In Which A Lot Has Happened

Wow, it's been a month since my last post. Yet again, whoops.

I sat down about three times during the past month to write a post, but each time I just couldn't write what I wanted to say. I think when so much is happening every day it gets to be a bit much on the brain.

Anyway, since my last post, as the title suggests, we've done a lot!

We went to the Drakensberg mountains, which are all plateaus, actually. We went to a nature reserve where we did a trail ride, and I came away with this gem of advice: Don't go on a trail ride in Africa. Sketchy. I did manage to not only get kicked by a horse, but fall off. Oh, also, don't say you have riding experience, or they will give you the Horse That Hates You.

Anyway, lets move on. We also stayed overnight in the township where we were working, which I was a bit nervous about. We hadn't had any issues security wise, so I wasn't worried about that, but I had seen a mouse running around in the building where we were supposed to sleep. On the concrete floor. Oy. Lets say it wasn't the best night's sleep I've ever had.

We were treated to a traditional Zulu meal, cooked by some of the Burlington ladies! It was tasty, except for the chicken feet, which yes, I did try. Never ever again. (To be honest, it tasted okay, but the texture and the look of it...*shudder*)

Those were some of the more interesting things that happened, so I'll move on now!

We're now in Cape Town; we flew in yesterday. (Side note: I have never flown so much as I have in the past few months. Crazy!)

Driving to the base, I kept thinking I was in New Mexico or something. There was very little green, and everything was flat. Then suddenly, mountain! Very weird landscape here. The base is interesting as well. It used to be a hotel, and the building is very old. Our room is... special. It was apparently supposed to be renovated this week, but we're here instead. I'll leave that there.

Oh, and our pillows are the weirdest things I've ever seen. Or felt. They're almost a foot thick, and hard as a rock. Not very conducive to sleep, let me tell you! Jill and I used them as body armor and crashed into each other for a while, which was the most use I think I'll get out of it. I made my own pillow out of a spare duvet, and chucked the other on top of the wardrobe.

We get the privilege of sitting in on the School of Biblical Studies this week! The lectures this morning were amazing. The SBS is a 9 month course where each book of the Bible is studied intensively. We are learning about Acts this week. I actually just finished the homework, which was reading John 14-16 and Acts 1-8. Of course, the SBS students have quite a lot more to do, but I can at least do the reading.

We don't know much about what we'll be doing for outreach here yet, but I'll try to keep you updated! Internet is free here, so it will be easier for me to keep you updated.

Love you all!

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In Which I Go To Zulu Church, Also, Some Facts


Yep, that’s what we did today. It was quite interesting! It lasted about 2 ½ hours, so longer than we’re used to at home! We were warned that it would be longer than what we were used to. Apparently, church can sometimes go as long as 5 hours. The first hour was worship, and it was fun! Much more upbeat than what I’m used to. One of the songs was apparently an old hymn, but you wouldn’t be able to guess that from the tempo. Everyone was dancing and clapping. It was so much fun to see people unhindered by the fear of what everyone else thinks. We were thanked for being there several times; I hope this had more to do with us being missionaries than with our skin tone. From what I can tell, I think it was.

The church was held in the community center in Burlington. The building we used was pretty small, probably the same size or smaller than my parent’s living room. We sat on plastic lawn chairs, there was no air conditioning or fans (the temperature was 91°F), the music was super loud, and the service was entirely in Zulu. Nevertheless, it was still so good to be there.

On to the second part of this post. I realized that I didn’t really give you much of an environment in my last post; I just kinda stated our schedule. So, here’s the scoop.

South Africa is currently in spring. Today I think was the hottest we’ve had so far. It rains a lot, so it’s a bit tropical here. I had missed thunderstorms! The “base” is actually the base leader’s house, and it is amazing! It’s pretty interesting because it’s built on a hill, so it doesn’t really feel like it’s 2 stories, although it is. The house is so beautiful. It is a typical South African wealthier house in that it has quite an advanced security system. There are gates and bars on all the windows, a gated driveway, and panic buttons that trigger an armed response. I have never seen so many security trucks driving the roads as I have here. They’ve never had to use any of the security here, and this house is well hidden behind trees. If you didn’t know it was here, then you would totally miss it. (Also, I think the bars on the windows have a secondary purpose of keeping the monkeys out of the house.)

Michelle, the lady of the house, rescues cats from Burlington. There’s a cat compound at the front of the property, and there are about 100 cats total running around; quite a few prefer the house. Good thing none of us are allergic.

Did you know that South Africa has the highest number of HIV/AIDS infections in the world? And that the number is still on the rise? It is truly an epidemic here. For so long, the government insisted that there was no problem, and even now there is still life threatening misinformation from the government. The current president has even said that taking a shower after sex will prevent infection. The social stigma still prevents people from getting tested—many would just rather not know. Definitely be praying for South Africa in this area!

I know this post was a bit disjointed, sorry about that. I’ll try to give you more info as we go along!

