dublin, ireland

May 13 – 26

 

If “plan on rain” was the mindset for Belfast, then Dublin’s catchphrase had to be “it’s raining.” Always always rain! But I didn’t mind it because I got to spend 3 days of a glorious week with these ladies:

eve and meredith visit!!

 
Friends from home!! How fortunate that the same week they were planning a vacation in Dublin was the week that the ship was in port? Ahhh, what a blessing from God. It was so incredible to frolick around the city with these two girls who are so wonderful and feel so much like home. We visitied Trinity College and the Book of Kells, took a tour of the Guinness factory, and had sleepovers in their hotel room (where I absentmindedly fell backwards off the bed – the makings of a truly good sleepover). We relaxed over coffee, laughed over Chinese food, and cowered under umbrellas in the pouring rain.

the bell tower of trinity college

the guinness storehouse

yes, we’re quite artsy

It seriously felt like I had never been away from home, and had jaunted over to Dublin on their flight with them. Which did make it a little extra sad to not be heading back on their flight to the US with them. But I couldn’t be anything but grateful as I watched their bus haul them to the airport at 8am and waved goodbye. Their visit totally refreshed me, as did the gifts they came bearing from various friends back at home. As I sat in my cabin showing off the treasures I received, pulling out InStyle magazines, Dr. Pepper jellybeans, soft pillowcases and High School Musical cards, my cabinmate commented, “Wow. Your friends really know you.” what a tear-invoking thought – to be so known and loved from so far away by such incredible people…

dublin sunset skyline

My first e-day in Dublin I was assigned to work on deck 4, our visitor experience deck. After getting a really great schedule for the day, another lady asked if I would be willing to switch with her and give tours, since she was nervous and didn’t know how to give them. I traded, and mourned the loss of the most awesome deck 4 schedule I’ve ever received. I knew it was the right thing to do, trade with her, and I prayed that the Lord would make me feel as glorious on tours as I felt about my schedule. Well, I only had 2 tours in total (Dublin was a bit slow), and my 2^nd one was at the very end of the day. I had a POUNDING headache and didn’t want to give a tour, but did. My group was made up of 2 young lads who had moved to Dublin 18 months ago to go to school to learn English. They had never heard of the ship or OM before, and only came because someone on the street handed them a flier. They were Christians, though, and connected with everything I shared with them about missions and about the gospel. They asked so many questions through the whole tour, and by the end of our time together one of them was totally fired up about joining the ship! I was amazed at how, in a matter of about 4 hours, God took this guy from being totally unaware of the ship to giving him a passion for the ministry and life on board. It was amazing.

statues in rememberance of the irish potato famine

But my favorite ministry activity in Dublin was a game of volleyball! Very often people on board get the opportunity to play sports with local believers and non-believers, but it’s usually the boys who get to play, and they usually play soccer. What excitement to see a signup for volleyball posted on the announcement wall! 6 of us piled into a van and headed to play with a local club team. They were really good and so understanding of the fact that none of us had played together before (and some hadn’t ever played at all). We played a couple really great games with them, and I couldn’t decide what felt better – to be playing again with such skilled people or to have conversation come so easily with complete strangers. Between games we were able to share with them our backgrounds, the story of the ship, and how we all came to be where we were because of God. They all seemed genuinely interested in our lives and in learning all about the ship. After several games we left with our butts kicked and our bodies aching, but I loved it! Well, not the butt-kicking part… 🙂
 

markets and fresh food stands in temple bar

While I spent my first off-day in Dublin with friends from home, I spent my second one all by myself. I planned to be gone the whole day and to get completely lost, which is exactly what I did. I set off from the ship and just wandered down whatever street happened to look interesting. I found myself coming across open-air markets and festivals, and blocks of vintage shops. I spent hours wandering through them and being reminded of home (most specifically, Broadripple in Indianapolis) and at the end of the day was simultaneously refreshed and exhausted.

dublin vintage

When our visit to Dublin drew to a close, we waved goodbye to Ireland on an unusually sunny day and set sail for Cardiff, Wales.

belfast, northern ireland

April 29 – May 12

 

My mindset in Belfast was “plan on rain.” Every 5 minutes rain then shine then rain then shine. For Americans, it would pretty much be the Seattle of Ireland.

