Our Last Week In Berlin

Hey y’all!!

So this week started out with youth groups Monday and Tuesday. We were able to play games and hang out with the kids and relate to them over these two days. It was awesome to be able to lead them in worship or share our testimonies with them because many of them are not Christians and do not come from Christian backgrounds. On Wednesday, we had kid’s ministry again. It was so exciting to see shy orphans feel comfortable enough with us to play games with us and have fun. It was great to see how open these kids are to us, even though we don’t speak the same language. Two girls in particular, Shantile and Selena, became particularly attached to us over these past three weeks and it was sad to say goodbye to them for the last time.

The next day we led a Young Adults Night. Most of the attendees were in their early twenties and we had the opportunity to be able to converse with that age group for the first time in Berlin. We performed our drama for the first time and it went great.  Miriam got to share a sermon that God put on her heart and then we led them in a time of worship. Afterwards, we all played games with them. It was awesome to be able to play Ninja with people who spoke little to no English and be able to have a good time with them. God really blessed us this week with all of our ministries and we were able to grow in our confidence in our faith and also our German.

The next day, we had a 12 hour worship day. This day is entitled a “Burn” and these days are held all over the city each week. People come and worship all day and it is a great opportunity to see God move. Our team was in charge of leading worship for 2 hours or so in the evening. We would be leaving for Czech Republic early the next day so we had to get up super early and get packed and clean as we wouldn’t be back until late. The 12 hours of worship was wonderful and it really gave our team a chance to spend time with God as we have been so busy lately. We were able to bond together as a team and practice our prophetic art as well.

This week went by really fast but it was awesome to have as many opportunities as we did to share God’s love. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we head to the Czech Republic this week. God has big things in store for this city and we are excited to be part of his plan.

That’s all for now!

Berlin. Berlin. We're going to Berlin!!

Hey Guys!

SO this week started out with craziness. Morrison’s Grandpa passed away on Monday and so on Tuesday she flew back to South Carolina for the funeral. That night, BreeAnna and Becki went to an acrobatics class. Though they have virtually no experience with acrobatics, they put on their sweatpants and joined the athletic Europeans for their acrobatic workout. While they were perilously balancing on top of each other, they were able to share with the ladies the reason why they were in Berlin and about the Discipleship Training Course that they are currently enrolled in. After half a million handstands and a few thousand backbends, they were sweaty and smelly, but still happy that they got to share the love of God with the flexible women of Germany.

The next day, we had a children’s ministry. We headed out early, but arrived at the school that the ministry was going to be held in with no time to spare. We were helping out with an after-school program that is run by Christians. We all fell in love with the kids and had a great afternoon playing with them. We made balloon animals and played “duck, duck, goose” until BreeAnna and Miriam could no longer tie balloons and we could not utter another “goose”.  A lot of the children that attend the program belong to an orphanage and it was an amazing experience being able to put a smile on an orphan’s face by handing them a kangaroo-shaped balloon. The people who ran the program were also really blessed by our presence and our service to them.

On Thursday and Friday, we were able to work with our old friends Kim, Bree and Thilo (Previously referred to as “The Bearded Man”) handing out free food and drinks. On Friday night, Jodie and Miriam got to attend a youth group and do a worship service for them. It went really well and the youth were really blessed by their performance and God’s presence. BreeAnna and Becki and Jeff went with Bree and Kim to a park and handed out sandwiches to the drug addicts and dealers that hang out there. It was pretty difficult for us to witness to them because they didn’t speak much English but it was pretty cool being able to be a blessing for them through this small act of service.  God really gave us a heart for these people and we found that we were able to really love these people no matter how toothless or dirty they were.

On Monday, we joined with a YWAM team from Hurleich for a prayer walk around our neighborhood. Becki got a picture of a house and drugs and Miriam felt like we should pray for the squat houses so we went to several squat houses in our area and prayed over them. During prayer time that morning, Jeff got a picture of us holding a big sign that said “God questions” in Alaxander Platz, a large square in a busy shopping area in Berlin. Jodie made a big, beautiful sign and we went to Alaxander Platz that afternoon and held it.  Jeff got to meet a young man from Africa and pray for him. The man actually believes in God and was hoping to meet Christians in Berlin. Jeff got to get him connected to a Christian community in the area and he was very encouraged by meeting us. We were so happy that God spoke to us about these ministry opportunities and how it all turned out.

