G'day mates! Ahhh yeah, I got my Aussie 'accent' back :)
I'm back on the good 'ol Sunshine Coast... well I've been here for a week now. And it has been overwhelming- good overwhelming, for sure. We're all just wanting to soak up every minute with everyone back from all the crazy places we've been! Hearing all the stories; amazing, heart-wrenching, funny, embarassing, life-changing. So needless to say, time on the computer has been limited... remember that free time I was talking about... haha.
So, our last week of outreach we spent in Bali [which is a island in Indonesia- a very popular vacation spot for Europeans]. And it was very interesting. A whole lot of miscommunication within the team/leaders and some solid testing of the character on God's part... whew. The last time I posted the whole "God is way more interested in our character than our comfort" was only the beginning....
Okay, I am being a little dramatic, but honestly God taught me SO [PRACTICALLY] about relationships. And how to deal with issues and little 'speed bumps' that can potentially turn into major problems. What a learning experience. I feel like I am ripping God off by not explaining all the details, but I would seriously write a full out [maybe best-selling!] novel if I attempted!
So, I am going to be praying for Jesus to go ahead of me and prepare all of your ears and your listening capabilities before I get home, because let me tell ya:
I HAVE SO MUCH TO SHARE.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit have absolutley blown my mind. Between traveling, lecture content, speakers, friends, dating relationships, praying 24/7, living in community, cultures, and I could just go on and on, I feel like I have just lived 10 years of life in just 5 months!!! :)
Last week, Neville Stracher, as I'm typing his title I'm realizing that he does everyone, so I'm going to call him one sweet, walking-[Bible]encyclopedia, funny old dude. He's from Byron Bay. And he presented some absolutely amazing truths about MISSIONS, which was really awesome to have AFTER coming back from outreach.
The highlight for sure was having so many things being confirmed from my heart to my mind. By that I mean, God was teaching me so much in Indo just by me listening to what He was saying, then coming home and Neville teaching, Biblically, all the 'facts' if you will about what I already knew. It was awesome to say the least. :)
This next week is DEBREIF [which we have certainly started already this past week]. I am excited, yet sad. It's going to be very bittersweet...
More to come soon!
Love and miss you all and thank you for all the prayers.... I can feel 'em! :)
<3 Jade
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Friday, May 9, 2008
Suka suka Mu Tuhan!
Hello all!
Saying goodbye to our Nias family was tough, but praise Yesus Kristus! He blessed us with the most amazing farewell gift possible...Herman's brand new baby boy! Teti, his wife, went into labor wednesday night at 11 p.m., the night before we left. She delivered him at 1:30 a.m. yesterday :) So we got to meet him and hang out for a few minutes before we left for the airport! His name is Jessa Waruwu. And I can't wait to show you pictures of him.
I am certainly going to miss them.
But our last few days were great with all the youth and our new friends. And the last two weeks God definitely turned things up a little and challenged me big time. For the sake of time (internet is very limited...) I will share all the good stuff when I get home... or back to Australia when I have some spare time (a foreign concept) to really write it all down :) But let me tell ya- He is definitely more interested in our character than our comfort! Can I get an Amen?!?
Well we are off to Bali for a little debreif action :)
Please pray for safe travels and for everyone to really soak it all in and reflect on these past two months together as a team. Thank you!
I can't even express how excited I get when I think of talking and sharing EVERYTHING with all of you!!! Looooooooove you!!!!!!
<3 Jade
p.s. Suka suka Mu Tuhan means 'Have it your way, Lord!" in bahasa Nias. :) And it is a really fun song I hope I can attempt to sing for you!
Saying goodbye to our Nias family was tough, but praise Yesus Kristus! He blessed us with the most amazing farewell gift possible...Herman's brand new baby boy! Teti, his wife, went into labor wednesday night at 11 p.m., the night before we left. She delivered him at 1:30 a.m. yesterday :) So we got to meet him and hang out for a few minutes before we left for the airport! His name is Jessa Waruwu. And I can't wait to show you pictures of him.
I am certainly going to miss them.
But our last few days were great with all the youth and our new friends. And the last two weeks God definitely turned things up a little and challenged me big time. For the sake of time (internet is very limited...) I will share all the good stuff when I get home... or back to Australia when I have some spare time (a foreign concept) to really write it all down :) But let me tell ya- He is definitely more interested in our character than our comfort! Can I get an Amen?!?
