A Surge of Hope

Today as I was reading Psalm 73, it was like being injected with hope. Sometimes, as I read the Bible I tend to pass over verses I've read often before. Lately, I have been trying to read everything and hear with my heart what God is saying. Today my heart heard.

Psalm 73:21-24

“When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, Then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless, I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory.” 

I relate to these verses, especially the first two in my effort to be a perfect person and in that quest I fail, oh so miserably. In fact, I am learning how to NOT try to be a perfect person, because it is an unattainable goal that will always leave me wanting and failing. So yes, I relate to the first two verses when the writer is not in a good place because he is embittered and senseless, ignorant. It caught me by surprise when I read the verse and word in verse 23, "nevertheless". Did I read that correctly? Continually with God? It hit me like cool aloe on a sunburn - God does not go away or leave, this is not a touch and go relationship. We are not left on our own to get it together so we can then go to God. God does not disappear. I can’t express how this builds hope and safety in my heart. It’s as if I understand better the truth that God loves me where I am at and loves me wholly. It’s a perfect example of God loving me because of who He is and not where I am in my filth, joy or wherever I find myself. THANK YOU JESUS! No, it does not justify my poor behavior, it gives me hope in spite of myself. “His kindness leads us to repentance”; “His love never fails” I am brought to tears thinking about a love like this, a God like this and this is who He is! Thank You God. Thank You for your kindness and the fact that You never leave us or forsake us. I can be human, not perfect. Yet, I am also drawn to not be the person in the first two verses, His kindness truly does lead to repentance. Today, I will be a peace with myself and where I am in life. Today I have the confidence that - I am continually with God. 

Anxiety

Anxiety is hard to describe, especially the feelings that surround it. That overwhelming panic, the rapid beating of the heart as it is flooded with fear. I hate, yes hate, that feeling. Lately, I have been having a lot of anxiety, because life hasn’t gone as I anticipated. The worst thing about anxiety is the taunting fear. I know the Bible says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Philippians 4:6)”. I prayed for it to go away and it didn’t seem to work. What was I doing wrong? (That added thought that I was doing something wrong only increased my anxiety – UGHH!) “God, help!”, this is probably my best prayer to date. “God, help, I can’t seem to let go of this anxiety and I am afraid I don’t really know how to do it, help Jesus, help.”

Well I would like to say that all of a sudden I never struggled with anxiety again, yet that is not true. I still struggle, although, thankfully it is getting better. When those feelings of paralyzing fear overwhelm me, I am learning not to entertain those thoughts. I am learning to talk to God instead of ponder the anxiety running through me. It is a process and sometimes I feel as if I am saying the same prayer to God over and over. Yet, the God I love and know isn’t bothered by my repetition. I think God is teaching me to deal with anxiety simply by not giving it fuel to thrive in my heart and mind. I am now running to God and confessing honestly where I am at. I no longer try with my own strength to ignore it; I bring it to the Cross. It is a process. 

I often wish I could pray and “zap” it would all disappear - my problems, my issues, my anxiety. Yet, I realize that I am also learning in this process, I am discovering how to lean on God. I am learning how to hand over my thoughts and hurts. I think this is a valuable lesson because as I move through life difficulties will come and now I will have a valuable tool to use. I really appreciate the way God loves and grows me. I won’t lie and say I appreciate fighting through this anxiety, yet…yet God is faithful and I get to discover anew His faithful, faithful love and that I do appreciate.

Wherever you are as you read this I pray that you, too, will discover God’s faithful love. And I welcome your prayers as I walk through this process. I feel as if I am squeezing tightly onto God’s hand, slowly I am relaxing my grip and enjoying the journey once again.

God is faithful.

Joy

I've been full of joy recently - Christmas joy. What you may not realize is that for many years (over 20 years) I haven't been excited about Christmas much at all. See when I was little, Christmas was a BIG day, my mom knew how to celebrate holidays and she and my father made Christmas special. I moved out of state for university and often couldn't go back to my parents home for holidays. Added to this, were some bad memories surrounding Christmas and other holidays; eventually I didn't look forward to any holiday. Some years ago, I prayed and asked God to get back what I had as a kid: the love, the excitement, the desire to celebrate. 

