Hebrew is the Way to Worship

Our whole DTS loves this song right now.  We were introduced to it last week by the Messianic Jewish couple, and it has just stayed stuck in our heads.  The entire hour and a half we were preparing supper today we sang this song.  Obviously we like it.  I hope you like it too!

Link to Hallelu Et Adonai on youtube.

Church

Don't you love it when you go to church, and even though you must have the sermon translated for you, a very thought provoking analogy actually comes across?

That happened today.

Jesus is the light right?  And we say that Christians are walking in the light, and everyone is walking in darkness.  But, somehow public opinion still seems to be that the people who are in the darkness can do more things while those in the light don't do those things.  So public opinion is that Christians aren't having any fun.  (in very general terms)

However, if we think of people who literally live in the dark: people who are blind, they are reliant on others to help them make decisions.  They only know about what people tell them or what they can feel or otherwise know are there through senses other than sight. They often make decisions without all the information.  They might eat only potatoes and gravy all night (which tastes good) because they don't realize there is another table with dessert on it. They might settle for something because they don't realize that there is better.  But people who can perceive the light can see all the options.  They can see the better.

In the darkness, people think that sports, entertainment, tv, music, whatever... that is as good as it gets.  And if that isn't making them happy anymore, they might move to drugs, alcohol, short term relationships, etc.  But Christians realize that although hockey is good, and the big bang theory is funny, and michael buble can sing, they aren't the best we can hope for.  God loves us, wants a relationship with us, and has a life of adventure prepared for us.

Obviously, there is a lot more to say in this illustration, but I'll keep it simple.  Please feel free to expand it and use it in conversation when desired.

Pictures!

Everyone loves pictures right?  I realized that I could share more heritage tour pictures with my blog followers by using a handy link that Facebook provides to me.

So for anyone who wants to see more of Europe, here is a link to a whole bunch of pictures from the trip.  ENJOY!

TICKETS! WOOT!

We bought tickets today!  To go to Indonesia. And we are flying on the Emirates Airlines! 

With a stop over in Dubai. 

WOW!  

SO EXCITING!  

Although, not everyone has money yet.  There has been some miraculous money coming in though.  An entire airfare was given to the team, which was amazing.  So we bought them in faith that the rest of the money will come.

Unreached People Group.

This week our speaker is here to teach us about the prophetic and gifts of the spirit, but I find his actual ministry just as interesting. He is an evangelist to the Jewish people in Europe.  He travels all over Europe, mostly eastern Europe to reach Jews.  Did you ever think that Jews also need to hear the gospel?  I totally don't think about it.  But it is really cool!  Who could be a better convert than someone who has already been waiting for the messiah to come?

So part of his team with us this week is a Hungarian couple who are Messianic Jews.  And I love being with them. Worshipping with them. Being ministered to by them. And learning about their history and traditions and how they incorporate into their faith.  It is amazing. 

And it makes me so sad that I have so few Messianic Jewish friends at home.  One actually.  And I'm so sad I didn't ask her more questions and appreciate her more. 

He is excited for you to wake up...

We have been talking about the character of God during these entire two months (today is exactly two months since our first day of DTS).  And last week someone said something that really caught me off guard:

God waits for you to wake up in the morning, and he is excited for you to wake up!

So if you think about analogies in our lives for that there are a couple ways of looking at it.  Some people might think that is kinda creepy, with God standing at the foot of your bed watching you sleep.  I think those people should watch less horror films.

But maybe you think about a really excited little kid, who really really wants to play with you.  That might be closer.  Because I do think that God is excited for you to wake up, but he also is patient.  And he won't wake you up prematurely (although he may wake you up in some circumstances... which is a sign of his love I think).  So the excitement of a child probably is a good way of seeing it.

But the analogy that I really like, I'm expecting many people to think is kinda dumb.  I think that Twilight actually illustrates this perfectly.  (I admit I have read/watched Twilight, and I acknowledge its many flaws and negative impact on girls and society in general. But listen to my point even if you don't like the overall concept).  In Twilight there is a immortal being who is in love with a mortal being.  I think that may be comparable on a very base level of how God loves us. This immoral being does not need to sleep. But what does it do when the mortal needs to sleep?  He stays. His presence remains with her, even though she cannot relate with him. She cannot give anything to him while she sleeps.  In the same way, God doesn't leave us while we sleep to go do something more "productive" (never mind because he is omnipresent and doesn't need to).  His presence stays with us as we sleep, and he waits out of love and patience for us to wake up.  Then he can begin to commune with us again.