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In Which Africa Is Amazing

Here I am, in South Africa! Even after a week it still doesn't seem entirely real. Thank you thank you thank you to all those who helped me get here!

Packing. Crazy!

Ruth and I had a different train to London, but at least we were together! We left at 1:55 from York, took the tube from Kings Cross to London Bridge, and then the train to Gatwick! Our flight wasn't until 9:30, so we had some time to chill.

Camera wars at the airport!

The first flight was from London to Dubai, UAE and was 6 hours long. I had a bit of culture shock just being in the airport! There were so many women in full burka. New experience for me! Although I did have a little taste of home-- Steph and I got Cinnabon for breakfast! 

The second flight went from Dubai to Durban and was 9 hours long. So long! On both flights, none of us were sitting together, so it was a bit boring. I did like that the seat next to me was empty, though! I got to lay down a bit, even if I didn't really sleep except about 20 minutes. 

Steph and Coley, ready to get off that plane!

All told, we were traveling for about 29 hours before we got to the base. Whew! Thankfully, we got Saturday to rest. On Sunday, we went to our host's church, and then we stayed to watch the South Africa vs Wales rugby match! It was such a close game, but SA won by 1 point. Wales played better though.

Waiting to go to church!

Watching the rugby match

Monday, we got in to ministry proper. We had worship in Zulu with the rest of the base, and then we went out to do some street evangelism. Which was terrifying for me. I have never been the most outgoing of people, and I usually wait for someone to approach me, rather than the other way around. It didn't help that there was a language barrier-- in Durban, the majority of the population is Zulu. The people often understand a bit of English, but they don't usually speak it. One of my goals for this outreach is to break the fear I have of speaking one-on-one with people I don't know. 

Tuesday we went in to the township where a lot of the base works. Burlington has a population of about 7,000 people. We aren't allowed to take cameras in, because they might be stolen or we might get mugged for them, so I don't have pictures to show you, sorry! As we walk down the street, we hear a lot of "mulungu", which means "white person" in Zulu. It isn't derogatory, just a statement of fact! Or, we hear a sing-song chorus of small children saying "How are you! How are you!", which is probably some of the only English they know. We split in to groups of three with some of the others who work in Burlington and went on home visits to some members of the community. The lady I visited is very keen to teach us some Zulu! On Tuesday evening, we went to a rehab center called Careline, where we ate dinner (which was super tasty!), and generally just hung out with those who are staying there. They all have amazing stories!

Wednesday we spent the whole day in Burlington. We had Zulu worship, computer class for some ladies in the community, and a nail painting session after! They loved it. We went on more home visits, and Aunt Aleta, who I visited, was really nice. I'll get more in to Zulu culture another time, as this is already a really long post! In the afternoon, we had a reading club with some kids in the community! They are super adorable! That was the highlight of my day, I think. 

Yesterday we went to the church, which doubles as the meeting place for YWAM Durban, and started with intercession for Zimbabwe, then we had a HIV/AIDS info session, and then we came home to work on the base! Mom, you'll be glad to know those weeding skills are still in my memory. In the evening, we went to Careline again and that was great! We will be going to Careline every Tuesday and Thursday evening. 
Typical. Waiting for the HIV/AIDS session to begin

Waiting for the HIV/AIDS session to begin


Today, we get the morning to do, well, this! This evening, we'll be going to a youth group in Kloof, the suburb of Durban where we're staying. Tomorrow we have off, and I think the plan is to go to the beach! If we do, then I'll have been to three oceans!

Sunday, we're supposed to go to church in Burlington, and we'll see how that goes. We haven't been told that we're 'the main event' per say, but here, you usually aren't! Also, African church apparently just goes on for a lot of the day. We've been told to bring snacks, because no one knows how long the service will actually last! I'll let you know how that goes.

Well, I think this post is long enough! More to come!



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In Which I Am A Street Angel

I'm not sure if I've ever blogged about Street Angels, but I don't think so. So, here it is!

Last Friday was my last night out as a Street Angel. Here I am in my ridiculously oversized hi-vis jacket!




For those who don't know, Street Angels York is a church run, volunteer program where a group of 3 or 4 will go out on a Friday or Saturday night and try to help those who are vulnerable. Namely, those who are drunk. The drinking culture here is different from anything I've seen at home, but as I haven't really seen anything at home, I guess that's to be expected. The legal drinking age here is 18, but I've seen ages 18-50+ out and drunk on Fridays and Saturdays. Binge drinking is almost cultural here. Drinking at all is quite cultural; I've been to several church events where alcohol is served and a church carnival where you could win a bottle of wine or a 6 pack.

Anyway, the Street Angels go out and try to make sure everyone gets home safely. We carry a backpack filled with water bottles and flip flops-- you'd be surprised (or maybe not) at how many girls wear super high heels, but can't wear them all night so wind up walking barefoot, which is not safe when there's a high possibility of broken glass.

This last night out was fairly uneventful, but that's what we pray for. We did have a few vomiters (yuck), but nothing too serious. We did have a girl come up to us to thank us! Apparently, her sister had been out drinking the week before and passed out in a shop doorway and the Street Angels found her and made sure she was able to get home. When people recognize you're out doing something to help, it's pretty awesome.