"the friendship band" that endured the rain and greeted us upon arrival

The city of Belfast actually reminded me a lot of Indianapolis – a city, yes, but fairly quaint and “un-city” feeling with shopping malls making up a good portion of its center and old church steeples dotting the skyline.

belfast by night

One thing of note (and of … infamy?) about Belfast is its religious history; a battle has ensued for many years between Catholics and Protestants, but thankfully N. Ireland is currently enjoying a bit of peace and quiet. There are murals that cover the sides of buildings in particular areas throughout the city, honoring various groups, heroes, and bloodbaths that have taken place there in the past. And some hopeful ones that seek a peaceful future.

grafitti under an overpass

There is also a gigantic wall separating the Catholic section of the city from the Protestant section. Some friends and I were looking for it one evening and had to ask directions from a few people. One woman was extremely nervous in giving us directions, instructing us to “watch yerselves” and practically running away from us as she shouted the name of the street we were to turn on that would lead us to the wall.

zooming past the wall

I ended up only having 1 e-day while in Belfast and it was so much fun! I was already signed up to teach Sunday school for our wee ones, and we ended up having an entire church participate in our service on board, which meant NINE extra kids! And much younger ones than we were expecting. But I loved spending the morning with a gang of not-quite-babies but not-yet-toddlers giggling all over the place. I was able to have story-time with the older kids and share the story of Sarah in the bible. 

downtown belfast

On the evening of my e-day I hitched a ride with some friends to a youth service at a church in Belfast. AH-mazing! Never have I seen such a diverse, amazing group of teenagers so on fire for God. The youth service was so much fun, complete with some mad dancing, games, rockin worship (made me feel like I was at home at CG again), and a really motivational message. Maybe even more than the youth, I was encouraged by their leaders; a group of adults who loved God and loved these teenagers so much and wanted the two to be joined that they seemed about to explode from it.

friends overlook belfast atop a hill

My last day before leaving Belfast was spent exploring some coast of northern Ireland on my day off. some lovely locals volunteered to drive groups of us for the day, so my friends rebekah, Amanda and I hopped into a car with our driver and spent the day visiting a rope bridge, a castle, the course of a motorcycle race, and giant’s causeway. 

looking towards where we will cross over the rope bridge

Giant’s causeway is a mind-boggling place. It’s basically a mass of rocks formed into rectangular and hexagonal vertical… structure… thingys. I don’t even know how to describe it! the only thing I could think as I stood on them were “these must be God’s legos.”

giant's causeway

more of giant's causeway

They jut out into the ocean from the cliffs of northern Ireland, so the scenery in all directions is breathtaking. And our day there was one of the only days in our 2-week port visit that “plan on rain” was a ridiculous phrase, as there wasn’t a cloud in the sky all day.
 

and, yes, more of giant's causeway

 

We had roughly 18,000 visitors to the ship during our time in Belfast, and were all anticipating some time to breathe relax before we hit our next port of Dublin.

torshavn & klaksvik, faroe islands

 

April 17-27

 

Ah, the Faroe Islands. A teeny tiny nation of 48,000 people and 80,000 sheep… if ever a country were to write a book on missionary care, it would be this one. Never have I been treated so well by people who didn’t even know me, or so sad to leave them when it was time to go.

 

in case you were wondering where exactly the faroe islands are

a typical faroese house... with a grass roof!