Well we are off to Bali for a little debreif action :)
Please pray for safe travels and for everyone to really soak it all in and reflect on these past two months together as a team. Thank you!
I can't even express how excited I get when I think of talking and sharing EVERYTHING with all of you!!! Looooooooove you!!!!!!
<3 Jade
p.s. Suka suka Mu Tuhan means 'Have it your way, Lord!" in bahasa Nias. :) And it is a really fun song I hope I can attempt to sing for you!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Back to Nias!
Hello everyone!
Our week in Medan was great. The pastor's conference was presented by New Covenant Ministry International [NCMI] at a theological school/church . We actually got to sleep at the school [in the classrooms!] which made for an interesting week. Very hot! And many frantic wake-ups in the middle of the night for cochroach alerts! ... I will definitely be asking God the purpose of those creatures when I get to heaven. They don't die! Anyway, the week was filled everyday with speakers from NCMI from 9a-5p. These guys are amazing. They're pumped to see unity in Indonesia among the churches and are so dedicated to really help the church structure. We were pumped to see more boolays too! :) They are mostly from New Zealand and Oz, but a few South Africans too. We had the opportunity to really spend time with them, too, which was awesome. Many dinners and even a badminton tournament. They love badminton here! But that was heaps of fun.
We were responsible all week to clean-up after each day, which was actually quite a task. Not to clean so much [although Indonesians have a very different attitude toward trash, cleanliness, etc.], but to persuade them to allow us to serve them! Indonesian culture is very hostess-oriented, so the church family didn't understand why we wanted to clean their facility. They wanted to clean it for us!
Yesterday, me and a few others had to fly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in order to get a new 30-day visa back into Indonesia. We flew out at 8 pm and flew back to Medan at 8 am. The night in the airport was very interesting :) We looked like fools trying to sleep. All the airport seats were taken by other passengers trying to sleep, so we ended up 'sleeping' in The Coffee Bean. We got a few weird stares. Typical missionaries :) haha.
So we're off tonight, driving back to Nias. A 10 hour haul! Woo! I am stoked to get back to our friends though :) We only have two and half weeks once we get back! Time is tickin'... and God still has lots in store!
Well hope all is well back on the homefront!
<3 Jade
Our week in Medan was great. The pastor's conference was presented by New Covenant Ministry International [NCMI] at a theological school/church . We actually got to sleep at the school [in the classrooms!] which made for an interesting week. Very hot! And many frantic wake-ups in the middle of the night for cochroach alerts! ... I will definitely be asking God the purpose of those creatures when I get to heaven. They don't die! Anyway, the week was filled everyday with speakers from NCMI from 9a-5p. These guys are amazing. They're pumped to see unity in Indonesia among the churches and are so dedicated to really help the church structure. We were pumped to see more boolays too! :) They are mostly from New Zealand and Oz, but a few South Africans too. We had the opportunity to really spend time with them, too, which was awesome. Many dinners and even a badminton tournament. They love badminton here! But that was heaps of fun.
We were responsible all week to clean-up after each day, which was actually quite a task. Not to clean so much [although Indonesians have a very different attitude toward trash, cleanliness, etc.], but to persuade them to allow us to serve them! Indonesian culture is very hostess-oriented, so the church family didn't understand why we wanted to clean their facility. They wanted to clean it for us!
Yesterday, me and a few others had to fly to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in order to get a new 30-day visa back into Indonesia. We flew out at 8 pm and flew back to Medan at 8 am. The night in the airport was very interesting :) We looked like fools trying to sleep. All the airport seats were taken by other passengers trying to sleep, so we ended up 'sleeping' in The Coffee Bean. We got a few weird stares. Typical missionaries :) haha.
So we're off tonight, driving back to Nias. A 10 hour haul! Woo! I am stoked to get back to our friends though :) We only have two and half weeks once we get back! Time is tickin'... and God still has lots in store!
Well hope all is well back on the homefront!
<3 Jade
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Indo continued.........
So we finally caught our flight to Nias Tuesday morning on a 30-passenger airplane! My hour flight was filled with lots of prayer. We were met by Jeremy and Herman at the airport, and we off on a four hour journey to Sorake Beach- our home for the next two months! Finally!