Slowly I began to see a little changes, mostly, I saw the dread or distaste go away, but the enjoyment was still lacking...until this year. I can't explain "what" happened, although, I do have my guesses at what could have been part of the change. Last year, I went to a home run by nuns during Christmas to spend time in prayer to God. I was welcomed warmly to the house and invited to join in meals and some celebrations. It was so different from any Christmas I had ever had; I celebrated the "reason" of Christmas last year in a way I never had before.

Yesterday, as I was walking up the snow covered hill towards home, I realized how grateful I am that the love, excitement and desire to celebrate is found within my heart again. I am grateful for answered prayer. To be honest, it took a few years before I saw the answer to the prayer. As I look back, I see that God has done a lot of healing in my heart since that prayer and I am sure that healing has been a significant part of getting the joy back. Actually, I realize that that was God answering my prayer, but I didn't "see" it because I was in the process of healing "other" issues. The truth is, it was my heart that needed mending all along. 

So if you prayed to God yesterday, last week, last year or a few years ago...then my prayer for you is that you would see how God is responding to that prayer, because sometimes it difficult to see the work He is doing in your life because it looks different than what we expect. Bless you on your journey. (Amen.) 

Living Loved

I've realized I don't write so often. You may have realized this by the amount of time between my blog posts. The thing is it takes more energy to sit at a computer and write than writing in a journal. I often get distracted once I am on the computer. Do you? An hour later I get off the computer only to realize I never accomplished the purpose that got me on the computer to begin with. I want to improve in this area, so here I am writing a blog post today (and it only took me an hour to get started).

Today, I had the priviledged of sitting down to coffee with a wise friend, MaryJean. We talked of life, Jesus, future and truth. During our time together she said this simple phrase: "living loved" and it caught my attention and made me think. We were talking about our inheritence in God's family and about what Jesus says in John 14 about sending Holy Spirit as our Comforter/Guide, not leaving us as orphans. The Bible talks plainly about God loving us and choosing us. Think about this for a moment. What would your life look like; how different would it be if you lived loved? You are loved! I am loved! This is our reality even if we have trouble receiving or believing it.


If or when we struggle with believing we are loved we should go to the source: God's Word. What does God say? The most quoted verse, John 3:16, says it plainly, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." and in 1 John 3:1 is says, "See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are." The Bible is filled with this truth.

I often talk about living free and I think living free looks very much like living loved. I'm going to practice living loved and I encourage you to join me in this. When times of doubt come, I'll ask God for help and I will read more of God's word to become more acquainted with the Truth written there.

Live Loved today - you are!

Finding Peace

Where do you find peace? Where does rest come easily to you? Often, I am most rested and at peace near water, there is something about a body of water that causes me to relax completely.

Yesterday, as I was spending time with God, I found peace in His omniscience. Omniscient means having complete or unlimited knowledge, awareness, or understanding; perceiving all things. Now , if you are like me, I have things I have done that I am not proud of, things I do not necessarily want to advertise or even, at times, admit to. To my dismay, I still struggle with some insecurities and fears. Yet, as I was reading from A.W. Tozer's book "The Knowledge of the Holy" I found peace in the truth of the words I read.

"...how unutterably sweet is the knowledge that our Heavenly Father knows us completely. No talebearer can inform on us, no enemy can make an accusation stick; no forgotten skeleton can come tumbling out of some hidden closet to abash us and expose our past; no unsuspected weakness in our characters can come to light to turn God away from us, since He knew us so utterly before we knew Him and called us to Himself in the full knowledge of everything that was against us."

"For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you.' (Isaiah 54:10)"

There is a peace that I cannot explain in being known completely and loved regardless. Peace in the fact that I do not have to strive, prove or explain myself, because He even knows my heart motivation, pure or not. Nothing is hidden from God. Yesterday, I had an understanding with both my heart and mind that I am known completely, in everything good and bad and also, loved completely.  In this, I found peace greater than any.  

It is safe to cycle again!

The snow has melted and the ice is finally gone - it is Spring! And I am extremely glad.  I have officially had 4 beautiful bicycle rides all over Skien.  Today was one of my favorite rides, despite the wind and also the hill I went down only to go back up again because it was a dead end. I set of with a friend (Erine) and we had a fun start until her bike chain broke in half.  Luckily, we were near a friends house and could borrow his bike so that we could continue on.  It was a great day!