Now I realize that this is not a perfect analogy, and I know that some of you are ready to throw me out as a heretic, so I plead for grace. If you don't like the idea that God loves you so much that he is excited when you wake up, then please don't feel required to believe that God loves you like that.  But if that resonates with your heart, ask him to reveal to you its truth.

Outreach Update

I've been putting off updating anyone on our outreach for one reason: lack of information!  Until very recently we have had no confirmation of where we are going.  However, we have had direction from God.  

A month or so ago we received very clear direction that God wanted us to go to Indonesia for our outreach.   We had been praying for direction so that we could go where God wanted us to be.  And for a long time all we had was the word from God.  We had no contacts in Indonesia. We had no idea what we would do there.  However, in the last weeks we have received six emails from YWAM contacts in Indonesia saying that we were very welcome to come.  So now it is only up to God to tell us which one to say yes too.  

In my mind that is close enough to an actual plan.  So I'm okay telling everyone about it!  The plan is that we will leave for Indonesia at the beginning of December and be there for three months... but we don't know where exactly we will go and what exactly we will do. And we don't exactly have money for all the flights yet.  

The good news is that our God is a God who provides.  He has directed all of us to Slovakia. He has given us the direction to go to Indonesia.  And we believe he will provide the material means to do all of that too.  He actually has miraculously paid all the school fees for one of the other students.  She came the first day of DTS with no money for her "tuition".  But God has paid her way through some miraculous channels. 

I have been blessed enough to be able to pay all my tuition without asking people to support me.  And my church was beautifully generous with money for my airfare to get to outreach and back. However, not everyone else in our school has been so lucky.  Slovakia and the Czech Republic are not as wealthy, so people don't have as much that they can give.  There also seems to be a barrier against individuals giving money to these young adults.  We have three people from Slovakia and the Czech Republic coming with us on outreach.  So I very humbly ask you to pray and ask God if this is something he wants you to give to.  Please don't give out of guilt or obligation or anything like that.  But perhaps God wants to bless you with the opportunity to be generous to people you don't know. I'm not sure what he will speak into your heart.  I do know that if I don't tell you about the need, you cannot be blessed by filling it.  So now you know.  If you do feel led to give, please just shoot me an email. Or if you need more information, please email me for that too. I'd love to tell you more, so you can know where your money will be going.

And I'm going to INDONESIA!  CRAZY!

ps. Do not be confused. We are not going to both Jordan and Indonesia. We no longer plan on going to Jordan at all.  Instead of a nice Christmas in the desert, it's going to be a humid Christmas on an island. I still need to wrap my mind around that one. 

Heritage Tour: Prague

Our last city on our tour.
All I can really say is WOW.  Prague is definitely a tourist destination.  Apparently people call it the city of 100 towers because there are so many towers and churches.  And it is beautiful.  Very beautiful.

The reason Prague was important to us was Jan Hus.   (John Goose in English)  He was a preacher, an academic (he was the rector of the university in Prague by the time he was 24), and a reformer.  He preached in Bethlehem chapel in Prague.

He preached that the entire congregation could drink of the cup at Eucharist (in the Catholic church only the priest would take of the cup) and the chalice became a symbol of his followers and theology.  He also condemned indulgences. So the Catholic church didn't really like him.  And he ended up being imprisoned, put on trial and charged with heresy.   He was burned at the stake July 6, 1415 and there is a national holiday in the Czech republic to commemorate his death. Interestingly, that just so happens to be my birthday as well.  However, there is a silver lining, the Catholic church has apologized for killing Hus, and has undone his excommunication.  Isn't that an act of reconciliation? Why don't people appreciate that?  Instead of hating on the catholic church for killing people, why can't they forgive?  I think that the Catholic church is to be commended for apologizing. And reconciliation can flow when the protestants no longer allow themselves to be bitter.  (sorry, that is my little mini sermon for the day).  