Nias is gorgeous. I have to admit, I imagined something like Fraser Island- lots of sand, flat, etc. Nope. It looks like Jurassic Park, and Scotland. It’s beautiful- lots of mountains covered with palm trees. And the weather is great. It does rain, but like just like any other coastal place, it just pours and then stops. It’s about 85 degrees on average, very humid, and sunny! The people are great. They still love boolays, but are super friendly.
Our house, or losmen as they call it in Nias, is on the beach. I know what you’re thinkin’… rough life, huh? It is amazing, however the ‘beach’ is about 100 yards of dead reef and stagnant water, then is cuts straight to 5 foot barrel waves. [That’s where the surfers drool.] Sorake Beach, which is actually on the edge of a bay, wasn’t hit by the tsunami in 2005, but the earthquake damaged the reef. Major detriment to the reef, major plus for the waves and surf life- not sure if that’s a good deal or not? I have yet to surf. I’m not too sure I want to ‘learn’ on 5 foot waves. However, there is a crack in the reef, which is cleverly named ‘the crack’, about a ten minute walk down the beach which is amazing to snorkel. Not tons of wildlife, but lovely little fish, crabs, sea cucumbers and crystal clear water. So we’ve been snorkeling a few times. Our first trip, me, Reba and Susie were pleasantly surprised by about ten 8-10 year old NAKED boys. Oh it was a joy. They just stared and so did we, so it was all good.
Alright, now for the good stuff… Let me give you a little information on our church, Banua Keriso Protestan Nias [BKPN] Taluk Dalam. BKPN is the denomination- there are tons of BKPN’s in Nias. Taluk Dalam, the town in which the church is, distinguishes ours. And Taluk Dalam is about a 20 minute ride from Sorake Beach. [If you’re at all interested, you can check it out on a map. Sorake is on the southern tip of Nias. And Taluk Dalam is north east of Sorake.]
So, as you all know discipleship is the heart of this outreach. But I need to give you a little background info… Jeremy met Herman about a year ago. The two of them clicked right away and their visions for the youth of Nias, too. Since then, they have been trying to bridge the gap between the elders and the youth of the church. The gap is saddening. There is just no connection. The elders are very stuck in religion [and like most, are oblivious to it]. The church is pretty liberal in song and dance, but very conservative in thinking.
So Herman and Jeremy’s main mission, and of course our team for this short while, is for the kids to really meet and know and love and live for Jesus. Not to just live traditions and rules and participate because their parents do, or because they’re told to. The good news is: they are pumped! They are stoked to learn and listen. They love to ask questions and hear testimonies, etc.
Most of our time is spent with a group of about ten of them who are the ‘leaders’. And I use leader for the shear fact that most are cell group leaders, but also because they are really stepping up the plate for God, to really dig into having a personal relationship with Jesus. They are going to move mountains in this church and for the next generation. It’s so fun to share the same journey with people so different from me!
So our week nights are filled with lots of hanging out, getting to know them, and cell groups, prayer groups, youth group. Lots and lots of relationship building. It’s amazing the kind of friendship you can build with someone who can’t even speak the same language as you! Our days are very open, which has been one of the biggest challenges here. Sounds weird at first, but it’s not hard to figure out. Free time = lots of discipline. Which ultimately = good! It’s been an amazing opportunity to really let the Holy Spirit lead us in what to do for the day. Of course, He led us to great things. We’ve been able to pray for so many people and just see God working in so many new ways.
One Sunday afternoon we were all swimming at the bay and there were heaps and heaps of kids there. One of the older ones, Harrison, who we’ve met a few times here and there, started talking to me and Susie about this and that. He was clearly feeling a little tipsy. I guess it’s important to note that there’s a bar on the beach where we can actually swim. [Its mostly occupied by surfing tourists.] But as we talked, he began to really open up and shared with us some pretty intense stuff about his life. He’s very heartbroken and told us that, “he’s been way too bad.” And Susie and I said, “Well let us tell you about a guy we know…” He of course had heard who Jesus is but didn’t know a single truth about who he was and what he did for us [a lot like most of America]. It was a very sobering [no pun intended!] moment. Susie and I prayed for him right there in the water, waves and all. We left the rest up the Jesus. It was sweet.