I think Spring brings out life, not only the obvious life like flowers in bloom, but something inside of me comes more alive when the sun comes out. I want to experience life, be out and about; go on adventures. Yes, the rain will come during spring too (in fact, it already has come), but that only increases my joy for beautiful sunny days. In every joke there often is a little truth and the joke here in Norway is "enjoy the sun for the month that it is out". Of course, it does shine more than 30 days a year here, but often it feels it is true after the long winter and between the rain. Nonetheless, I am going to soak in every drop of vitamin D from the sun that I can, I so very much appreciate it.

Happy Spring to You!

I was contemplating.

"Why is it that the most beautiful animals on earth are hidden away from all humans except those wearing elaborate SCUBA equipment? Who are they beautiful for?  - Phillip Yancey

I am reading the book "I Was Just Wondering" by Phillip Yancey, a book of many questions and a few answers.  There are a couple of questions that I am pondering and as I watched a video (that really has nothing to do with nature), I had a "wow" moment.  My wow moment: It isn't about us.  I know this to be true in my mind, but it's hard to understand with my heart.  I know the world doesn't revolve around me, personally, but sometimes I think it does around us as humans.  Yet, we aren't the only thing in the world.  No, I won't become an extreme environmentalist, but I have more awe of God.  I also hope it will decrease selfishness and self centered perspectives in my life.  


Do you want to know the other quote that has me thinking quite a lot?

Why does man feel so sad in the twentieth century? Why does man feel so bad in the very age when, more than in any other age, he has succeeded in satisfying his needs and making over the world for his own use?  - Walker Percy

Juleferie day 3

I am sitting listening to the song "O For Grace" by Brady Toops and the words that stuck out to me are:

"When it's strong or when it falls through, Lord to know the answer is you."

A gentle reminder, an wonderful encouragement.

I pray your day is encouraged as well.
Blessings.

Juleferie day 1 (Christmas holiday)

I am SO blessed, I get to holiday in a Winter Wonderland. Today, I started my day with coffee and a great friend looking at the view you see in the photos. Then came a knock on the door and two cute kids (Hanne's niece and nephew) were asking us to come out and play. So out we went ready to sled down the hill by the house. I currently hold the record for the longest run, although Daniel came close to knocking me out of that position.

What a wonderful beginning to a lovely holiday time. Oh, an extra blessing of being here - I get to practice speaking Norwegian! Although the Trøndersk dialect is very difficult to understand (I cannot tell you how many dialects Norway has, but with each dialect they actually say different words, it is not just a different pronouncing of the same word. To say the least, I have to ask what the kids say often, the adults have mercy on me and speak Bokmål. Bokmål is the Oslo dialect and what they speak on tv new channels and is the dialect I am learning.)

Wherever this finds you today, I pray blessings upon you.
Jae

Last week in Hamar

The end is near...

Okay, maybe it isn't as dramatic as that, but my time in Hamar is coming rapidly to a close.  I will be sad to leave this "family" of mine, but now is the time to go back to Skien.  I look forward to seeing friends, talking to them in Norwegian and preparing for the DTS in January.  On the other hand, I do not look forward to packing.  

A friend of mine she said she enjoyed the pictures I put up, so I thought I would add some pictures and tell you more about my time while in Hamar. 

I live in a very Norwegian home, but they were kind to the American in their midst and we celebrated Thanksgiving. I cooked for 2 days, everything came out great except the pumpkin pie, to my dismay. We had a lovely time.  After dinner (middag @ 4:30pm) we went for a long wonderful walk, then came back to the house, ate pie and watched a movie. 

Norwegians celebrate Advent, it starts, I believe the first Sunday in December, but Christmas season starts December 1st, the first day you can have glog & pepperkaker (glogg is like a spiced cider drink with fruit and nut bits in it and pepperkaker are gingerbread cookies).  The four candles below are the advent candles, one is lit every Sunday while reciting a prayer.  The star above the candles is just an example of how Jenny & Ragnhild have made the house look nice and festive.  A side note: the color for Advent is purple - purple candles, cloths, etc..., but Christmas is decorated in red and I believe they change the colors Christmas eve.

We also had the town Christmas tree lighting.  It was really fun despite the cold.  At the end of the event all the people sang a Christmas song and went around the Christmas tree, so very delightful.  

