Building Relationships in Dublin

Ireland - Weeks Three & Four:

(This update was written about a week ago… sorry for the delay.  I didn’t have internet access)

I can hardly believe that it has only been three and a half weeks since our arrival in Ireland.  With each new day I develop fonder affection for this country, for the ministry opportunities here, and for the people we meet along the way.  I can already tell that leaving Ireland will be a very difficult thing to do.  The first week back in Dublin has been absolutely amazing!  All week our group, of five people, has been working at Dublin Christian Mission (DCM).  DCM is an amazing place; located in the inner city of Dublin it reaches out to the children and youth of the working class in Dublin.  Throughout the week DCM hosts Christian clubs for different age groups of young people; from young children up through youth.  The building itself has a gym where they can play games and have sessions (or lessons), there is a lounge, a game room, a computer room, an art room, a snack bar, and a kitchen.  The staff that work there are dearly loved by every young person involved in the clubs, and by their families.  The sense of community and family that is found at DCM is very special.  Once you experience it, it draws you in; being able to work long term in that ministry would be a precious blessing.  In serving DCM this week we were able to work with a number of clubs, and we were also able to bless the leadership of DCM by thoroughly cleaning the entire building.  In all, we took four days to clean the three story building.  The leadership is very busy with the ministry itself, they have no one on staff to clean, and with dozens of kids coming in and out of the building every day the building was in dire need of some spring cleaning.  So we were able to bless and better equip the leadership of DCM, to carry out their ministry, by dedicating some time to just serving them through cleaning.   

 After the cleaning was done, one of the leaders of the clubs took us around to the flats where a number of the kids, who attend club, live.  We were able to see kids who had been in and out of the DCM during the days we were cleaning; we met their parents, got to experience the tight nit community they are a part of, and we learned a lot about the history and heritage of the people.  We learned about things I had never heard before, things you won’t read in your history books.  We were told about oppression, abuse, and corruption that many of the Irish people experienced in the, not so distant, past.  We heard some personal stories, and as for myself, it gave me a greater passion and love for the people of Ireland; an even greater appreciation for who they are, their way of life, and their culture. 

By the end of the first week back in Dublin I had worked with the Sunshine club (4-8 year olds), the Unity Girls club (10-12 year old girls), with a boys club (about 10-12), and with the Teen club.  It was a great week!  The kids where absolutely amazing; so much fun!  During the Teen club I actually met and played soccer with a young man who has been recruited to the Liberty University men’s soccer team.  He will be going there in the fall.  Because we had soccer as a common interest I was able to engage in conversation with him; I continue to find that soccer is indeed a universal language unlike anything else.  On Sunday we attended a church where many kids and staff from DCM go.  We met up with the young man who will be going to Liberty and with two other guys who are apart of DCM.  And since then, we have been able to meet up with them and spend some time with them on a number of occasions.  It has been so good being able to form connections and build friendships through the work we’ve been able to do here.  I am really excited, in particular, about having met the young man who will be going to Liberty in the fall.  It has been great being able to continue building a friendship with him; I don’t believe it was just a coincidence.  I was able to offer him my family’s home as a place for him to stay during school breaks, since he will not be able to come home to Ireland.  Being able to form these relationships has been more encouraging than I can say.  On Monday, May 2^nd, we will be leaving Dublin and heading to Cork for a month.  Though I am excited about going to Cork, I am really going to miss all of the people we have met during our time here in Dublin. 

This week, the second week of our return to Dublin, we have been working at the Light House, feeding the homeless.  We have sorted clothes, organized the clothes closet, made a lot of sandwiches, and served a lot of hot food.  On average, there about 150 people who come through the soup kitchen, on any given night.  So during our two weeks in Dublin we have worked with kids, teens, homeless, and we have also been able to bless a couple of local ministries that are doing an incredible job of bringing the light and hope of Jesus Christ to the people of Dublin.  It has been such a blessing to join with these amazing people; to witness their faith in action, and to see a glimpse of their great love for the Irish people.  It has been an incredible two weeks of ministry.  God is moving mightily in Ireland and the work of His kingdom is very evident in Dublin; we have been so blessed to be able to be a part of it.  Please pray for Dublin Christian Mission, that the good work they are doing will continue, that it will be blessed, and that they would continue to see the fruit of their labor.