We had the chance to speak at a high school and a middle school in a village nearby. Becaa and Bree shared a little mini-sermon on Characters of God. I shared my story in front of an entire school! Herman translated for me. Having a translator is fun, too. It really allows you to collect your thoughts [takes the edge off, too!]. We answered some questions, sang songs, and hung out with them, which mainly involves lots of smiling and nodding because you can’t hold a conversation. It was fun.
We also had the chance to speak at the university in Taluk Dalam. One of Herman and Jeremy’s friends teaches an inter-cultural class there and he invited us to come speak on sexuality. Yes, sexuality. We all sat down, beforehand, to discuss what we wanted to share. It even invoked an interesting conversation amongst us and the four nations we represent on our team. So, needless to say, we were a little overwhelmed at first. We finally decided [and learned!] that even among a group of western Christians there were differing views and opinions of sexuality, but a common thread is that sexuality is NOT what is depicted in Hollywood. Movies, singers, rappers, magazines, etc. is all Indonesians know of how we ‘boolays’ present ourselves and our sexuality. So, as a team, all we wanted to do was simply share ourselves and our views and how they differed greatly to what Hollywood portrays. It was amazing. They were thoroughly surprised, intrigued, and challenged, by our information and our lives. Mission accomplished.
We left yesterday for Medan. [I am currently on an island in Lake Toba… don’t ask me how they have internet!] We are helping out with a Pastors’ conference. We’re actually not too sure of what that entails, but we were asked to come and we said yes! So, please be praying for this week. It’s an amazing blessing for the Pastors to get together in Medan! Pray for His light to shine, shine, shine over an Islam city this week!!
I could really write on and on and on sharing more stuff. But for the sake of internet, or lack thereof, I will have to say goodbye for now. Hopefully I’ll have at least one more update by the time I get back to Australia.
I miss you all… AND LOVE YOU MORE!
♥Jade
p.s. In case you haven’t heard, I have resigned from my job at Dauphin County. A very scary step forward, but I know I have heard the Big Man upstairs loud and clear. So some prayers for what my future holds would be sweet… don’t worry I’m praying heaps, too! Any insight, words, etc. is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Nias is gorgeous. I have to admit, I imagined something like Fraser Island- lots of sand, flat, etc. Nope. It looks like Jurassic Park, and Scotland. It’s beautiful- lots of mountains covered with palm trees. And the weather is great. It does rain, but like just like any other coastal place, it just pours and then stops. It’s about 85 degrees on average, very humid, and sunny! The people are great. They still love boolays, but are super friendly.
Our house, or losmen as they call it in Nias, is on the beach. I know what you’re thinkin’… rough life, huh? It is amazing, however the ‘beach’ is about 100 yards of dead reef and stagnant water, then is cuts straight to 5 foot barrel waves. [That’s where the surfers drool.] Sorake Beach, which is actually on the edge of a bay, wasn’t hit by the tsunami in 2005, but the earthquake damaged the reef. Major detriment to the reef, major plus for the waves and surf life- not sure if that’s a good deal or not? I have yet to surf. I’m not too sure I want to ‘learn’ on 5 foot waves. However, there is a crack in the reef, which is cleverly named ‘the crack’, about a ten minute walk down the beach which is amazing to snorkel. Not tons of wildlife, but lovely little fish, crabs, sea cucumbers and crystal clear water. So we’ve been snorkeling a few times. Our first trip, me, Reba and Susie were pleasantly surprised by about ten 8-10 year old NAKED boys. Oh it was a joy. They just stared and so did we, so it was all good.
Alright, now for the good stuff… Let me give you a little information on our church, Banua Keriso Protestan Nias [BKPN] Taluk Dalam. BKPN is the denomination- there are tons of BKPN’s in Nias. Taluk Dalam, the town in which the church is, distinguishes ours. And Taluk Dalam is about a 20 minute ride from Sorake Beach. [If you’re at all interested, you can check it out on a map. Sorake is on the southern tip of Nias. And Taluk Dalam is north east of Sorake.]
So, as you all know discipleship is the heart of this outreach. But I need to give you a little background info… Jeremy met Herman about a year ago. The two of them clicked right away and their visions for the youth of Nias, too. Since then, they have been trying to bridge the gap between the elders and the youth of the church. The gap is saddening. There is just no connection. The elders are very stuck in religion [and like most, are oblivious to it]. The church is pretty liberal in song and dance, but very conservative in thinking.
