One of the highlights of the vacation was the sight seeing that I would get to do. Switzerland is a very old country, and I was looking forward to learning a little about it's history.
As I was going to Interlaken, I took the time to go to Luzern, a train stop along the way. It was recommended to me that if I had 30 minutes to go and see the foot bridge there and take in the art work on the bridge. So I planned to do that. I actually met an American woman who was doing the same thing, and together we enjoyed the winter market, the foot bridge, and the view of the lake there. We had a great conversation for the 2 hours, talking about our careers and talking about Switzerland. The foot bridge was cool. It had over 150 different mural paintings overhead which told stories of kings, battles, and the history of the town.
On my free day in Interlaken, I had an interesting barefoot language learning opportunity. As I was finishing up a nice lunch, a family with young children were sitting in front of me. The daughter, 6, was drawing on the back of the paper place mat while the son, 3, was running around the restaurant. As the mom chased her son, I went up to the girl to see what she was doing. She had drawn her family, the sun, a flower, and trees. So I asked her what each of these were, and she told me. Then I drew a similar picture of my family in the town, and from that picture she told me the German words for mountain, cloud, sun, train, river, mom, and dad. Of course some things are tough to communicate, as barefoot language learning will teach anyone, but I thought this was a good start. Roger Haun would be proud of me for taking this initive on my vacation. :) I did want to learn to greet people in German while on the trip, and I was able to after several days.
Of course while I was in Interlaken I was skiing. I did find an animal park up a mountain, and saw some cute mountain goats and a beautiful overlook of the city. I also saw the downtown district-which had some old catholic churches, one methodist church, a courthouse, and a lot of old buildings. They had some nice shopping areas and restaurants, which I explored in the evenings. And, George, they even had a real casino in the town.
In Zurich I took my time to explore various places. Saturday when I arrived I was tired and wanted to rest a bit. So I checked into my hotel and after a light nap decided to go exploring. My exploring led me to an adventure. I found news of a winter market in a nearby town that I could get to by train. I decided this would be my evening entertainment, and went there for 3 hours to look around. These markets are like any holiday fair-winter crafts, food, etc. In Switzerland you'll find the fondue as well. By the way, I'm obviously not European-I do not like the smell of that cheese. But I couldn't help but to think of my cousin Kriss, knowing she loves cheese and thinking she'd be in heaven there. A highlight at this market was finding a beautiful rug of a hand stitched angel. I didn't see the price for the rug, but I'd bet anything it was > $1500. I asked if I could take a picture of it, but my batteries were too cold to get the camera to work.
My Sunday exploring took me into the heart of Zurich. I went to a church service at 10, and then hit a few museums in the afternoon. They had a 1/3 marathon during the day, which made getting around the town difficult. I was able to see all I wanted to see, and had a good time touring the city. I wanted to get the chance to catch a guided tour, but found out that in december they go every other weekend. I happened to be there at the off weekend.
I'll write a note about the church service. It was a light service. As it was in German, i didn't understand anything, but I observed. They started promptly at 10 with the usher locking the main door at that time. Late guests could come in by using a side door entrace and sit in the balcony. The service opened with a liturgy reading, 2 hymns, what seemed like announcements, which I was surprised by, and then the first prayer of the service 30 minutes into the service. After the prayer they had the children's christmas program, which was cute. The kids were wooded creatures who seem to notice something going on. Two of them played instruments, and played them very well for their ages. I did find myself laughing at their hyperness, noone could sit still and several waved at their parents during the play. But it was cute. As the play ended, the leader stood up again, led in 2 verses of the last hymn, and dismissed us with no prayer. An offering was collected as we walked out the doors.