Emerald Island

Ireland has rightly been dubbed the emerald island; the thrilling beauty of the endless rolling green hills must be seen to be believed.  On Monday, April 4^th, we arrived in this lovely country, full of charming people, rich culture, unique history, and an overall enchanting aura.  The day we left Switzerland, God immediately began to give us a taste of how He would move throughout our outreach in Ireland.  Monday morning, Chenda (a 20 year old girl on our team from Cambodia), still had not received the visa she had applied for weeks before.  We were scheduled to leave the base at 3:00 pm in the afternoon, but without a visa Chenda would be unable to join us when we departed for Ireland.  When a phone call was made concerning the issue we were told that no one had even begun to process her visa yet, and the customs department in Bern, Switzerland closed at noon.  So one of the staff hurried to Bern with Chenda to see what could be done.  While they were gone, we prayed.  Then two minutes before 12:00 we received a phone call, Chenda’s visa had been processed and she was now able to go to Ireland with the team.  Needless to say there was much rejoicing and celebration.  God had provided just in time.  The event served as a reminder that God has a plan for our team and that His plan includes provision, encouragement, and a revelations of God’s power and guidance. 

We finally entered Ireland as a team around 10:30 pm that night.  We had been coached on what to say when we were questioned at customs.  We were a group of tourists and if they pressed further then we were to say we were here to do volunteer work with churches.  There was a small holdup as one member of our team was delayed for a short time at customs; his name is Matthews and he is from Malawi so they took a bit longer with him.  But in the end God granted us favor and we made it through customs, to everyone’s great relief.  For the first week of outreach we stayed in a youth hostel in Dublin; which we booked reservations in a few days before we departed for Ireland.  We had now entered into outreach in Ireland with no knowledge of what was before us.  We only knew that God had called us to Ireland and now we would wait for Him to show us what to do.  So on Tuesday we began the day with prayer.  Then we went on a free tour of Dublin, in order to learn some more about the people, the culture, and the history of Ireland.  Then on Wednesday we again began the day with prayer and then we split up into four different groups.  Each group went to different parts of the city and our sole purpose was to make contacts.  So we knocked on doors; we entered into different churches or random organizations that we saw as we walked around town.  We would go in, tell them who we were, explain that we were in Ireland to serve in any way we could, to be a blessing, and to see if they might have any opportunities for us to join with them in service to the community.  As we walked we would pray and ask God to direct us to the people He wanted us to partner with in ministry.  My group went to a couple of Catholic churches, but they had nothing for us to do. 

While my group walked around town looking for contacts, searching for various buildings or churches that different people sent us to, we passed a place called the Apostolic Church.  It was a Pentecostal church on the side of the street that just looked like another store front.  But the sign over the door caught our attention, so we went in.  The first time we entered they were in the middle of a prayer meeting so we left and came back later.  The second time we met the Pastor; Patrick Fitzpatrick.  He was very friendly and excited that we had come.  He was very familiar with YWAM and as soon as he heard that we were looking for areas to serve, he immediately said he would defiantly have work we could do.  Then he invited us to church on Sunday.  The rest of that first week was spent finding more contacts, spending a lot of time in prayer as a team, and watching as God opened doors.  One of the girls on our team was just walking along the street one evening, near our hostel and she saw a building that said “compassion center”.  She walked in, told the man at the desk who we were, what we were about, and that we were looking for areas to serve.  Through that connection our next week of outreach and housing was planned and provided for.  Throughout the rest of the week the majority of our outreach was actually planned as we continued to meet people, make contacts, and watch as God opened doors for outreach opportunities and provided housing. Then that Sunday five of us went to the Apostolic church and talked to Pastor Patrick a bit more.  We explained to him that we would be in different parts of Ireland, but during the beginning of June we would be back in Dublin.  So He agreed that his church would host us for one week and while we work with the church and serve the community, members of his church will be housing us.  So God provided a week of outreach and housing through that contact, which is very exciting.  This is just another reminder that God has a plan, and that He is our provider.

