We just got back from three days in Lahti, Finland. Lahti is a city about a half hour train ride from Jarvenpaa and it is considerably bigger than our small home base. It truly felt like we had traveled to a different country - traveling all the time can do that to ya. Here we worked with Petrus the youth pastor of a pentecostal church there. (the official/most common religion/church here in Finland is the Lutheran church) He and Maiju (the children's pastor) helped us out considerably, gave us a tour one day of the city, and translated for us. This time we stayed in people's apartments. The girls stayed with Paulina, Petrus' sister, and her roommate Hanna. They were such a blessing and were so generous of their time, space, food, internet, etc. just like all the people we have encountered here. Their apt was so cute too; I hope mine can be so chic. The guys weren't so lucky with space and had to squeeze six of them into a one-person apt thought it helped the owner was out of town.
Our schedule was rather free in Lahti with only nightly meetings at 6pm. They provided lunch for us at the church, lovely, Tues we then went grocery shopping and settled in, Wed we got to roam around the shopping center there or hang out in a coffee shop, and Thurs we got a tour of the more well-known places in Lahti before going to the church for sound check. On tour we visited their ski jump - IT WAS HUUUGGEEEEE! omg I used to think that I would love to ski jump after seeing the Olympians do it on TV. Oh, wow, think again. I was scared just looking at it. And on the huge supports they had rock climbing holds. If I were harnessed that would be amazing. We also saw the harbor and walked out on the lake that was completely snowed and iced over.
At the meetings Peter spoke on Trusting the Father and I gave a testimony, Olivia spoke on Hearts of Stone and Joe gave a testimony, and Andrea spoke on Intimacy/Trust and James gave a testimony. Finnish people are known for being reserved and to not think very highly of themselves, but during ministry time (with some prodding) so many people came forward for prayer/prophecy and were completely touched. It was so cool. I love ministry time because I just pray what I feel God saying and I get to see them get affected completely by Him. So many times I wasn't getting any words but was just with them loving them and God touched them so powerfully. Cuz it's not about us anyway but He uses us and allows us to take part. Suzi and I were praying for one girl and just standing there with her loving on her and after awhile (with tears) she told us the vision she had from God and it totally blew us away! She saw Jesus proposing to her and getting married to Jesus and she was wrecked by the thought that Jesus loved her enough to want to marry her. We hadn't been praying any of that and Daddy just took her away! Amazing.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
it's cold here but the streets aren't slushy
this week we went on school visits tuesday through friday and taught lessons on our countries or just shared about religion. i was actually ok with the awkwardness that i knew would be there; it's just the lack of communication and information relaying that i am getting bothered by. the majority of the time we would arrive at the school only knowing that we were going to share something with the class and then someone showed us the room and said, "there you go. go teach." ummm...maybe it's just me preferring to be prepared (at least mentally) for whatever i'm about to do, but it would have been nice to have had a pep talk or debrief about what we should expect when we went in there. what kind of class is it? what have the kids been learning? what do they know? what should they or do they want to learn? what doesn't need to be said? etc. etc. four days of none of that on top of the other week we've been here with not much communication from the top down has been wearing on my nerves. i think we have moved past the stage of being flexible and now i just feel stupid.
on a happier note, i'm getting my energy back sleep-wise, especially after the long weekend and being sick earlier this week. i had a really bad sore throat one day and the next i felt like a cold coming on with a cold headache but i slept and i was peachy by morning! thanks, God. i am ready for things to snowball now, but i think some of the team are on vacation mode. oh, dear.
we led a house church and youth meeting this week as well which were good; God's been showing me several things as well. tonight after the filming of the TV service i did a bit of prophetic presbytry with isaac and philip for some who missed out on it before. then i got to go sledding! woot. utterly cold is what it was, the kind where you snif and any dripping that might have been there just freezes. haha at least it saves the mess. the hill was good and my butt got sore. verdict: the saucer is better. with its handles you can stay on better even though you spin and take bumps backwards. the straight sled just hurts...it threw me off three times. i couldn't make it all the way down on it once. ha. it was wonderful to get outside and get away for a bit.
next week we go to Lahti for a few days but i don't know what we are doing yet. :) one week and i'll be back in toronto!!