On Monday I took the day to go to the zoo. The zoo was a fun time, though some of the animals were missing in action. Even my cold weather friendly otters were cuddled close together. The lions were huddled together, the tiger I was hoping to see was gone. It was sorta funny seeing the elephants slip on the ice as they walked in their pen. They had a lot of penguins who were enjoying the weather and the swimming conditions. I did get to see some shy sea lions, flamingos, dart frogs, and a few birds. There were some elk, sheep, goats, cows, and various other farm animals there, too. The highlight of the zoo, though, was the climate controlled rainforest they had on display. The rainforest was basically an enclosed greenhouse which regulated its temperature. It wanted to be about 90 degrees F, but this day it was closer to 75. That's a lot of heat when outside it's 30, so I wasn't surprised 75 was all they could do. I saw some monkeys in the rainforest. There was a nice waterfall, lots of plants and vegetation, and quite a few birds. I was looking hard for a lizard or two, but never saw one. It was a good trip.
And I was hoping my new friend, Jennifer, could come with me to the zoo. She was packing to go back to the states later in the week, but we did meet for breakfast that morning. Our conversation was a great highlight and closing to the trip, as I got to debrief a bit about my adventures. We also talked greatly about our world view understanding and how to possibly contribute to the human needs that are so rampant in the world today.
These were my adventures in Zurich. So much to share, as you can tell. I hope this whetted your appetite to know how the trip was. If you have any questions or want more details, please email me and let me know.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Vacation news-skiing!
My purpose for this vacation was a skiing get-away. I was really excited to get the chance to ski the Alps, and not sure that I quite understood how unique a chance this was until I got on the mountains. The scenery and conditions were unbelievable, and any pictures that I show do not do Grindelwald justice. I'll mention a few of the highlights.
I took my time Tuesday to scout the area, learn how the transportation system works, and get acclimated to the cold weather by staying outside for most of the day. By Wednesday I was ready to go. I heard on the news the weather was going to be pretty bad Wednesday, so I didn't rush to get up the mountain. I was finally on the slopes around 10 I think, and found my way up to a top at 11. There I found that I couldn't see at all! I had no idea where I was going. I couldn't even see the quad lift that I had just gotten off of, which was probably 30 feet above my head. Unlike mountains in NC which have some visible vegetation on the edge of the ski slope, these mountains were covered with the same layer of snow-so you couldn't tell the difference between the path and what wasn't the path. But I braved myself and began. As I started down the slope, I said, ok, I just have to stay between the markers. Then I realized my dilemma: I can't see the markers! The only thing left for me to do was to ski toward the right until I saw the right marker, then steer left looking for the one on the left, and do that as I traversed down the mountain. I got off the trail once not realizing the path turned. And then I caught up with a group of beginners, and we helped each other down the mountain. I braved the trip a second time before going home feeling somewhat defeated by the thick snowcloud from the day. It certainly isn't fun skiing in a cloud when you can't see 50 feet in front of you.
The next day was a bit better day. It was still snowing, but visibility was maybe 300 feet. I could see 3-4 markers ahead of me, but I still had to stop oftentimes to judge what I had to do next, where turns were in the path, and how steep the hill was. I battled this problem by staying on the same 2 paths all day, basically memorizing the turns and traverses until I was comfortable skiing them.
Friday was a perfect day for skiing. You could see the horizon, so seeing was not a problem. And I tore it up this day! I had such a good time. I had my ski legs, I knew some trails and had an idea where some were higher up the mountain. And I used that to tie trails together. After doing that, I started making my own trails down the mountain, connecting trails, skiing in fresh snow and just skiing the entire mountain. It was a great day for skiing. The only complaint I had from the day was the grooming. For some strange reason they wanted to groom fresh powder. The grooming leaves a light layer of water on the top of the snow, which turns to ice. Ice is never fun to ski on, and the more it is skied on the thicker it gets. At the base of the mountain and at a sharp turn in 2 trails it was especially rough. It was a good time for skiing, though, and I got my fill. I was exhausted Friday evening. But I was so glad that I got to ski.