During this second week of outreach we moved out of Dublin, into Cavan.  In Cavan we have been hosted by the man from the Compassion Center in Dublin.  He is a pastor from Nigeria, Pastor John, with a church in Cavan.  The compassion center is a ministry where, three days a week, members from Pastor John’s church feed the homeless.  His church is mostly Nigerian and they have been so friendly and hospitable.  The first day we arrived in Cavan we had no idea what our outreach for the week would look like, the pastor and His assistant (Edd) were planning the whole thing.  So we got off the bus, met Edd and headed to the Hosanna House (Pastor John’s church).  Once there, three of us went grocery shopping to get food for the week, while everyone else went to get settled in the house they had prepared for us.  But when they got there they found that the house was not stocked with necessary kitchen items, nor did it have any running water.  So, yet again, we were in a prime position to see God provide; once again we were in a position where we had no idea where we would be staying for the week.  But we knew God had called us to Cavan so we waited for Him to provide.   Long story short, by night fall God had provided two beautiful houses for the week; one for the three boys and one for the eight girls. 

Ministry in Cavan has been a day by day process of watching God open up different doors each day.  So far we have done door to door evangelism a couple of times; just letting people know God loves them (the majority of people here in the north of Ireland are Catholic).  Some of us have worked with homeless people, and we have built relationships with both Protestants and Catholics.  We have also gone to old folks homes on two occasions, sang for them and have just spent time talking with them and telling them about why we are here.  Yesterday we had the opportunity to speak to a class of 14 to 15 year olds at a local Catholic school.  They were learning about the book of Acts and we were their “real live” examples of what it means to be a missionary (funny thought).  That was SOOOO exciting!  I was actually able to tell them what I want to do with my life and I was able to teach them a bit about the issues of human trafficking as well; which none of them had ever heard of before.  It was so encouraging to see how focused they were and how hungry they were to learn more.  In the end they expressed how glad they were that we had come and spoken with them.  Then for the rest of the week we will be doing some street evangelism as well as serving in more practical areas in the community.  We will also be speaking and singing at the church on Sunday (the Hosanna House). 

Then on Monday half of our team will be heading back to Dublin to do youth, children, and homeless ministry for two weeks (I will be in this group).  The other half will be going to Northern Ireland to work with the YWAM base there for two weeks.  While we are in Dublin for these two weeks we will be staying at the Life House which is a Christian ministry that works with feeding the homeless.  It is also affiliated with a ministry called Dublin Christian Mission (DCM).  DCM works with kids and youth, hosting Christian clubs for inner city kids of all ages. While in Dublin we will work with DCM and with the Lighthouse. The Compassion Center hosts its homeless ministry in the Life House building as well.  So through the connection with the Compassion Center that was made during our first week in Ireland, the first month of outreach and housing was provided for; God is so good!

So that is the download on the first two weeks of outreach in Ireland.  But no blog update would be complete if I didn’t express how beautiful the Irish culture is!  I absolutely love Ireland!  The people are some of the most friendly that I have ever met.  Everywhere you go, especially in the smaller towns, people on the street greet you with a smile and a “hello how are you”, in their beautifully thick Irish brogue.  The Island itself is more beautiful than can be expressed in words.  The peaceful serenity of the country from its emerald fields with the grazing sheep, to the majestic cliffs along the coast, is one of the most spectacular I have ever seen.  Even the most vivid of imagination could not do justice to the lovely scenery, or to the rich experience of living in the culture amongst some of the most charming people in the world.  God truly has revealed a unique, special, and very creative aspect of His character in the way that He has created the culture, heritage, and history of this glorious Island and its beautiful people.  I am so excited and I feel so privileged to live among the Irish people; to learn from them, and to serve them for the next three months.  I cannot wait to see what all God has in store for our team here, and for all those we come in contact with during outreach.  It is truly my prayer that we are able to be a blessing to the Irish people and that God’s will will be done; that God will be glorified in Ireland.



Seek Me and Find Me

Well, I will be leaving for Ireland in 4 days! AHHHHHHH!!! I have to tell you, God is doing such a good work and I am so excited about all that He has in store. To begin with, “Team Ireland” (our group of ten individuals who have been called to Ireland for the next three months of outreach), had an interesting discussion in our team meeting about two weeks ago. Our two staff members told us that out of the three months of outreach, only three weeks were actually scheduled. Meaning, only two contacts have actually responded to inquiries about ministry opportunities in Ireland. So right now this is what our calendar looks like for the next three months:

· April (has 30 days) – There will be two weeks at the end of April in which half of our team is scheduled to work with the YWAM base, for reconciliation, in Northern Ireland. The other half still has no commitment at this point.  This leaves the first two weeks of April without any scheduled ministry opportunities (this also means that we have no idea where we will be staying during this time).