Street Angels has been a good experience for me. I know I've grown a lot!

As a side note, this song is awesome and you should listen to it. :)



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In Which My Soul Dies 1,000 Deaths

Yes, really.


I hate asking people for money. Loathe it. Especially when people have already given me money. The very idea makes me cringe and look for a rock to hide under. Agony to my soul.


Life was so much easier when I had a job. Sure, I lived paycheck to paycheck, but at least I knew that there would be money in my bank account on Thursday each week. I look at how stressed I am right now and I say to God, "Is this how it's always going to be?" I feel called to missions, and a lifestyle of faith, but man, it's hard. Maybe it's my healthy dose of American pride, but I don't want anyone to know that I need money, that I can't do it on my own. The hardest is my parents. I feel like if I still need money after they've given so much, that I'm letting them down, that I've failed.


The current balance in my bank account as of this morning is $204.61. That may be shocking to some (especially my parents), but I promise that it was more shocking to me when I saw how low it was last week. I about had a heart attack. Where did all that money go?


I did wind up going to Ireland. Do I regret it? Yes, actually. It was way more expensive than I thought it would be. I'm still learning the whole business of traveling, and I haven't quite figured it out. Is it over and done? Again, yes. The hardest thing for me is having grace for myself. I seriously have a guilt complex right now over spending money on a vacation, even if it was only 3 days.


I guess the bright side to that is that God is big enough to cover my mistakes.


I found out last night that I still owe £72.08 to my school fees. That's $117. 
I still have to buy train tickets to and from the airport. I'm guessing that's close to £40-50. That's another $73. 
We still have to book an internal flight in South Africa to take us from Durban to Cape Town. We don't know the cost of that yet. 


Basically, I'm stretched really thin. I'd absolutely love to have another $500 before we go, so that I have a little bit of wiggle room. There's only one person on our team who actually has all the money she needs. As a team, we plan to fast and pray for financial breakthrough, starting with dinner tonight. If you can fast with us, that'd be amazing! If not, could you please pray during your dinner time for us?


Above all, I know that my God is a great big God, and he holds me in his hand. 





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In Which I Am Another Year Older

Whoo, today is my birthday!

But that's not really what this blog is about.

So, as you may recall, my last blog was written right as I was about to leave for Romania. How did that go, you ask?

AMAZING.

For those of you who don't know, this was actually my first mission trip, really. It started with a little "camp" to get to know your team, because we took 7 other girls and 1 guy with us to Romania, age range 15-21. We left bright and early at 3 am on a Wednesday to get to the airport, and barely made it! My flight was different from the others because my grandparents graciously allowed me to use their airmiles to pay for my flight, so I got in to Romania a couple hours later than the others, sans luggage. My luggage came on Friday, but it was an interesting experience, and one I hope to not repeat!

This trip was full of lots of firsts for me, like the lost luggage. Most sound bad, but I'm glad they happened either because now I can say I've done it, or it turned out to be a great experience!

What I Did In Romania:

-No hot water (cold showers, yay!)
-Used an outhouse (yuck)
-Water balloon fight with gypsies
-Shared testimonies using a translator
-Crammed 10 people into a 7 person car
-As a result of the above, got a flat tire and had to walk for about an hour to our destination
-Made Tollhouse cookies (ish) for the Romanian base
-Rode interesting trains (and had to walk across active train tracks to get to our platform)


-Had an "illegal" dance party on the street (Christians in Romania apparently don't dance. Whoops.)
-Did a lot of dramas
-Did the "Funky Chicken" song. A lot. Every day. (The kids loved it!!)
-Ate white bread at every meal
-Had hotdogs, tomatoes, and cucumber as breakfast
-Peeled 302395678 potatoes (potatoes for almost every meal. yum!)
-Went to a boy's orphanage and played with the kids
-Painted faces
-Got lost in translation
-Ate lots of sunflower seeds
-Listened to dogs barking all night long
-Got tons of bug bites
-Had a Love Feast with the gypsies
-Played lots of running games
-Led morning devotions for the whole base

Basically, Romania was awesome. See for yourself!




PS:

We will be heading to South Africa on Sept 8 and won't be back until Nov 6. Can't wait! But, for transport for that trip, my budget is super super tight. Could you please consider praying and asking God if you have money to donate to this trip for me? 

Love you all, hope you had a great summer!




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In Which I Am Off To Visit Dracula

Okay, so, not really. But I will be in Transylvania within the week!

This morning, we're all finishing up any last minute toiletry packing, and getting ready to head off to outreach! We'll spend today through Tuesday at the King's Lodge in Nuneaton, getting to know our team, and then on Wednesday we fly out to Romania!

I'm pretty excited, also terrified. This is actually my first mission trip, so it'll be awesome! However, I'm also pseudo-leading some teenagers, so I'm worried about that. New country, different language and customs... I'm still not fully sure what to expect!