I took my time Tuesday to scout the area, learn how the transportation system works, and get acclimated to the cold weather by staying outside for most of the day. By Wednesday I was ready to go. I heard on the news the weather was going to be pretty bad Wednesday, so I didn't rush to get up the mountain. I was finally on the slopes around 10 I think, and found my way up to a top at 11. There I found that I couldn't see at all! I had no idea where I was going. I couldn't even see the quad lift that I had just gotten off of, which was probably 30 feet above my head. Unlike mountains in NC which have some visible vegetation on the edge of the ski slope, these mountains were covered with the same layer of snow-so you couldn't tell the difference between the path and what wasn't the path. But I braved myself and began. As I started down the slope, I said, ok, I just have to stay between the markers. Then I realized my dilemma: I can't see the markers! The only thing left for me to do was to ski toward the right until I saw the right marker, then steer left looking for the one on the left, and do that as I traversed down the mountain. I got off the trail once not realizing the path turned. And then I caught up with a group of beginners, and we helped each other down the mountain. I braved the trip a second time before going home feeling somewhat defeated by the thick snowcloud from the day. It certainly isn't fun skiing in a cloud when you can't see 50 feet in front of you.
The next day was a bit better day. It was still snowing, but visibility was maybe 300 feet. I could see 3-4 markers ahead of me, but I still had to stop oftentimes to judge what I had to do next, where turns were in the path, and how steep the hill was. I battled this problem by staying on the same 2 paths all day, basically memorizing the turns and traverses until I was comfortable skiing them.
Friday was a perfect day for skiing. You could see the horizon, so seeing was not a problem. And I tore it up this day! I had such a good time. I had my ski legs, I knew some trails and had an idea where some were higher up the mountain. And I used that to tie trails together. After doing that, I started making my own trails down the mountain, connecting trails, skiing in fresh snow and just skiing the entire mountain. It was a great day for skiing. The only complaint I had from the day was the grooming. For some strange reason they wanted to groom fresh powder. The grooming leaves a light layer of water on the top of the snow, which turns to ice. Ice is never fun to ski on, and the more it is skied on the thicker it gets. At the base of the mountain and at a sharp turn in 2 trails it was especially rough. It was a good time for skiing, though, and I got my fill. I was exhausted Friday evening. But I was so glad that I got to ski.
Vacation News-transportation
I had a great time vacationing in Switzerland, and hope to tell a little about it with you. I'll start with the travel arrangements. I asked a travel agency in Florida to help with the trip, and planned the trip with their assistance. I was going to arrive in Zurich at lunchtime on Monday and then have the afternoon to get to Interlaken where my hotel was. Well, this day was a fun travel day. I didn't sleep much the previous night from being so excited, and the flights were during the morning hours when I sleep light. Between connecting flights, I had one hour to get from one plane to the next. Knowing that, I half expected my luggage not to make it all the way, so I packed extra clothes in my carry on to tie me over. I'm glad I did that, because I didn't see my clothes until Wednesday night. It worked out, though.
I'll tell you a little about public transport in Switzerland. I took trains everywhere I went, basically. To get to Interlaken, I had to take 3 separate trains to get there. I had a pass which allowed me to get from the airport to any destination and back within a month, so I was able to use this pass to come to Interlaken and then get back to the city. I can read maps pretty well no matter where I'm at, so figuring out the right train and the time schedule didn't take much studying. And I actually gave myself some time to visit a town along the way.
Transportation while I was skiing was interesting as well. My lift ticket included transportation to the lift, which I didn't realize at first. But here's what I had to do. I had to walk from my hotel to a bus stop to catch a bus to take me to the train depot. From there I'd take from 1-3 trains, depending on where I wanted to go, to get to the lift. These lifts would take you to the base of the mountain where you could ski to a quad lift to begin skiing. So maybe I'm painting an adequate picture that I'd catch a bus to catch a train to catch a train to get on a bus to catch a lift to catch another lift to get on a lift to start skiing. This process usually took 2 hours, so I had to remember that as I was coming down, too. I didn't want to get caught out there after dark (4:30) when the schedules would change. So I timed it that I could ski from about 9:30 until 4 comfortably. And I ate a good breakfast, usually skipped lunch, and then had a big supper while skiing to utilize all the time I could with skiing.
