Well it has been over 2 weeks since I have blogged last which is not good because I can't remember everything that happened!
All of our days on campus have been great. We are in the last few days in Suva so we are winding down and getting ready for Student Conference. I have played a lot of volleyball and talked to many students about Jesus Christ. It is always so awesome to see how open Fijians are to talking about their backgrounds and beliefs.
2 Monday's ago was a day off again and many students went to Mosquito Island. From what I heard it was a fun and relaxing day to go and hang out at the beach and swim. I got to Skype my roommate from Georgia twice and we had lots of fun catching up and talking. I miss her and hopefully get to see her soon! I stayed back at the hotel to babysit William and Sam, Bill and April Hendrichs kids. April had fallen Monday morning and hit her head and was taken to the hospital so I stayed back to help out with the kids. Tuesday and Thursday of that week were normal campus days where we went out and shared with students. Rachel, Sarah, and I met up with Maria again on Thursday and it is always so cool to hear all the questions that she wanted to ask us. She is so eager to learn more about God and his faithfulness. Wednesday was another Bible Study day and our group went and had Bible Study at Tappoo, one of the shopping malls with a food court. It is always a fun time spent together in a smaller group while digging deeper into God's word.
Friday and Saturday the group took a mini vacation to the Uprising Resort about an hour away from Suva. We spent time together as a team and just hung out at the hotel at the beach, played volleyball, and swam. When we arrived we immediately hopped into another van which took us to the zip line place. Our team got to choose between zip-lining and snorkeling. This was really cool because I had never been on a zip line before and it was fun going over rivers and little valleys. This was a blast and we spent lots of time laughing and joking as we all tried fun little tricks while we zipped across. We returned to the hotel in the early afternoon and spent the afternoon relaxing and hanging out. This resort was really cool because our rooms were like mini huts with an outdoor enclosed shower, and a bathroom that was attached to the room but you had to go outside to go in the bathroom. I spent a majority of my time playing volleyball and watching the stars.
Sunday we went to church in the morning again and afterwards we had to say our goodbyes because it was our last church service in Suva. We thanked them for allowing us to join them and I hope to stay in touch with some of the members. Afterwards for lunch, Marcia and I joined the STINTERS at their apartments for Jenny's birthday. We had some really good American food and then played a Euchre tourney. We played 6 games total and changed partners every time. We had a blast and I learned that it is ok to get last place out of 12 people...reason being I just had REALLY bad cards!! lol We finished the night with Men's and Women's time and spent time talking about relationships. This was really cool and we talked about what we look for in guys that we are dating or thinking about dating.
Monday we got to Skype the family back home and catch up on life back in Michigan. It was really fun seeing the whole family again and sharing stories of what was going on this summer. Marcia and I then went out sharing afterwards and had a very difficult and challenging time. We walked up to 3 girls eating lunch and sat down only to find out that they were Morman missionaries. I didn't talk much in that conversation because I had never been in a situation like that before but Marcia was full of questions. This was hard to listen to because everything we said about Christianity they said they agreed with but they also believed in the Book of Morman. We talked to them for about an hour before they had to leave and Marcia and I left to get ice cream and talk about everything that just had been said.
Tuesday was another campus day and I went to FNU with Rachel Sorrell and Halie. We walked around campus and prayed, asking God to lead us where we should go. We talked to two girls for a while before they had to leave for class and then started walking around again. It was funny because after we prayed we stopped at the bathroom where Halie started talking to two girls. We moved outside where we began talking about going through the KGP and asking about their backgrounds. They told us that when they were younger they accepted Christ because they had to, but when we asked them if they had made a personal decision for themselves they both said no. They said they weren't sure because they drank and stuff. It was really cool talking to them about how God forgives all our sins and wants us to accept him into our lives. After talking to them for awhile they both accepted Christ and we will be meeting with them again tomorrow (Thursday).
This all leads into today, Wednesday. Today was our last Bible Study day and our group stayed back at the hotel for awhile and ate lunch in the sunshine. We talked about what we learned about here and what God has really been teaching us. This summer I have been learning a lot about vocalizing my feelings. So often I bottle up feelings about how I really feel or about missing Dad. After talking with many people I have realized that this is really unhealthy. Part of the grieving process is to share how we feel and just saying, "I miss Dad." It has been really cool to see how God is helping me work through this and putting people in my life to help me. After Bible Study I got to hang out with Kyle. Him and I went and got ice cream and then watched the sunset together while talking. I shared with him what I had learned and he agreed and said that he had never really thought about it that way. For me I feel like most of us talk to others about our feelings about missing Dad but we never look to each other in the family to talk to. I am really excited to go home and talk with my family and just get everything out. We ended tonight with team dinners where the Encouragement team that I am on went out to Restaurant 88 for the last time and just had a good time sharing cool stories and telling each other about our time here in Fiji. I can't believe how fast time has flown by and can't wait to see what God has planned in the last week and a half of our summer project.
Thank you everyone for the support and encouragement. Please continue to pray for team unity as we are nearing the end of our trip. Also for Student Conference coming up and that many Fijian's will come and we can all have a good time learning more about our heavenly Father and hanging out together in community.
Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Thursday, 7 June 2012
Week 3!
Monday afternoon we were supposed to go to the beach but our plans were cancelled due to rain and clouds. This is the end of the rainy season and it seems as if all the rain is coming down at once. We hung out at the hotel till about noon when it finally started getting sunny and warm, so we all ran to our rooms and got our suits on. After 2 1/2 hours in the sun I finally got some sunshine and tanning in which I was really excited about! Monday night we all went out to dinner and just hung out.