While the destination of the Faroes was amazing, the journey there was not so much. Things got a little rough on the waters, and I ended up a tad seasick. I thought things would be better if I took some seasick pills we have on board, but quickly learned a lesson: if you take seasick pills once you’ve become seasick, things will only get worse. Upon arrival, though, seasickness was forgotten and celebrations began. We arrived to the faroes earlier than planned, and were bestowed with the first of many blessings: someone donated enough fuel to the ship to allow us to sail around the islands for several hours before officially docking. Thus, we had a relaxing afternoon cruise and were able to lay out on deck 9 (the top of the ship) enjoying the sunshine and the scenery.

enjoying the view from deck 9

the view from deck 9

quaint faroese towns

When it finally came time to head to our dock, we found ourselves surrounded by a dozen boats full of local citizens who had sailed/cruised/rowed out to meet us and escort us into port.

the welcome wagon sails in

The Logos Hope is especially important to the Faroe Islands because it is their ship – formerly named the Noronna, the ship was a car ferry between the Faroes and Denmark. The majority of the people who came on board had been on the Noronna and were able to give our crew more informed tours than we could give them!

ahhh, sunset

And while one of our goals in each port is to build relationships with and encourage the local church, I think much more of the encouragement happened in the reverse direction. We were blessed day after day by donations from the Faroese people, including meat, clothing, bread, and cakes, cakes and more cakes. One local company donated a ton of fish. I don’t say “a ton” in meaning “a lot”… I mean an actual measurable TON of fish.

some slaughtered sea creatures. we were hoping to see whales... didn't see any, only got to eat the meat.

the sea ran red that day...

The biggest blessing by far, though, came in the form of a brother, a sister and 2 minivans. Most people on board the ship typically have Mondays off, since the ship is closed. On our Monday in the Faroes, dozens of locals had volunteered their time, energy, and vehicles to take as many crew as possible out for the day. A group of nine of us went together, in two cars, with Gudny & her brother Rejkva and they took us EVERYWHERE. We saw and did everything possible (and what seemed impossible) in the Faroes, including a cliff picnic, a jumping pillow and some slaughtered sea creatures. Our hosts even took us bowling, bought us postcards, and welcomed us into their home (well, Rejkva & his wife Miriam’s home) for a delicious meal of lamb and a time of singing and laughing together until almost 1 in the morning. It was probably the most memorable and treasured day I have had on the ship thus far.

our cliff picnic

the view from our cliff picnic

the northernmost point of the faroe islands

the sun was still high at 8pm

worship time after dinner

 I also was able to be a part of my first church team while in the Faroes. Every Sunday, the ship sends out teams of people to churches in the area, to share about the ship, tell their stories, and encourage local believers. Rejkva & Gudny invited us to their church, and a team of girls from the ship was able to run most of their children’s service that day. I did some teaching, and shared a parable about a lifejacket and how it is similar to Jesus – they both have the power to save us, but in order to be saved we are required to take and action more than just make an acknowledgement. It isn’t enough to know the lifejacket (Jesus) is there and know what it (he) can do for us, but we must put it (him) on and receive the saving power. It was so much fun to be able to talk and sing and play with all the little Faroese kids.

teaching the kiddos

our church team, complete with clowns

In a total of 11 days in the country, we had nearly 15,000 people come to visit the ship – that’s about 25% of the population of the Faroe Islands! They gave us an amazing midnight send off – there were singers, dancers, fire twirlers and fireworks!! Rejkvay & Gudny came back with their families, and our group from our day out sang and prayed together one final time. We were all so sad to leave each other, even though we had only met a week before! We tearfully hugged and said goodbye, then ran up to the top deck of the ship to wave goodbye as we sailed off for Belfast.

the farewell party

our patriotic send-off

edinburgh, scotland

march 31 – april 15

 my first sail, from scheveningen to edinburgh, was quite uneventful – smooth, peaceful, not a hint of sea-sickness. hooray! the welcome we received in edinburgh was absolutely amazing. i wasn’t sure what to expect. i knew that all the crew on board headed to the deck to wave their hands and their flags upon every arrival, and that there would be people on the quayside (pronounced “key-side” – basically the land side of the ship when it’s docked) there to welcome us, but i don’t think i was prepared for what awaited us. well over 100 people screaming and waving, a band jamming, scottish dancers dancing and a bagpiper… piping. i felt like the beatles on their first arrival to the US! even the crew on board were screaming, singing and dancing.

the scottish crowd awaiting us on the quayside

some of the crew on the deck as we arrived

the whole scene actually made me very emotional – i was overwhelmed by the excitement these people in scotland felt for this ship, and i think it was the first moment i realized that the logos hope is about so much more than the ship itself or the crew that is aboard it. these people had been waiting for this moment for years and were so excited about the message we were bringing and the unique ways that we could reach people of their country with the gospel. as we headed back indoors after the welcome party, i turned to the person next to me and said, “well, i could just do that every day of my life!”