So Prague was amazing. We really enjoyed it, even though it rained at the very end of our stay. But I think it was God's way of telling us that we needed to go home now.   And we did.  

Heritage Tour: Germany

We spent our time in Germany at two YWAM bases...Hurlach and Herrnhut. And both blessed us so much.  And both were huge!  Hurlach base was actually was used during the Munich Olympics by YWAM.

They kept 1000 students in the building.  Three levels of bunk beds because the ceilings are really high.

It was a beautiful base.  And it was cool to think of the significance of the base.  The team that was here during the Olympics was important in reaching people from otherwise unreachable nations at the time (because even communist countries sent olympians).  Especially with what happened at the Munich Olympics (look it up for more information because its too detailed to explain here), having a Christian presence at the games was really significant to reaching people where they were at.

We also spent time at Herrnhut, which is a much newer base, they have only been around for six years or something. But they own a big old orphanage and they have almost 100 DTS students.  We have 4 students in our DTS.  We couldn't even comprehend the size of their DTS.

Their DTS actually left the same day we arrived, so we didn't get to meet their students.  Instead we saw the wake they left behind. Especially the washroom... 40 some girls in one bathroom... Yikes. 

But they use their space very efficiently.  It is an arts focused DTS, so they do photography, graphic design, fine arts, music, and handicrafts all for the kingdom.  Knitting for God. I love it! And I know lots of people who this would resonate with.  They have state of the art equipment, I didn't try to count the number of Mac computers.  They have two dark rooms.  They have a cafe in the building! 

I don't regret choosing the Slovak DTS, but if you like arts and can handle living in a room with up to seven other girls/guys and speak either English or German... this is an amazing option! 

We also learned a bit about the town of Herrnhut.  The town actually began when this nice count decided to let religious refugee people live on his land.  They were fleeing persecution from the Catholics I believe...  And Count Zinsendorf realized that these people were part of the Ancient Moravian Church that had been driven underground.  Along the way there was a pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the believers in the town, essentially a revival took place.  The modern Moravian church was essentially begun in Herrnhut, and it became a missionary sending church.  They sent missionaries to Africa, Asia, North America, Central America.  The stories are amazing.  Moravian missionaries were significant in the spiritual growth of John Wesley (and if you don't know his story please read it! wikipedia) They ministered to slaves in the Caribbean.  There were something like 200 missionaries sent out from this little town in the first 10 or 20 years of the church.  I'm really not doing the story justice, but it is very inspiring.  I appreciated hearing it.

This is the Moravian Church in Herrnhut that was rebuilt after world war two. It is completely white, as the congregation is considered to bring the colour and decoration to the building.

And Herrnhut is also known for these:

The Herrnhut or Moravian Star.  

All I really know about those is that they are a sign of Christmas and are very very expensive. A tiny one smaller than my hand was 8 euro or something.  CRAZY!

We also talked about Luther in Germany, but since people talk about Luther all the time I figured that I would just tell you to watch the movie if you don't know about him. :) 

Now we are off to the Czech Republic!

Heritage Tour: Switzerland

Switzerland was interesting for so many different reasons!  The first YWAM base is in Switzerland, so we were lucky enough to go and visit that base. It was beautiful!

And it is amazing to think about how many lives have been changed in the base. And how many more lives were changed because those people went out into the world.  That is the cool thing about YWAM, it doesn't stop with the students.  I know someone who received direction from God to go to Albania while it was still a closed country at this base. I know another couple who received a prophetic word about their relationship here at this base.  So many "lifer" YWAMers have gone through this base, and moved onto starting other bases, and other ministries like Mercy Ships. WOW. God obviously has given this building and organization an anointing of his direction.

We visited other significant places like this former hotel where reconciliation talks happened after world war two.  It was led by Christian groups by my understanding, and I think it was French Christians and Germans.  But don't quote me on that one.