Peace.
on a happier note, i'm getting my energy back sleep-wise, especially after the long weekend and being sick earlier this week. i had a really bad sore throat one day and the next i felt like a cold coming on with a cold headache but i slept and i was peachy by morning! thanks, God. i am ready for things to snowball now, but i think some of the team are on vacation mode. oh, dear.
we led a house church and youth meeting this week as well which were good; God's been showing me several things as well. tonight after the filming of the TV service i did a bit of prophetic presbytry with isaac and philip for some who missed out on it before. then i got to go sledding! woot. utterly cold is what it was, the kind where you snif and any dripping that might have been there just freezes. haha at least it saves the mess. the hill was good and my butt got sore. verdict: the saucer is better. with its handles you can stay on better even though you spin and take bumps backwards. the straight sled just hurts...it threw me off three times. i couldn't make it all the way down on it once. ha. it was wonderful to get outside and get away for a bit.
next week we go to Lahti for a few days but i don't know what we are doing yet. :) one week and i'll be back in toronto!!
Peace.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
What's Happening
1. We did a "youth" conference last Wed and Thurs which was my first one to "run." It was intended for young teenagers but on the first night we pretty much had just adults in attendence. Our team led worship all three sessions and we gave the sermons as well. Wed night Philip spoke on God's Love and we had a ministry time afters. I prayed with Olivia and all three people we ministered to were some of the gypsy (Hungarian, I think) women that help out in the church. All we really touched which we were later told was amazing because they don't ever show emotion. Cool! Thurs morning I spoke on the cross to an audience of about 30 people, half of which were on my team. That in itself is another story. The ministry this time was in small groups. I was with Stine, Tuulia, and Karolina, all fantastic friends now. We prayed for healing for Tuulia and broke off some generational things and her headaches have not come back since! Cool! Thurs afternoon after a lunch out for delicious pizza was a time of soaking or prophetic presbytry. My group was Isaac, James, and Olivia and the words were flowing so much that we gave 10 min prophecies to each person. So good. Thurs night Joe spoke on faith and again we had ministry time afters.
2. Friday we left for a Young Adult conference that we also ran with the help of the leaders, Capa, Henna, and Juha, of course. Olivia led worship for the first time Fri night and I got to play bass!!! So much fun, I hope I get to do it again. The reason they let me was Peter, our typical bass player was speaking on Judgments and Inner Vows. He's from South Korea and did a great job. He had people journal for the ministry time and we soaked them when we felt led to. Sat morning Peter led worship but wasn't singing so it was Kristyn and me; that was a bit stretching too but I prayed that God would modify my voice in the monitors so it would sound good to everyone. :) Suzi spoke on "From Shame to Honor" and Carter spoke on performance. We got to play in the snow a bit which was much needed. It has been hard staying couped up in one place all the time and the snow here is amazing; in most places it comes right to below my knees. Sat night I was so tired and God made a way so I didn't have to sing (I was going to originally) and one of our new friends with an outstanding voice, Joanna, sang for me. Kristyn spoke on Destiny and we prayed for people afters again. The more we have been praying for people the more smoothly God's words for them have come forth which is exciting to be a part of. Oh, and we had small groups while we were there...my group just prayed for each other which I felt was what we needed. I hope it was. We left late morning Sunday to come back to Jarvenpaa.
3. At camp we had the opportunity to sauna and go swim in the ice hole. Did I go to the sauna? Yes, I am now in love with the concept. I find it very relaxing and a really cool experience. Did I then jump in the ice hole? Well, I wasn't quite convinced especially since I don't particularly like cold things though I thought it might be a cool thing to say that I had done while in Finland. Some of the other girls were going to go so I of course said to myself, "Oh, why not?" The thing was it was so hot in the sauna that I was finding it hard to breathe. Running outside was ok aside from having to watch out for ice (I didn't put socks on like some of the others did) and the water was of course frigid. So now my body had to deal with another shock - the ice water - and paniced. It was like I forgot how to swim and I got out as fast as possible and ran back. Once I got inside I could see straight and there were so many bright spots flashing before my eyes. My body felt fine, I just couldn't see. haha, I'm ok, Mom, it passed. After a while I actually considered doing it again, but this time I could breathe before leaving the sauna and I wasn't so freaked out. I stood up in the ice pool which was kinda cool and then on the way back in jumped in a pile of snow...I thought I was already numb, but I was wrong. :) Woot, I am now a true Finn.