Tuesday was an awesome day because FNU, the Nasinu campus, started back up and we finally had somewhere new to begin sharing at. I went out sharing with Josh and we talked to a group of girls, about school and life and just tried to get to know them first. Afterwards, I felt a little bad that Josh was stuck in a group of all girls so we went and found a group that had some guys in it too. This was fun because I talked to the girls and they were already meeting with one of the Student Life leaders every Tuesday night, so we just spent our time hanging out and talking about the United States and Fiji. This is a common topic here in Fiji because they like to hear the differences in weather and foods that we have. Tuesday was very sunny and Fijians do not like being out in the sun at all so after a while these girls left to go sit in the cafeteria where they weren't out in the direct sun. I caught up with Nick, Bobby, and Derrick and we found this group of students that were playing volleyball so we joined them. This was really fun because I miss playing American sports and they were very welcoming. The only downer to the game was that they did not have an actual volleyball so we played with a soccer ball which really hurts every time you hit it. If anyone spiked the ball hard we just would let it hit the ground so we didn't have to get hurt. I plan on taking a volleyball with me when I go back tomorrow (Friday). Derrick, Josh, Bobby, and I went out for dinner afterwards and shared our life maps with each other. In the afternoon we had Bible study for the Summer Project group and Fijians. This is always a fun time as we go deeper into the gospel and talk about it with each other. On Tuesdays the movie theater plays movies really cheap, $5 Fijian which = about $2.75 American. I have not gone to a movie while in Fiji because I don't like the idea of being in Fiji and sitting in a movie theater with Fijians when I would rather get to know them in the short time that I am here. A group of us stayed back and played Scum which is the go-to large group game to play at night.
Wednesday is our Bible study day and our group went to Tappoo and ate at the food court there and did our lesson. Our lesson was about Convictions, Persuasions, and Opinions. This was a really cool to talk about and learn things that I hadn't really even thought or heard about before. We also talked about Galatians some more. April, Rachel Sauer, and I went to MHCC afterwards, which is the mall here, and got some groceries and other random items that we needed before walking back to the hotel. When we got back Rachel Sauer and I had the brilliant idea to go for a run together since we are both NOT natural born runners. It turned out to be really good, we ran a little over a mile, and even though we were sore the next day it was totally worth it and we will go out again! We had to get back in time for our team dinners where my group talked about how we thought our team was encouraging each other this past week and what else we could do to make everyone feel encouraged. We ended with sharing 1 persons life map which we hope to do every week. We headed back to the hotel and caught up with Jane and some of the other leaders. We talked to Jane about her finger and she had gone and had it fixed that morning and was doing great! She finally has a straight finger and now just has to wait for it to heal which is a huge blessing! We were all kinda tired when we got back so we played some Euchre with the guys but then Rachel, Rachel, Marcia, and I went back to my room and taught my roommate, Rachel Sorrel, how to play euchre. She caught on very quickly and now can go back and show her family that she knows how to play.
This leads us into today, Thursday. When we woke up this morning it was sunny and nice and within an hour it was down pouring and rained most of the day. I ate lunch with Merideth and we had our discipleship time together. She told me that the Stinters officially got the boot and are no longer allowed onto the USP campus. The Student Life organization is no longer allowed to meet on campus at all, but we are tring our best to find other places to share. I only had a raincoat because Kyle said that was all I needed, although he denied ever saying that this afternoon. I got completely SOAKED which riding on the bus to Sports City to meet Maria for follow up. Water had gotten into my raincoat even though it was zipped up completely and my shirt was soaked. It turned out to be fine and our meeting with Maria went really well! She was one of the girls that accepted Christ after we had talked to her and she had lots of questions she wanted to ask. She thought it was the coolest thing that once we accepted Christ into our lives that we now had the right to be called children of God. She just assumed that everyone was a child of God when actually when we are born we are creations of God but not his children until we accept him into our lives. Another thing that she thought was really cool was that God never leaves us. Even if we don't want God in our lives, or we sin big time, or we just stray away God never leaves. Once you accept him, he is always in your life and you will always have a relationship with him, the thing that is broken is your fellowship with God. The illustration that we always share is that if you are really mad or angry at your parents and decide to move really far away, does that mean that your parents aren't your parents anymore? NO! They will always be your parents no matter what and you will always be their son or daughter but your fellowship with them is broken. If you came back they may be a little upset with you but they will still love you and welcome you back with open arms. It's the same way with God. No matter how far away you try to get you will still be his child if you accepted him and he will always try to get you back. When you do return he will welcome you with open arms! Our God is amazing and he gives us so much grace! This was my favorite part of the day because she was so interested and into learning more that I cannot wait till we meet with her again next week. We had dinner at Bad Dog Cafe, which we go to ALL the time and now I am here at the internet cafe.
Please continue to pray for our team. Many of us are tired and the newness of being in Fiji has warn off. Pray for rest and motivation to go out and spread the Word. Also pray for the Student Life organization and that we may find a way to get it allowed on campus again. Pray for this Glenn Pope guy as he is doing anything in his power to knock us down and get us away.
Thank you all for your prayers and support! Moce (Goodbye)! (That word is actually pronouced mo-th-e)
Tuesday was an awesome day because FNU, the Nasinu campus, started back up and we finally had somewhere new to begin sharing at. I went out sharing with Josh and we talked to a group of girls, about school and life and just tried to get to know them first. Afterwards, I felt a little bad that Josh was stuck in a group of all girls so we went and found a group that had some guys in it too. This was fun because I talked to the girls and they were already meeting with one of the Student Life leaders every Tuesday night, so we just spent our time hanging out and talking about the United States and Fiji. This is a common topic here in Fiji because they like to hear the differences in weather and foods that we have. Tuesday was very sunny and Fijians do not like being out in the sun at all so after a while these girls left to go sit in the cafeteria where they weren't out in the direct sun. I caught up with Nick, Bobby, and Derrick and we found this group of students that were playing volleyball so we joined them. This was really fun because I miss playing American sports and they were very welcoming. The only downer to the game was that they did not have an actual volleyball so we played with a soccer ball which really hurts every time you hit it. If anyone spiked the ball hard we just would let it hit the ground so we didn't have to get hurt. I plan on taking a volleyball with me when I go back tomorrow (Friday). Derrick, Josh, Bobby, and I went out for dinner afterwards and shared our life maps with each other. In the afternoon we had Bible study for the Summer Project group and Fijians. This is always a fun time as we go deeper into the gospel and talk about it with each other. On Tuesdays the movie theater plays movies really cheap, $5 Fijian which = about $2.75 American. I have not gone to a movie while in Fiji because I don't like the idea of being in Fiji and sitting in a movie theater with Fijians when I would rather get to know them in the short time that I am here. A group of us stayed back and played Scum which is the go-to large group game to play at night.
