Sunday, September 1, 2013
Moved Into the Neighborhood
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At the start of this year I was finally able to move to the YWAM base in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. It was bittersweet saying goodbye to my condo and the Darien area where I’d called home for well over 15 years. I never realized how difficult all the transition would be in my life but it has definitely been challenging. All the patterns in your day to day life change as you relearn how to do life in a new neighborhood. The picture I keep imaging is that I am a plant that has been uprooted and replanted. It will take time for my roots to grow and gain strength in the new soil.
I have been thinking a lot about the incarnational ministry of Jesus. John 1:14 says that “the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” I like this verse in the Message version, “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” I am so thankful that Jesus was willing to move into the neighborhood and do all that he did. He became one of us so he could truly understand our lives and the needs we have. In doing that, he can help us and meet those needs with compassion and caring because he knows what it's like. He can sympathize with us
This passage has taken on such new life for me since moving. It’s one thing to minister in the city. It’s another thing altogether to move there and be among the people you are trying to reach. You become a part of the area. You change a little as you adapt to the culture around you. It changes a little because you are now there. You learn how to do life in that area and see what is considered normal. You hopefully start to better understand the needs of those around you and can reach out to meet those needs. It takes time and commitment to plant roots but I think you are stronger in the end.
I am really excited to be a part of Chicago in the neighborhood of Rogers Park. It is a neighborhood that is 1.83 square miles and has 56,000 people from over 150 different countries. It is ethnically diverse and rich with many different cultures. Please pray for me that I would start to feel more at home and continue to build strong friendships here in this part of the city. My new neighborhood, my new home!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
God's Faithfulness
A few weeks ago my family was able to celebrate the 100th birthday of my Grandpa Art. It's amazing to think of all the changes that have happened in his lifetime. How different our world is now from when he was born. As I look at his life and reflect on all he's experienced, I am thankful that through all the changes that we may go through, God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. I am also thankful for the faithfulness God has and continues to show my family. I am forever grateful for them and the Godly heritage that I was given.
The last time I wrote I was in London with the UDTS. Thanks so much for praying for my time away. I had an incredible time and appreciate the opportunity to go with such a great group of people. Since being back I have been very busy. The first week back was the final week of the UDTS. We were able to celebrate all that God did during the 5 months together. The twelve students all graduated and the majority of them will be continuing on to do the School of Evangelism in Tyler, Texas. I had a lot of fun getting to know all the students and walking with them through the school as they learned more about God and how to walk in relationship with Him! As thankful as I am to have been a part of the school I am excited for this next season. Less than a week after the graduation of the UDTS we had our first outreach group come to the base. My main job at this point will be coordinating the outreach groups that come to the base. Mostly during the Spring and Summer months. I love working with the groups and usually feel a renewed sense of passion for working with youth encouraging them in their walks with the Lord. Please pray for us as we gear up for a very full summer. June and July will be full with groups here every week!
I would like to take a moment and share with you one of the things we do with the groups that come. It is one of my favorite things we do with the youth that come. It is praying at Daley Plaza. Daley Plaza is a government office building in the Loop area of downtown Chicago. We go during the lunch hour and split up asking the people we see in the plaza if we can pray for them. There are hundreds of people that walk through the plaza on a day to day basis. It is also an area that people sit to eat their lunch while they are on a break from work. Daley Plaza building is the city court house as well so there are many people coming and going from difficult situations. The first group that we had this year went to Daley plaza. In the two hours we were there, the sixteen of us prayed for about 150 people. I am always amazed at the difficult circumstances that the people we pray for are going through. They are just walking by and when we ask if we can pray for them it seems as though it is a needed break to offer hope in the midst of the trouble. There were three people that I prayed with that I would like to briefly share about. Bernise was a woman who was on her way to court because her mother-in-law had just passed away and they were trying to figure out how to best take care of her brother-in-law with special needs. She was hurting and wanting to get wisdom from God. She told me she appreciated prayer that was spoken out of relationship with the Father and not religion. She gave me the biggest hug after