PASSION - Ashley's Journal

Ashley is a student of University of Florida, the Top party school in the States. Now you can imagine what happens when the parties would start. She is an unbeliever, living in an apartment with her boyfriend. She was in her senior year when one day she went home and caught her boyfriend sleeping with another girl; of course she was devastated. She broke up with him, kicks him out of the apartment and posts an ad at school about needing a new roommate. A girl named Christa found it and later on became Ashley’s roommate. While Ashley was on her depressed mode, she wrote about how screwed up her life is and every once in a while mentioned details about her new roommate Christa, how she acts crazy and is a freako believing in God and all that Christian stuff; Ashley says:“what a fruitcake”!(now that’s supposed to sound mean. and provoking)



Ashley gets more and more intrigued at how her roommate lived her life, there was a day Ashley was wallowing over her situation crying whole day and eating ice cream, and her roommate took time to ask her if there was any problem. The roommate sat beside her and started eating ice cream too. Ashley told her roommate what happened and she said she never heard the response she was expecting to come out; no condemnation but genuine care and sympathy. The roommate asked if she could pray for her but of course, Ashley refused. Ashley’s Mom and brother are Christians. She said she would have expected her brother to be good to her, but it’s puzzling her that Christa, the fruitcake, acts that way with her.



Ashley becomes all the more bothered how Christa had been living her life which was opposite of how she lives. It was obvious that the roommate didn’t drink, and when asked if she slept with her boyfriend whom she’s been with for three years she said she’s still a virgin. That was crazy stuff for Ashley who could sleep with a guy she’s only been with for three weeks. She asked why Christa was living her life that way, and the answer was a desire to please God in all that she does.



Christa shared about how much Jesus loved her. Ashley kept writing on her journal, and just can’t accept that God could forgive her. God is just not for her type. Ashley was on her moment of unbelief. But it was funny how Christa would share about her experience at a Passion conference and even had a DVD of Louie Giglio sharing a sermon. Ashley writes about how crazy that was.



To Ashley, God just can’t forgive a crap like her but God was working in Ashley’s life, and Christa is doing her work in being a good witness of God’s love and grace. As they lived together and the days passed by, Christa had shared about the good news of God’s grace that forgives, even to the worst of all people, even Ashley. She saw that love in “fruitcake” and wanted that for herself. One day, Ashley finally believed and gave in and she said in her journal, “that was it”, the day she became a Christian; the unconditional love of Jesus flooded her heart with peace. She experienced this love and grace that God has for everyone.



Ashley attended one of the Bible studies where Christa attends. The youth didn’t act in a crazy way but were interested at her and were genuine. So they sang and Ashley didn’t know the song but she really liked it and felt like raising her hands too, but she didn’t. When she got home, she googled the lyrics of the song they sung and it just communicated to her so well.

Everyone needs compassion

A love that’s never failing

Let mercy fall on me

Everyone needs forgiveness

A kindness of a Savior

The hope of nations

SaviorHe can move the mountains

My God is Mighty to save

He is Mighty to save

ForeverAuthor of salvation

He rose and conquered the grave

Jesus conquered the grave

So take me as

You find me

All my fears and failures

Fill my life again

I give my life to follow

Everything I believe in

Now I surrender

Shine your light and let the whole world see

We’re singing for the glory of the risen King…Jesus

Ashley and Christa talked about how God’s children worship Him and that’s one of the ways.Ashley made her family know about her being a Christian and her mom cried and her brother was so happy to see her. Their prayers were answered. Ashley emailed Louie about her experience, and Louie shared this story to many people, even writing it to the passion blog and it’s being heard in their podcast. Ashley was thrilled that many people can know of her experience, that of God’s unconditional love forgiving her and changing her.

This post is originally taken from http://ajokersthought.blogspot.com/2008/08/ashleys-journal-summary-of-coz-taken.html

Not long after, Louie received annother email which reads :

Dear Mr. Giglio

It is with a heavy heart that I send you this email. My daughter is Ashley, she wrote you an email that went on your blog and podcast. Well, today May 3rd at 4pm, we buried Ashley.She was killed in a car accident late on Sunday night. She lost control of her car and hit a light pole.She was the only car involved and had a serious internal bleeding.She died in the arms of my husband at the hospital from unstopable internal bleeding. But I have hope of seeing my daughter again. I have this hope because after years of raying for her, and watching her live a lifestyle in the college that is known as the typical college experience. The last semester of her college career I saw a woman, not a college girl that I have never been more proudt to call my daughter.I I can point the thanks to you and Chris Tomlin, David Crowder, Matt Redman and everyone else involved in your Passion Conferences. Ashley fell in love with our Saviourover the last 5 months of her life. She was so excited about graduation this week and moving to California to work her first real job. She had a life ahead of her.I miss my beautiful princess more than anything else in this world.

But I just felt like you should know that she listened to as many of your talks as she could get her hands on and read your book, "I am not but I know I am" and she was so excited about God and her new found faith.Words alone cannot thank you enough. I may never meet you here on Earth, but I know that someday I wil be able to meet you and give you a hug in heaven, but only after Ash does. Thank you so much for praying for my girl and your support for her as she was starting her new life. Also thanks for being a man of God who has a passion and love for college students.

Your vision to share the gospel and getting college students to do the same made all the difference at the funeral today. Instead of being sad and scared for her, we are able to singpraise and worship songs today. Though there will be tears and I am so very heartbroken and crying as I type this, it is only because I will not be able to hold her for so many years. And I will miss her for the rest of my life. I know I have said thank you a lot in this email, but because of you and Christa (Ashley's roomate) and people at the Bible Study that she was going to, she was happier than I have seen her in in a very long time. In her email she originally sent to you, it said that she had life for the first time in her 22 years and please know she meant every word of that. She lived the last few months serving and loving and learning more about Christ. She will now spend eternity in heaven with Him, so one more time, thanks. I know this was long and I debated for the last 4 days as to whether or not to write to you. I know you are a very busy man, but I also figured you would want to know.

Ashley's mom,

Anna

Read this website : http://268generation.com/blog/2007/05/
This post reveals Ashley's email to Pastor Louie Giglio after she attended Passion 2007 and also another email by Ashley's mom to Pastor. They even created Facebook for Ashley.

Passion 2008 certainly did speak to me. Ashley's journal is a testimony to those in the world. Everyone is worthy of this love that God offers. You just need to ask for it. I am a testimony to God's love too. My life has certainly changed since I accepted him into my life. There are a lot of things that are unexplainable. His GRACE for us is sometimes uexplainable. What you need is to believe in Him first and open your heart, let His love pour into your life.

My passion now is nothing but to make Jesus famous in my generation.

P.S.- A pastor once said, if God is so mighty, then why people still have to die? Sometimes God blesses other people in many ways. And one of them is through death. Ashley's death and my cousin's death has been a testimony to a lot of people. And I am sure a lot of people have received grace through it and accepted Jesus into their lives. Their deaths have blessed so many other people. And I believe, as they look down at us from heaven, they are smiling, their great purposes in their life has been achieved.