Wednesday is our Bible study day and our group went to Tappoo and ate at the food court there and did our lesson. Our lesson was about Convictions, Persuasions, and Opinions. This was a really cool to talk about and learn things that I hadn't really even thought or heard about before. We also talked about Galatians some more. April, Rachel Sauer, and I went to MHCC afterwards, which is the mall here, and got some groceries and other random items that we needed before walking back to the hotel. When we got back Rachel Sauer and I had the brilliant idea to go for a run together since we are both NOT natural born runners. It turned out to be really good, we ran a little over a mile, and even though we were sore the next day it was totally worth it and we will go out again! We had to get back in time for our team dinners where my group talked about how we thought our team was encouraging each other this past week and what else we could do to make everyone feel encouraged. We ended with sharing 1 persons life map which we hope to do every week. We headed back to the hotel and caught up with Jane and some of the other leaders. We talked to Jane about her finger and she had gone and had it fixed that morning and was doing great! She finally has a straight finger and now just has to wait for it to heal which is a huge blessing! We were all kinda tired when we got back so we played some Euchre with the guys but then Rachel, Rachel, Marcia, and I went back to my room and taught my roommate, Rachel Sorrel, how to play euchre. She caught on very quickly and now can go back and show her family that she knows how to play.
This leads us into today, Thursday. When we woke up this morning it was sunny and nice and within an hour it was down pouring and rained most of the day. I ate lunch with Merideth and we had our discipleship time together. She told me that the Stinters officially got the boot and are no longer allowed onto the USP campus. The Student Life organization is no longer allowed to meet on campus at all, but we are tring our best to find other places to share. I only had a raincoat because Kyle said that was all I needed, although he denied ever saying that this afternoon. I got completely SOAKED which riding on the bus to Sports City to meet Maria for follow up. Water had gotten into my raincoat even though it was zipped up completely and my shirt was soaked. It turned out to be fine and our meeting with Maria went really well! She was one of the girls that accepted Christ after we had talked to her and she had lots of questions she wanted to ask. She thought it was the coolest thing that once we accepted Christ into our lives that we now had the right to be called children of God. She just assumed that everyone was a child of God when actually when we are born we are creations of God but not his children until we accept him into our lives. Another thing that she thought was really cool was that God never leaves us. Even if we don't want God in our lives, or we sin big time, or we just stray away God never leaves. Once you accept him, he is always in your life and you will always have a relationship with him, the thing that is broken is your fellowship with God. The illustration that we always share is that if you are really mad or angry at your parents and decide to move really far away, does that mean that your parents aren't your parents anymore? NO! They will always be your parents no matter what and you will always be their son or daughter but your fellowship with them is broken. If you came back they may be a little upset with you but they will still love you and welcome you back with open arms. It's the same way with God. No matter how far away you try to get you will still be his child if you accepted him and he will always try to get you back. When you do return he will welcome you with open arms! Our God is amazing and he gives us so much grace! This was my favorite part of the day because she was so interested and into learning more that I cannot wait till we meet with her again next week. We had dinner at Bad Dog Cafe, which we go to ALL the time and now I am here at the internet cafe.
Please continue to pray for our team. Many of us are tired and the newness of being in Fiji has warn off. Pray for rest and motivation to go out and spread the Word. Also pray for the Student Life organization and that we may find a way to get it allowed on campus again. Pray for this Glenn Pope guy as he is doing anything in his power to knock us down and get us away.
Thank you all for your prayers and support! Moce (Goodbye)! (That word is actually pronouced mo-th-e)
Sunday, 3 June 2012
So it has been awhile since I have wrote to you guys last but quite a bit has happened since then.
Thursday was another day spent in Sports City. Halie, Rachel Sauer, and I decided to eat lunch together at Pizza King and share our life maps. Life maps are basically sharing about your family background, when you accepted Christ, your highs and lows in life, and who your heroes are. This is always a good time spent together and getting to know one another better. We spent almost 3 hours sharing our life maps and asking questions before Merideth came to have discipleship with me. Merideth is my disciple for my time here in Fiji, which means that at least once a week we try and get together to go over how we are both doing and ask questions and just talk about life. I really enjoy these times because we have similar lives and its really nice to talk about how she dealt with her dad passing away as well.
At night a few of the girls and I had the opportunity to share the gospel with a field hockey club team. This was really cool because they don't have ice hockey here obviously but it was interesting to watch them play for awhile and then talk with them afterwards. They were really receptive of what we had to share with them. We all split into smaller groups and the groups I was in mainly said that they were Catholic or Protestant and one girl said both. I do not really know how that works and didn't get the chance to ask. Some of the other groups had Hindus, Catholics, Indians, or nonbelievers so it was really cool to hear the stories that they came back with. We arrived late to Connexion but were able to hear Joe speak and have a short time of fellowship afterwards. This was the last Connexion meeting that we have because USP is finishing up exams and then has a short break. It is really weird being here because in Fiji it is winter while back home it is summer. Anyways, the temperature is about the same both places on a normal day. After the meeting some of us went to Bad Dog Cafe which tends to be our choice of dinner most days of the week because it has more American types of food, which we all miss a lot.
Friday was very frustrating in a way but it turned out to be better than we originally thought. Rachel Sauer and I were gonna spend the day sharing together and doing follow up with some girls we had met. One girl was in class when we called her and said she would call back, which she never did. Another girl hung up mid conversation and wouldn't answer when we tried calling back. And Rachel even called 3 other girls to see if any of them could hang out and nobody answered or could come. We walked around Sports City trying to find some girls to share with but were once again we became discouraged because nobody was there! We saw one of Kyle's guys that he disciples, John, and he decided to take us on USP's campus so we could have a look around. We are always scared to do this because we do not want to get in trouble with Glen Pope, the guy who won't let us on campus, but did not have a problem getting on or off. We look like international students because we always carry around backpacks. We were given a short tour of campus and then hung out with some of the Student Life guys that were playing their guitars and singing behind a tree at the rugby field. Rachel and I had a great time singing worship songs with them and just talking to them about Fiji and the United States. Talking about the differences between the 2 is always a fun topic because everything is so different. Kyle met up with us and asked if we wanted to go play some volleyball with students for a while before heading back for socials. We tried taking a shortcut which failed. Crossing a small creek was part of the walk and Kyle had made it across with no problems so we figured it would be fine. He warned us that it was a little soft but I apparently jumped with too much force which resulted in me sinking in the mud about halfway to my knee and losing one of my flip flops. We laughed so hard and Rachel still had to cross. She tried down the creek a ways but failed as well. She lost both flip flops, one on each side of the creek and had mud up to her knees almost. We were laughing so hard and decided to make Kyle go fetch our flip flops for us and then continued our walk barefoot. We made it to the volleyball court and saw that none of the girls showed up but we played 2 games with the guys. They were amazing at volleyball and we mostly passed the ball the them so they could spike it.