So Herman and Jeremy’s main mission, and of course our team for this short while, is for the kids to really meet and know and love and live for Jesus. Not to just live traditions and rules and participate because their parents do, or because they’re told to. The good news is: they are pumped! They are stoked to learn and listen. They love to ask questions and hear testimonies, etc.
Most of our time is spent with a group of about ten of them who are the ‘leaders’. And I use leader for the shear fact that most are cell group leaders, but also because they are really stepping up the plate for God, to really dig into having a personal relationship with Jesus. They are going to move mountains in this church and for the next generation. It’s so fun to share the same journey with people so different from me!
So our week nights are filled with lots of hanging out, getting to know them, and cell groups, prayer groups, youth group. Lots and lots of relationship building. It’s amazing the kind of friendship you can build with someone who can’t even speak the same language as you! Our days are very open, which has been one of the biggest challenges here. Sounds weird at first, but it’s not hard to figure out. Free time = lots of discipline. Which ultimately = good! It’s been an amazing opportunity to really let the Holy Spirit lead us in what to do for the day. Of course, He led us to great things. We’ve been able to pray for so many people and just see God working in so many new ways.
One Sunday afternoon we were all swimming at the bay and there were heaps and heaps of kids there. One of the older ones, Harrison, who we’ve met a few times here and there, started talking to me and Susie about this and that. He was clearly feeling a little tipsy. I guess it’s important to note that there’s a bar on the beach where we can actually swim. [Its mostly occupied by surfing tourists.] But as we talked, he began to really open up and shared with us some pretty intense stuff about his life. He’s very heartbroken and told us that, “he’s been way too bad.” And Susie and I said, “Well let us tell you about a guy we know…” He of course had heard who Jesus is but didn’t know a single truth about who he was and what he did for us [a lot like most of America]. It was a very sobering [no pun intended!] moment. Susie and I prayed for him right there in the water, waves and all. We left the rest up the Jesus. It was sweet.
We had the chance to speak at a high school and a middle school in a village nearby. Becaa and Bree shared a little mini-sermon on Characters of God. I shared my story in front of an entire school! Herman translated for me. Having a translator is fun, too. It really allows you to collect your thoughts [takes the edge off, too!]. We answered some questions, sang songs, and hung out with them, which mainly involves lots of smiling and nodding because you can’t hold a conversation. It was fun.
We also had the chance to speak at the university in Taluk Dalam. One of Herman and Jeremy’s friends teaches an inter-cultural class there and he invited us to come speak on sexuality. Yes, sexuality. We all sat down, beforehand, to discuss what we wanted to share. It even invoked an interesting conversation amongst us and the four nations we represent on our team. So, needless to say, we were a little overwhelmed at first. We finally decided [and learned!] that even among a group of western Christians there were differing views and opinions of sexuality, but a common thread is that sexuality is NOT what is depicted in Hollywood. Movies, singers, rappers, magazines, etc. is all Indonesians know of how we ‘boolays’ present ourselves and our sexuality. So, as a team, all we wanted to do was simply share ourselves and our views and how they differed greatly to what Hollywood portrays. It was amazing. They were thoroughly surprised, intrigued, and challenged, by our information and our lives. Mission accomplished.
We left yesterday for Medan. [I am currently on an island in Lake Toba… don’t ask me how they have internet!] We are helping out with a Pastors’ conference. We’re actually not too sure of what that entails, but we were asked to come and we said yes! So, please be praying for this week. It’s an amazing blessing for the Pastors to get together in Medan! Pray for His light to shine, shine, shine over an Islam city this week!!
I could really write on and on and on sharing more stuff. But for the sake of internet, or lack thereof, I will have to say goodbye for now. Hopefully I’ll have at least one more update by the time I get back to Australia.
I miss you all… AND LOVE YOU MORE!
♥Jade
p.s. In case you haven’t heard, I have resigned from my job at Dauphin County. A very scary step forward, but I know I have heard the Big Man upstairs loud and clear. So some prayers for what my future holds would be sweet… don’t worry I’m praying heaps, too! Any insight, words, etc. is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Traveling to Indonesia
Hi ya’ll!