So that’s it for this week folks! We have been running non-stop all over Berlin doing different ministries and learning about this great city. God has big plans for this city and so we would greatly appreciate your prayers. Thank you so much for the support that you have already shown us, we have been so blessed by the large amount of prayer we have received and we ask that you would continue to keep us in your prayers this upcoming week. Also, please pray for Morrison and her situation. She will be returning on Thursday and so just pray that God will be with her this week .

So yup. Thanks for reading this thing. Y’all are true supporters and I am proud of each and every one of you.  See ya next week!

Kuln, Kostumes, and Karnival...

Hallo Everyone! Wilkonmen to Klun! This weekend, we were in Klun for a city-wide festival called Karnival. Basically, the just of this holiday is that everyone (And I do mean EVERYONE, grandparents and babies alike) dresses up in these insane costumes and go celebrate. To celebrate, they drink and dance and have parades and such. It is pretty crazy. So we were here this week to minister to the people of Kuln, particularly the ones that were celebrating. The newest editions to our team, Kim, Thilo (Previously referred to as the bearded man), and BreAnna were ready to jump right into ministry with us so we all headed out into the city for a prayer walk. Whilst on our prayer walk, we visited this gigantic cathedral with looked like it could be in a horror movie. It was dark colored and had crazy spirals and crows circling its tall, tall peaks. It was very massive and it took us a very long time to walk around it. That night when we were safe and warm back in our church, (Okay, maybe we weren’t warm, but we were safe!), we made a lot of bracelets with different colored beads that tell the gospel. We did this as an evangelism tool because we don’t speak German and so it is easier to have a visual aid when we are talking to people and such. So we had our bracelets and our German tracts, we were all set to go! The next day, we all got into costume. We painted our faces and wore wigs or crazy hats and got all set to blend into the carnival atmosphere. Because we didn’t really have costumes, we basically looked like a bunch of tribal hobos. On the way to the city, we all sang worship songs. Thilo had his guitar and so we filled the train with music about Jesus, drowning out all of the carnival go-ers who were singing about getting drunk. Once we arrived in the city, we jumped right into it: evangelizing to people, preaching in the streets, singing worship songs, and lastly,(and certainly most importantly to our thin, Australian blood), drinking coffee at Dunkin’ Doughnuts.  We had a lot of really good conversations with people that night and many people were interested in hearing about Jesus. Morrison got to talk to a teenager who was a Muslim about God and after a very intense conversation; she gave her heart to Jesus! It was very exciting for our team and we headed home that night with happy hearts and frozen feet.

Then next day was Sunday, so we went to a German church. “Went” isn’t exactly the correct terminology because all we did was walk downstairs and we were at church. Jonathon, our wonderful translator, made certain that we understood the sermon and translated most excellently. After church, there was a parade outside on the street. We went out and stood with all of the kids and yelled, “Carmella! Carmella!” That means candy or something and we seriously got tons of it. Everyone in the parade has a huge bag of candy and sweets and they just throw them at the crowd. The parade went on for about an hour and we all had bags full of candy. I think I found my favorite German tradition.

After the parade, we took the train into town and Kim got to witness to the boy who sat next to her. He was very interested in her because she was American and so she got to share many things about her faith and he was very curious to hear about Jesus. Once in the city, we all held big poster-board signs that said “free hugs” and stood in a line. We hugged so many people but it really was a good conversation starter and we got to have some really good conversations with them. One girl that Jodie talked to was from her home town and so she became Facebook friends with her.  It was really good to see Germans, who are normally more reserved and rushed, take time to talk with us and ask questions about God. After that, we went home and prepared to head out the next day for Berlin. This weekend was really eye-opening for our team and it gave us a chance to experience some German culture. We were so glad to see how God was moving whilst we were in Kuln and we were surprised to see how much we have all grown spiritually in such a short time. God is doing great things and we are excited to see what Berlin brings!!

Thank you for keeping us in your prayers, we really appreciate all of your love and support. We hope that you will continue to think and pray for us whilst we are at our next stop: Berlin.

Until next time, ciao!

Traveling...

Hey y’all!!

So we have literally had no time at all in the past ten days. We hit the ground running on February 16^th when we touched down in Frankfurt and our schedule has been PACKED since. After arrival, we immediately jumped on a train to Kuln, weighed down by our overloaded backpacks. In the words of our fearless co-leader, “There will be a time that will come when all you can have is what you can carry on your back.”