I said Amen! Petro was another person I met. He came walking toward me and looked as if he were talking on his cell phone. Earlier the base director, Brad, told us that sometimes the people that we don't think we should go up to and ask are exactly the ones that we should go up to. Normally if people are talking on their phones I won't bother them but I felt like I should even though he had his phone to his ear. I called out Hi, we're praying for people in the plaza today, can I pray for you. He stopped and with wide eyes looked at me. He then asked me to look at his phone. It showed that he was listening to a song called "His Presence is in This Place". He said that he just started listening to the song because he really needed to know that God was with him and that his presence truly was there. He was so amazed to know that we were there and praying for people. He asked me to pray for the relationship between himself and his wife. His eyes filled with tears as he said that they were really struggling. In the midst of the struggles he needed to know that Christ was with him. I was able to pray for him and encourage him that truly God was with Him and cared deeply for him. The last woman, Laura, has been on my mind and heart ever since that day. She was dressed like a business woman and was walking quickly with a purpose. When I asked if I could pray for her she immediately said yes! I then asked if there was anything specific that I could pray for. She said that she was on her way to the doctor because she might have breast cancer and was heading to the appointment where they would tell her the test results to confirm the diagnosis. She had such a pained expression. She was nervous and grateful that I would take the time to pray for God's peace to rest on her. She thanked me and then walked off. My heart broke for her and others that I met. It was just a Wednesday, nothing special just lunch hour at a busy downtown plaza. People are hurting and just need to know that there is a God that cares deeply for all they are going through. Please pray for us as we continue to go to Daley plaza weekly over the next few months. I always pray that God will put us in front of those that need to be encouraged with His hope. I would love it if you would do the same!
Thanks for taking the time to read this! I am very grateful your support of me both financially and with prayer! I love knowing that there is a team of people behind me, encouraging me forward as I attempt to follow the calling I believe God has for me! Blessing to you today!! Expecting great things from God, Kathi:)
Monday, May 30, 2011
Support Letter
Hey Everyone!
I am going to be working this summer for YWAM Chicago. I sent out a support letter that shares a bit about what I've been thinking and what I'll be up to! Here is the letter!! Enjoy!
May, 2011
Dear Friends and Family,
I am so excited to share with you all that God has been and is doing in my life. Before I do that though I want to say thank you for the love and support you have shown me over the last year and a half! I appreciate it very much and know that I couldn't have done it without you.
January through June of 2010 was an awesome adventure for me as I traveled to Perth, Australia and Mexico City, Mexico for the Compassion DTS. As I look back on those 6 months I realize how much the Lord blessed me with that time. I was able to spend lots of quality time with him in prayer and in reflecting on all the years I had spent in Chicago while looking forward to all he had in store for me. It was a time of working through all the feelings that come with major transitions in life and learning more about what it means to be a child of God. He met me where I was in such tangible ways, ways that were so surprising yet uplifting. It was a meaningful time for sure.
As I finished my time the inevitable question of "what are you going to do next" was asked by many people and I struggled because I didn't have the answer. I did, however, feel very confident that God would make it clear in His timing. That confidence came because of what I had felt God had been saying to me. There were two main things God revealed to me during my DTS concerning what my future might hold.
The first thing God revealed was that my ministering in Chicago is not over. I planned on coming back to Chicago when the DTS was over but thought that God might use the time away to lead me to a different place in the kingdom. I have always felt a desire to see the nations reached for the Lord and have loved all the places I have traveled. I knew I needed to be open to whatever God might have for me and where that might take me. Week 4 of the lecture phase of the DTS was a celebration of the 50th anniversary of YWAM International and the 25th anniversary of YWAM Perth. Throughout the week we heard people tell stories about how God worked in and through them to grow that ministry. It was fun to hear the stories and be a part of the celebrations but throughout the week I kept thinking about the 15 years I'd spent in Chicago and all the people I'd met and things I'd done. I took the time to celebrate all that God had done in those years, thanking Him for my time in Chicago and yet surrendering it as well so I would be ready for what he had for me in the future. As the DTS continued beyond the celebrations week I felt like God wasn't taking my heart for Chicago away but growing it stronger and even helping me dream about what my part might look like. As my heart for Chicago grew I felt sure that God was saying that there was more for me in the city but that it would be different than what I had done before.