What is some other transportation news? Oh! Here's a good one. I saw a sign coming in on the train that anyone caught without a validated ticket would be fined, and then if it happened a 2nd time they would be fined more and possibly given a trial. But I never saw people inside of Zurich (the large town) be asked for their tickets. I wondered if they did check tickets. I found out on Monday that they do! There was a random stop that our tram was at. Five ticket agents boarded the tram to ask passengers for their tickets. I proudly showed mine and watched as I counted 6 people escourted off the tram to pay a fine through their computer scanner, which scanned credit cards. People using public transportation without paying for tickets is a problem in Zurich. There weren't 15 people on the tram, and for 33% of our population to be traveling without a ticket spells a problem.
I was overall very impressed with the transportation in Switzerland. If I lived there I would not own a car. You can go anywhere you want to go in high class comfort on the trains, trams, and buses. This is what I would wish the States would be able to adopt. It would take years and billions of dollars to grow, but once it was established, there would be minimal problems. The trains are electric, so there are no pollutants coming from them. Also, it's very relaxing to read a book, talk with a neighbor, or look at scenery while you're riding.
I'll tell you a little about public transport in Switzerland. I took trains everywhere I went, basically. To get to Interlaken, I had to take 3 separate trains to get there. I had a pass which allowed me to get from the airport to any destination and back within a month, so I was able to use this pass to come to Interlaken and then get back to the city. I can read maps pretty well no matter where I'm at, so figuring out the right train and the time schedule didn't take much studying. And I actually gave myself some time to visit a town along the way.
Transportation while I was skiing was interesting as well. My lift ticket included transportation to the lift, which I didn't realize at first. But here's what I had to do. I had to walk from my hotel to a bus stop to catch a bus to take me to the train depot. From there I'd take from 1-3 trains, depending on where I wanted to go, to get to the lift. These lifts would take you to the base of the mountain where you could ski to a quad lift to begin skiing. So maybe I'm painting an adequate picture that I'd catch a bus to catch a train to catch a train to get on a bus to catch a lift to catch another lift to get on a lift to start skiing. This process usually took 2 hours, so I had to remember that as I was coming down, too. I didn't want to get caught out there after dark (4:30) when the schedules would change. So I timed it that I could ski from about 9:30 until 4 comfortably. And I ate a good breakfast, usually skipped lunch, and then had a big supper while skiing to utilize all the time I could with skiing.
What is some other transportation news? Oh! Here's a good one. I saw a sign coming in on the train that anyone caught without a validated ticket would be fined, and then if it happened a 2nd time they would be fined more and possibly given a trial. But I never saw people inside of Zurich (the large town) be asked for their tickets. I wondered if they did check tickets. I found out on Monday that they do! There was a random stop that our tram was at. Five ticket agents boarded the tram to ask passengers for their tickets. I proudly showed mine and watched as I counted 6 people escourted off the tram to pay a fine through their computer scanner, which scanned credit cards. People using public transportation without paying for tickets is a problem in Zurich. There weren't 15 people on the tram, and for 33% of our population to be traveling without a ticket spells a problem.
I was overall very impressed with the transportation in Switzerland. If I lived there I would not own a car. You can go anywhere you want to go in high class comfort on the trains, trams, and buses. This is what I would wish the States would be able to adopt. It would take years and billions of dollars to grow, but once it was established, there would be minimal problems. The trains are electric, so there are no pollutants coming from them. Also, it's very relaxing to read a book, talk with a neighbor, or look at scenery while you're riding.
Friday, December 19, 2008
i'm back
Hey Everyone!
I just wanted to write a note to say that I have returned from my vacation. Since I've been back, the adjustment has been somewhat difficult. Tuesday there was no power at my house. Wed-Thurs there was no water, and Thursday and today I've had flu-like symptoms. All of that makes for a tough transition. But thankfully I am getting a little more energy and slowly getting my house back in order.
I'll post a few stories about my adventure later this weekend, so please keep checking in. Thanks for your prayers for my ministry and for the vacation. I love each of you!
I just wanted to write a note to say that I have returned from my vacation. Since I've been back, the adjustment has been somewhat difficult. Tuesday there was no power at my house. Wed-Thurs there was no water, and Thursday and today I've had flu-like symptoms. All of that makes for a tough transition. But thankfully I am getting a little more energy and slowly getting my house back in order.