· May (31 days) – nothings scheduled (including housing or any other arrangements)

· June (we will be in the country for 28 of the 30 days) – One week is scheduled, in which half of our team will be going back to Northern Ireland to volunteer at a Christian concert. The concert will be raising funds for a clean water project in Africa.

So In the 89 days of our being in the country, we only know what we will be doing for about 21 of those days. All of this means that God is preparing us to be lead by Him, and Him ALONE. This is such an exciting realization! It is reminiscent of the time that Jesus sent out His disciples, as seen in Luke 9:1-6, “Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. And He said to them, ‘Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them’. So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.”

In the same way, we will be entering the mission field in obedience to God’s call to go and make disciples and to teach them all which God has commanded us. We are going in faith; we are trusting God will provide both the housing and the ministry opportunities. This is so exciting! We will not be entering the mission field with a specific destination, nor will we be bound by assigned tasks that are of our own making. We will enter Ireland expectant, waiting for God to speak and to lead; we will wait for Him to provide housing and to open doors for ministry in accordance with His will rather than our own wants or desires.

Because of this turn of events all our team members have been encouraged to get involved and make contacts; finding ways we can serve in ministry while we are in Ireland. So I sent an e-mail to a ministry called “Tirzah”. It is a ministry in Dublin that works in the area of awareness, advocacy, and prevention of human trafficking in Ireland. They e-mailed back, were very excited about our desire to get involved in the work they are doing and hopefully we will be able to get involved with the ministry sometime in June. Two other girls on our team have also been looking into different opportunities to work in ministries of justice in Ireland; have sent a few e-mails and received some replies. So we are very excited about the doors God will continue to open for us in ministry.

We met again, as a team, earlier this week and had a time of intercession. The staff felt that God was telling them that He did not want them planning the outreach; He wanted the entire team to be involved. So we just spent some time in prayer, asking God to reveal His will to us.  And God spoke. To me He simply said, “seek me”. Along with this He gave me two verses. One was, “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jer. 29:13).  The second verse was, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). Other people on our team received such words as trust, submit, veil, and open eyes. One girl said God is telling us to trust Him. Another said He is asking us to submit to Him; to surrender and He will lead us.  Another girl said that she just kept seeing a veil and that God wants us to look deeper; to see beyond the veil.  Lastly there was a word we are to enter Ireland and walk with our eyes wide open; let God reveal our mission in accordance with His will. This was such a sweet, encouraging, and exciting time as we all realized that God has a very specific purpose in mind for our team.

On Tuesday the entire base met together, prayed for each outreach team, and then had an opportunity to voice what people thought God wanted to say to our team. As people laid hands on us and prayed for our team in one accord, again God spoke.  People began voicing what God was laying on their hearts; God confirmed the things He had told us as a team. The two main words that were repeated were “surprise” and, “fire”. Multiple times people spoke out about how they believed that God has a plan but that we should be ready for surprises. These surprises were spoken of as good, in that God is going to guide and direct us, but that we should be flexible. We need to be willing to say yes to whatever it is that God leads us to do at any given moment. There were also multiple people who either received the word fire or saw an image. This fire was spoken of as being a visible passion; that our passion for the things of God would be visible and that this fire would spread as we are obedient in ministry. There was also a word spoken about the doors of Ireland; it was just a picture. It was not known exactly what the picture meant, but it will be interesting to see how the picture fits in with the work that God will do with our team in Ireland.

