Travelling.

Its crazy to think over the past 4 months of my life and think about all the things I've done. How can I EVER complain?? I've lived among the storied history of Europe, visited some of the most famous cities on earth, experienced the poverty of Africa, lived in the Middle East for a month, and will in a few weeks experience yet another culture in Central Asia. Today it only continued. Just a normal day....got to DRIVE A CAR a few hundred miles in the Middle East among the craziest drivers on earth, got to see the DEAD SEA, swim in it, and see the lowest point on earth (the Dead Sea), and got to go up Mount Nebo to the site where God supposedly showed Moses the promised land right before he died. The scenery was spectacular, and the history only made it better. It makes the Old Testament, the "fairy tales" of the Bible become so real. Once seeing this land, this culture, it makes the Bible so tangible, so full of life. These weren't some stories dreamed up by good storytellers, these are stories that happened to REAL people over thousands of years of history. Right here in this very land, this very same kind of culture Moses, Adam, Joseph, Joshua, Isaac, Abraham LIVED. This is the part of the world they called HOME. Its been so cool learning to understand the Bible simply by learning this culture and realizing why some things in the Bible are like they are. Just the experience of a lifetime. I really don't think I will ever be able to appreciate this as much as I should.

But anyways.....school is going really good. We now have 14 students, after starting with 7-8. The kids really seem to be having fun, and I KNOW I am. Its worth all the hard work and stress of planning the "perfect" lesson when you see the progress and the way they are beginning to form sentences. It makes it even better when you hear them repeating the things they have learned over and over outside of class, simply because they are so excited to be learning. Or when random kids from the neighborhood, who aren't even in the classes, come up to you and repeat phrases that you have been teaching the kids....meaning your students are so excited about what they are learning they are teaching other kids!! Its such an amazing opportunity. An opportunity to teach this kids, give them more chance of a future, but more importantly, a chance to show them the love of God. For the first few days of class all I did was freak out about making the "perfect" lesson, making sure the kids were excited and having fun, and all it did was stress me out. It was partway into this week that God just showed me something that has changed my entire perspective. It isn't about not making mistakes, because those will be made....it isn't about teaching the kids a ton of English, because that isn't realistic in 3 weeks....its about showing them the love of God....its about the kids I am doing this for, and the God I am serving. I was so wrapped up in what I was doing, when it was all meaningless. If it isn't for God, there simply isn't any enjoyment. So its just been really good to get myself out of focus and to focus on these kids, hang out with them, play games with them, laugh with them, and show them that I love them more than they know, and hopefully that God loves them more than they could ever imagine. Its made everything go much better. All in all, it has been very hard and stressful and uncomfortable and frustrating, but God is working and using us....and that makes it all worth it.

Outreach...

So here I am on outreach. Digging in to the calling of God. Digging in to where He is leading us. And not always in the most pleasant of ways. While I can't specifically say where I am, I can tell you I am in the Middle East. It is here we have felt God leading us. Leading us to stay in hotels in the middle of a city, with no working outlets, no heat, cold showers, a toilet that doesnt work or a squatty potty (a glorified hole in the ground), no way of doing laundry, and the loud city noises right outside our windows. But it gets the job done, and really is much better than many places we could stay. I can't complain, for we have running water, a roof over our heads, and plenty of food. Oh the food! Hummus and flat bread galore, amazing wraps filled with grilled chicken and fresh vegetables, falafel sandwiches....never eaten this good in my life!

But yeah, we got in on Monday and have spent the rest of the time contacting local ministries and learning how we can get involved. It ends up we are going to be spending most of our time at a community center about an hour out of the city, working at the hub of the surrounding Bedouin villages (former desert people or nomads who are just transitioning into a settled lifestyle). We will be teaching English, Aerobics, Art, and doing odd jobs aruond the center. Most of the teaching is to younger kids, so it is nothing too stressful. 4 days a week me and two of my teammates will be teaching a 45 min English class to 4th and 5th graders. Should be really challenging, but a lot of fun. Not something I ever have seen myself doing, but can't wait to get started! On the other days we will either have an off day or the team will do something on our own, such as street evangelism and building relationships. Our days will definitely be packed.

Anyways, I must say the culture is SO interesting. So completely different from anything Western culture is. In Muslim society, men are king. Women are meant to maybe be seen, but not heard. In public, head scarves are worn and eye contact is not an option. A man and woman making any kind of lasting eye contact are seen as either being man and wife or having sex regularly. Also, men and woman never walk along together unless they are man and wife. Even when walking as our team, women walk in one group and men in the other. Its hard to get adjusted to, thats for sure, but its really cool to be immersed in the culture. Another culture difference is communication. In Arab culture, everything is about politeness. If you stop someone and ask for directions, they will ALWAYS tell you how to get there, even if they have absolutely no clue what you are talking about or where it is. Often they will invite you into their homes with no real intention of wanting you to come, but simply being polite. Most times you must ask something at least 3 times to get the real answer. When eating at someone else's house, they will ALWAYS tell you to eat more when you are finished. If you say you are full and don't want anymore they will insist up to 7 or 8 times that you should eat more before they stop. It is called an "honor and shame" culture, where everything is about how much honor you can receive for you and your family name. Really, really interesting.

Well, I better go. I've been in this internet cafe for over 2 hours, lol. But I will try to make sure I post more often. Sorry it has been so long. God Bless....can always use prayer if you think about it!

PS:شضثبيغضؤر ؤىءايسش-that is just a sample of some of the characters in Arabic. And they also read right to left and make some noises I never knew humans could make. So my thoughts? #1 way to cause your head to spontaneously explode. Try learning Arabic.

The speed of life

Here I am.....speeding across central Germany, speeding away from the life I've known the past three months. Goodbyes were hard, and tears were many. Its hard to believe that this is it-the very thing we've been looking towards, been preparing for our entire time here in Germany. The excitement thats been building is a little tainted by the reality that the small town of herrnhut has become our home away from home. The things of our everyday routine have become a part of us. Sleeping in through part of lecture, getting woken up everyday by the same kid that jumps off the top bunk of his bed, making the horrible walk up Slow Death to town(the fitting name of a giant hill between the base and town), being around people 24/7(whether you wanted to be or not), making horrible instant coffee in our room, eating the same meat and cheese sandwiches every night, late night talks w/ best friends, horrid laundry duty, sitting on the student floor for hours on end with nothing to do, all-nighters for no reason, shopping in the boutique, the list goes on. But most of all, you begin to realize that each person that was with you has become a part of you. No matter how different from you they are, no matter how aggravating, people become a part of you, a part of life. Without each one of the 68 students in our school, it would never have been the same. And without these pieces of your life around, it just doesn't feel right sometimes. It can ALMOST be depressing sometimes to realize that that special time of lecture phase, that season of life is behind us, never to return.

But its with excitement and hope and trust in God that we look towards outreach, the blood and guts of this entire trip. When we finally get out of the bubble world of Herrnhut and the rubber hits the road. When feelings flare, faults are exposed, and God truly is the only thing we have. Can't wait!

As I watch our train eat up kilometer after kilometer(not miles, you stupid American), I can only think about my life. Just as the train picks up speed and pushes on to the destination, faster and faster, no stops in sight, so does my life. Life only continues to get faster and faster. Before I will know it I will be married (yes, I am engaged), then kids will come, then my career will pick up, and before I know I will look back and wonder how so much life has slipped unbeknowns through my grasping fingers. I only hope and pray that God helps me to make the most out of every moment, and do the most I can with every moment given to me. I am so thankful for this trip and the meaning it has already had on my life. God, help me not to take it for granted!