Friday night we had socials night, which is just a time to hang out and play games with our summer project group. For this we all made a sandwich for ourselves and brought some snacks and had a picnic by the seawall. this was really fun as we got to watch the sunset while eating dinner. Afterwards we played a few games of glow-in-the-dark ultimate frisbee and capture the flag. We had a blast playing some physical games rather that just cards for once.
Saturday was also a good day. We woke up around 8:30 and then met up at 9:15 to pass out some more Jesus films in a different area than last time. We spent the morning doing this and then had a pool party outreach to attend in the afternoon. This was fun yet a bummer day as the sun was not out at all so we were freezing the entire time. It was really fun to see all the Fijians show up even though they do not like cold water or weather at all. This lasted for 3 hours and then we headed back to the hotel to clean up for dinner at Mangoes. I loved this because I could actually order some American food and it was delicious!! We spent the night talking and listening to a live singer who came the the restaurant.
Sunday we went back to the same church as last week and it was really good again. The people really loved seeing us again and we caught up on the week. The sermon was about being an approved worker for God. I really enjoyed this and can't wait to hear another sermon on 2 Timothy again in 2 weeks. Next week there isn't a service because they have a church retreat. After church our group went and got lunch at HBK (Hot Bread Kitchen) and ate the best chicken pies ever! In the afternoon the pool was finally fixed, filled, and cleaned and we were able to go swimming and test out the slide for the first time! The water was freezing but that didn't stop us from having some fun, but once again it was cloudy and cold. At night we had girls and guys nights. The guys had a wii tournament and we had a small talk given by Alison and then just hung out together and talked. I checked out early because I had to wake up at 4:30am the next morning.
That leads us to today. Kyle, Marcia, and I woke up early to watch the sunrise. This was amazing to see God's creation. The sunrise was beautiful but my favorite part came after the sun had come up. It started raining and when we turned around we got to see the most amazing rainbow I have ever seen in my life. It was so bright and the colors were so distinct. If you have time, spend some quiet time in the Word outside either in the morning or at night and just enjoy being out in God's creation. I have learned to enjoy every opportunity while I am here and can't wait to come back and share what I learned back home.
Lastly, we got to talk to both of our families which I loved and I can't wait to Skype them again in a few weeks. It is always nice to see the families faces and hear their voices.
Until next time..
Thursday was another day spent in Sports City. Halie, Rachel Sauer, and I decided to eat lunch together at Pizza King and share our life maps. Life maps are basically sharing about your family background, when you accepted Christ, your highs and lows in life, and who your heroes are. This is always a good time spent together and getting to know one another better. We spent almost 3 hours sharing our life maps and asking questions before Merideth came to have discipleship with me. Merideth is my disciple for my time here in Fiji, which means that at least once a week we try and get together to go over how we are both doing and ask questions and just talk about life. I really enjoy these times because we have similar lives and its really nice to talk about how she dealt with her dad passing away as well.
At night a few of the girls and I had the opportunity to share the gospel with a field hockey club team. This was really cool because they don't have ice hockey here obviously but it was interesting to watch them play for awhile and then talk with them afterwards. They were really receptive of what we had to share with them. We all split into smaller groups and the groups I was in mainly said that they were Catholic or Protestant and one girl said both. I do not really know how that works and didn't get the chance to ask. Some of the other groups had Hindus, Catholics, Indians, or nonbelievers so it was really cool to hear the stories that they came back with. We arrived late to Connexion but were able to hear Joe speak and have a short time of fellowship afterwards. This was the last Connexion meeting that we have because USP is finishing up exams and then has a short break. It is really weird being here because in Fiji it is winter while back home it is summer. Anyways, the temperature is about the same both places on a normal day. After the meeting some of us went to Bad Dog Cafe which tends to be our choice of dinner most days of the week because it has more American types of food, which we all miss a lot.
Friday was very frustrating in a way but it turned out to be better than we originally thought. Rachel Sauer and I were gonna spend the day sharing together and doing follow up with some girls we had met. One girl was in class when we called her and said she would call back, which she never did. Another girl hung up mid conversation and wouldn't answer when we tried calling back. And Rachel even called 3 other girls to see if any of them could hang out and nobody answered or could come. We walked around Sports City trying to find some girls to share with but were once again we became discouraged because nobody was there! We saw one of Kyle's guys that he disciples, John, and he decided to take us on USP's campus so we could have a look around. We are always scared to do this because we do not want to get in trouble with Glen Pope, the guy who won't let us on campus, but did not have a problem getting on or off. We look like international students because we always carry around backpacks. We were given a short tour of campus and then hung out with some of the Student Life guys that were playing their guitars and singing behind a tree at the rugby field. Rachel and I had a great time singing worship songs with them and just talking to them about Fiji and the United States. Talking about the differences between the 2 is always a fun topic because everything is so different. Kyle met up with us and asked if we wanted to go play some volleyball with students for a while before heading back for socials. We tried taking a shortcut which failed. Crossing a small creek was part of the walk and Kyle had made it across with no problems so we figured it would be fine. He warned us that it was a little soft but I apparently jumped with too much force which resulted in me sinking in the mud about halfway to my knee and losing one of my flip flops. We laughed so hard and Rachel still had to cross. She tried down the creek a ways but failed as well. She lost both flip flops, one on each side of the creek and had mud up to her knees almost. We were laughing so hard and decided to make Kyle go fetch our flip flops for us and then continued our walk barefoot. We made it to the volleyball court and saw that none of the girls showed up but we played 2 games with the guys. They were amazing at volleyball and we mostly passed the ball the them so they could spike it.