Well this is it… the lecture portion of the DTS is officially over and all three outreach teams will part and head out for three months of ministry. On Wednesday we had our last local outreach.  So I went, along with three other people from my DTS, to Passpartout for the last time (the youth ministry where a fellow YWAMer and I tutor three kids in English while the other two play with younger kids). After we had our tutoring session, we went to another part of the building and we all made Mexican food for a group of six kids. They had nachos, quesadillas, and fried ice cream. This was definitely a cultural experience for the French speaking Swiss children, who have lived their whole lives without ever tasting guacamole. So it was a lot of fun to be with them as they had this new experience. But the very best part was that I was able to go play soccer with three of the boys (they were about 10 years old). We played on and off for almost two hours. We spoke different verbal languages but soccer is a universal language; I experienced this first hand on Wednesday. We laughed, did tricks, played two on two, communicated through hand signals and other nonverbal means. We talked too, even though we may not have known the exact translation, we were able to figure out what was going on. By the time the boys had to leave I was so disappointed to see them go. I haven’t enjoyed myself so much in quite a while. I have missed playing soccer with kids, and playing with these little boys was so life giving. It was such an incredible and exciting experience; I was able to build a relationship and invest in their lives in spite of the language barrier. We could communicate with each other in our common love for a sport. It was such a joy. It also brought a whole new element of enjoyment to the beautiful game of soccer; a universal language and a tool for ministry that opens doors and creates community.

So God is good. I am so excited about all that he has done, and for all that He has in store for our team in Ireland. So I will continue to keep you updated on how God continues to move. To God be the glory, honor, and power forever. Amen.

Red Lights

True to reports, everything that could ever satisfy any earthly desire, whether moral or immoral, is easily accessible in Amsterdam.  Walking down the streets the aroma of marijuana hangs like a dense cloud throughout the city.  Of course every time you walk past a “coffee shop” the smell is over powering and almost suffocating, but it is also a scent that is encountered along the sidewalks, in the open markets, and just about anywhere else you may go.  In Amsterdam “coffee shops” are places where anyone can go and buy drugs at the counter as easily as one may order fast food at a restaurant.  There are cafés in town where people go to hang out and buy coffee or alcohol.  But when the sign reads, “coffee shop” (in English) it is a location where the purchasing of drugs has been made a very simple process. 

            Not only is drug use in public a very normal and accepted practice, but prostitution is also a tragic practice that is very in your face all over the city.  All throughout the red-light district of Amsterdam buying the services of a prostitute has been made a very public process.  Customers, on the streets, window shop for women.  The women actually stand in the windows, day and night.  Passing by these windows is a very heart wrenching experience. 

(This picture was taken from a mission across the street from a brothel. 

There is a woman underneath each red light seen as a blur in this picture)

The first time I saw these women in the windows during my five days in Amsterdam, I was shocked.  I had known that this practice was a norm in Amsterdam but I was not expecting to see it at the time.  I had just walked out of a mission in the heart of the red-light district.  It was about noon and I had been with a group of people from YWAM and we had just spent two hours praying inside of the mission. It was about noon.  Then when we walked outside I was admiring the canal running through the middle of the street and when I looked up I saw the women, grooming themselves.  They were just standing in the windows of a large glass fronted building across the street, waiting for the customers that would come throughout the day.  Even though this sight caught me by surprise in the moment, I was not surprise by the existence of such a place.  I had already been in Amsterdam for two days and I knew full well how easily accessible a wide variety of horrific sins were.  The realization of just how real the problem of prostitution was in Amsterdam and of how acceptable it has become was still a horrifying reality and it made my stomach turn.  But I was not surprised by it, which was a very sobering and heart breaking realization.  Yet even in all of these things, God really used the week in Amsterdam to encourage, teach, and challenge me in unexpected ways. 

An interesting note about prostitution in Amsterdam; it is legal.  Women from all over the world can be found in the Red-Light district; in “business” as prostitutes.  It is illegal in Amsterdam for anyone who is not a citizen to work in the city (this is true for all of the Netherlands).  Prostitutes actually are given a special business license to come into the country and work.  So even when ministries are able to reach out to these women, if these women decide they want out and no longer want to be a prostitute, they have no other options.  If they quite then they will have to go back to their home countries.  And for many, this is not an option because many are required to send money home for their families.  So ministries reaching out to the prostitutes are limited in how much help they can give these women.  They can’t get them out of prostitution and enable them to make a living in another way, and if the women go home they will more than likely just end up back on the streets again.  There is child sex trafficking everywhere in the world and thus it is a problem in Amsterdam as well but it is under ground.  Women are sold in the windows but finding child sex trafficking is a much more in-depth and difficult process.  These were a few sobering facts I learned during the five days we were in Amsterdam.