4. Sermon... thins was the second time for me to give my sermon on the cross but the day before I was looking over it and feeling it wasn't the right way to bring the message...that I need to present it in a different way. I didn't get many thought as to how to change it so that evening when things were winding down I went to sit on the stage and soak about it. I had no clue where to begin (and being tired my brain was not functioning too well) so I started listening to my previous sermon and proceded to fall asleep in the kneeling position. About an hour later after getting over the most severe tingling pain in my legs I journaled, chatted with Philip, and then began to practice. It was kinda cool; I gave about an hour sermon to about 200 empty chairs and it was fun. The Spirit was with me and I was "rambling" coherently. Even if I didn't preach like that I think I was processing and that was good for me. My notes were rather lacking but when I spoke on Faith at BOL that was the case and the Spirit was completely quiding me. Thurs morning, after about 4 hours of sleep, I felt ok but had no clue what I was saying. I had a few good points but didn't feel like I was making any sense or forming a good sermon. People afters said it was really good so God must have done a miracle. :) PTL. I will look like a fool any time if God can work through that.
5. Monday we have a much needed day off and then the rest of the week we are teaching lessons in some of the schools near by. There is a TV service Sat night but I don't think we are the ministry team for that. Today, we were all sleep deprived but when we got back from camp they shipped us off to have lunch at an elder's home (it was delicious) and then we had to run the church service. We are shattered as my English friends would call it. Then of course I had to go play Floor Ball (street hockey indoors) for some exercise which has been pretty nonexistent here sorry to say. It was a really good time, and now I need another shower and an entire day an a half of sleep. :) God bless! Greater things are yet to come.
Peace.
2. Friday we left for a Young Adult conference that we also ran with the help of the leaders, Capa, Henna, and Juha, of course. Olivia led worship for the first time Fri night and I got to play bass!!! So much fun, I hope I get to do it again. The reason they let me was Peter, our typical bass player was speaking on Judgments and Inner Vows. He's from South Korea and did a great job. He had people journal for the ministry time and we soaked them when we felt led to. Sat morning Peter led worship but wasn't singing so it was Kristyn and me; that was a bit stretching too but I prayed that God would modify my voice in the monitors so it would sound good to everyone. :) Suzi spoke on "From Shame to Honor" and Carter spoke on performance. We got to play in the snow a bit which was much needed. It has been hard staying couped up in one place all the time and the snow here is amazing; in most places it comes right to below my knees. Sat night I was so tired and God made a way so I didn't have to sing (I was going to originally) and one of our new friends with an outstanding voice, Joanna, sang for me. Kristyn spoke on Destiny and we prayed for people afters again. The more we have been praying for people the more smoothly God's words for them have come forth which is exciting to be a part of. Oh, and we had small groups while we were there...my group just prayed for each other which I felt was what we needed. I hope it was. We left late morning Sunday to come back to Jarvenpaa.
3. At camp we had the opportunity to sauna and go swim in the ice hole. Did I go to the sauna? Yes, I am now in love with the concept. I find it very relaxing and a really cool experience. Did I then jump in the ice hole? Well, I wasn't quite convinced especially since I don't particularly like cold things though I thought it might be a cool thing to say that I had done while in Finland. Some of the other girls were going to go so I of course said to myself, "Oh, why not?" The thing was it was so hot in the sauna that I was finding it hard to breathe. Running outside was ok aside from having to watch out for ice (I didn't put socks on like some of the others did) and the water was of course frigid. So now my body had to deal with another shock - the ice water - and paniced. It was like I forgot how to swim and I got out as fast as possible and ran back. Once I got inside I could see straight and there were so many bright spots flashing before my eyes. My body felt fine, I just couldn't see. haha, I'm ok, Mom, it passed. After a while I actually considered doing it again, but this time I could breathe before leaving the sauna and I wasn't so freaked out. I stood up in the ice pool which was kinda cool and then on the way back in jumped in a pile of snow...I thought I was already numb, but I was wrong. :) Woot, I am now a true Finn.