The second thing I took away from my 6 months away was a better understanding of God's heart for cities and the strategy and type of vision it takes to reach a city for Christ. I know it's not a coincidence that God brought me to Perth to do a DTS during a MegaCities year. MegaCities is a ministry of YWAM Perth that focuses on a city of over a million for one year joining with local believers to bring about city transformation. In 2010 the focus of MegaCities was Mexico City. I was able to be a part of the first wave of teams that pioneered the work that would continue throughout the year and beyond. I'm so thankful that I was able to do my outreach with that focus. It is such an incredible ministry. MegaCities finished its year in Mexico City with some amazing results. God used the 1000+ international volunteers that flooded the city for over a year to bring tremendous change to the lives of thousands in Mexico City. More than 46,000 people heard about Jesus from these teams. Over 10,400 made a decision to follow Jesus, 1700 Bibles were handed out and over 53,700 people received teaching from the teams (like mine) and speakers that came. These numbers were what the teams reported but the final numbers from the local pastors revealed results outnumbering what the teams had reported. Transformation has started in Mexico City because workers were sent. I would love to see this type of change happen in the city of Chicago!
I’ve been back in Chicago now for over 8 months after spending time post DTS with friends and family. I took a non ministry job to pay the bills until I knew what my next step in ministry might be. Recently I was asked by YWAM Chicago to work with them this summer. They have groups from all over that come to the base and work in the city. Most of the groups are made up of high school students that will come for a week or two and do work around the city through organizations that are connected with the YWAM base. I will work with the groups helping with the logistics of what they will be doing and also live at the base and help oversee the groups that are staying there. I definitely believe the time is right for me to work with YWAM Chicago.
I love the ministry YWAM Chicago has in the city. Like MegaCities, they have a vision to see God bring transformation to the city. One of the things that I have learned from them is that we can take up Jesus’ call to go and reach the nations without ever going to another country. The nations are here. Of the 9 million people in Chicago, 1 out of 7 is foreign born. 64,000 new immigrants move to Chicago every year (175 a day) and almost half are from the least evangelized nations of the world. There are over 100 languages spoken natively by the students of Chicago public schools. In a 5-mile radius around the YWAM building there are 350,000 people of which 35% are foreign born representing nearly 150 different nationalities. The high school down the street from the base speaks 53 different languages natively by the student body. Chicago is made up of 400,000 Muslims, 150,000 Hindus and 250,000 Jews. Chicago is one of only 20 cities in the world with over 1 million foreign born. I am excited to reach the nations in a city that I love and help others to step out of their comfort zones and do the same.
Another aspect of this job I am excited about is working with high school aged youth. I still feel called to work with youth even though I know it won't look like what I have been doing, being a youth pastor in a church. I am excited to work with the groups of youth and help them as they process through all that they will be doing and experiencing in the city and encouraging themin their walks with the Lord.
In order to be able to work with YWAM Chicago this summer I will need to once again raise my financial support. I am hoping to start working with YWAM Chicago by the middle to end of June through the beginning of September. To cover my expenses (condo, insurance, taxes and basic living expenses) I will need to raise about $5000. Would you prayerfully consider supporting me financially so that I will be able to work with YWAM Chicago?
You can make a one time tax deductable donation by writing a check to Suburban Life Community Church and sending it back to me in the envelope provided. to me in the envelope provided. SLCC will send you a receipt for tax purposes.
I am excited to be able to work with YWAM Chicago this summer but have felt the weight of this step of faith. Part of that is because I have been praying to see if YWAM Chicago is where God would like me full time. I am hoping that God will use my time there this summer to confirm that for me and help me to see my place in that ministry. I would love to have your support in prayer over my summer and this decision as well. I have loved and appreciated all of your prayers on my behalf. I know that I need people who are willing to pray for me as I step out in faith. It really is a scary thing but exciting for me as well!
Thank you for your support of me. I am so thankful for each and every one of you. God is so good and I count all of you as one of his many blessings to me in my life! Thank you for taking the time to read this. I have been without a computer since I was in Mexico which has made updating all of you a challenge. I will send out updates by email and on my blog at www.blogspot.com/kathioom. If I don’t have your email address please let me know. If you’d prefer me to send you an update by mail, please let me know that as well.