Prayer requests for Romania:
-Unity for our team
-Maintain health
-Safety, both traveling and at the base
-Effectiveness in our work

In other news, my finances are becoming a bit strained. Did you know it's quite expensive to travel? Gas is so much more expensive here, and we are all expected to chip in to the cost when we have to go somewhere. We went to Wales last week to support the DTS there (they graduated! Yay!) and that trip cost almost $30! When you have random things that you have to go to that are situated around the country, it really adds up.

Basically, all that to say, please pray for a release of finances for me! I am definitely okay for Romania, but we still have South Africa to go, and I did very much want to go to Ireland while I'm here, because who knows when I'll get another chance? Also, on this very morning of leaving for outreach, my iPod broke. This is Very Sad News. While it's not essential to my life, it is quite a blessing to be able to listen to music or read a book while waiting at the airport.

Also on my prayer list is my health. I have been quite tired recently, and I have had off and on stomach issues just in the past couple of weeks, which is not ideal right before outreach. Please pray for protection, especially during my travels!

I'm quite worried that I'll be overwhelmed in Romania, as we are not expecting to get much, if any, personal time. This will be hard for me, as I generally seem to need a day or so of "me time" each week. While I'm sure that I will survive, I'd really like to go through this trip not stressed and refreshed each day. I definitely don't want to get grumpy! If you could pray that I would be able to keep Christ as my source and wellspring of life, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Anyway, that's all for now. Hopefully I'll come back with some great stories!

Love you!

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In Which I Share My New Favorite Hymn

I could listen to this on repeat forever.



You should too.

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In Which I Think A Lot About Appearance

So, I've been thinking a lot about my appearance. You may have guessed this from the title.

To be honest, I don't think I've ever had the confidence to look how I've always wanted to. This may come as a surprise to my family, but I've always wanted the funky hair and even some of the piercings. (There is a way to not look awful but still have facial piercings, I believe). Mostly, I have an incredible fear of man, especially of my family. I love you guys to death, but we as a family are not always the least judgmental of those who do have piercings or funny hair. It took my sister getting her ear pierced before I finally got mine done, even though I secretly wanted one for forever.

I've also been thinking about my appearance in regards to the future. At this current time, I do believe God is calling me to missions. Specifically, He has rekindled in me love for Japan. (I know my family is shocked by this development. ....Not.) I have been praying and thinking about this for a while now, wondering who exactly God wants me to reach when I go. I had a bit of a revelation about this a couple days ago, and I think it's these guys.



For those who don't know, these are just two of the pictures you see if you google "harajuku style". Harajuku is an area in Tokyo known for its street fashion. Youths come to hang out dressed in crazy styles; a lot of them hope to get their picture taken by tourists. When I look at these pictures, I just think, "Man, I want to hang out with them, get to know them, love them!" Japan is a country that struggles with depression and suicide. Actually, if you have time, you should go to www.ywamtokyo.com and watch the video they have on the main page. It's heartbreaking how lost Japan is. 

To tie this post together, perhaps the reason I've always wanted that blue hair is God planned to use a blue-haired Rachael to be able to reach these guys. Somehow, I don't think I'd get very far as I am now. I think it'd be harder to build initial trust, especially because I'd be a foreigner. 

Anyway, it's time for lectures, but I'd thought I'd share some thoughts!

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In Which My Dad Gets His Report Card

I'm alive, I promise!

Anyway, this past week was a lecture week, with Steve Fail (New Zealander by birth, did his DTS in Montana, and now on staff in Hamburg, Germany) teaching on "The Father Heart of God".

What an awesome week!

There is a distinct reason why I loved this reason so much. That reason is my earthly father. This week was really hard for some girls, who don't have dads that really model God as a father to them. I am so amazed and thankful that I was born into my family.

I don't think I ever really thought about how God loves us as a father. Yeah, I'd heard the term before, but I didn't really get the full implication of it until I really did start comparing it to my dad. My dad, who stays up until I get home to make sure I'm safe, my dad who saves me when I run out of gas at 10pm on the other side of town. My dad who has moved that solid wood table up and down flights of stairs so many times. My dad who tells me he loves me and gives me a big hug.

And God is so much more than that. To me, that's just mind blowing.

We had a bit this week where Steve asked us to bring something that reminded us of our dads and share our experiences growing up. Obviously, this was hard for some, but I'm happy to report my dad passed with flying colors. I brought two things, a blanket and a picture of him I keep in my wallet. (He probably doesn't even know I have this picture!) Nicole used a blanket for her object, so I really just used the picture. It's a picture of my dad in his Army uniform from back when he was in the reserve, so I might not have even been born yet. Actually, I'm pretty sure I wasn't. Basically, my dad is my protector. I never have once doubted that he would fight for me, that he thought I was worthy of protecting and loving.

Once again, my mind is blown that God loves me even more so. I can't even imagine that.

To sum up, my dad passes with an A+.

Thank you God, and thank you Dad, for loving me so incredibly much.