I also, did something VERY Norwegian.  I went to Sweden! It was my first time to step foot in the country and I did it as a typical Norwegian would.  Yep, we went shopping.  The prices in Sweden are cheaper, especially for meat and since it is only 2 hour drive to the border, off we went.  There was an extra seat in the car and Eirik (the youth pastor) arranged for me to join.  So off I went with Eirik's mom, little brother and little sister.  It was so much fun.  We even had a little adventure - the car battery died.  The others in the car said they were very grateful that I was an outgoing American, I went around the parking lot for about 40 minutes looking for someone with jumper cables to help us back on the road.  Our angel's name was Ida.  We are back safe and sound and with bacon in the freezer!

Thanks for taking this journey with me in Hamar while I learned Norwegian.  Please pray that I continue to grow and improve in the language, especially as I go back to Skien.  Also, if you would please pray for my "family" in Hamar (Eirik, Karl Oscar, Jenny & Ragnhild), they are the youth leaders in one of the local churches and I am sure they would appreciate any extra prayer.  Thanks again.

Continuing on...

How is my Norwegian coming along? Good question! The truth is I can tell you that I am learning, but I think the people to determine how much I have learned will be the people in Skien. I will be able to tell you what they say in less than two weeks. Until then I am trying to finish well. I am a bit nervous to hear what Skien has to say about my Norsk. I still have poor sentence structure (yes, I want to translate it directly from English). I still struggle understanding when people talk at normal pace (I still find it a bit too fast). Yet, I continue to learn.

Below are a few photos of the area I have taken, so you have a small sample of my surroundings. I find myself liking Hamar more and more (I am sure it is because the wonderful people I have met and continue to meet).

Pictures: The lake (biggest lake in Norway), the city center, sunset over the lake, me on Thanksgiving day.

Four weeks down & to celebrate - SNOW!

Go here to read the article and see a video (it is in Norwegian).
 http://h-a.no/Nyheter/Nyheter/tabid/72/articleView/true/moduleid/183501/Default.aspx

Winter has come, so why hasn't the understanding of the language come as well?  Yes, I must admit that I am not fluent yet.  Most of you will not be surprised, but I think I am disappointed a little.  You may have noticed I did not post last week.  A quick recap, at the end of week three I had got a horrible headache, felt sick and didn't study for 3 days (It's hard to say I did not study, as I live with Norwegians who speak Norwegian around me all the time, but I  was not very proactive about my learning.  Let's call it a bit of a breakdown.) 

So, last week - week four - I took it easier to avoid any such breakdowns again.  I think I took it too easy, because I feel like I am going backwards as it is harder, not easier, to understand when people talk Norwegian.  The truth is I hear Norwegian quite a LOT.  This is good, but so frustrating when I do not understand.  Let's just say, I am quiet at the dinner table and my roommates know they can still speak privately even if I am in the same room.  I pick up words and sometimes sentences, but complete thoughts are a blur to me. 

The good news is my two months are not over as I do not leave here until December 9th.  I knew it would take a couple of months, but secretly, I hoped I would be an amazingly fast learner and BAM! I would know Norwegian.  I suppose I need reminding from God that learning...IS A PROCESS.  Honestly, this is a good reminder, often when I am in a process of building character I want "instant" results, as well.  Character, language, so many things take time in life and should be pursued but not rushed.  Society, technology tells me different, they say that I should do things in a rush.  They say if I wait life will be boring or worse my life, what I want out of life will become obsolete.  Some things are worth the time and are actually better with time.  Things like: character, relationships, learning things (playing guitar, engineering, medicine, etc...and apparently language).  

Norwegian isn't the only thing I am learning during my time here, and I am sure this will continue to be the case.  I must remember growth...is a process!

Week Two of Learning Norwegian

Week two can be summed up with the word: Improvement. 

When I first arrived here speaking, having an actual conversations in Norwegian was not a reality, but now I can have small conversations.  Of course, the subject matter is limited, but at least now I am able to practice speaking.  The Norwegians here continue to have a LOT of patience, and they agree that I have improved.  The highlight of my week was when a friend from Skien called and we had a conversation for 45 minutes in Norwegian.  It was so nice and my friend was SO patient.  I still have trouble understanding people when they talk at normal talking speed, but I believe that will come with time.  It is also apparent that my vocabulary needs to increase.  I do read Calvin and Hobbes in Norwegian (here they are called Tommy og Tigern) as a learning tool.  I realize from reading, or trying to read, the comics and other books I have that I need to know more words. 