4. Sermon... thins was the second time for me to give my sermon on the cross but the day before I was looking over it and feeling it wasn't the right way to bring the message...that I need to present it in a different way. I didn't get many thought as to how to change it so that evening when things were winding down I went to sit on the stage and soak about it. I had no clue where to begin (and being tired my brain was not functioning too well) so I started listening to my previous sermon and proceded to fall asleep in the kneeling position. About an hour later after getting over the most severe tingling pain in my legs I journaled, chatted with Philip, and then began to practice. It was kinda cool; I gave about an hour sermon to about 200 empty chairs and it was fun. The Spirit was with me and I was "rambling" coherently. Even if I didn't preach like that I think I was processing and that was good for me. My notes were rather lacking but when I spoke on Faith at BOL that was the case and the Spirit was completely quiding me. Thurs morning, after about 4 hours of sleep, I felt ok but had no clue what I was saying. I had a few good points but didn't feel like I was making any sense or forming a good sermon. People afters said it was really good so God must have done a miracle. :) PTL. I will look like a fool any time if God can work through that.
5. Monday we have a much needed day off and then the rest of the week we are teaching lessons in some of the schools near by. There is a TV service Sat night but I don't think we are the ministry team for that. Today, we were all sleep deprived but when we got back from camp they shipped us off to have lunch at an elder's home (it was delicious) and then we had to run the church service. We are shattered as my English friends would call it. Then of course I had to go play Floor Ball (street hockey indoors) for some exercise which has been pretty nonexistent here sorry to say. It was a really good time, and now I need another shower and an entire day an a half of sleep. :) God bless! Greater things are yet to come.
Peace.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Jarvenpaa
Greetings from Finland! We arrived on Saturday evening after about 24hours of travel. My jet lag wouldn't have been so bad if I had followed my typical routine of changing my "clock" to the time of my final destination right when I get on the plane. I was hindered in doing this due to the fact that I had my personal TV screen and decided to watch movies the whole way over The Pond. :) I'm so responsible.
We arrived in London around 6:30am their time and with a 10 hour layover we were able to go out of the airport, catch the Tube to the city center, and walk around. Oh, wow. I love London. I was soooo excited to have this opportunity - such a treat - because I have always wanted to visit England. Now I have a dozen family members who live in England and will definitely be visiting them in the near future and exploring their fabulous country.
Our flight to Helsinki was only about two hours and I nodded off throughout the whole thing which was good. All of our luggage save one made it there and we caught rides to Arkki (pronounced ark-key) church with some of the young adults from the church. They are such wonderful people and their English is really good. Sunday we got to sleep in a bit which was really nice. The day was rather relaxing before the Sunday service at 4pm. It was good but I would love to see more freedom break out. After the service we had a "welcome party" which was more of a young adult worship set and that was good too. Monday we prepared for our school lessons for next week and others went grocery shopping. Today we went to Helsinki for some prophetic evangelism and sightseeing. It is cold here but it has been really enjoyable to walk around outside and not be couped up inside all the time. Tomorrow starts a youth conference which I hope is outstanding.
Some cool (haha) things that have been happening include the following:
1. Since being here I have gone a bit crazy meaning that I have reached the point where I am completely comfortable with my outreach members (or maybe I just don't care anymore) so that I've started making outlandish jokes that typically border on the side of inappropriate. Sunday I laughed so many times and so hard that I am sure that I took care of several months' worth of free radicals. It was so refreshing! And the fun has continued. I find it great when I get to this point with others and they always find it so surprising that I am an amusing person. haha. It's good to be myself for sure.
2. Saunas...so people go naked here and all of us except maybe the South Korean come from a culture that is completely not open in that sort of way. We have Canadians, Americans, and Brits so the idea of being in a sauna naked is absolutely terrifying or at least completely uncomfortable. However I agree with those who have gone before in that once you get over yourself and realize nobody's body is perfect then you find it's really no big deal. It is actually quite freeing and groundbreaking. Not sure how soon this practice will be adapted in the US but I think it would do the world a load of good.