 

hello, operator? does anyone use pay phones anymore?

 

on my day off, i had the opportunity to visit some of the scottish countryside with my friend amanda. we took a bus tour and went to loch lomond (second in fame to loch ness), the scottish hills, and stirling castle, with a driveby of the willam wallace monument. as our driver billy played some celtic music for us, i sat quietly and took some time to pray. the Lord spoke strongly and clearly to me in this moment, with some very convicting words: “have you thanked me yet for this? you have questioned so many times why your journey here has been what it has, and why i have chosen this for you. i have continually assured you that this is what i want for you, and have led you to a place where you will see beautiful things and meet amazing people. have you thanked me yet?” i hadn’t. and honestly, it’s a challenge to remember to do so every day, but something i am trying to do.

a glimpse of downtown edinburgh

 

loch lomond

stirling castle

 

 

in edinburgh i was trained to give tours to visitors, which i had been SO anxious to do. giving tours of the ship is probably my favorite ministry day activity, mainly because they are with people who are eager to learn about the ship, and i have time to share with them all about who we are what we do and, more importantly, who GOD is and what HE is doing. on one of my tours, i hosted a very sweet family with 4 adorable little boys, one dressed as batman (and he of course, immediately captured my heart). about 10 minutes into our tour, the father asked me, “so, is the queen on board today?” i was puzzled for a moment until i realized that we were docked right next to the queen’s former ship, an edinburgh staple and tourist attraction. this family had mistakenly boarded our ship thinking it was the queen’s ship! i explained this to them and asked if they would like to stop the tour and get their money back. they declined – they wanted to continue with the tour; they had never been on a ship before and were anxious to learn about one, and this ship seemed as good as the queen’s ship.

we continued on with our tour, and several times i explained to them how we are a christian ship, a missionary ship. during a part of the tour, i shared with them the mission of the logos hope – to bring knowledge, help and hope to the people of the world. as i shared with them that the hope we bring is the message of the gospel, the father had a look of sudden realization on his face and he said, “that’s… Jesus!” what?!? “yes!” i exclaimed. i proceeded to share with them more of the gospel message, more about Jesus, all of them nodding in response. when i paused to ask them if they had any questions about what i just shared, the father said, “that’s kind of like barak obama’s story.” hmmm… HE then proceeded to share with ME more about barak obama, and then launched into how much he loved america and how there was so much possibilty for life there. each time i would try to direct our conversation back to the gospel, he steered it right back towards america. for him, it seemed, he couldn’t separate the “hope of new life” that is found in Jesus from the “hope of new life” he believed could be found in america. he told me how much he loved it and he couldn’t wait to move there because life would be wonderful. i asked him where he visited, and he told me he had never been to america, but his cousin lived there and sent him photos, so he knew that he would love it and that life there would be very good. after we concluded our tour and the family left the ship, i couldn’t stop thinking about that conversation. how often am i like that man – believing that hope and life can be found in something i idealize and chase after, rather than always being secure in knowing that hope and life are only found in Jesus?

 

out on the streets of edinburgh with some friends (right) talking to a drunk woman (left)

 

 

at the end of an amazing visit to scotland, we had welcomed around 14,600 visitors on board the ship and given over 4,000 tours. while we were sad to leave edinburgh, excitement mounted for our trip to the faroe islands, the logos hope’s home port.

scheveningen, netherlands

march 11-30, 2009

 scheveningen (pronounced “SHKAY-fin-ing-en”) was the port of my arrival on the ship. because of this i feel like most of my time was spent adjusting to the ship and the crazy hand God had just dealt me, and not as much time and i would have liked was spent connecting in ministry.