One other amazing story from Switzerland is from the time of the Roman Empire.  There were some rebels making an issue in Switzerland, so the Emperor dispatched a legion of troops from Egypt to go deal with the problem. He figured that they could handle it best because they are so far removed that they wouldn't take the rebels side. However, this group of soldiers were Coptic Christians. And when they got to Switzerland, they realized that these rebels were Christians too. So they refused to put down the uprising. They wouldn't kill the Christians rebels.  So to get them to comply, the emperor ordered that every tenth soldier be killed. The group was "decimated"... now you know what that word means.  That happened, but they still wouldn't comply.  So they did it again, and again, and again.... until all 6000 men were dead.   You can read more on wikipedia.

Some people think that there is continued grace over Switzerland because of the blood of those martyrs.  It is a pretty amazing story. (However, we didn't go to the church dedicated to St. Maurice, their leader).

However, we did spend time in Geneva learning about the Protestant Reformation.  And to tell you the truth, all the reformation stuff was the least interesting to me on the tour.  I do find Luther interesting, and I obviously am a protestant, but somehow the way that they went about it isn't as inspiring to me as other stories.  But that didn't stop me from wanting to have my picture taken with four famous reformers!

These are (left to right) Farel, Calvin, Beze, and Knox.  

It was strange in Switzerland to walk into big beautiful Cathedrals built by the Catholic church that are now used as protestant churches.  We found it very strange, and it actually felt different in the space. It was really sad to see how much less respect these churches get than Catholic churches that are still consecrated.  

Although the churches have beautiful organs in Switzerland.

Lastly, we also went to the UN and talked about how we as Christians are called to influence the world and bring God's Kingdom to earth. That it isn't enough to just make sure everyone is saved, God also wants us to reform our societies so they abide by his principles and can actually function better because of it.  And interestingly there was a protest going on when we arrived, so that was quite an experience as well. It was a group that wants sovereignty from Ethiopia I think... 

So from Geneva we drove into southern Germany, and it was very sad that most of the way it was dark so I didn't see nearly enough of the alps. But Germany was quite the adventure...

Heritage Tour: Rome

Rome is impossible to blog about and do justice. So I'm not even going to try and say what we did. Instead, I'm going to tell you about the significance of Rome on our tour.  Because our tour was about Christian history, Rome is a pretty obvious place.  The whole Pope thing is important.  And both Peter and Paul ended up in Rome.  But Rome also was the center of the Roman empire.  So we have both emperors and popes in Rome's history.  And I was actually in charge of planning where we would go in Rome, what we would see, what order we would do it all, and what part of history we would talk about.  That was an impossible task!  So we essentially broke it into two halves:  Early Church and Vatican.

So in case you didn't know, it wasn't always cool to be a Christian, especially in the Roman Empire.  A lot of Christians were persecuted.  So we talked about persecution and martyrs.  Nero (an emperor) actually crucified Christians along major roads and then lit them on fire so they lit the road.  Others died in the Colosseum when they were eaten by lions and tigers. Some were simply beheaded.

But the stories of martyrs are absolutely inspiring. That they would give their lives rather than renounce Christ...wow.  One guy said that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. That by killing Christians, the church actually grew.  And it makes sense. Wouldn't you want to know these people's secret that they are willing to be put to death, and are not scared of death?  A whole Colosseum full of people would see people die while singing hymns.  Don't you think God might stir up a little curiosity in those people?  I think it would in me!

We went to a church dedicated to St. Susanna in Rome for English language mass (it actually is an American congregation, some even work in things like Vatican radio).  And her story is pretty cool.  She was the niece of the pope or something like that.  She was beheaded, and her father was starved to death.  So there was a church in their home, and it has remained as a church on that spot for a long time, the current church is beautiful, and depicts her whole story (including where an angel helps her refuse a suitor which is a funny kind of thing to remember don't you think?)  But anyway, the church is beautiful and it was really cool to go to English mass and understand after going to Slovakian mass with Janka and having no clue what is going on.

As for the Vatican, we went to both the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica.  And it was really cool to see the Sistine Chapel. I appreciated our guide book alot because I actually understood what the ceiling is depicting, and what is on the alter piece.  And the story of the sistine chapel ceiling is really cool (we watched a movie on that too).  That Michaelangelo actually didn't originally want to paint the ceiling is crazy, because it is huge, and beautiful.