3. Relationships on the team have definitely been strengthening or at least for me with certain people. Being open and going deep with others is so refreshing and encouraging and so important. We were made for relationships and it is so fulfilling when we are blessed with ones that help us and challenge us to be better individuals. And through our wonderful conversations I have had the unpleasant experience of having light bulbs click on in my mind of UGBs or unresolved issues that are still present in my life. Oh, the way God works.
Peace.
We arrived in London around 6:30am their time and with a 10 hour layover we were able to go out of the airport, catch the Tube to the city center, and walk around. Oh, wow. I love London. I was soooo excited to have this opportunity - such a treat - because I have always wanted to visit England. Now I have a dozen family members who live in England and will definitely be visiting them in the near future and exploring their fabulous country.
Our flight to Helsinki was only about two hours and I nodded off throughout the whole thing which was good. All of our luggage save one made it there and we caught rides to Arkki (pronounced ark-key) church with some of the young adults from the church. They are such wonderful people and their English is really good. Sunday we got to sleep in a bit which was really nice. The day was rather relaxing before the Sunday service at 4pm. It was good but I would love to see more freedom break out. After the service we had a "welcome party" which was more of a young adult worship set and that was good too. Monday we prepared for our school lessons for next week and others went grocery shopping. Today we went to Helsinki for some prophetic evangelism and sightseeing. It is cold here but it has been really enjoyable to walk around outside and not be couped up inside all the time. Tomorrow starts a youth conference which I hope is outstanding.
Some cool (haha) things that have been happening include the following:
1. Since being here I have gone a bit crazy meaning that I have reached the point where I am completely comfortable with my outreach members (or maybe I just don't care anymore) so that I've started making outlandish jokes that typically border on the side of inappropriate. Sunday I laughed so many times and so hard that I am sure that I took care of several months' worth of free radicals. It was so refreshing! And the fun has continued. I find it great when I get to this point with others and they always find it so surprising that I am an amusing person. haha. It's good to be myself for sure.
2. Saunas...so people go naked here and all of us except maybe the South Korean come from a culture that is completely not open in that sort of way. We have Canadians, Americans, and Brits so the idea of being in a sauna naked is absolutely terrifying or at least completely uncomfortable. However I agree with those who have gone before in that once you get over yourself and realize nobody's body is perfect then you find it's really no big deal. It is actually quite freeing and groundbreaking. Not sure how soon this practice will be adapted in the US but I think it would do the world a load of good.
3. Relationships on the team have definitely been strengthening or at least for me with certain people. Being open and going deep with others is so refreshing and encouraging and so important. We were made for relationships and it is so fulfilling when we are blessed with ones that help us and challenge us to be better individuals. And through our wonderful conversations I have had the unpleasant experience of having light bulbs click on in my mind of UGBs or unresolved issues that are still present in my life. Oh, the way God works.
Peace.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Yea Hoo
The conference has been amazing and much fun (worship was fantastic last night: strong and powerful and full of love) and now I am mostly ready to take my suitcase downstairs and head off to the lovely Pearson International Airport to fly to Finland via LONDON!!! It is our desire and prayer that we are able to see some of the city during our lengthy layover there. :) Can't wait.
Prayer Points for Team Finland (and Italy, Peru, Iceland, and Alabama):
- good team connection, that everyone is respectful of others' time, feelings, etc. and that we all put in the effort to make the trip excellent
- that we will be pure vessels able to pour out all the love, peace, joy, and power that God has given us
- that all logistics are taken care of/ things run smoothly, even more than we think they could
- signs, wonders, miracles, and healings
Happy New Year's! The things God has planned for us this year are going to blow our minds! Can't wait...Come, Lord!