Yes, this is an update! I have SO much to fill you in on… I’ll start from the top.
PRAISE JESUS we got here after a five day journey! When we arrived at the airport in Brisbane Friday night [you know, all the way back in March] we were greeted by Malaysia Air employees informing us that our flight was cancelled and that is actually never even left Malaysia because of engine issues. So, as they took our information and gave us new itineraries, Becaa realized she forgot her passport and tickets on our living room floor! [Thank you Lord for lining that one up!] So they gave us taxi and hotel vouchers and put us up in a horrible little ‘hole-in-wall’ hotel- just kidding! As Kodan put it as we waited in the five star hotel in downtown Brisbane, “Oh we’re the sorry, you’ll have to live in luxury for the night.” [He’s funny.] Man, God really hooked us up… we each got our own rooms with queen-size beds! It was such a nice little gift.
In the morning, the taxis took us back to the airport where we met the Africa team for Becaa’s passport, which worked out so perfect. Then we flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was a really nice eight hour flight. [p.s. I definitely recommend Malaysia Air.] We arrived in KL pretty late and realized that our departing flight to Medan wasn’t for two days! So we “talked” to the Malaysia Air employees there and finally after about two hours they switched our flight to the next day and gave us more taxi and hotel vouchers! So we were off to downtown KL expecting that ‘hole-in-wall’ hotel and to our delight we stayed in another really nice hotel, The Blue Wave. [Very tourist-friendly!]
Then the culture shock set in… with the call to prayer. One of the five pillars of the Islam faith is praying five times daily. At which times the mosques announce, which is more like singing prayer on a loud speaker so that all the devout Muslims know it’s time to get on their mats and pray towards Mecca. And in case you’re not sure where Mecca is, they have an arrow on the ceiling of each hotel room pointing towards it. Weird. I honestly felt a spiritual heaviness. So I prayed my little butt to sleep. J
In the morning the taxis took us back to the airport, which was about an hour ride, so we got to actually see a bit of Malaysia- gorgeous. Then we boarded our flight to Penang, Malaysia; then another flight to Medan, Indonesia [on the main island of Sumatra]. In Medan we were greeted by friends… well friends of friends of friends. Friends nonetheless! Moulia and Jennie were a HUGE blessing. We were bombarded in the airport by Indonesians, urging and pleading with us to let them give us a ride… so overwhelming [definitely more culture shock]. They love boolays [white people]! Moulia is an employee of Herman, who is Jeremy’s main man in Nias. Herman is the youth pastor at the church we work with. And Jennie is Moulia’s friend. They carted us around Medan, fed us and helped us buy tickets for our little flight to Nias, which wasn’t leaving until Tuesday. So we just chilled out [ha!] in Medan for two nights. Medan is like a tiny New York City with the same amount of pe!
ople!
And the same driving skills, add in motorbikes! Craziness. And I’ve come to find, that is a very good picture for most all of Indonesia.
Yes, this is an update! I have SO much to fill you in on… I’ll start from the top.
PRAISE JESUS we got here after a five day journey! When we arrived at the airport in Brisbane Friday night [you know, all the way back in March] we were greeted by Malaysia Air employees informing us that our flight was cancelled and that is actually never even left Malaysia because of engine issues. So, as they took our information and gave us new itineraries, Becaa realized she forgot her passport and tickets on our living room floor! [Thank you Lord for lining that one up!] So they gave us taxi and hotel vouchers and put us up in a horrible little ‘hole-in-wall’ hotel- just kidding! As Kodan put it as we waited in the five star hotel in downtown Brisbane, “Oh we’re the sorry, you’ll have to live in luxury for the night.” [He’s funny.] Man, God really hooked us up… we each got our own rooms with queen-size beds! It was such a nice little gift.
In the morning, the taxis took us back to the airport where we met the Africa team for Becaa’s passport, which worked out so perfect. Then we flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was a really nice eight hour flight. [p.s. I definitely recommend Malaysia Air.] We arrived in KL pretty late and realized that our departing flight to Medan wasn’t for two days! So we “talked” to the Malaysia Air employees there and finally after about two hours they switched our flight to the next day and gave us more taxi and hotel vouchers! So we were off to downtown KL expecting that ‘hole-in-wall’ hotel and to our delight we stayed in another really nice hotel, The Blue Wave. [Very tourist-friendly!]