Love you both.

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In Which I Love The Good News

(I know, this isn't about Manchester. I'll get to that sometime, I promise.)

So I was thinking in my God time this morning about the Good News. I always used to wonder "what is that, anyway?" It's a very "churchy" term, you know. One that everyone says, but I'm pretty sure not everyone knows the definition. I mean, how many different answers would you get if you asked around your church "What, exactly, is the Good News?" I figure you'd get a bunch of "Well, Jesus died for me!". While that's certainly true, the Bible says the Good News is for everyone and when people heard it they rejoiced. Now, if I was an unbeliever and didn't know anything about Christianity, someone coming up to me saying some dude with a funny name died for me millenia ago wouldn't really have me rejoicing, it'd have me weirded out.

Acts 10:36 says "This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel-- that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ". That's better than just saying Jesus died-- that there is peace. But what would this statement look like for today's people? I mean, wandering around saying it's for the people of Israel wouldn't get you very far.

What if the Good News was simply this: You don't have to live this way anymore.

What? You mean I don't have to worry about my future, or finances, or worry about relationships and if I'm ever going to get married? You mean I don't have to live with the guilt of that mistake?
Sign me up, please!

Jesus came to people where they were, using language they understood. He didn't go and start using terms only the priesthood knew, he knew he would've gotten nowhere with that. So why don't we do the same?

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In Which I Forget To Blog, And Am Off To Manchester

Wow, so much time has gone by!

I am a terrible blogger, I know! I will try to get better at blogging more frequently, but alas, it won't happen at least for another week. Why, you ask? Welll........

We're off to Manchester for a week! What will we be doing, you ask? I have no clue. All I know is that all the DTS' from the country will be gathering to learn about and do evangelism. What that looks like I'm not sure, and therefore am really very nervous about the whole endeavor. Also, we get to bunk on the floor of a local church, and showers are community style! Yay?

Anyway, I'm sure there's lots of adventures coming up. I'll let you know how it turns out! Unfortunately, this blog is going to be short because we have to leave soon to catch our train.

Love you!

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In Which I Live In The Present With Eyes On The Future

So, I've been here almost a month and a half, and I have this to say:

I am ruined for the ordinary.

I know that after this DTS is over, I can not just go home, get a job, and carry on with "normal" life. There is so much more to be done, so many people that need help, healing, and just to be loved with His love. Yes, there is a place for this in "normal" life, and yes, the workspace is a definite mission field. However, I know that I have been called away from this, and in to a life of community and service with other believers. Even now, God is rekindling the love in me for a specific place, that was actually placed in my heart at a young age.

I do know that there are obstacles to be overcome, like the debt I currently have from my student loans. But I don't believe at this point that it is God's plan for me to take a break from missions work to join the workforce. I believe that God is generous, and will provide for me the approximately $11,000 I need to be free entirely from debt and he will open the doors for me.

I ask that those of you who read this blog will keep me in your prayers, both for confirmation of the calling and for financial support.

Praise and thanks be to the glorious God who loves to give his children good gifts!

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In Which I Stop Procrastinating

Hokay, so.

Here's the blog!

So, first a quick sum-up of the local outreach week before I get to the awesome Wales week. We got involved with a local outreach called the Besom. Basically, the Besom connects the church in York with those who are in need in York, whether the needs be time, money, or things. We painted the bedrooms of the children for a family who actually live just four doors down from us! It was a great opportunity to get involved with the local community. We now have the kids-- Kieren, Kallum, and Millie-- come around to play! Through them, we have also been introduced to some of the other neighborhood kids. How awesome is God for providing the chance to serve our neighbors!

Alrighty, on to Wales!

So, before we left, we were talking about the woman who was going to be the speaker for the week, Mariette Louw. We were sitting in the living room and Rob said "She brushes her teeth with demons!" While hilarious, this was also intimidating. So, we loaded up the and set off with me, at least, not knowing what to expect!

We arrived at the YWAM base in Wrexham, Wales, and were immediately welcomed by the wonderful staff and DTS students! For that week, it really felt like we were one big DTS, not two separate. The Wales students, Shelby, Leah, Chad, and Mike, had all been on the DTS since September, but they weren't exclusive at all, which was such a blessing.

Man, I learned so much that I'm having a hard time focusing and knowing where to start! Our topic for the week was Spiritual Warfare. Because the York DTS hadn't had the week on the Holy Spirit yet, Mariette took time out to have a special "Intro to the Holy Spirit" session with us, which was really awesome. One of my favorite things about the week was definitely her reference to the Holy Spirit within us as our "Spirit Man"!

How refreshing to know that our spirits can never be separated from God's. How silly of me to sometimes try to separate it! 1 Corinthians 6:17 says "But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him." We have a living, active connection with God. All the time.

Woah.