            We arrived in Amsterdam on Monday the 28^th of February.  On Tuesday we participated in a prayer station ministry.  We partnered with a ministry of elderly individuals who go into the main square in the center of Amsterdam on a weekly basis.  They wear red vests that say “prayer helps” (in Dutch) and they walk around and just ask people if they can prayer for them.  When the occasion allows they share the gospel with people and give out small booklets with the Bible printed in Dutch.  I joined with an elderly Dutch man who has been part of the ministry for quite a while.  I really enjoyed spending time with him, watching him interact with the locals, learning from him as he shared Christ with them, and I really enjoyed learning about the Dutch people from him, about Holland, and about prayer.  On the whole I was unable to talk with the people because I don’t speak Dutch, but as he spoke with them I prayed.  Then we came upon one man who spoke English.  He told me a bit about himself and he said he would really appreciate it if I would pray for him.  In the end he was the only person who accepted prayer.  We were able to hand out three Bibles and engage in conversation with people but this man was the only one who let us pray for him.  It was such an encouraging time.  As I prayed for Him I really sensed the leading of the spirit, as God taught me how to pray for the man in accordance with His will.  When I was finished the man expressed how encouraged he was and I left so excited about the good work God wanted to do in that man’s life and about the power of prayer. 

            During that first day in Amsterdam God showed me that this was something He really wanted to teach me during the week.  He wanted to teach me more about how to intercede for others according to His will, and about the power of prayer.  I had an unusually difficult week the previous week and I was in dire need of refreshing.  The first morning in Holland our DTS broke into small groups and we prayed for each other before entering into ministry for the week.  During that prayer group people prayed that God would use the week to refresh me, give me renewal, and encouragement.  And God was more than faithful to answer that prayer.  Then as we prayed for others I asked God to teach me how to pray specifically for each individual.  And God told me to ask for His heart.  So as I prayed I would ask God to give me His heart for each person.  Then God was faithful, time and again, to give me a very specific word and way to pray for each person.  It was such a sweet time of prayer and I was overwhelmed by God’s faithfulness in speaking to me and teaching me more about intercession.  Then when I was able to pray for the man in the square latter that day I was again amazed how God led me in prayer for a complete stranger.  I left so excited about the power and faithfulness of God; so excited that He would choose to use me. 

            On Wednesday our DTS was sent on a scavenger hunt, created by the YWAM base in Amsterdam, and were able to see the main points of interest in the city and learn more about Dutch culture.  Thursday we were taken on a tour of the locations that held significance in Jewish history, and that was an incredible experience.  Then on Friday I had the opportunity, along with my roommate Heidi

and Sara (a friend who is also in our DTS).  And this experience was amazing.  First of all I was so honored that I was able to spend so many hours with about 24 Dutch Christians who worked at the soup kitchen.  The Dutch people are so hospitable and friendly.  Spending time with them was a precious experience in itself.  Before the soup kitchen opened we spent an hour singing, praying, and in Bible study (all in Dutch).  Then during the ministry to the homeless I had the opportunity to meet so many people and hear their stories.  It really was an amazing opportunity.  Then that night a group of about 15 of us went to a youth hostel in the middle of the red-light district.  We did some skits and had a girl give her testimony.  We were there for a number of hours and just spent time building relationships with people there. 

            We left on Saturday and flew back to Switzerland.  But I left so excited and refreshed by the week.  This was an incredible thing.  Amsterdam is so spiritually dark and there is such a heavy spirit over the city that I was expecting it to have a negative effect on me spiritually.  But God clothed me in His armor.  There were a number of individuals in our DTS that had night mares and other unpleasant experiences after doing ministry in the red-light district.  Yet because God had given me such an incredible sense of security, comfort, and strength I was actually able to come along side these people in prayer.  And through this God continued the theme of teaching me what it means to be obedient in intercession, and thus seeing Him move in power.  So by God’s grace I left the week feeling rejuvenated.  This was such an incredible blessing.        