I'll post a few stories about my adventure later this weekend, so please keep checking in. Thanks for your prayers for my ministry and for the vacation. I love each of you!
Friday, December 5, 2008
paper trail of trip
As many of you know, I am taking a ski vacation to Europe next week. I am very excited about going, though I will be going by myself. So I wanted to let you know my agenda, and as a wise person reminded me, "it is always good to leave an agenda when you go on an overseas trip."
So here's some of the details.
flight schedule:
1 TP 210 08DEC DKR to LIS SS1 255A 650A
2 TP 920 08DEC LIS to ZRH SS1 750A 1140A
3 TP 927 15DEC ZRH to LIS SS1 655P 845P
4 TP 209 15DEC LIS to DKR SS1 945P 155A
I will arrive in Zurich on Dec. 8th at 11:30 and take the Golden Pass train to Interlaken, where I will stay monday-friday night. I'll be skiing wed-fri in Interlaken. In interlaken I will be staying at the Chalet Hotel.
Saturday I plan to take the same Golden Pass train back to Zurich and spend the remaining 2 nights sight seeing around Zurich before coming back to Dakar Monday evening. I have reservations for the Fly Away hotel in Zurich.
So that's the specifics of the trip. It looks like I'll get some really good weather. Snow is forecasted for the ski days, and sunshine is forecasted for the days in Zurich. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and share them.
Please pray for safe and timely travel. This will be my first time catching a train by myself, and although I have it figured out, I do hope that it is running smooth. They are changing the train times next weekend, so hopefully the schedules haven't changed much.
So here's some of the details.
flight schedule:
1 TP 210 08DEC DKR to LIS SS1 255A 650A
2 TP 920 08DEC LIS to ZRH SS1 750A 1140A
3 TP 927 15DEC ZRH to LIS SS1 655P 845P
4 TP 209 15DEC LIS to DKR SS1 945P 155A
I will arrive in Zurich on Dec. 8th at 11:30 and take the Golden Pass train to Interlaken, where I will stay monday-friday night. I'll be skiing wed-fri in Interlaken. In interlaken I will be staying at the Chalet Hotel.
Saturday I plan to take the same Golden Pass train back to Zurich and spend the remaining 2 nights sight seeing around Zurich before coming back to Dakar Monday evening. I have reservations for the Fly Away hotel in Zurich.
So that's the specifics of the trip. It looks like I'll get some really good weather. Snow is forecasted for the ski days, and sunshine is forecasted for the days in Zurich. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and share them.
Please pray for safe and timely travel. This will be my first time catching a train by myself, and although I have it figured out, I do hope that it is running smooth. They are changing the train times next weekend, so hopefully the schedules haven't changed much.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
opps! forgot a story!
In writing my prayer update, I realized that I forgot to include a story from last month. Since I'm suggesting that details of all the stories I mention are in the blog, it'd be good to include this one!
One Saturday in November, my supervisor Elliott and I both went out into our surrounding community to do what he termed a 'prayer drive.' I'll give him credit for that, but I like that term. We were and will continue to drive the community with the purpose of mapping some of the nearby Wolof villages and hope to one day begin reaching into these villages. We'll probably try to do this 2x each month.
During this drive in November, we decided to take a turn off the road we were on to do some exploring. The road dead ended into a village. Seeing some men sitting together on mats under a tree, we got out and greeted them. After a few minutes they introduced the village chief to us, and he and Elliott had a nice conversation together. It turns out the village chief speaks very good English. He had been to NYC for 7 years and drove a taxi.
We talked briefly about the life they live in the village-school, work, farming, family. We also indicated to him that we would like to return and visit-even share stories and bring more friends to help assist them, if possible. He said that would be good and would look forward to talking again. So I am sure that Elliott and I will continue to work in this village. Please lift them up in your prayers. There is no doubt that God led us to this village as we would never expect to randomly find one village in the middle of nowhere on our first visit to have an English-speaking Wolof village chief who would be willing to work with Christian Americans in his village. Praise God for opening this door!
