Welcome to the Jungle, we take it day by day
If you want it you’re gonna bleed but it’s the price you pay
And you’re a very sexy girl who’s very hard to please
You can taste the bright lights but you won’t get them for free ~ Guns & Roses ~
I was on a road to destruction, pure desensitization, and a lustful appetite for money that could NEVER be satisfied!~(SURRENDERED SHOWGIRL)

Day by Day we have a choice. We make the decisions of which environments to place ourselves into, what roads to take, and which paths to ignore. One day I found myself in a very dangerous jungle, an obstacle course in the wilderness actually. One false move, one lie away, too much alcohol, one night of too many drugs, or any significant weight gain could flood the comparisons and become a game changer instantaneously! A jungle of competition, evil intentions, degradation, false illusions…a world of absolute deceit. Buried in the deep trenches of such a jungle causes one to become visually impaired, compromised in hearing, drained and depleted of one’s senses. Thus, caught up in a trap, a snare, so entangled that finding a way out is almost virtually impossible! Captured! Although wicked, the alluring excitement of such a jungle, it’s sights, sounds & atmosphere is sheer trickery and although there is no entry fee the cost to visit it and the cost to escape it is of devastating proportion! The Lights & Glamour, the money made hand over fist all begin to fade as truth and reality sets in. No fantasy and/or monopoly of this magnitude exists for free. Before you click on the computer, enter the doors of the commercial sex industry, or choose illusion over reality, will you consider the cost? Will you research the survival rate of this jungle? Can your marriage survive it? Can your family survive it? Are you sure you can survive and escape it? The truth is NO, you won’t. Nothing about this jungle is free. It will cost you guilt, pain, frustration, shame, depression, anxiety, suspicion, PTSD, financial hardship, and dissatisfaction. It’s a gamble you will never win. Whether choosing to be an employee or a patron, no one exits unaffected. What daily choices will you make? Will they be choices promoting captivity or freedom? It takes a life of the Lion to conquer the jungle. Conform to Him and live in freedom today!

As night falls we drive for hours on the dark city streets, with bright neon lights and signs flashing we are clearly on a mission; a mission of Love and Hope. Our minds and hearts race with the anticipation of all of the awesome God moments and divine appointments that we “know” we are about to encounter. In those moments are genuine and authentic exchanges of unexplainable worth. There are times that I’ve felt a love, appreciation, and thankfulness far greater than I have ever felt in church or in “Christian circles”. I pray that this ministry breaks down barriers and attitudes of religiosity and judgmental spirits and is a true example of “carrying our cross”…..(SURRENDERED SHOWGIRL)

What does it really mean to carry our cross? I believe it starts with the condition of the heart and the passion of which the pursuit is derived. In my case pain positioned me, passion provoked me, and the prize propelled me! True Warriors are formed and fired through a tempering process. They are Made. When the call to carry the cross is resounding, we will pick up our cross, our weapon and move fiercely. A warrior doesn’t carry her weapon in fear and is always poised for a counterattack! She is driven by an internal force ~ a supernatural mandate. Carrying the cross at times can be heavy, lonesome, and hard. Warriors are driven by challenge! A Warrior recovers All~ To a Warrior their are no “untouchables”, anyone bleeding is a man down. Carrying the cross means carrying out the work of Christ which is LOVE. When we carry a weapon, a sword of Love it equals as carrying the light into darkness which as Christians we are all called to do. When our ministry teams hit the streets, we are armed with our weapon, the Cross and Ephesians 6:11~ We have no time to waste with concerns of religiosity, judgmental spirits, or self righteousness. We are each handpicked for a purpose. What is yours? We will continue our fight for Broken Women regardless of voices in the wind and pray that our churches and Christian circles open their arms wider and wider, and expand the Love of the Cross as high as the Sky! It takes a Warrior to take down Goliath, A Fight to the Finish. Are you ready to pick up your Cross, your weapon, and 5 smooth stones? Are you ready to “Do Something” to change the World?
~Dana McCartney-Candillo~

“In January of 1994, I had just turned twenty four years old when I walked through the doors of Sheffield Family Life Center in Northeast Kansas City for the first time. I had on white jeans, a colorful shirt, big hair, make-up, long red fingernails, and my red stilettos. I hadn’t really been to church in years unless it was on Easter or Christmas service somewhere and that would’ve been rare. The praise & worship music was loud and intense. I remember looking around and there were people with their hands lifted high and tears were flowing. There was POWER in that place! A Presence-the room was filled with the Holy Spirit! I felt like I had ocean waves in my stomach, rushing and rushing; it was electric. I felt something I had never felt before”…….(SURRENDERED SHOWGIRL)

Reflecting back, that was the day that literally changed my life forever. Ordinary days, routine agendas, and patterns of daily life come and go but no time experienced can compete with the matchless worth of a Divine encounter with the One who created it All! Real Life was passing me by as I was only surrendered to myself. So many opportunities knock everyday posing the question, “Will you surrender”?
We are challenged as too what that will look like on a daily basis? Will it be money, prestige, fame? I was entrapped ~ a slave to money, appearances, applause, and a desperate search for real love. Only to find, it can’t be bought, appearances fade, and the search on our own is never satisfied. Many times we find ourselves in the pools of pain. When the pain is so great~We are motivated to create change~It is no longer negotiable~We will pursue Relentlessly! The real question is “Do you want to be made well”? To be made whole and well requires a life laid down, a full surrender. It’s not easy, it costs, and almost always is a process. It is a learning process of dying to self and being made new. A life surrendered to the Lord is assured to be extraordinary and last forever! In 1994, I let go of myself, the stage & mirrors, the money, the show was over, and surrendered it all to Him who hung on the cross and paid the greatest sacrifice. The electric powerful presence still amazes me today and confirms to me that the stage is set for a beautiful exchange in eternity, a crown of grace. “What are you willing to surrender”? “Are you ready to pick up your mat and be made well”? Today is your Day!
Get Ready! Get Ready! Get Ready!
~Dana~