Friday night we had socials night, which is just a time to hang out and play games with our summer project group. For this we all made a sandwich for ourselves and brought some snacks and had a picnic by the seawall. this was really fun as we got to watch the sunset while eating dinner. Afterwards we played a few games of glow-in-the-dark ultimate frisbee and capture the flag. We had a blast playing some physical games rather that just cards for once.
Saturday was also a good day. We woke up around 8:30 and then met up at 9:15 to pass out some more Jesus films in a different area than last time. We spent the morning doing this and then had a pool party outreach to attend in the afternoon. This was fun yet a bummer day as the sun was not out at all so we were freezing the entire time. It was really fun to see all the Fijians show up even though they do not like cold water or weather at all. This lasted for 3 hours and then we headed back to the hotel to clean up for dinner at Mangoes. I loved this because I could actually order some American food and it was delicious!! We spent the night talking and listening to a live singer who came the the restaurant.
Sunday we went back to the same church as last week and it was really good again. The people really loved seeing us again and we caught up on the week. The sermon was about being an approved worker for God. I really enjoyed this and can't wait to hear another sermon on 2 Timothy again in 2 weeks. Next week there isn't a service because they have a church retreat. After church our group went and got lunch at HBK (Hot Bread Kitchen) and ate the best chicken pies ever! In the afternoon the pool was finally fixed, filled, and cleaned and we were able to go swimming and test out the slide for the first time! The water was freezing but that didn't stop us from having some fun, but once again it was cloudy and cold. At night we had girls and guys nights. The guys had a wii tournament and we had a small talk given by Alison and then just hung out together and talked. I checked out early because I had to wake up at 4:30am the next morning.
That leads us to today. Kyle, Marcia, and I woke up early to watch the sunrise. This was amazing to see God's creation. The sunrise was beautiful but my favorite part came after the sun had come up. It started raining and when we turned around we got to see the most amazing rainbow I have ever seen in my life. It was so bright and the colors were so distinct. If you have time, spend some quiet time in the Word outside either in the morning or at night and just enjoy being out in God's creation. I have learned to enjoy every opportunity while I am here and can't wait to come back and share what I learned back home.
Lastly, we got to talk to both of our families which I loved and I can't wait to Skype them again in a few weeks. It is always nice to see the families faces and hear their voices.
Until next time..
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
So not a ton has happened since the last time I wrote but we have done some more sharing around Sports City as well as doing Followup with a group of girls Tuesday afternoon. Kristin, one of the team members was meeting with a group of about 7 girls and Michelle and I tagged along. These girls had already accepted Christ when they were younger but we were doing a Bible study with them to get involved and deepen their faith. In the follow up there is a section where it asks, if you were to die today how sure are you that you would go to heaven? This is a good question to ask yourself as well. Most of the girls were shy and didn't know how to respond but for those who did, they responded with like 50% or 75%. It was interesting to hear the reasoning behind their responses, because they know that they sin each and every day but the amazing thing is that no matter how much we sin, Christ died for us that if we accept him into our lives we can be 100% sure that we will spend eternity with Christ! That truely is amazing grace that we are given!
We ended sharing time short on Tuesday because we were helping out the Assembly of God church in Flagstaff hand out the Jesus film to Indian families in the area. We split up into small groups and headed out to talk to the families and hand out the DVD's and comment cards. We asked them to fill out these comment cards to see their thoughts about the video. We will be following up with this and collecting the comment cards on Friday. At night we had a group talk about how we can live a Spirit-filled life. Bill led this discussion and it was a fun and good lesson to learn about and talk about with each other. Many Fijians came to this and we learned about how we can truely live a life for Christ. Afterwards many people went to the movies and watched Men in Black because movies here are REALLY cheap. I, however, did not go to the movie and chose to hang back and pay some games with a few others who didn't go. We played the longest game of Uno and Skipbo that I have ever played, but we had a lot of fun just hanging out, telling funny and embarressing stories, and just getting to know each other on a deeper level.
Today (Wednesday) we spent the day together as small group Bible studies in the morning. We had lunch together, caught up on how everyone was doing, and spent time in the Word together. This was a really good time for me as we really shared our deep thoughts and feelings that we are having. This trip has really been a changing experience for me as I have been more open about everything that has happened in the past and being vulnerable. It's really encouraging to see how everyone responds and is there to listen to what you have to say now matter how happy, sad, embarressed, or guilty you may feel. This is how we spent the majority of our day is with our Bible study groups. We hung out until dinner where we broke up into different groups depending on what team you are on. There is the socials team, outreach team, prayer and praise team, and encouragement team which is what I am a part of. This was really encouraging tonight as we all shared how we really feel and how we have felt encouraged in the past week. We shared ideas on how we can make sure everyone on the team is encouraged and spending time focusing on encouragement and making everyone feel involved all the time. This was really great for me as it made me open up and really share how I am encouraged best. Everyone needs encouragement and likes being encouraged but not everyone feels it all the time. We spent over 2 hours eating dinner and sharing thoughts and ideas and just had a good time being completely open and honest about everything.
Continued prayers for the team's unity, health, and safety, as well as the people at USP who have not allowed us on the campus to witness. Pray that their hearts may be open and they will keep allowing the Stinters and Connection to be held on campus.
We ended sharing time short on Tuesday because we were helping out the Assembly of God church in Flagstaff hand out the Jesus film to Indian families in the area. We split up into small groups and headed out to talk to the families and hand out the DVD's and comment cards. We asked them to fill out these comment cards to see their thoughts about the video. We will be following up with this and collecting the comment cards on Friday. At night we had a group talk about how we can live a Spirit-filled life. Bill led this discussion and it was a fun and good lesson to learn about and talk about with each other. Many Fijians came to this and we learned about how we can truely live a life for Christ. Afterwards many people went to the movies and watched Men in Black because movies here are REALLY cheap. I, however, did not go to the movie and chose to hang back and pay some games with a few others who didn't go. We played the longest game of Uno and Skipbo that I have ever played, but we had a lot of fun just hanging out, telling funny and embarressing stories, and just getting to know each other on a deeper level.