We confronted a lot of lies this week. Individually, I confronted a few poisonous ones. We learned to battle them with proclamation: basically, finding a passage of scripture that states truth, and declaring it aloud. Interestingly, when you do this (at least I found this to be true), actually hearing the truth makes it more real. I feel like this is a tool, maybe a chisel or something, and I'm chipping away at the unrefined block that is my relationship with God. I'm working to remove the impurities and anything that weighs me down, and eventually I will become a beautiful sculpture, worked to His design.

Thank you, Jesus.

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In Which There Is Much To Say

Holy goodness, it's been a while since I posted!

Therefore, there is much to say. However, I still don't have it all worked out in my head yet, so lets just agree now to put up with me and bear with probably many blog posts over the course of the next few days. I WILL make time for it!

This post is just going to have a few important things, so be looking for a longer, more thought out post later.

The first couple days in Wales were actually pretty hard for me, because I found out a young man I graduated with (and actually dated Sophomore year of high school) died unexpectedly. Please be praying for his family.

Also, Mariette Louw is ridiculously awesome. More on that later!

That's it for now, as I am currently waiting for our landlord to come fix our boiler. We have no heat or hot water currently, and it is really quite cold in here! Currently all of us are camped out in the lounge, where there is a small electric heater. (I definitely slept in sweater tights, thick pj pants, thick fuzzy socks, underarmor shirt, jacket, and mittens. Good grief.)

Landlord please come soon!

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Appropriate for Valentine's Week

So, this was our first official week of lectures, with the wonderful David Painting. He's the coolest.

Anyway, the theme for this week was "What is God Like?", which appropriately was on Valentines week because essentially, God is love. Cool, neh?

I had to re-think a lot of preconceived notions I had about God and His character this week. Really, a lot of what I thought didn't have any Biblical basis whatsoever, but I think it was just something that I had been taught and never questioned. Which is, needless to say, silly.

So, it's hard to pick what all to tell you about what I learned! There's so much! About the intricate love story present in the first 3 verses of Genesis, the amazing way God redeems, and really, most importantly, that God is love. Like He is the embodiment of the word.

For example, take 1 Corinthians 13 (the famous love passage) and, since God is love, replace the word "love" with "God".  So:

"[God] is patient and kind. [God] is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. [He] does not demand [His] own way. [He] is not irritable, and [He] keeps no record of being wronged. [He] does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. [God] never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."

What an awesome God we serve! I think one of the most absolutely amazing things about this is the part that says "[He] does not demand [His] own way". Wow. The implications of that are incredible. How does He ever get anything done?? People are so fickle. But our God is a redeeming God (thank goodness!).

In other news, I finally took my camera into town and took some pictures of the Minster!




Magnifico.

Anyway, until next time! 

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Woahly Cow (Part the Second)


Okay, to pick up where I left off…

After worship, the York people gathered to share testimonies. All I can say is that without God, we are broken. After lunch, we went out to have a prayer walk through Derby. Basically, we split into pairs, and walked the street and prayed for the people we passed, but quietly. I found this hard to do, because I was distracted by being in such a new place. Not being able to focus has been quite a struggle for me so far. I have to continually ask God to bring me in to the place of worship. Being still and quiet is not my strong suit AT ALL.

The original plans for the evening wound up being cancelled, but we had a great time just being with each other. We had a few competitive rounds of spoons, complete with fighting over spoons and a couple times spoons flung across the room in the mad dash to grab one!

After we cleaned our space in the morning, we were off to the Peak District (don’t ask me where this is in relation to Derby or York, because I have no idea) to hike! I think my ears were about to fall off by the end of that hike. It was SO WINDY. I was almost blown over a few times. We found a standing stone circle called “The Nine Ladies”, and had lunch by the ruins of an old tower. It was pretty awesome. Except that I was so cold, I had my white hat and scarf, and when I pulled up my black hood, I looked rather like a nun. Ah well. After the hike, we grabbed some “chips” in a local pub (where my Coke came with a lemon?) and headed home!



Saturday and Sunday were a bit of a break, and we went into York for the first time! The city center is really impressive, and I will eventually have pictures of it.

Then orientation week began! Let me tell you, so much has been going on it’s hard for me to tell the days apart anymore! I’m looking forward to the weekend and resting.

Monday

We headed to the building that YWAM York is in the process of buying to have worship with Lisa again, which was just as awesome as before. Then Carl Tinnion, the founder of YWAM York and now the national director for YWAM England came to talk about his journey to set up a base in York. His story is very inspiring, but also kind of scary to see how much God wanted Carl to really rely on Him for everything! Jennifer L then talked about where she felt God was taking YWAM York. After lunch, we talked about our DTS expectations with Angharad. Monday was the easiest day!

Tuesday

We got up super early to head in to town and help out at the Carecent, which is basically just like the drop-in in Derby. It’s amazing to see what God can do in places like these. Rob and I had a really good chat with one patron named Tom. God is after Tom!

After that, we went to the building where we talked about evangelism (what is it, how do you feel about it, etc) with Jennifer L. It was interesting to note that our initial reactions to the word “evangelism” weren’t positive at all! When you first say the word, at least for me visions of televangelists and people trying to fill a “saved quota” come to my mind. I hope to change that impression, not just for me but for others we reach out to. After lunch, Angharad talked about intimacy with God and challenged us to go home, and sit still and quiet, without music, without pens and paper, and just meet with God.