(the Sistine Chapel is a no picture place.... but this is from a poster out in the courtyard used by group tours)

The Vatican Museum is beautiful.  You could spend an entire day in there. I highly recommend not taking a tour, because there is no way that you can experience everything you will want to see.  Get a good Rome tour book, and you will understand enough to enjoy it more than being rushed through the entire museum.

They also have a super cool staircase in the Vatican:  Spirals anyone?

So then we went over to St. Peter's. WOW.  That is one amazing place.  Pictures don't do any justice at all. This is the central area, but there is a huge aisle on either side too with side alters.

And as we walked out of the church, God had set up the coolest sunset behind it.  It was pretty amazing!

But my definite favorite part of that day was sitting on the cobblestones in the middle of the square and just talking as a group and praying.  It was so very nice. 

There are so many more things we saw in Rome, and so many more stories of faithful Christians, but this will have to do for now. 

Heritage Tour: Assisi

I finally am making time to blog about our trip around and across Europe.  Our first stop was Assisi.  We drove 1200km the first day from Banska to Assisi.  And slept in tents. The tents that are already set up for you.

And inside the tents were four cots with mattresses. So we had some insulation... but it was by far the coldest night we endured. It was very chilly.  

But the next day was beautiful.  We had breakfast together in the sun with two stray cats and tea and coffee made from water boiled with our kettle in the bathroom.  Oh, I forgot... that was the coldest shower of the trip as well.  The bathrooms essentially were open air.  I expect they don't get many people at the end of October.

But then we headed into the town of Assisi, and we were amazed by the beauty.  We stopped on this driveway to take pictures of the city on the hill ahead of us. But really the best part was the driveway with olive trees on both sides!  FYI: Olives are not tasty right off the tree. Everyone else tried one, but I learned my lesson from watching their reactions!

So we first wanted to go to some monastary or something... but on the way we got lost and ended up at the absolute top of this mountain. Which turned out to be great fun. Saw some Italian cows.

But the whole reason we were in Assisi was because of Francis.  

That is St. Francis to you.

We actually had learned his story before we left on the trip so we really could enjoy Assisi.  He began the Franciscan monks (funny how names are so easy in the Catholic church) and St. Clare began the Poor Clare sisters.  So we visited the church the St. Francis rebuilt because God told him to, we visited his "cave" at a monastery, and we visited his "grave" under a big basilica that they built.

This is the church he repaired. Which was really cool because we understood why he did it (God told him too) and the attitude of the people around him (they all thought he was crazy, not to mention the fact that the only people who used the ruined church were lepers and he was hanging out with them too).  Essentially the story of Francis is of a guy who God has a call on, he gives up his earthly inheritance to love the lepers, help the poor and sick, and live the gospel.  Some other guys decided that they wanted to do that too, so they gave up everything to be part of his group, and they helped with the church. He also walked to Rome and EGYPT! without wearing shoes.  CRAZY!  

But today the church doesn't allow anyone to take pictures inside. Its obviously a pilgrimage place. And there is an active monastery connected. Which was pretty cool.  St. Clare actually lived with her "sisters" here, and they have different rooms significant to her as well.  

I'll let you look up St. Francis' story for yourself. There actually is a very good movie called Francis and Clare that we watched. But I'm sure Wikipedia will do as well.  If you don't know their story, it will inspire you to live for God, and listen to his calling.

So this is the Basilica in Assisi:

 It is another church with no cameras. So I don't have many pictures inside. But it is a two story church! I don't know how architecturally that works but there is an entire huge sanctuary at the bottom, which is full height with frescos on the ceiling and everything, then you go upstairs and there is another one! They could have two mass services going at once!  

But Francis is buried with some of his other "companions" in the basement. He has his own room kinda. Very obviously built because of Francis. The church actually has frescos all around the top floor of Francis' life, so that was really cool. According to the pictures, he drove all the demons from some town. That wasn't in the movie, but it is a really cool supernatural feat in my mind!

Francis and Clare probably will continue to be some of my favorite saints (as canonized by the catholic church) and examples in going against the grain in order to follow God.  

Assisi is such a pretty place. I don't even have room for all the pictures and to describe all we did. 