Today (Wednesday) we spent the day together as small group Bible studies in the morning. We had lunch together, caught up on how everyone was doing, and spent time in the Word together. This was a really good time for me as we really shared our deep thoughts and feelings that we are having. This trip has really been a changing experience for me as I have been more open about everything that has happened in the past and being vulnerable. It's really encouraging to see how everyone responds and is there to listen to what you have to say now matter how happy, sad, embarressed, or guilty you may feel. This is how we spent the majority of our day is with our Bible study groups. We hung out until dinner where we broke up into different groups depending on what team you are on. There is the socials team, outreach team, prayer and praise team, and encouragement team which is what I am a part of. This was really encouraging tonight as we all shared how we really feel and how we have felt encouraged in the past week. We shared ideas on how we can make sure everyone on the team is encouraged and spending time focusing on encouragement and making everyone feel involved all the time. This was really great for me as it made me open up and really share how I am encouraged best. Everyone needs encouragement and likes being encouraged but not everyone feels it all the time. We spent over 2 hours eating dinner and sharing thoughts and ideas and just had a good time being completely open and honest about everything.
Continued prayers for the team's unity, health, and safety, as well as the people at USP who have not allowed us on the campus to witness. Pray that their hearts may be open and they will keep allowing the Stinters and Connection to be held on campus.
Monday, 28 May 2012
So I have made it back to the internet cafe to keep up with the blog..which is pretty impressive seeing as I really do not like writing but I am actually getting into this blogging thing. =)
Since I last wrote not a lot has happened.The scariest thing has happened so far and that occured right after I wrote to you all last. We left the internet cafe and grabbed some McDonald's on the way back. We walked back because it is not to far from the city. Kristin, Rachel, and I were walking down the backroads that lead to the hotel and there were some guys in a sports car sitting outside the club. They said Bula to us and it is normal to say Bula back otherwise you seem rude. So I gave them a slight wave and we kept on walking but when we turned down the next road we saw them drive past us, park, and rool down their windows to watch us. We thought is was weird but kept on walking because we were almost back. We turned down the next road and we were on the hotel road almost back when I saw a car coming up behind us again. It was the same car as earlier and it drove past us, parked in front of the hotel, rolled down their windows, and watched us walk/run into the hotel. This was very scary because this year many of us have been followed which is not normal for Fiji. But we were safe and haven't seen that blue sports car since.
Saturday we woke up and watched the guys play rugby for a while before all of us girls headed out to Mugs and Muffins at the Stinter girls apartment. Mugs and Muffins is an event where a group of girls meet together and just enjoy an afternoon drinking coffee, tea, water, etc. and eating muffins (which were really cupcakes), and banana breads and scones. We had fellowship with each other for a while before Jane talked to all of us on relationships. This was a really good talk as we realized that we can't always wait for other people to initiate the conversations or wait for them to ask what our name is before we ask them. It went into more detail but that was the part that stuck with me the most, because I know that I tend to wait for others to talk to me instead of going up to them first. At night the group went to an event called Synergy. I can't really give you much detail on what happened because I stayed back at the hotel and slept because I was sick. It was a huge bummer but it was fun to hear all the stories from the group when they got back. We spent the rest of the night just playing card games and hanging out which is the usual around here at night since it gets dark around 6pm.
Sunday seemed really normal for me. Most of the group went to Calvary church but a few of us hung back and went to Kyle's church that he normally attended. The service really reminded me of back home because it was small and was the same kind of worship I am used to. The Fijians were very welcoming and loved to talk to us and hear about our time in Fiji so far. We didn't get much of a Fijian experience of going to the other church but we really enjoy our time and the sermon was great. It was focused on 2 Timothy. We went back to the hotel and asked how the other groups experience was and found out that it was not good at all. They learned about speaking in tongues and they all said it was not Bible based at all and the person speaking was basically yelling at them. Needless to say they will probably be looking at a different church next week.
After church we got to participate in the real Fijian culture. We went to Colie's house and went to a Lovo. This was very different from anything we are used to back home. A lovo is a big hole in the ground where all the food is cooked in. When we arrived a bunch of the guys were drinking what is called Cava, which many of you have heard about from Kyle. Normally the guys are the only ones who drink it and if they drink enough that is what they consider their alchohol. But, it is part of their tradition so all of the guys in our group tried it once just to see as well as some of the girls from our group. The guys were a lot better at hiding how absolutely disgusting this drink was than us girls. I tried it and it was the most disgusting thing I have ever drank in my life. If any of you guys want to know what it tasted like then go out, grab some mud, mix it with water and then drain out the extra dirt. Afterwards, drink it and that is basically what it tasted like! We then ate dinner which consisted of a bunch of different foods that they typically ate. I tried some of it but after being sick the night before and then trying cava I wasn't too interested in tasting too many different things. I ate a lot of chicken which was really good, yet here in Fiji you need to watch out for bones. They don't take the meat off the bones at all, instead they chop all the meat up including the bone and serve it so you get used to spitting out any bones that may be in your food. I also tried some type of tree fern leaf which I did not enjoy much at all. It looked like green beans at first but when you ate it, it was chewy and really crunchy and rubbery. Some of the other foods they had were sweet and sour fish, rolls, lamb, and a few other interesting foods. Some of the food was really good while others were not good at all. We finished lunch and then just hung out with all the Fijians and played games, sang songs, or just talked. This was really fun and it was really cool to get to know more of the Fijians and just spend time as a large group.
Sunday night we ended the night by going to McDonald's and just spending some time with a little smaller group just talking and eating some good American food. After being here only a week I cannot wait to go back home and eat a HUGE juicy steak..so Mom, you better have that ready for me when I get home, PLEASE!! PB & J has become the normal lunch, dinner, and snack food so that we can save some money but you can only have it so many times before it just seems disgusting. We went back to the hotel and played some SkipBo and spent some time in smaller groups which here in Fiji you need. You can be the biggest extrovert in the world but everyone needs down time..it has taken me time in Fiji to really figure that out. A group of us went up to one of the bigger rooms where we all began singing songs and praying together as a group for our time here in Fiji. This was really cool that our group can just spend time with the Lord and just enjoy being together at the same time.