This is hard.

We often talk about being still and quiet, but I know that I at least never practice it. And I can see now that being able to do this does take practice, like playing a musical instrument. You can’t just pick up and instrument and play beautifully, it takes work! I want to challenge myself to really and truly practice being still and quiet and just meeting and listening to God.

Wednesday

We headed out to the building, where Jennifer L talked about hearing God. Biblically, even from Genesis God speaks to us. You can’t expect to have an intimate relationship with another person (God included) without communication. We also touched on how, since God made us all unique, it stands to reason that He might speak to us differently, though the best tool for hearing Him is still His Word.

After this, Jennifer P came to talk about intercession and prayer. (She is actually preparing to run a school on the topic!) While we covered the different types of prayer using the original Greek words to differentiate, we talked most about enteuxis—intercession. What really caught my attention about the word is the progression of its meaning. I’ll list out the steps of its “evolution”, so to speak:

It first meant literally, to meet a person.
Then, to meet and converse.
Next to have intimate fellowship with a person,
Then to petition a king,
Then to act or plead on behalf of someone else (often to a king for a condemned man, or to mediate)

What I found so intriguing was that I felt that this might be the progression for me of being intimate with God as Angharad had described the previous day. I feel at first I must learn to really meet with God before I can have intimate fellowship, must first learn not only to meet but to converse before I can plead on behalf of the nations.

After lunch Nan had prepared a prophecy workshop for us. Now, the definition of prophecy for us was not a “telling the future”, but rather hearing from God for another person. If you look at the prophets in the Old Testament, this is what they did. They took a message from God to the person it was meant for.

Nan had cut out pictures from a magazine the day before, and had spread them out on the coffee table in the living room. Our task was to find a picture that represented something that God wanted to say to someone else in the room. I think this was my favorite thing we’ve done so far! It was really amazing to see what God had to say. Everything that I was given was cohesive; they all related to or flowed out of one another!

Later, Stephanie, Jillian, and I were talking about the exercise and it was really interesting to note that we all had thought various pictures were meant for the person that they actually went to!


Thursday

We had an intercession meeting with Jennifer P, which was neat because we got to practice some of what we had been learning about the day before! After, we talked about our family backgrounds and what community means to us. Nan had a small talk about our small groups, and then we did something AWESOME.

We played on the playground! Oh man, I have not laughed so hard at something so innocently fun in a long time. We need some awesome playground equipment like this at home, man! My favorite was the “seesaw” they had—it was in an arc, and you could spin it around, and after you got going it was rather what I imagined a moonwalk to be like. So much fun!

After lunch Lisa came to talk to us about worship, which was great. I guess the key thing I took from that is that worship is a response to being loved, and is therefore involuntary. Because of that, we can always rejoice because God never changes! Amen!

Well, I am now caught up, as today is Friday! Thanks for bearing with me (if you did) through all that! Hopefully, it’ll calm down a little bit when we have our first speaker next week. I’ll keep you posted!

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Woahly Cow.


Oh man. WARNING: This might be a long blog post with lots of stuff happening and not total coherency in the writing. Duly noted?

Alrighty then.

First things first, I should mention the YWAM York staff so I don’t have to say who everyone is later. Everyone is all so wonderful! Jennifer L is our base leader, Angharad is our DTS leader, Rob and Nan (who are engaged) are staffing our DTS full time, Nicole is DTS staff part time, and Jennifer P and Lisa are general YWAM staff. Also, Stephanie, Ruth, and Jillian are my fellow DTS “trainees”.

So, my flights were pretty nice, as far as flights go. On the plane from Dallas to Chicago, I was between two very nice people, and we spent the almost 2 hour flight chatting. The young man to my left (whose name, I am sad to say, I never thought to ask) actually went to college at Le Tourneau University in Longview, and had gone back to speak to some students about the ministry he was currently involved in. He lived in the Chicago area, and helped me navigate O’Hare when we landed, which was quite thoughtful. Great way to start a journey!

I didn’t have any conversations on the long flight to Manchester, but that was okay because I had the entire row to myself and was able to get comfy. I wasn’t able to fall asleep, but I think I got in some good rest anyway.

That first evening is all a bit of a blur, really. I was so tired! By the time I went to bed, I had been awake for 33 hours straight. I started to unpack my bags, and Angharad came in to say “Finish unpacking, but when you’re done pack for a 3 day trip to Derby; we’re leaving at 8:30 in the morning”. To be honest, I wasn’t overly impressed by the news I’d have to be up so early, but I am totally glad we went to Derby.