Heavenly Thought

God's idea of Heaven is spending time with you.

Meditate on that.

New Week

So although I haven't posted all the amazing things I learned on my trip yet, I want to post on things we learned in the last twenty four hours here!  Today was our first day back in lecture after the tour, and the transition was seamless. But I think its all because God got us ready for it.

Last night three of us went out for hot chocolate (which is different here. Its like drinking chocolate but not that either... Like warm/hot chocolate pudding?  That sounds gross but it is SOOO good) and we talked about how we are feeling. What God is convicting us of, what God is teaching us, how our spirits feel.  And we felt like we needed to repent for not being more focused on Jesus during our tour. How we didn't have enough quiet time and didn't listen to what he was saying and didn't pay attention to what he wanted us to do in each city.  Maybe we did sometimes. But we feel as though we were distracted from that goal.

So when we got home, they went upstairs and started praying and seeking God. I had a skype date with my parents so I joined them after that. And we just prayed. And sang. And soaked in God's presence.

And this morning we had amazing spontaneous worship.  Then our speaker began.  We are talking about the Holy Spirit. And this guy is so amazingly filled.  I feel like I'm just experiencing what living completely surrendered to the spirit is rather than just learning the theory.  I'm just watching him live his life and saying "I want that".  So this week should be good.   Actually, I know that it is going to be amazing. I'm sad that it is already 1/5 done!

Back From Heritage Tour

We are home, safe and sound from our tour.  Ten days seemed like forever and no time at all at the same time.  I feel like I know so much more about europe now.  I'm not sure if I actually do know that much, but it seems as though I learned a lot. Even in the simple experiences of being in Europe you learn something.  I'm going to leave the deep things that I've learned for when I have my pictures ready to go with it.  So instead I'll kinda explain the trip for you.

So this was a Heritage Tour, which essentially is a tour to explore and learn about our Christian heritage.  And because we are in Europe, that works great because so many things happened here!  It is where most of the interesting stuff happened right?  Well, maybe not, but I know alot more about Christian history in Europe than anywhere else so I'm going to say it is very important!

So some YWAM groups go on Reformation tours, just to see sights and learn about the reformation, but I think they are totally missing out.  We have a group of Catholics and Protestants so we were sure to see historic sites from all eras in Christianity.  And we looked at the history in a very even way... It wasn't about bashing the Catholics because of indulgences or the Protestants because they did such dumb things themselves. And I appreciated that so much. 

So to recap: We drove from Slovakia, to Assisi in Italy, then to Rome, then to Switzerland, South and Eastern Germany, and through the Czech Republic.  Eleven Days. Many kilometers.  But we are all closer because of it.  We actually only had five of us in a van for seven, so that made things easier.  So there were five students and Steve, our very brave DTS leader.  It worked out really well with Steve and Art driving us and taking turns.  I was in charge of finances of the trip.  I don't think I have a very good understanding of the worth of a euro right now after seeing how expensive everything was in Rome and Switzerland.  I can't believe how much money I was often walking around with to pay for our accommodations and food and tickets for museums.  

So what kind of general things can I type now? Well it costs alot to drive around in Europe.  Gas is not cheap.  It makes Alberta seem very cheap.  1.24 EURO for a liter of Diesel! But that isn't all.  The roads are toll roads. So we would pay up to 50 euro for a day of driving.  In Switzerland they have a sticker that you buy to have the privilege of driving on the motorway or whatever they call it.  40 Euro minus 8 swiss francs... (a Swiss Franc essentially is a Canadian or American Dollar in value).  See I told you I understand european economics better now!  I also had to deal with Czech crowns, which are four Euro cents each.  So that is much more mental math.  I actually broke down and got a Starbucks coffee in Prague.  It was 99 crowns for a Grande... Which is roughly four euro. That is pretty steep for a latte. Even for Starbucks.  But I hadn't had Starbucks in a month and a half, so it was a little gift to myself.

And for all my dutch friends, they sold Stropwaffles in the Starbucks! I even took a picture to prove it.

But those aren't cheap... 60Kc is more than 2 euro.

So I'll sign off for now and hopefully be able to share stories of martyrs and other important people and moments to Christianity with you over the next few blog posts.