Today was our free day. We all slept in which to most, including me, was only until 9:30. We spent time hanging out at the hotel in the morning and at 12:30 a large group of us along with some of the Fijian guys went to the waterfalls. We spent all afternoon out there and we had a blast. Enjoying an amazing walk through the woods and see all of God's creation was really cool. We got to the waterfalls and there were a bunch of mini ones that led into little pools. At the very end of the path there was a rope swing and a larger pool that we could swim in. The water was freezing but after a few jumps off the rope swing you got used to the water quick. I believe that we all jumped off at least once and had a really fun time jumping and taking fun pictures. There was one downside and that was when Jane, who is one of our leaders, decided she wanted to try the ropeswing as well which didn't turn out so well for her and she broke her finger on the first try. She went to the hospital with one of the girls and finally made it back to the hotel just a little while ago. We came back and we were all starving and I was craving some BEEF! 4 of us went back to the hotel to quickly shower and clean up before going to dinner at the Bad Dog Cafe which served some good American foods. The burger was delicious and even though it was not beef from home it was the best burger I have had in a long time. We just spent some time eating and talking about our day and then headed over to the internet cafe which is where I am at now. But what is a walk without some guy asking us our names and us responding with fake names? lol
Please keep praying for team unity, good health, and safety for all of us here in Fiji.
That is all I have for you all right now but I wish you all the best back home and I can't wait to be able to share stories with you all in person! Love you all!
Since I last wrote not a lot has happened.The scariest thing has happened so far and that occured right after I wrote to you all last. We left the internet cafe and grabbed some McDonald's on the way back. We walked back because it is not to far from the city. Kristin, Rachel, and I were walking down the backroads that lead to the hotel and there were some guys in a sports car sitting outside the club. They said Bula to us and it is normal to say Bula back otherwise you seem rude. So I gave them a slight wave and we kept on walking but when we turned down the next road we saw them drive past us, park, and rool down their windows to watch us. We thought is was weird but kept on walking because we were almost back. We turned down the next road and we were on the hotel road almost back when I saw a car coming up behind us again. It was the same car as earlier and it drove past us, parked in front of the hotel, rolled down their windows, and watched us walk/run into the hotel. This was very scary because this year many of us have been followed which is not normal for Fiji. But we were safe and haven't seen that blue sports car since.
Saturday we woke up and watched the guys play rugby for a while before all of us girls headed out to Mugs and Muffins at the Stinter girls apartment. Mugs and Muffins is an event where a group of girls meet together and just enjoy an afternoon drinking coffee, tea, water, etc. and eating muffins (which were really cupcakes), and banana breads and scones. We had fellowship with each other for a while before Jane talked to all of us on relationships. This was a really good talk as we realized that we can't always wait for other people to initiate the conversations or wait for them to ask what our name is before we ask them. It went into more detail but that was the part that stuck with me the most, because I know that I tend to wait for others to talk to me instead of going up to them first. At night the group went to an event called Synergy. I can't really give you much detail on what happened because I stayed back at the hotel and slept because I was sick. It was a huge bummer but it was fun to hear all the stories from the group when they got back. We spent the rest of the night just playing card games and hanging out which is the usual around here at night since it gets dark around 6pm.
Sunday seemed really normal for me. Most of the group went to Calvary church but a few of us hung back and went to Kyle's church that he normally attended. The service really reminded me of back home because it was small and was the same kind of worship I am used to. The Fijians were very welcoming and loved to talk to us and hear about our time in Fiji so far. We didn't get much of a Fijian experience of going to the other church but we really enjoy our time and the sermon was great. It was focused on 2 Timothy. We went back to the hotel and asked how the other groups experience was and found out that it was not good at all. They learned about speaking in tongues and they all said it was not Bible based at all and the person speaking was basically yelling at them. Needless to say they will probably be looking at a different church next week.
After church we got to participate in the real Fijian culture. We went to Colie's house and went to a Lovo. This was very different from anything we are used to back home. A lovo is a big hole in the ground where all the food is cooked in. When we arrived a bunch of the guys were drinking what is called Cava, which many of you have heard about from Kyle. Normally the guys are the only ones who drink it and if they drink enough that is what they consider their alchohol. But, it is part of their tradition so all of the guys in our group tried it once just to see as well as some of the girls from our group. The guys were a lot better at hiding how absolutely disgusting this drink was than us girls. I tried it and it was the most disgusting thing I have ever drank in my life. If any of you guys want to know what it tasted like then go out, grab some mud, mix it with water and then drain out the extra dirt. Afterwards, drink it and that is basically what it tasted like! We then ate dinner which consisted of a bunch of different foods that they typically ate. I tried some of it but after being sick the night before and then trying cava I wasn't too interested in tasting too many different things. I ate a lot of chicken which was really good, yet here in Fiji you need to watch out for bones. They don't take the meat off the bones at all, instead they chop all the meat up including the bone and serve it so you get used to spitting out any bones that may be in your food. I also tried some type of tree fern leaf which I did not enjoy much at all. It looked like green beans at first but when you ate it, it was chewy and really crunchy and rubbery. Some of the other foods they had were sweet and sour fish, rolls, lamb, and a few other interesting foods. Some of the food was really good while others were not good at all. We finished lunch and then just hung out with all the Fijians and played games, sang songs, or just talked. This was really fun and it was really cool to get to know more of the Fijians and just spend time as a large group.
Sunday night we ended the night by going to McDonald's and just spending some time with a little smaller group just talking and eating some good American food. After being here only a week I cannot wait to go back home and eat a HUGE juicy steak..so Mom, you better have that ready for me when I get home, PLEASE!! PB & J has become the normal lunch, dinner, and snack food so that we can save some money but you can only have it so many times before it just seems disgusting. We went back to the hotel and played some SkipBo and spent some time in smaller groups which here in Fiji you need. You can be the biggest extrovert in the world but everyone needs down time..it has taken me time in Fiji to really figure that out. A group of us went up to one of the bigger rooms where we all began singing songs and praying together as a group for our time here in Fiji. This was really cool that our group can just spend time with the Lord and just enjoy being together at the same time.