One Saturday in November, my supervisor Elliott and I both went out into our surrounding community to do what he termed a 'prayer drive.' I'll give him credit for that, but I like that term. We were and will continue to drive the community with the purpose of mapping some of the nearby Wolof villages and hope to one day begin reaching into these villages. We'll probably try to do this 2x each month.
During this drive in November, we decided to take a turn off the road we were on to do some exploring. The road dead ended into a village. Seeing some men sitting together on mats under a tree, we got out and greeted them. After a few minutes they introduced the village chief to us, and he and Elliott had a nice conversation together. It turns out the village chief speaks very good English. He had been to NYC for 7 years and drove a taxi.
We talked briefly about the life they live in the village-school, work, farming, family. We also indicated to him that we would like to return and visit-even share stories and bring more friends to help assist them, if possible. He said that would be good and would look forward to talking again. So I am sure that Elliott and I will continue to work in this village. Please lift them up in your prayers. There is no doubt that God led us to this village as we would never expect to randomly find one village in the middle of nowhere on our first visit to have an English-speaking Wolof village chief who would be willing to work with Christian Americans in his village. Praise God for opening this door!
ReNew Conference
Our region allows for a time that first term workers can get together to discuss areas in ministry that we have struggled with as well as areas we found were successful. This conference met this week. We discussed:
-the importance of covenants with supervisors, having them, how to stay accountable to them, now to make them more relevant to our ministry
-relationships with believers, non-believers, team mates, those in authority over us, and even relationships with family and with ourselves.
-exit strategy, such as how to prepare for when the time is right to move on from a setting as well as how to finish strong.
-cpm, which is a church planting movement. We are beginning to try and adopt a method of church planting that worked very well in Asia. This was presented in a very nice overview and gave us a good model for thinking about how to do effective entry, presentation, discipleship, church formation, and leadership training.
I felt this conference was good for me. It gave me a chance to listen as others talked through their struggles that I could relate with. They could put into words what I was unable to express at various times. Because of this, I see some ways that I can grow as an individual and a team member in my ministry. I also realized some areas that I can improve on. One is communication or being able to express myself. I would like to express to others when I am struggling and why. Maybe I need to even learn how to realize this within myself. I have often been a loner but I usually have a friend that I can talk to from time to time at church in which I bounce ideas off of. Here I have missed a relationship like that.
I’m grateful for this conference and for being able to draw close to those that came this week. I’ll miss our fellowship time we had, but always have email to keep in touch with them when I need to. We were very open during this time together, which helps draw out these areas that I can continue to develop in my personal life.
-the importance of covenants with supervisors, having them, how to stay accountable to them, now to make them more relevant to our ministry
-relationships with believers, non-believers, team mates, those in authority over us, and even relationships with family and with ourselves.
-exit strategy, such as how to prepare for when the time is right to move on from a setting as well as how to finish strong.
-cpm, which is a church planting movement. We are beginning to try and adopt a method of church planting that worked very well in Asia. This was presented in a very nice overview and gave us a good model for thinking about how to do effective entry, presentation, discipleship, church formation, and leadership training.
I felt this conference was good for me. It gave me a chance to listen as others talked through their struggles that I could relate with. They could put into words what I was unable to express at various times. Because of this, I see some ways that I can grow as an individual and a team member in my ministry. I also realized some areas that I can improve on. One is communication or being able to express myself. I would like to express to others when I am struggling and why. Maybe I need to even learn how to realize this within myself. I have often been a loner but I usually have a friend that I can talk to from time to time at church in which I bounce ideas off of. Here I have missed a relationship like that.
I’m grateful for this conference and for being able to draw close to those that came this week. I’ll miss our fellowship time we had, but always have email to keep in touch with them when I need to. We were very open during this time together, which helps draw out these areas that I can continue to develop in my personal life.