Then the culture shock set in… with the call to prayer. One of the five pillars of the Islam faith is praying five times daily. At which times the mosques announce, which is more like singing prayer on a loud speaker so that all the devout Muslims know it’s time to get on their mats and pray towards Mecca. And in case you’re not sure where Mecca is, they have an arrow on the ceiling of each hotel room pointing towards it. Weird. I honestly felt a spiritual heaviness. So I prayed my little butt to sleep. J
In the morning the taxis took us back to the airport, which was about an hour ride, so we got to actually see a bit of Malaysia- gorgeous. Then we boarded our flight to Penang, Malaysia; then another flight to Medan, Indonesia [on the main island of Sumatra]. In Medan we were greeted by friends… well friends of friends of friends. Friends nonetheless! Moulia and Jennie were a HUGE blessing. We were bombarded in the airport by Indonesians, urging and pleading with us to let them give us a ride… so overwhelming [definitely more culture shock]. They love boolays [white people]! Moulia is an employee of Herman, who is Jeremy’s main man in Nias. Herman is the youth pastor at the church we work with. And Jennie is Moulia’s friend. They carted us around Medan, fed us and helped us buy tickets for our little flight to Nias, which wasn’t leaving until Tuesday. So we just chilled out [ha!] in Medan for two nights. Medan is like a tiny New York City with the same amount of pe!
ople!
And the same driving skills, add in motorbikes! Craziness. And I’ve come to find, that is a very good picture for most all of Indonesia.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
and we're off!
We're flying out tonight at 9 p.m. from Brisbane> layover in Malaysia> fly into Medan> then a little flighter plane to Nias! Wooo! More traveling, and thankfully this time I have other people to help me keep my head on..... :)
See you in Indo!
<3 YOU ALL
Jade
See you in Indo!
<3 YOU ALL
Jade
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
t-minus 72 hours.... :)
Wow.
The staff were 100% correct about that flying by business! We'll be in Indonesia in only three days :)
We still have lecture this week. Our base director, Rob [him and his wife spoke on relationships week 3] is speaking this last week of lectures on 'Overview of the Bible' but as boring and mudane as that sounds he has managed to really get us thinking about actually having a Bible view, seeing God's big picture, not just our personal lives- my Jesus, my salvation, my relationship with God, etc. But actually seeing the world how God sees it and how He portrayed that to us thru His word.
"The Bible tells us HOW to think, not WHAT." - Rob.
This morning we had a nice chat on covenants. Soooooooo interesting. I highly suggest you check it out. I could write a book right now, but for the sake of time I'll wait to share that good stuff until I get home! :)
Please lift our team and all the other teams in your thoughts and prayers as we're packin' and preparin' and headin' off this weekend, oh! FYI the other three teams are going to -Uganda and South Africa [Ashlee's leading 12 students! :) Pray for her!]- Cambodia and Thailand [all girls!]- Philipenes [wakeboarding ministry]- Darwin, Australia [Titus and Ester's family and the other family here, The Geltch's]. Thanks guys!
<3 ya'll!
Jade
The staff were 100% correct about that flying by business! We'll be in Indonesia in only three days :)
We still have lecture this week. Our base director, Rob [him and his wife spoke on relationships week 3] is speaking this last week of lectures on 'Overview of the Bible' but as boring and mudane as that sounds he has managed to really get us thinking about actually having a Bible view, seeing God's big picture, not just our personal lives- my Jesus, my salvation, my relationship with God, etc. But actually seeing the world how God sees it and how He portrayed that to us thru His word.
"The Bible tells us HOW to think, not WHAT." - Rob.
This morning we had a nice chat on covenants. Soooooooo interesting. I highly suggest you check it out. I could write a book right now, but for the sake of time I'll wait to share that good stuff until I get home! :)
Please lift our team and all the other teams in your thoughts and prayers as we're packin' and preparin' and headin' off this weekend, oh! FYI the other three teams are going to -Uganda and South Africa [Ashlee's leading 12 students! :) Pray for her!]- Cambodia and Thailand [all girls!]- Philipenes [wakeboarding ministry]- Darwin, Australia [Titus and Ester's family and the other family here, The Geltch's]. Thanks guys!
<3 ya'll!
Jade
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