Anyway, Jeff’s words proved to be true as we struggled to lift our heavy bags to our backs and quickly found out that it was harder than it looked. Whilst waiting for the train, we were bored. The train was delayed and so we piled up all of our luggage and sat in a heap. And waited. And waited. And waited. The German announcer announced to us in German that the train was going to delayed for 15 minutes. We don’t speak German but we guess from  the changing screen that that was what the harsh-toned female was announcing about.  Then it was delayed for another twenty minutes. Then forty minutes. Jeff, BreeAnna, Becki, and Jodie decided to take a quick to the McDonald’s upstairs and leave Miriam and Morrison with the luggage. When we were done and coming down the stairs, we heard something. That something was a yell. That yell was Miriam. And that Miriam was yelling our names. Then she yelled, “Run!” Without thinking, Becki immediately broke out in a full sprint, leaving the rest of the pack in the dust. We galloped behind, breaking out in sweat under our heavy winter coats and warm socks. When we were within sight of Miriam and Morrison, We saw the train. The giant red, double-decker train chugged along quickly and pulled to a stop right as we were a hundred meters away from our bags. Right about then, Becki’s clock that normally hangs from a chain on her neck broke free and went flying to the ground. Like a super ninja, Jeff, without breaking from his fast pace, reached out into the air and caught it. “I got it!” He yelled triumphantly. The rest of us applauded as we raced the rest of the distance and grabbed our luggage. Right before the train’s doors closed, we jumped in and were on our way.

Whilst on our train ride, we were introduced to a new thing.  That new thing was a food and that new food was….duh duh duh! A Pretzel Sandwich!!  Thinly sliced ham, fresh cheese, leafy lettuce….Mmmmm.  Apparently Germans are true intellects as one would have to be a genius to be able to make a combination that delectable. So as we zoomed through country sides and alongside castles, we were suddenly greeted by a German Officer who checked our tickets and said something. It was German so we didn’t really understand what it meant. SO there he was, moving his hands and pointing towards the door and saying something in German. We figured out that he wanted us to get off at the next stop so we did. And as we exited the train, we saw people from the next train motioning us to come onto their train. So we all sprinted to the doors and made it just in time. So see? God provides for people. Even oblivious missionaries who don’t speak German.

When we arrived at the next stop, we searched the crowd for our contact. God was looking out for us, and we found him almost immediately. Benjamin led us through a maze of people and on trains and up stairs and finally we found ourselves in front of a church. Once inside, we were went upstairs and were able to deposit our bags on the floor and rest our aching backs. Right away, Benjamin and his wife Rachel sat us down and gave us lunch. They then told us that in ten minutes there would be a luncheon for the seniors of the church downstairs and they wanted us to prepare some worship songs and testimonies. We hurriedly threw together some ideas and thumped downstairs (I say thumped because we are not used to wearing boots at this point in the journey and our feet feel like we are carrying bricks or something.) We are greeted by a kindly old man with a balding head and smile lines around his eyes. He smiled at us and said nice German things to us. We sang one worship song and they all clapped for us. Then, the old man picked up a ukulele and began to sing a German song. We all joined in and sang in German even though we had no idea what we were saying. Then, they pulled up a table and chairs and motioned us to sit down. They then proceeded to bring us tea and coffee and cake of every shape and kind and color. By the time the 10^th cake was being passed around our table, we were stuffed to the brim. But still the procession of cakes went on. Just when we were considering stuffing the remainder of the food on our plates in our napkins and smuggling them out of the country, the elderly gentleman told us in German/English that he was sure that we were tired and that we should go and rest. So we thumped back upstairs and got settled in for the night.

Around 12:30 in the morning, Jeff was sound asleep in his room on the floor when he heard a strange noise. IT sounded like knocking and it sounded like it was coming from the window. He turned to look…and screamed! There, on our second story window was a bearded man yelling and knocking on the glass. “I’m from YWAM Berlin”, the bearded man yelled through the window. Jeff was quite confused but he obediently ran downstairs with the key to let the bearded stranger and his companions into the church. These people were part of the team that we would be working with in Kuln but they arrived about 4 hours behind schedule in the wee hours of the morning. Upon arrival, they found themselves locked out of the church and, without having any other option, Thilo, the bearded man, climbed to the second story and yelled into Jeff’s window. Anyway, all’s well that ends well.

And there was evening and there was night, the first day.

SO there you have it folks! That describes our traveling experience. I hope that you have enjoyed this journey and will continue reading as we have more adventures with God in Germany!!

Until next time, please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We are all very grateful for all of the support y’all have shown to us and we are thankful to have you in our lives.

Bye!