Today was our free day. We all slept in which to most, including me, was only until 9:30. We spent time hanging out at the hotel in the morning and at 12:30 a large group of us along with some of the Fijian guys went to the waterfalls. We spent all afternoon out there and we had a blast. Enjoying an amazing walk through the woods and see all of God's creation was really cool. We got to the waterfalls and there were a bunch of mini ones that led into little pools. At the very end of the path there was a rope swing and a larger pool that we could swim in. The water was freezing but after a few jumps off the rope swing you got used to the water quick. I believe that we all jumped off at least once and had a really fun time jumping and taking fun pictures. There was one downside and that was when Jane, who is one of our leaders, decided she wanted to try the ropeswing as well which didn't turn out so well for her and she broke her finger on the first try. She went to the hospital with one of the girls and finally made it back to the hotel just a little while ago. We came back and we were all starving and I was craving some BEEF! 4 of us went back to the hotel to quickly shower and clean up before going to dinner at the Bad Dog Cafe which served some good American foods. The burger was delicious and even though it was not beef from home it was the best burger I have had in a long time. We just spent some time eating and talking about our day and then headed over to the internet cafe which is where I am at now. But what is a walk without some guy asking us our names and us responding with fake names? lol
Please keep praying for team unity, good health, and safety for all of us here in Fiji.
That is all I have for you all right now but I wish you all the best back home and I can't wait to be able to share stories with you all in person! Love you all!
Thursday, 24 May 2012
Hello again!!!
Words absolutely cannot express how amazing my time has been here and it has only been like 4 days!!!
Yesterday was kind of a relaxing day where we went back to Sports city to share our faith again and meet with our disciples. My disciple for the time that I am here is Meredith who is a Stinter here for the year. We had a really good time hanging out and getting to know each other on a deeper level. It is amazing to see how many similarities we have and how we can support each other as we are here together in Suva. I spent my afternoon with her at her apartment and not as much time out sharing but it was still an amazing day.
Thursday nights here are AWESOME! We go to a thing called Connections on Thursday night where we meet with all the kids in Student Life and all the leaders and new brothers and sisters in Christ. We have met with so many people and so many students have already asked the Lord to come into their life and take control! So far in just 2 days we have had over 20 new believers join us as part of God's family and it's amazing to see their eagerness to learn and hear more about the gospel. At Connections we began the night with a few icebreakers to have a good time and meet new people. We played a game called Kitty Kitty Meow Meow which was very fun as well as loud! We then taught all the Fijians the Electric Slide dance and had a blast laughing and dancing along side of them and seeing all their faces light up. It was great to see all our brothers and sisters in Christ come together and laugh and talk to each other. We followed this with a time of worship where we sang praises to our Almighty God! This was so cool to just have a time of praise and worship together with people from all different places in the world! A few students then shared their testimonies with the group and they saw how everyone has different stories and that nobody is perfect but with God's love and Christ dying on the Christ for our sins he set us free and gave us new life in him! Through His son dying we can have a personal relationship with him and grow closer to our Lord. We closed the meeting and talked with some girls who I became very close with.
Our group then went star gazing at one of Kyle's favorite places. God is awesome and it is absolutely amazing to see his creation so close! The stars here seem so close and there are so many! It's crazy to think that the stars we see here are the same stars you will see just after us. We get the first glimpse since we are 16 hours ahead of you. After star gazing a group of us went back to the hotel to just hang out and play games, as well as share stories from the day.
Today (Friday) has been the most exciting day I have had yet. We started the day with a long time of prayer and diving deeper into God's word. After we went to Sports City to begin a time of sharing as we will do most days. Rachel Sauer and I walked around with one of our Fijian friends whose name is Nancy. We started talking to these 2 girls who were having lunch and shared the Knowing God Personally booklet. They were very shy at first but loosened up and started talking and answering questions more. We got to the end of the booklet and asked where they were at in their faith. One of the girls said that she was a Christian and had accepted Christ when she was about 11 but the other girl had not yet asked Christ to take over her life. We asked her if she would like to pray and ask Him to come into her life, if she would open the door to her heart and let him in and Etta said YES! We prayed with her and will hopefully get to meet with her again next week to go over Followup number one and answer any questions she may have.
We started walking around again because they had to go to class and Nancy wanted to call one of her friends to have us share the KGP (Knowing God Personally) with her. Her friend Maria came and we sat down and asked her about her life and faith. She told us how she knew of Christ and so we went over the KGP with her and she was very excited and into it. She responded with lots of questions and at the end she prayed that Christ would come into her heart also! She was VERY excited and kept reminding us to call her next week so that we can all meet and go over the next step with her. We hung out with her and had some ice cream before she headed back to class.
God has been making himself known in such amazing ways and I love being part of sharing his Word. Please keep our team and all our new brothers and sisters in Christ in your prayers that their faith may grow and that we may be able to answer any questions they may have. Pray for strength and knowledge that we may have answers for them and they may see Christ love showing through us and that they may grow and share their faith with their friends.
Thank you for all your support and encouragement as we are here in Fiji. Vinaka to you all!!
Tuesday, 22 May 2012
BULA from Fiji!
I am starting a blog where I can share my adventures and stories with all of you back home. This will happen every few days maybe because we do not have the luxury of having internet all the time but I will try to share my experiences and talks that I have with you as often as I can.
So on Monday we arrived in Suva, Fiji and I cannot explain how amazing it is to be here. The minute we got off our plane we were welcomed with open arms by all the Fijians and it was amazing to see how loving and warm they were! We then got on a bus and took a 3 hour bus ride into Suva where we will be staying for 5 weeks. The ride was bumpy and the driving here is CRAZY! They drive so fast and swerve in and out of traffic with these huge buses. When we made it to our hotel where we are staying at we all went straight to our rooms and fell asleep instantly because of how tired and worn out we were from traveling for 40+ hours.
Our Tuesday started off very entertaining as my roommate, Rachel Sorrell was straightening her hair and her converter popped and started smoking. It as a good time and we have been getting along great. We love talking together and praying together every night before bed. We officially began the day with our time with the Lord where we go find a quiet place to just spend time diving into God's word and praying about this trip and what God has in store for us while we are here. After that we got to meet all the STINTERS who have been here since the beginning of the year and meet some of the Fijians whom they have been meeting with and talking to. This was a really fun experience to meet them and hang out with them for the afternoon. We split into groups and had a Fijian or 2 in each group and began our mini scavenger hunt around the city where we learned where important places were and figured out what we will be doing during the 6 weeks that we are here. It was a huge bummer to find out that we as a group are not allowed on the USP campus but we have been praying that the Lord will open up other doors to where we can witness and spread the gospel.
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