you “It’s what’s on the inside that counts”?

I always thought it was just a nice little phrase that made people feel good.

But I was wrong. Today, I was faced with the reality of this statement.

When there is a problem with the heart, your outward appearance can’t hide it for long.

The deception of your exterior cannot avoid fatality.

I didn’t even know I had a heart condition until…

Until one day I fell. Darkness; complete and utter darkness.

They had to do major heart surgery, apparently my heart was contaminated by hurt and crippled by bitterness. They had to remove things from my heart, remove things that I didn’t even know were there.

Lying in my humble state it was impossible to deny that my heart was rotting and that it needed fixing.

The first thing that they extracted was unforgiveness. When I was just a little boy I had to watch my parents split up. I harbored bitterness, I never really forgave them for deciding not to love each other anymore. I never forgave them for splitting my life into two.

When I was a teenager pride began to creep in as I was consistently faced with high marks and drip fed grade A’s. Countless successes turned my confidence into arrogance. Unknowingly pride became my foundation.

Then there was shame. This was buried deep within for no one to see, silently decaying. I underestimated the power of it. Endless images of so called satisfaction poisoned my innocence and robbed me of true pleasure. Shame kept it silent, shame kept it padlocked ensuring that no one would ever know.

They removed Insecurities that had built up over the years due to careless words spoken and experiences had. Haunting insecurities that whisper imperfection, whispers so strong they won’t go until enough bottle tops hit the bar. But the next morning those insecurities would come flooding back and their whispers turn to screams.

Jealousy had made its home in my heart growing more and more every time I saw my girlfriend in the presence of another man. I would bite like a threatened animal for fear that I would lose her to someone else. Jealousy pumped through my heart clouding my every judgment.

But they cleaned me up; they sorted me out.

Stitched with hope and woken with a second chance.

I didn’t know that my heart was so vulnerable; so fragile, I didn’t know that my heart needed to be protected more than anything else.

It’s from the heart that the mouth speaks. The condition of your heart defines the direction of your life. 

Now, when I walk around I can’t help but ask myself ‘how many of these people need heart surgery and don’t even know it?’”

Honour

I used to be known by everyone but now my name means nothing to anyone. People have deleted me from society and labelled me as irrelevant and unnecessary. I used to be a loved and respected Prince, and now I walk the streets rejected by the sons and daughters of those who loved me. Fools mock me and order me to be silent; they think that their words are more important than mine. It has become fashionable to spit on me and everything that I stand for. People are certain that I don’t belong anymore, that I’ve had my time. But they are wrong; my best days are yet to come. If people knew the power that is inside of me, if people understood that I have the potential to change this world for the better then I wouldn’t be told to stay silent. I wouldn’t be forced out of my rightful place. People have chosen to reject me and because of it they live in a very different world.

Josh In Uganda: The Church I See...

joshinuganda:

Inspired by this word from Pastor Brian Houston…

“The church that I see is a church of influence. A church so large in size that the city and nation cannot ignore it.A church growing so quickly that buildings struggle to contain the increase. I see a church whose heartfelt praise and worship…

(Source: joshuacooke)

Precious |ˈpreSHəs|adjectiveOf great value; not to be wasted or treated carelessly• greatly loved or treasured by someone: look after my daughter—she’s very precious to me.

Precious |ˈpreSHəs|adjectiveOf great value; not to be wasted or treated carelessly• greatly loved or treasured by someone: look after my daughter—she’s very precious to me.

The Fountain of Youth (If you haven’t seen pirates of the Caribbean 4 and intend to then I warn you now that I might give some spoilers!) This very long film is all about how everyone is trying to drink from the fountain of youth and have eternal life!! The pirates in the film fight, lie, steal, cheat, risk their lives and accomplish and complete numerous challenges to get to the Fountain of Youth! Getting to the fountain of youth involved fighting zombie pirates, wrestling with violent mermaids, bottling a mermaid’s tear, retrieving chalices from dead people, jumping off cliffs, sailing on a ship that shoots fire, being a prisoner to evil Blackbeard, sacrificing someone and fighting an entire Spanish army. So… there are quite a few little things that they have to do to get to the fountain of youth!! A lot of obstacles to face, enemies to fight and seemingly impossible challenges to overcome yet they are so desperate to get to the fountain of life they do it. I wish the Christian in the film told all the desperate pirates that what they were looking for was a lot more accessible than they thought! They wanted to drink from the fountain of youth to have eternal life when eternal life available for whoever wants it. Okay so this is a crazy film where it’s hard to relate to Jack Sparrow as we don’t usually hang out with mermaids and fight zombie pirates but if there was a fountain of youth today in our world, people would do anything for it. If there was a map to finding eternal life then people would kill for it. To get eternal life you don’t need to prove yourself, you don’t need to do a certain ritual, you don’t have to jump through rings of fire, you don’t have to achieve this and perform that. It’s simple, all you do is confess that Jesus is your saviour and believe that He died and rose again for you. Eternal life is available for all and to make it accessible Jesus went through all the hurt and pain so that you never have to. Grab a chalice and have and drink up because eternal life is yours to have.

The Fountain of Youth

(If you haven’t seen pirates of the Caribbean 4 and intend to then I warn you now that I might give some spoilers!)

This very long film is all about how everyone is trying to drink from the fountain of youth and have eternal life!! The pirates in the film fight, lie, steal, cheat, risk their lives and accomplish and complete numerous challenges to get to the Fountain of Youth!
Getting to the fountain of youth involved fighting zombie pirates, wrestling with violent mermaids, bottling a mermaid’s tear, retrieving chalices from dead people, jumping off cliffs, sailing on a ship that shoots fire, being a prisoner to evil Blackbeard, sacrificing someone and fighting an entire Spanish army.
So… there are quite a few little things that they have to do to get to the fountain of youth!! A lot of obstacles to face, enemies to fight and seemingly impossible challenges to overcome yet they are so desperate to get to the fountain of life they do it.
I wish the Christian in the film told all the desperate pirates that what they were looking for was a lot more accessible than they thought! They wanted to drink from the fountain of youth to have eternal life when eternal life available for whoever wants it.
Okay so this is a crazy film where it’s hard to relate to Jack Sparrow as we don’t usually hang out with mermaids and fight zombie pirates but if there was a fountain of youth today in our world, people would do anything for it. If there was a map to finding eternal life then people would kill for it. To get eternal life you don’t need to prove yourself, you don’t need to do a certain ritual, you don’t have to jump through rings of fire, you don’t have to achieve this and perform that. It’s simple, all you do is confess that Jesus is your saviour and believe that He died and rose again for you.
Eternal life is available for all and to make it accessible Jesus went through all the hurt and pain so that you never have to.
Grab a chalice and have and drink up because eternal life is yours to have.