I am looking forward to a great summer in the city! Thanks again!
Expecting great things from God,
Kathi Oom
I am going to be working this summer for YWAM Chicago. I sent out a support letter that shares a bit about what I've been thinking and what I'll be up to! Here is the letter!! Enjoy!
May, 2011
Dear Friends and Family,
I am so excited to share with you all that God has been and is doing in my life. Before I do that though I want to say thank you for the love and support you have shown me over the last year and a half! I appreciate it very much and know that I couldn't have done it without you.
January through June of 2010 was an awesome adventure for me as I traveled to Perth, Australia and Mexico City, Mexico for the Compassion DTS. As I look back on those 6 months I realize how much the Lord blessed me with that time. I was able to spend lots of quality time with him in prayer and in reflecting on all the years I had spent in Chicago while looking forward to all he had in store for me. It was a time of working through all the feelings that come with major transitions in life and learning more about what it means to be a child of God. He met me where I was in such tangible ways, ways that were so surprising yet uplifting. It was a meaningful time for sure.
As I finished my time the inevitable question of "what are you going to do next" was asked by many people and I struggled because I didn't have the answer. I did, however, feel very confident that God would make it clear in His timing. That confidence came because of what I had felt God had been saying to me. There were two main things God revealed to me during my DTS concerning what my future might hold.
The first thing God revealed was that my ministering in Chicago is not over. I planned on coming back to Chicago when the DTS was over but thought that God might use the time away to lead me to a different place in the kingdom. I have always felt a desire to see the nations reached for the Lord and have loved all the places I have traveled. I knew I needed to be open to whatever God might have for me and where that might take me. Week 4 of the lecture phase of the DTS was a celebration of the 50th anniversary of YWAM International and the 25th anniversary of YWAM Perth. Throughout the week we heard people tell stories about how God worked in and through them to grow that ministry. It was fun to hear the stories and be a part of the celebrations but throughout the week I kept thinking about the 15 years I'd spent in Chicago and all the people I'd met and things I'd done. I took the time to celebrate all that God had done in those years, thanking Him for my time in Chicago and yet surrendering it as well so I would be ready for what he had for me in the future. As the DTS continued beyond the celebrations week I felt like God wasn't taking my heart for Chicago away but growing it stronger and even helping me dream about what my part might look like. As my heart for Chicago grew I felt sure that God was saying that there was more for me in the city but that it would be different than what I had done before.
The second thing I took away from my 6 months away was a better understanding of God's heart for cities and the strategy and type of vision it takes to reach a city for Christ. I know it's not a coincidence that God brought me to Perth to do a DTS during a MegaCities year. MegaCities is a ministry of YWAM Perth that focuses on a city of over a million for one year joining with local believers to bring about city transformation. In 2010 the focus of MegaCities was Mexico City. I was able to be a part of the first wave of teams that pioneered the work that would continue throughout the year and beyond. I'm so thankful that I was able to do my outreach with that focus. It is such an incredible ministry. MegaCities finished its year in Mexico City with some amazing results. God used the 1000+ international volunteers that flooded the city for over a year to bring tremendous change to the lives of thousands in Mexico City. More than 46,000 people heard about Jesus from these teams. Over 10,400 made a decision to follow Jesus, 1700 Bibles were handed out and over 53,700 people received teaching from the teams (like mine) and speakers that came. These numbers were what the teams reported but the final numbers from the local pastors revealed results outnumbering what the teams had reported. Transformation has started in Mexico City because workers were sent. I would love to see this type of change happen in the city of Chicago!
I’ve been back in Chicago now for over 8 months after spending time post DTS with friends and family. I took a non ministry job to pay the bills until I knew what my next step in ministry might be. Recently I was asked by YWAM Chicago to work with them this summer. They have groups from all over that come to the base and work in the city. Most of the groups are made up of high school students that will come for a week or two and do work around the city through organizations that are connected with the YWAM base. I will work with the groups helping with the logistics of what they will be doing and also live at the base and help oversee the groups that are staying there. I definitely believe the time is right for me to work with YWAM Chicago.