Ministry in Amsterdam

        Well I am off to Amsterdam, Holland (in the Netherlands).  We leave Monday morning; February, 28^th.  We will arrive that evening and will be returning back to Wiler, Switzerland Saturday night, March, 5^th.   We will be staying at the YWAM base in Amsterdam.  While we are there we will receive a tour of Amsterdam and of the ministries throughout the city.  We will also be involved in prayer ministry in the red-light district during the week, and we will also have an opportunity to perform some skits and give some testimonies at a youth hostel in the red-light district.  So I am excited about the good work that God will do there, and about all that He has in store to teach us during or ministry time in Amsterdam.  So please be praying that God will protect us during our travels to and from Holland, and also pray for God’s protection over us while we engage in ministry there.  I also want to ask that you please be praying that God would bring me great refreshing during this week of ministry.  Because of various events that have taken place in the past week, I have been under attack and could really use a breath of fresh air, so to speak.  So please pray that, during this next week, God would give me strength.  That He will enable me to be a vessel that is worthy of His Kingdom, and that His strength would truly be made perfect in my weakness.  Thank you so much for all of your prayer and support.  I look forward to being able to write next week and tell you all about the work that God will be doing while we are in Amsterdam.  



A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps...

Hmmm, where to begin…

Well, about two weeks ago God began teaching me something that I was not expecting, but that has been both refreshing and a bit challenging at the same time.  We had a speaker come for a week, who gave lectures on the topic of Christian Stewardship.  During his first lecture he asked us what our definitions of stewardship were.  At that point God brought to my mind the Parable of the Talents.  This was a passage in scripture that God used in my life about three years ago.  At that point in my life God was reminding me that He requires believers to take the “talents” given to them and use them to multiply his kingdom.  It is not sufficient to simply tuck them away and keep them protected until His return.  He requires multiplication and growth.  Even though this parable was not part of the teaching for the week, God continued to bring it to my mind in reference to Stewardship.  Then towards the end of the week God also gave me Proverbs 16:9, as a verse to ponder; “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps”.   At first I was confused as to why God would bring these two very different passages of Scripture to mind.  What was He trying to teach me through these, I was having trouble understanding how they related to one another?  Finally, on the last day of lecture we were all given about 45 minutes of the lecture time to go off by ourselves and process all that we had learned that week.  I knew God had something He wanted to show me, even though it really had nothing to do with what we had been learning in our lectures, so I was eager to get away and just seek Him and discover what was on His heart. 

As I prayed I asked God to reveal to me how the two passages of scripture, which He had given me, related and what it was He wanted to teach me through them.  He began to reveal to me that I had built up some assumptions over the past few years.  Yes God has given me a clear passion to work on behalf of child victims of sex trafficking and He has given me a call to missions.  But I had begun to fill in the blanks of what that ministry will look like; I had made some assumptions.  A couple years ago I was struggling with the idea that the specific gifts, which God has given me, did not seem to fit with the passion for a very specific ministry that God has also given me.  I only knew of a few specific forms of ministry in which people can work on behalf of victims of sex trafficking, so I assumed that I would be working within one of these realms of ministry.  This was simply because I was unaware of different forms of ministry in this area.  I had assumed there were no other options.  God showed me that in doing this I had actually boxed myself in, without even realizing it.  He showed me that because of this, if His directing and plan for my life was to come in a different form then what I was expecting, then I may miss out on what He really has for me.  I may make myself blind to His true directing simply because I allowed assumptions to limit my understanding of what God has for me.  So God told me to write down the assumptions I had developed, in a list.  And then He opened my eyes to what those assumptions were, and I was amazed.  I developed these assumptions without even realizing it.  This is what Proverbs 16:9 was talking about.  I had made plans in my heart, without even realizing it, but God wants to direct my steps.  This is also what I want.  God showed me that, yes, the major call God has placed on my life remains the same.  But the form, in which this call will become reality, is in His hands.  I still do not know what it will look like.  But he will direct me when the time is right.  This understanding was so freeing.  I wrote down my assumptions and gave them to God.  So I still do not know what doors God will open for me after this DTS, but God knows.  And now I am no longer limiting myself because of assumptions.  But now I see more clearly, and I am open to whatever God has for me; even if the ministry opportunity doesn’t look like what I was expecting.  I am so excited to see what God has in store, because I don’t have it figured out.  But however God directs I will follow, and I am eager to see how He will direct.