Derby (pronounced darbee) is about 1 ½ hours south of York, so, roadtrip! I think this was when I actually stopped stressing about driving on the wrong side of the road. Anyway, YWAM Derby is based out of an old manor house that was built in the 1800s. It was a very cool building, full of nooks and crannies and way too many staircases. I got turned around a couple times! Paul and Karen are the base leaders, and Somalee and Rosie are the other full time staff we met. After we got there, we jumped right in! Ruth, Angharad, Rob, Paul, and I all went to a “drop-in”, where homeless, jobless, or generally down-and-out people (mostly men) can come to get a nice lunch and some fellowship. I was surprised at how easy I found engaging with the group of men I sat with. They were all so open and friendly; I think they truly enjoyed having someone new to talk to! Especially Ruth and me, because we have American accents.

That afternoon and evening we heard from Jennifer P on the history of YWAM in general, and from Paul on YWAM Derby specifically. God is doing some awesome things in Derby!

The next day we had worship led by Lisa (who is amazing, by the way). At the end of worship, everyone gathered around the trainees and prayed for us, which was such a blessing. Rosie bent down and prayed over our feet, referencing the verse “how blessed are the feet of those who bring the Good News!” When she got to my feet, I was super startled when she yelled! “Oh!” She said, “You are going somewhere!”

This weirded me out. No lie.

Anyway, after doing a workshop on prophecy (more on that later), this is actually quite encouraging. I am excited to think that God is going to use me, although I have this sneaky suspicion that I am going to have to be stretched, possibly quite uncomfortably, before I am ready for His purpose.

~~Sorry, but I’m going to have to pause! I am so worn out. We have been really quite busy, but I wanted to update everyone at least a little bit! I’ll get caught up to the present at least on the weekend. Love you all!

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Clickclickclick...


I’ve had ideas for three different blog posts accumulate in my head over the past few days, but I haven’t had time to share them. So I hope this post isn’t too disjointed!

Right now, I feel like my DTS journey can be summed up like a rollercoaster. Currently, I am at the point where I’ve already been loaded into the car, and we’re climbing and clicking our way up the hill for the first big drop and I’m thinking, “Why, oh why did I get on this ride? What was I thinking?!”. As I sit there, I can rationalize that the ride will be fun and worth it once we get over that big hill, but for now I’m in panic mode. I also know that it can’t be all uphill – the Devil (and gravity) wouldn’t allow that. So there will be ups and downs, twists and turns, but at the end of the ride, I hope I come off saying “That was totally worth it!”. And maybe there’s a possibility of “Can I go again?”.

I went to visit my awesome older brother today. This was the only time I’ll get to see him before I go, and I’m glad schedules worked out to allow us to have a day to hang out. It was great to just sit and talk, and not really be on a timetable. I am struggling with the thought of leaving my family. Family is an integral part of my life, and I am super blessed to be a member of the best family ever. However, I know that Jesus calls us to go, and to not let anything, including family, hold us back. Him specifically stating this means leaving family must be a common issue. In some ways, this is comforting as I look at the lives of those who have chosen to follow Jesus anyway and the amazing things He has done through them. He never said it would be easy, but He did say that it would be worth everything.

On a (pseudo) similar note, I watched The Book of Eli a few days ago. If you haven’t seen it, you might want to skip the rest of this blog post because I am sure there will be spoilers. I highly recommend the movie, although be warned it does contain a lot of violence, which I wasn’t really keen on, but the story easily (for me) redeems the violent aspect.

The Book of Eli is the story of a man named Eli (shocker) who, in a post-apocalyptic America, is trying to get to the west coast. This man has been walking for 30 years because a voice in his heart told him to. Thirty years! But the best part of the story is that the voice told him to walk through innumerable dangers, risking his life daily, to take a Bible, the last one in existence, to the west coast. Now here’s the biggest kicker: The Bible is in Braille, because Eli is, yes, blind. Blind!!

Wow.

To have such faith as that! It reminds me of the faith of Abraham, whom God ordered to go, and he went.

Lord, build my faith. Help me to remember that in the dark places, in the lonely places, in the trying places, You are there.

6 days left.
The ride clicks higher…

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Countdown

Two weeks from now, I will be on a plane, headed for Manchester.

God is good!

Yesterday I was reading in Genesis, and the Lord was talking to Jacob, but to me also, I think. He told Jacob to pack up and move to Egypt with Joseph, and basically told him "Hey, no worries! I'm going with you, and your people will come home again. Promise." Pretty clear there. (Exact text is Gen 46:3-4). I think God was trying to remind me of something, namely, that He will be with me no matter where I am. What an awesome God we serve.

I've also been reading the book of Acts before I head out. Man, those people were intense! I pray that God revamps my outlook so that lifestyle will no longer seem radical to me, but instead the norm. How awesome would it be to have the faith to fully rely on God for everything? To be honest, it's scary. But more than anything, I don't want to be the rich man who couldn't enter the Kingdom. I don't want to be bound and in servitude to things! I know that I am blessed to have been born in this country. It is a great privilege, however, in some ways I think it is almost hindering to my faith. I recently read a book on the subject, Radical by David Platt. It was certainly an eye opener. I know that I have settled for "Americanized Christianity" in the past, and I hope to not ever do so again!

The countdown is officially on!

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