Last week I also had the opportunity to help someone who is trying to move.  I used the bus and after a few mistakes, misunderstandings and an hour long walk to the place I really needed to be I now understand the bus system.  It has been nice to help people and to have the ability to just be a blessing where needed.  Tonight I am off to help in the cafe and will get more practice conversing in Norwegian. 

Thanks to all who have been praying for me, I truly appreciate it and if you would, please continue to pray. 

Takk (Thank you in Norsk)

A music recommendation

I have a friend who has a blog and she has "New Music Monday" where she recommends a song or artist (Lyndee http://lyndeej.wordpress.com/, she has great recipes too, check her out).  Today, I was listening to a song and was struck by the lyrics, but could not find a video to post for you, so better yet (I hope this is better), I have a way for you to download it free and legally at http://noisetrade.com/cautioners.  The lyrics that caught my attention is from the song 'Treasure':

"Tell your past mistakes that you're through with them. Grace has spoken up made you clean again, just believe..."

 



 

I was going to post a couple of their videos as I recommend their songs, I really like their lyrics.  I have both of their cd's.  You can go here to hear their first album and see videos from it: http://www.youtube.com/user/CautionersMusic?feature=CAQQwRs%3D

 

 

Be blessed today and remember...tell your past mistakes that you're through with them. Grace has spoken up made you clean again, JUST BELIEVE!

Off to a Great Start!

The first week in Hamar or should I say...først uken i Hamar:

I have travelled to Hamar to live with four wonderful youth leaders that work with the Free Church (Frikirke). Since July, I had planned to move outside of the YWAM base for a month or two to learn Norwegian.  YWAM Skien is mostly Norwegians, but because of the international status the people at the base speak primarily English, thus it was recommended that I go away so I could learn, breath, and think Norwegian.  I arrived in Hamar on the first of October. 

This week I have heard more Norwegian than ever.  My housemates mainly speak Norwegian around the house, unless I cannot understand what they say and they are talking directly to me (this is often, sadly, as my vocabulary is not large enough, but usually they try to communicate first in Norwegian).  I have also continued my studies to increase my vocabulary, needless to say my mind is quite tired after a day.  Trying to think, talk, listen, read and communicate all in Norwegian has my brain spinning.  I have been frustrated, VERY frustrated, during this week and I hear that is a good sign (it does not feel so great though).  I am so grateful for the kindness, gentleness and patience of the Norwegians here, truly they are so kind. 

I have also had chances to help out at the cafe run by several churches in the city. (A group of churches came together and run a cafe 3 days a week for the local community, it is so wonderful to watch the body of Christ come together and serve the city in this way.)  I have also gone to a prayer meeting, helped with some practical things at the house and church, been to the weekly youth meeting, attended the Sunday service and met many great people. 

Please, when you think about me - pray.  Pray for breakthrough in understanding. Pray that I would bless and be a blessing to the church and people here.  Please pray that I would have patience with myself and the learning process.  Lastly, pray I would have fun!

The picture is the view from the kitchen window.  Often in the morning I sit by this window to eat breakfast, so lovely! 

Newcastle Olympic Video Update

Hi. Here is a video update of our time in Newcastle from the team I am on. You an follow all of of our YWAM Norway teams at ywamnorway.wordpress.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnza5zv8NEY&sns=em

The Greatest Artist

I am at GoFest (http://ywamnorway.wordpress.com/2012/05/11/a-day-in-newcastle/), this is a summer festival and outreach we are doing as YWAM Norway. Normally, the GoFest starts out the YWAM year, but this year it is the launching platform for the outreach in Newcastle England during the Olympics. All that to say, I am currently in Stavern Norway at the GoFest.
This morning I was having some alone time with God. This picture was my view. I hope you can see the water. As I looks at the water I thought it looked small from the place where I sat. I then considered how large it would be if I got closer then I thought of all the details that go into making this view. All the details in the sea, the plants and animals in the sea are complex and so wonderful to look at. My reaction: God is an AMAZING artist, the best. His work was so beautiful and detailed. For those who know me well, you know detail isn't my strong point. Yet I was marveling at God's attention to detail and found myself being thankful for that part of His character. I, also, found myself appreciating my friends who are more detailed and wanted to compliment them on their resemblance to God So, if you are one of those friends reading this consider the fact that your attention to detail is something that you got (inherited) from your Father God. The same God that created/designed all the items in the picture. He is the Greatest Artist ever!