I love the ministry YWAM Chicago has in the city. Like MegaCities, they have a vision to see God bring transformation to the city. One of the things that I have learned from them is that we can take up Jesus’ call to go and reach the nations without ever going to another country. The nations are here. Of the 9 million people in Chicago, 1 out of 7 is foreign born. 64,000 new immigrants move to Chicago every year (175 a day) and almost half are from the least evangelized nations of the world. There are over 100 languages spoken natively by the students of Chicago public schools. In a 5-mile radius around the YWAM building there are 350,000 people of which 35% are foreign born representing nearly 150 different nationalities. The high school down the street from the base speaks 53 different languages natively by the student body. Chicago is made up of 400,000 Muslims, 150,000 Hindus and 250,000 Jews. Chicago is one of only 20 cities in the world with over 1 million foreign born. I am excited to reach the nations in a city that I love and help others to step out of their comfort zones and do the same.
Another aspect of this job I am excited about is working with high school aged youth. I still feel called to work with youth even though I know it won't look like what I have been doing, being a youth pastor in a church. I am excited to work with the groups of youth and help them as they process through all that they will be doing and experiencing in the city and encouraging themin their walks with the Lord.
In order to be able to work with YWAM Chicago this summer I will need to once again raise my financial support. I am hoping to start working with YWAM Chicago by the middle to end of June through the beginning of September. To cover my expenses (condo, insurance, taxes and basic living expenses) I will need to raise about $5000. Would you prayerfully consider supporting me financially so that I will be able to work with YWAM Chicago?
You can make a one time tax deductable donation by writing a check to Suburban Life Community Church and sending it back to me in the envelope provided. to me in the envelope provided. SLCC will send you a receipt for tax purposes.
I am excited to be able to work with YWAM Chicago this summer but have felt the weight of this step of faith. Part of that is because I have been praying to see if YWAM Chicago is where God would like me full time. I am hoping that God will use my time there this summer to confirm that for me and help me to see my place in that ministry. I would love to have your support in prayer over my summer and this decision as well. I have loved and appreciated all of your prayers on my behalf. I know that I need people who are willing to pray for me as I step out in faith. It really is a scary thing but exciting for me as well!
Thank you for your support of me. I am so thankful for each and every one of you. God is so good and I count all of you as one of his many blessings to me in my life! Thank you for taking the time to read this. I have been without a computer since I was in Mexico which has made updating all of you a challenge. I will send out updates by email and on my blog at www.blogspot.com/kathioom. If I don’t have your email address please let me know. If you’d prefer me to send you an update by mail, please let me know that as well.
I am looking forward to a great summer in the city! Thanks again!
Expecting great things from God,
Kathi Oom
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Long time
I have been without a computer for while now and not able to update my blog. I got an iPhone so that I can still communicate with people and just found this amazing app that connects me with my blog! I will be updating it now!! Sorry about the gap in posts!! Hope you are are doing well this Mother's day!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Monday, May 3, 2010
Been a while...sorry!
Sorry it´s been so long since I updated my blog! My computer is not working and it´s harder to find time to get on the internet. Today is our day off so I have spend the last hour or so in an internet cafe catching up. I hope you all are doing well! I have been enjoying the time here in Mexico City and can´t believe we are halfway through the outreach.
We have definitely seen God working in our area. We have set up an English class and two discipleship seminars. We also continue to meet people almost everyday. We are even meeting more and more English speakers. One of the English speakers we met is a young guy named Juan. We met him because he had met a group from the Perth base back in March and they had given us his name. We went out to a cafe with him and his dad and talked and got to know him a bit. Later that week we were talking with a Pastor that we met and he invited us to his church. He arranged to have someone come and get us. It turned out to be Juan´s dad. We didn´t even realize that they knew each other. So, on the way to the church service we called Juan to let him know that his dad was taking us to church and could he come and translate for us. He came and at the end of the service there was an altar call and he went up and gave his life to the Lord. He was so excited and couldn´t stop smiling! He has come and joined us a few times since then and is really pumped about all God is doing in his life! It was so cool to see how God arranged it all!! We have another interpretor named Fernando that doesn´t know the Lord either, please be praying for him!