Prayer Points for Team Finland (and Italy, Peru, Iceland, and Alabama):
- good team connection, that everyone is respectful of others' time, feelings, etc. and that we all put in the effort to make the trip excellent
- that we will be pure vessels able to pour out all the love, peace, joy, and power that God has given us
- that all logistics are taken care of/ things run smoothly, even more than we think they could
- signs, wonders, miracles, and healings
Happy New Year's! The things God has planned for us this year are going to blow our minds! Can't wait...Come, Lord!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
The Glory of Confinement
This was the topic of Duncan Smith's sermon this evening: The Glory of Confinement. At first several of us were confused but essentially he was talking about full submission to God. He told us a story where the Holy Spirit asked him when Joseph's greatest moment of confinement was. Duncan replied, "When he was in the dungeon." The correct answer was when Joseph accepted the position as second in command to Pharaoh because he was no longer his own man and never would be for the rest of his life. He was now all about the Pharaoh's business and would now always answer to him. This can also be described in the paradox of the corporate ladder. We strive to reach the top believing that being our own boss will make our lives easier when in fact the higher we climb the more "unfree" we become. So in terms of the Christian walk our greatest moment of confinement will be in the split second when we die and are then taken into heaven where we will be forever all about the King's business. Truly we will no longer be our own person. Amazing. Of course as we pray Heaven to Earth it should now be our heart's desire for us to step into a place of confinement now, full submission to God's will, heart, and desire for our lives. It is not about our destiny; it is about fulfilling His purpose. It is about dying to ourselves and becoming the pure, empty vessels that He can use to pour out His glory and love on all those we meet. Oh, this is what I want. I love Him so much.
Peace
Peace
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
i'm back
Christmas was good. I love my family. Breakthrough is evident which makes me excited. Did tons of shopping, but got a load of deals. Ate gobs of chocolate and had a chill and low key white Christmas. Delightful. Shared a bit at church first Sunday. Had fun with the Holy Spirit. He gave a short "sermon" on faith for me second Sunday. Awesome. Flight a bit delayed on Monday. Took an hour to get my suitcase. And had a lovely walk back to school from the bus stop. Yay, I'm back. No SGL's= stay up til 3am watching movies. :)
Being back in Toronto has been wonderful. Since we all our classes are over and we don't have any pressing duties everyone has been hanging out in the halls and lounges as opposed to hiding away in rooms or attending to responsibilities. Time is short. In a day in a half I will be on a plane again but this time to hop the pond. So excited but it still seems far away/not possible at the moment. We had our last pre-trip outreach prep meeting today. Prior to break Isaac and I were given the task of coming up with a drama or skit to perform while on outreach. We decide on "King of Hearts" a sketch I performed ages ago with the BOL youth group (when there was one). Didn't do much else about it until we found out that Lizi (outreach leader) wanted us to start practicing it today. Uhhh.... We got it all sorted out and it's going to be a bit better than the original (which is a bit dramatically cheezy). Added several other parts and such and I'm thinking we should probably get another name for all the changes we made. Not sure we are the performing sort but we had fun attempting to rehearse. I'll let you know how it turns out and if we were able to keep a straight face throughout. Doubt it.
Tonight starts HEAVY RAIN...it's our New Year's conference. Definitely not as large as ONETHING (wish i could go there) but I'm so freakin' excited. Can't wait to dance and go crazy. Duncan Smith is speaking tonight after a major rock out by the Freshwind Band.
Being back in Toronto has been wonderful. Since we all our classes are over and we don't have any pressing duties everyone has been hanging out in the halls and lounges as opposed to hiding away in rooms or attending to responsibilities. Time is short. In a day in a half I will be on a plane again but this time to hop the pond. So excited but it still seems far away/not possible at the moment. We had our last pre-trip outreach prep meeting today. Prior to break Isaac and I were given the task of coming up with a drama or skit to perform while on outreach. We decide on "King of Hearts" a sketch I performed ages ago with the BOL youth group (when there was one). Didn't do much else about it until we found out that Lizi (outreach leader) wanted us to start practicing it today. Uhhh.... We got it all sorted out and it's going to be a bit better than the original (which is a bit dramatically cheezy). Added several other parts and such and I'm thinking we should probably get another name for all the changes we made. Not sure we are the performing sort but we had fun attempting to rehearse. I'll let you know how it turns out and if we were able to keep a straight face throughout. Doubt it.
Tonight starts HEAVY RAIN...it's our New Year's conference. Definitely not as large as ONETHING (wish i could go there) but I'm so freakin' excited. Can't wait to dance and go crazy. Duncan Smith is speaking tonight after a major rock out by the Freshwind Band.
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