Indonesia Highlights

China: 

We got to go into China on our way to Indonesia, it was such a treat and only for a couple hours.  We ate lunch.  We picked a simple place and just pointed at pictures to tell them what we wanted (most of us ended up with good food, but some were a little disappointed at their pick), then we took our food and found a place to sit and eat.

  

Beauty:

Indonesia was beautiful, such a diverse country.  The city was FULL of people, bursting with life.  We often said as a team the only time the city slept was from 2 am - 4 am.  On the other hand, the countryside was such raw simple beauty.  The rice fields were such a wonder to look at, so beautiful and all done by hand, I respect the hard work that went into it.  The ocean was, of course, gorgeous (but anyone who truly knows me, knows that is my favorite place to be is next to water).  We didn't spend tons of time at the waters edge, but the days we did were so nice.  

People:

The people we met were kind, loving and so nice.  As I wrote before, the Indonesian people, in general, are not normally outgoing in the beginning, but if you initiate conversation you will find treasures. The people are beautiful.  God does that, doesn't he, he makes beautiful people all over the world.  I think that is one of my favorite things about God and travelling, meeting beautiful people and since it is within a different culture, often you see a different side, a different beauty of God through those people. Below are just a few of the quality people (Abbi ,Ika, Sael and me) I met or else there would be many more photos.

  

Team:

Honestly, this is my favorite part of outreach - our team.  There is something to be said for unity among people.  This team chose to serve, be flexible, be teachable, love, not complain and be unified, through it all.  Because of this, I believe God did powerful things in Indonesia, things we may not even be aware of until we reach Heaven.  Even though they were scared and nervous, each students preached at least 2 sermons (30 -45 minutes long that they prepared).  They were willing to go outside their comfort zone.  This resulted in 5 men in prison accepting Jesus Christ in their hearts for the first time, college students choosing Jesus as their first priority, rather than the distractions of the world and many Christians in a Muslim country being encouraged to continue on.  My team was a gift from God.  I saw God move in and through each one.  I was privileged to love and invest and be part of this group.

How can things be similiar and so different?

Here in Indonesia it is a Muslim nation. I will admit I thought I would find a nation much like I imagine Iran to be, this is not the case. We have been staying in the city of Bandung, it is one of the bigger cities with approximately 4.5 million people in it. (It's like having almost all of Norway's population in Oslo). Here there are more malls than, I believe the States can boast about. There are shops and stands on every inch of the street, it seems. So I have noticed women in head coverings and such, but I notice materialism too. I find it a lot like the States (a primarily Christian nation), many people are just living for themselves with not much thought to what religion they are suppose to be or not be. I did not expect to see/think this. The villages are different, more Muslim, less materialism, it seems. Yet, the villages are mostly farming, therefore there isn't a lot of extra time. They farm all by hand, rice primarily.
I'm sure there are quite a lot of differences, but I think I am surprised about the similarities. As for the differences, I've noticed my heart of intercession increasing being here. I know that I do not understand the culture, especially their view on women, but I can pray. The song I find myself singing over this nation is "Freedom Reigns" by Jesus Culture - Freedom can reign in this place!

(below are pictures of a farming, it is breathtaking, especially when you realize it was created by hand.)

Update of Indonesia trip

This last week was full of great moments and we would like to share a few with you.

First, a little background. Our main activities have been to encourage the churches and Christians locally here. What this means practically is everyone has had the chance to preach a message, all the students got to do this twice. Fast forward to the prison meeting where Thomas got to preach his 2nd sermon...and preach he did. That day we saw God move and 5 men made decisions for Jesus.

Next sermon was given by Hanne at a youth meeting in a University. This night Hanne preached about it all being about God instead of being focussed on ourselves. She had an alter call, about 15 students came up for prayer, some crying as they were touched by God.

We ended our time well in Bandung and have safely arrived in our next destination: An orphanage in Bali, where we will live and work for the remaining of our outreach.