I also had a chance to meet someone in the municipal building of Huixquilucan. His name is Horacio and he is not a Christian. He recently had surgery so I went with a couple others to see him and ask how he was doing. He was so dumbfounded that we actually came to check on him. He kept looking at us like we were from a different planet. At the end he said he really wanted our whole team to come to his house and meet his family. We will be going there on a Saturday in May. Please pray that we can really share with him and see him and his family come to know the Lord. I was really impressed that we need to continue to pray for the government of this area and I think this is a unique contact to get to know more government people like Horacio.
This week we also had a corporate meeting with all the YWAMers that are in Mexico City. There are about 150-200 of us throughout the city. It was a fun day of catching up and being with our friends! We have about 20 teams from all over the world that are in Mexico City right now! A big majority of them are from the YWAM Perth base but there are some from other bases around the world.
Thanks again for keeping me in your prayers. I am doing well and we are having a great time with our team. We have about 5 more weeks of ministry and then one week of report back and graduation. Please pray that we continue to see where God is at work and join him! Thanks for your support of me!! Love and miss you all!! Kathi:)
We have definitely seen God working in our area. We have set up an English class and two discipleship seminars. We also continue to meet people almost everyday. We are even meeting more and more English speakers. One of the English speakers we met is a young guy named Juan. We met him because he had met a group from the Perth base back in March and they had given us his name. We went out to a cafe with him and his dad and talked and got to know him a bit. Later that week we were talking with a Pastor that we met and he invited us to his church. He arranged to have someone come and get us. It turned out to be Juan´s dad. We didn´t even realize that they knew each other. So, on the way to the church service we called Juan to let him know that his dad was taking us to church and could he come and translate for us. He came and at the end of the service there was an altar call and he went up and gave his life to the Lord. He was so excited and couldn´t stop smiling! He has come and joined us a few times since then and is really pumped about all God is doing in his life! It was so cool to see how God arranged it all!! We have another interpretor named Fernando that doesn´t know the Lord either, please be praying for him!
I also had a chance to meet someone in the municipal building of Huixquilucan. His name is Horacio and he is not a Christian. He recently had surgery so I went with a couple others to see him and ask how he was doing. He was so dumbfounded that we actually came to check on him. He kept looking at us like we were from a different planet. At the end he said he really wanted our whole team to come to his house and meet his family. We will be going there on a Saturday in May. Please pray that we can really share with him and see him and his family come to know the Lord. I was really impressed that we need to continue to pray for the government of this area and I think this is a unique contact to get to know more government people like Horacio.
This week we also had a corporate meeting with all the YWAMers that are in Mexico City. There are about 150-200 of us throughout the city. It was a fun day of catching up and being with our friends! We have about 20 teams from all over the world that are in Mexico City right now! A big majority of them are from the YWAM Perth base but there are some from other bases around the world.
Thanks again for keeping me in your prayers. I am doing well and we are having a great time with our team. We have about 5 more weeks of ministry and then one week of report back and graduation. Please pray that we continue to see where God is at work and join him! Thanks for your support of me!! Love and miss you all!! Kathi:)
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Hiuxquilucan
I’m in Mexico City! I had a great last few days in Perth and in all enjoyed my time in Australia. I am excited for this next phase of the DTS! My flights from Perth to Mexico went extremely well. I even had a great time with my friends, Leigh Anne and Jason Medina and their two kids. We were able to go out to dinner and even go to Target to get a few supplies. It was nice to be back in the States for a bit and shop where it isn’t so expensive! I arrived in Mexico City at 4am on Sunday morning. I spent the first three days at a church near the airport with a few others while we waited for the rest of our school to get there. We took time to work through our jet lag, explored the area and tried a few different Mexican restaurants! We had a great time. Tuesday night all of us that got there early went to the airport to meet the rest of our school. We then all headed out to our respective regions. I am in a region of the city called Huixquilucan (sounds like Whiskey-Loo-Can). It is west of the downtown area and is in a pretty mountainous area of the city. It is really beautiful. We are living in a home with a family, Margarita and her son Brayan. Our first task as a ministry team is to read through the whole Bible in 72 hours straight. As I write this we are about half way. Yesterday we met a woman who lives downstairs named Conni. She was a great help to us and was very patient with us as we tried to communicate with her. I think she had fun with it! She took us to a local Walmart so that we could get some groceries and get cell phones for our team. Today Kayla (our staff leader), Alyssa (the person on our team who can speak the most Spanish) and I went to meet with a local pastor. As part of the first wave into the city we are trying to make connections with the local churches and get a feel for the area. It was a great meeting. He was able to give us names of 11 churches in the area. He also informed us that he knows no one who speaks English that could help us translate. We are praying that God leads us to someone that could help us out! Please keep that in your prayers for us. We have plans to do evangelism and teach some seminars and would have a hard time doing all that without an interpreter. We are blessed to have internet in our home as well! I will hopefully be able to update each week! Thanks so much for reading!! Adios!!