Thanksgiving Meal
I came to Dakar for my thanksgiving day celebration. Here in Dakar there are a lot of Missionaries, so we had a good gathering of people. I think we had about 50 who came. Most everyone either brought a covered dish, dessert, or drinks. I made my family’s now world famous corn pudding casserole. It turned out pretty good, if I say so myself-and I heard this remark from others. My favorite dish-sweet potato casserole-was there. And we had plenty of turkey and ham which was donated by Cracker Barrel. Thank you, Cracker Barrel. I’ll make it up to you when I’m in the states!
After the meal we had a devotion time as well as time for singing. Then we fellowshipped by talking in groups, playing card games, and watching college football from earlier this season. The kids played outside or watched a movie themselves. So we had a great afternoon together.
After the meal we had a devotion time as well as time for singing. Then we fellowshipped by talking in groups, playing card games, and watching college football from earlier this season. The kids played outside or watched a movie themselves. So we had a great afternoon together.
Thanksgiving sharing
During my quiet time before the week of thanksgiving I had the idea to share my thanksgiving tradition with my close friends in Mekhe. So I took the morning to write personal notes that said, “God has given us a lot to be thankful for. He has given us health, life, love, and family. I thank God for you, my friend.” Along with that I wrote out John 3:16. All of this was on the simple note that I would plan to give each of my close friends.
I was able to share with many. There were some that I shared with one-on-one. There were some that I shared with as a group setting. And there were some that I had just met that day that wanted to know what I was doing. So these three dynamics I was able to experience as I shared.
Not only that, but as I shared, I used the opportunity to introduce the Gospel. Through each of these conversations I talked about God’s love for each of us. I could tell them that we have sinned and because of our sin we cannot have a relationship with God. But God comes to us to start the relationship over, and he came to us as Jesus. Jesus wants us to have faith in him so that we will always have a relationship with him. And this was my elementary gospel presentation.
It had some victories. I had one woman who heard this as I shared with her family. She said she wanted to become a Christian! So I will follow up with that when I return to town. I was able to see a few friends that I have not seen in awhile, and because of this letter and these words our friendship became more positive/was restored.
I also had some defeats. I felt that in a few situations I could have visited longer, and wished for more time. I shared a lot. I gave out 20 notes in 2 days. I also did not get the chance to see everyone that I wanted to see. And I had the chance to see a big defeat. In sharing with one of my friends in the market, he asked me to leave his shop. He did not want to hear the message of Jesus because he was a Muslim.
In spite of the defeats I was grateful for the sharing opportunities. This was very successful in organizing something to say, and gave me an idea of what volunteer teams can come and do in Mekhe. They can easily write a prayer letter and go to various shops or gatherings of people to talk about prayer, then offer to pray for those people. Or if the group comes at a particular holiday such as Easter or Christmas could discuss the significance of that season with others.
I was able to share with many. There were some that I shared with one-on-one. There were some that I shared with as a group setting. And there were some that I had just met that day that wanted to know what I was doing. So these three dynamics I was able to experience as I shared.
Not only that, but as I shared, I used the opportunity to introduce the Gospel. Through each of these conversations I talked about God’s love for each of us. I could tell them that we have sinned and because of our sin we cannot have a relationship with God. But God comes to us to start the relationship over, and he came to us as Jesus. Jesus wants us to have faith in him so that we will always have a relationship with him. And this was my elementary gospel presentation.
It had some victories. I had one woman who heard this as I shared with her family. She said she wanted to become a Christian! So I will follow up with that when I return to town. I was able to see a few friends that I have not seen in awhile, and because of this letter and these words our friendship became more positive/was restored.
I also had some defeats. I felt that in a few situations I could have visited longer, and wished for more time. I shared a lot. I gave out 20 notes in 2 days. I also did not get the chance to see everyone that I wanted to see. And I had the chance to see a big defeat. In sharing with one of my friends in the market, he asked me to leave his shop. He did not want to hear the message of Jesus because he was a Muslim.
In spite of the defeats I was grateful for the sharing opportunities. This was very successful in organizing something to say, and gave me an idea of what volunteer teams can come and do in Mekhe. They can easily write a prayer letter and go to various shops or gatherings of people to talk about prayer, then offer to pray for those people. Or if the group comes at a particular holiday such as Easter or Christmas could discuss the significance of that season with others.
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