Monday, June 27, 2016

Building a Foundation

This week I was working with the preteen girls in the area. As usual they had a lot of fun, enjoyed the one to one attention and this week learnt some new skills in baking. This week was a major stepping stone for one girl in particular though. Even though she has been attending regularly when it comes to the devotion or teaching before this week it was obvious that she was trying not to listen. She would role her eyes, interrupt or not contribute to the conversation. This girl comes from a culture that is taught not to listen to anything outside of her religion which is Hinduism. This week though I started to share about how much God loves his people. I asked have you ever felt so loved that you felt so much joy or cried from joy? This girl was totally engaged telling stories and listening to others stories. She was attentive right until the end even when talking about God and reading scripture. This was a big step for this girl. She is starting to open up to meeting the one true God. Please continue to pray for her and for all the other girls that these messages will transform their lives.

Monday, June 20, 2016

Community

Normally I do not talk about life outside of my work in the ministry but a large part of my life here in Switzerland is being involved in an international community. Daily I am involved in a team that is from three different nations. I go to a church that is international and almost everyone comes from somewhere else or has international experiences. Also I have settled into a really great young adults group that is from all over the world. It has become a normal part of life to talk in several languages, to try to understand other cultures, ways of communication or living. Trying new food, learning new dances, talking about complex situations with many different experiences and world views. It really has challenged me to think outside of my world view and to consider what I think is normal may not to be normal or natural for others. I have been taught to think and listen with understanding and not to take things personal if things are not done as I would do them. It really has made me think over and over again what is good or bad, what is cultural or truth. My time here has shown me that things are not always clear. They are not usually in black and white but in many shades of grey. I have really had to seek God and his truth, to help to understand even myself better through this. It can be very challenging but honestly one of my greatest joys in life. This past weekend I went on a camping trip with some friends. There were seven people that went. We came from seven different countries, from four continents and from five different first language groups. We had a lot of fun but as always different people with different perspectives can bring challenges. We joked around a lot, helped each other setting up camp and hiking very steep mountains and above else loved each other. We played campfire games and had very deep discussions such as does the bible tell us to love ourselves? What does this mean and how can we love others if we do not love ourselves? I have never experienced such a complex but wonderful community where at the end of the day no matter all the road blocks God is so good to bless deep meaningful community.

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Great Joys

One of my greatest joys in my week is to work with the preteen girls in the area. I love getting to know them, planning activities and sharing Gods truth about who they are in Christ. My three main girls that come all are from very different backgrounds. One is from a museum family who is from Egypt. One is from a Catholic Orthodox background from the Balkon area. One is from Sri Lanka and is from a Hindu background. It is good to see the progress in this intimate group. They are really enjoying the time. They will often ask to stay longer or ask what we will do next time. They have gotten into some good discussions about religious differences and are starting to think outside of the box that they grew up in. I believe this is potentially the start of a transformation in their lives but also the lives of their families and communities. It is so amazing to be apart of this greater plan that God has for these girls. 

Saturday, June 4, 2016

Finding Closure

As summer in almost here, school in almost over and people are thinking about the summer vacation plans things have started to slow down. Most of our regular programming is going to be finished in about a month and new projects are not being taken on. Even though I will still be here for three more months as a team we are planning for change. It is a strange feeling to know that everything will end soon. People that I have grown so close to will go all over the world. New workers will come in and take over our ministries. My life will change once again. For the first time in my life I am struggling with accepting this change. I feel at home here. I like my work, friends, church. In many ways I feel like I just arrived. Please pray that my future would get figured out and I would feel ready to move forward. Please pray for the last few months to have a strong ministry and good times of closure.