Thursday, August 14, 2008

Back in the States...

I am back in Denver after a crazy trip encompassing the globe. We are finishing up here with some lectures designed to help us integrate the lessons we learned on outreach into our daily lives and how we can properly share our stories with others. It has been crazy to try and process everything I've seen and experienced, not to mention be around "normal" culture again. The time has been good though and God is still showing us new things as well as reminding us of His faithfullness on the trip. It's amazing how quickly you forget it!

I will be heading home this weekend so please pray for travel safety for me. Also, pray for my future as I try to figure out where God is leading me next in life and where He wants me to serve. I am excited to see and share my experiences (there are countless ones) with all of you, and also to hear what God has been doing in your life.

Have a great day and God bless

Final Week

Final greetings from the ATW team,

Our time in Amsterdam has come to a close and by this time tomorrow we will be back in the United States. The last 12 days in Amsterdam have flown by. It has been a great last stop for our little trip around the world really preparing us for when we return back to our western lifestyles.

We have been working with a ywam ministry called Ethnos. Amsterdam is the most multicultural city in the world with over 180 nations represented. Ethnos seeks to reach these nations by being an impact on some of the different spheres of society here in the city. We have had alot of fun ministering and fellowshiping with their team. We have also been able to spend alot of time worshipping and praying over the city, a good amount of these times we spent with the Tabernacle of the Nations a ywam prayer house in the heart of the redlight district.

It has been great getting God's heart for the city and seeing His dreams and desires for this city to not be known for it's redlight district and what it allows, but as a place where the spirit of God dwells. We have enjoyed coming along side our ywam Amsterdam family and seeing all the amazing work they have been doing over the years, it is really easy to see that God has some big plans for this city.

Our team was able to really finish strong and make an impact in this city although it was our last stop after alot of ministry in many different parts of the world. These last 12 days have been the perfect exclamation point to this incredible adventure with God.

Thanks for your prayers, we will be seeing many of you very soon.
God Bless
The ATW team

Week 9

Greetings family (or in my preferred manner of speaking, "Hey dudes"),

So we concluded our time in Nepal in a village down south. The village is home to around 9,000 people, with only about 50 Christians. We stayed with host families in the village, and were able to spend a lot of quality time with them despite the language barrier. Smiles and laughter made up the majority of our communication. A YWAM Frontier Missions team began planting the church about 4 years ago, and were able to build the actual church building around 3 months ago. Their most recent project focus has been building bathroom facilities for the church. We were able to cover the cost for all the supplies, and spent time digging and moving rocks for the foundation of the bathroom. One afternoon, we were able to share with a few different groups of villagers as well as visiting the home of a Christian family where the mother was sick with a heart condition. The father of the household had been paralized and became a Christian after being prayed forand healed. The whole family became believers after that, but it was heartbreaking as we looked into their faces when we first arrived. They were blank, almost hopeless. We spent time praying and really asking God to touch their lives and also to bring overwhelming joy. As we left, they were both smiling. It was incredible to see how God had already begun to work.

After 4 days, the church sent us off with prayers and a farewell party complete with leis and a time of sharing appreciation. It was a short time, but so well spent.Our bus trip back to Delhi went very smooth. It felt a lot quicker and safer than the last trip. We even had one of the same drivers from our first trip, and Jacob was able to hold hands with him (which is a normal part of their culture). It was cool how we were able to build relationships with the bus drivers and guides. We arrived in Amsterdam last night. We are staying at the YWAM base in the city center. We'll be working with a couple YWAM ministries, but the majority of our time will be unscheduled and open to God's leading. It will be a good opportunity for our students to practice hearing God's voice and being led by the spirit. Continue praying for us that we finish out strong. There is still a lot of excitement among our team for our remaining days. It's already been a blessing being able to share more openly in our own language. We are looking forward to lots of divine appointments and partnering with God to see His kingdom come here in Amsterdam.

Blessed be your name,
Hannah, the mexi-white, and the ATW kids