Friday, March 26, 2010
Final Crazy Days in Perth!!
I am about an hour away from leaving from the airport and thought I should post something before I leave. It has been a crazy last week or so to say the least! Week 11 was our last full week of class. We had Chris Adams from base talk to us about Spiritual Warfare! It was a balanced and interesting teaching that I enjoyed very much. Cliff and Cristine were our teachers for week 12. They taught on missions. It was fun to end my time in Perth with my good friends teaching! They were great and a lot of fun!
This past Monday Perth had the worst storm they've had in 50 years. The sky was dark and ominous and reminded me of the few times I've been in tornado type weather. Reports say that it actually was a cyclone. Anyway, it started to rain a bit and then hail. A little later it was like the heavens opened and it started to pour like I've never seen. It rained so hard that much of the base and the streets were flooded. Quite a few roofs were damaged and a couple of the dorms had to be evacuated. We were without electricity on base for a few days. Needless to say we had to be incredibly flexible and creative to see everything run as normal.
In the midst of the storm and clean up we also have been fighting for visas for 23 students that come from more developing nations. There has been a lot of red tape and the Mexican embassy changing their minds about the process and what they need to do. It looks like most of them will have to wait 2-3 weeks to go to Mexico. Please pray that this situation clears, that they all are granted a visa and that they can come sooner rather than later! Please also pray that the government comes up with a way for students from these countries to get visas quicker because there will be people being sent to Mexico all year!
I don't know that I have had time to truly process my whole time in Perth. I know first and foremost that God gave me this time to relax me and to refresh me for more ministry. It has been such a blessing to have three months of learning more about him and sitting in his presence! I am so blessed by all of you that made this possible for me to come. I am so grateful! I look forward to stepping out to Mexico City and seeing all that God has for us there. We have heard phenomenal stories of what's been happening there and I am excited to get going. I'm not sure how often I will be able to have Internet but I will update whenever possible! Thanks again for your love and support of me! I know I couldn't do this without it! Thanks for reading!! See ya Perth!!
This past Monday Perth had the worst storm they've had in 50 years. The sky was dark and ominous and reminded me of the few times I've been in tornado type weather. Reports say that it actually was a cyclone. Anyway, it started to rain a bit and then hail. A little later it was like the heavens opened and it started to pour like I've never seen. It rained so hard that much of the base and the streets were flooded. Quite a few roofs were damaged and a couple of the dorms had to be evacuated. We were without electricity on base for a few days. Needless to say we had to be incredibly flexible and creative to see everything run as normal.
In the midst of the storm and clean up we also have been fighting for visas for 23 students that come from more developing nations. There has been a lot of red tape and the Mexican embassy changing their minds about the process and what they need to do. It looks like most of them will have to wait 2-3 weeks to go to Mexico. Please pray that this situation clears, that they all are granted a visa and that they can come sooner rather than later! Please also pray that the government comes up with a way for students from these countries to get visas quicker because there will be people being sent to Mexico all year!
I don't know that I have had time to truly process my whole time in Perth. I know first and foremost that God gave me this time to relax me and to refresh me for more ministry. It has been such a blessing to have three months of learning more about him and sitting in his presence! I am so blessed by all of you that made this possible for me to come. I am so grateful! I look forward to stepping out to Mexico City and seeing all that God has for us there. We have heard phenomenal stories of what's been happening there and I am excited to get going. I'm not sure how often I will be able to have Internet but I will update whenever possible! Thanks again for your love and support of me! I know I couldn't do this without it! Thanks for reading!! See ya Perth!!
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