So in the end, I had a list of assumptions that God was asking me to give to Him, and I had a list of the Talents that He has given me to invest in His kingdom.  I know the call He has placed on my life, the gifts He has given me to invest, and I know that I desire to be directed by Him and not by my own plans.  So God has asked me to rest in Him, to be open for whatever it is He has in store for me next.  Because I may very well be surprise by what He has planned; a plan that goes beyond what I ever would have imagined.  And this is very good.  I am so glad that He spoke truth over me and opened my eyes.  Now I am so excited to see what doors He opens, both in the near and distant future.  God is good!

Going Forth into Ireland

        The outreach teams for the field portion of my DTS have finally been announced.  I am going to Ireland!  God is so awesome.  Before we were told what our three outreach locations would be, I never would have imagined staying in Europe for outreach.  But when it was announced what the focus of the ministry in Ireland would be, I immediately felt a tug on my heart; God was leading me to Ireland.  The focus for ministry in Ireland will be on corrupt governmental structure, economic problems, work with churches, children, youth, intersession, and human trafficking victims.  We were given a week to pray about it and then present our final decision to our staff.  As I prayed I just felt more and more at peace about choosing Ireland as my outreach destination.  Ministry there will focus on work with children and youth, intersession, and human trafficking victims.  All of these things were areas that God had given me a passion for, and all of the issues played a role in God leading me to this particular DTS.  So as I prayed I was just so at peace about the decision, and I really felt that God was indeed leading me to Ireland.  Then today the final decision, about who would be going to each country, was finally announced.  The Ireland team consists of ten students from our DTS, including myself, and two staff.  We will be leaving for Ireland in April and will return to Switzerland the first week of July.  So right now it is my prayer that God would even now be preparing our hearts, as a team, for the work that God is preparing in advance for us.  Also that He would unify us as a team, and that God would be preparing hearts in Ireland to receive the work that God will be doing through us.     
        Also some interesting news, my local outreach group had our first opportunity to do outreach in Biel, Switzerland this past week.  Personally, my role in this outreach opportunity will be teaching English to three teenagers.  All three of them are Swiss but are each originally from Shreelanka.  There are two girls and a boy; ages 16, 14, and 13.  They each speak Tamil, German, French, and they are also learning English.  But they are going to be meeting with me, and one other person from our YWAM outreach group, every other Wednesday .  We will have the opportunity to spend time with them, invest in their lives, and build relationships with them.  Because I am the only one in our outreach group that speaks English alone, I am the one who will work with these three students every time we meet.  There will also be one other person from our group with me each time, but not necessarily the same person every week.  We will play games with them, spend time with them, teach them about our language and our culture, and we will even be able to cook food for them from our home countries.  I am really excited about this outreach opportunity.  I am building relationships with three teenagers, I have something to offer them that that they need, and I will also have the incredible opportunity of being Jesus to them.  All three of them are precious and so eager to learn.  So please keep them in your prayers and also pray that God would lead our conversation in a way that will bring glory to Him. 
      

This past week I came down with a stomach virus that kept me in bed all day on Friday but God was gracious and gave me enough strength to travel with my DTS into the mountains for the weekend. So we went up to Kantersteg on Friday evening, went sledding on the mountain all day Saturday, walked around the ski village on Sunday and drove back to the YWAM base that day. It was such a refreshing time. It was so good to just get away and have nothing scheduled but mandatory fun with the group. It became an amazing opportunity to further develop friendships with the other people in my DTS, and sense that weekend I have really noticed a sweet spirit of unity that has really begun to grow among our group. Now, as I see just how fast time is passing us by, I realize that in just over a month and a half we will be parting ways as we enter the mission field. So it is so important that I make the most of the time we have now, and really get to know my fellow students in a deeper way.

        In about three weeks we will all be heading off to Amsterdam for five days, where we will be working with a YWAM base and embarking on a practicum that will teach us more about ministering to victims of human trafficking.  So again I am struck by just how much time has already gone by.  I have been here almost a month already and that is so hard to believe.  God is so good, He is teaching me so much, and I am so excited for all that He has yet in store for me to learn.  I am so excited about the opportunities I am being given to minister; in being involved in intersession and blessing in Wiler and the surrounding area, in teaching English to teenagers, in having the opportunity to go to Amsterdam, and finally in spending time ministering and showing the love of Jesus Christ to the people of Ireland.  God is so faithful.