i did get to spend some time exploring holland, including a trip to amsterdam with some new (and old…ish?) friends

a side street in amsterdam

on the train to amsterdam with new friend anneri from s. africa (left) and old friend amanda from US (right)

although i’ve always wanted to see amsterdam, i think i would be content to never return. it felt like such a heavy, dark place, with drug and sex shops around every corner, and paraphernalia from both in pretty much every store.

cannabis pops…

 

the town of scheveningen was beautiful, especially because there was a beach within a 5-minute walk of the ship! it was such a blessing and means of relaxation at the end of each day to take a quick walk down to the beach to catch the sunset.

sunset

this was the sunset on the evening i arrived to the ship... not too shabby

and yet, another sunset

 

 

one of my favorite moments in scheveningen happened before i even arrived to the ship – i had to take a train from the amsterdam airport to a station about an hour away where i was to meet a driver from the ship. as i “hopped” onto the train (“hopped” = sweatily clamored draped in 2 layers of clothing, my laptop bag and my 11kg backpack with a ginormous 30kg suitcase in tow) at the airport, and then to another train at a changeover station, i crossed paths with 3 men, probably in their late fifties. as i made my way, as ungracefully as possible, onto the second train, one of the men helped me heave my suitcase through the doors just as they were about to close on me. once i gathered myself, one of the men said to me “girl, where the HECK are you goin’?” unmistakable texas accent. i told them where i was going, to which they replied “SKAYfingen?! what the hell you goin’ to SKAYfingen for?!” so, i shared with them all about where i was going, what i was doing, and where i was from. when they asked about my income, i shared with them how my “salary” is based on support from family, friends and churches. to which they responded, “so, i bet that’s a pretty lucrative business, ah?” hrm…. no.

 

a dutch bachelorette party (nothing to do with any part of this post, i just love the photo!)

 

i had 2 e-days (experience days… basically a day of the week dedicated to ministry on or off the ship) while in scheveningen. i spent the first one on deck 4, our visitor experience deck where people from all over can come on-board the ship to learn about it, browse through our bookshop and enjoy a beverage and conversation in the café. i nervously manned our lifeboat theater wearing a smelly life jacket, and hitting “play” about 4 dozen times so that each of our guests could see a quick 4-minute video about life on the ship. my second e-day was spent on the sidewalks just outside the ship, inviting any and all passers-by to come on board for a visit. iwould have preferred the previous week’s smelly lifejacket and remote control to approaching random strangers all day as the weather dropped from summer to winter temperatures in just 3 hours. but, i DID get to witness a few individuals that i wouldn’t have seen had i stayed indoors…

el capitano – our ship mascot

in a country where the bicycle is the main means of transportation, you find ways to adapt when heading to the beach for a day of surfing

 

in total, in 19 days spent in scheveningen we had 17,138 visitors and 6,536 people who took tours of the ship. wow! we departed at 7am on the 30^th of march, and were sent off by some troopers who peeled themselves out of bed early enough to see us on our way to our next port of edinburgh, scotland.

our farewell crowd, looking as if they're trapped on a deserted block of cement

a pirate’s life for me

i live on a ship now! and i haven’t blogged in a LONG time! Sorry 😦

i’m working on getting a few overdue posts up and am hoping to write one for each port i’m in after leaving it, just to give you a glimpse into what life there was like.

 to start with, though, here’s a brief overview about what life on the ship itself is like. i’m certain more details, photos and stories will come out in future blog posts, but here’s a general picture for now… 

 

my “house”

so, yeah, my house is a ship. a ship that has room to accommodate 400 crew members as well as 100 short-term guests…

and there are stairs EVERYwhere. there are 9 decks (or floors) on the ship – my cabin is on deck 2 and most of the action happens on deck 6. i have to climb up 4 flights of stairs to get to the dining room… makes me think twice about how hungry i REALLY am.

we have several “amenities” of home on board – a school, a post office, a library, a staff lounge that is off-limits to anyone but crew, a small ship shop where we can buy candy, chips, juice, and… magnets. yes, magnets. all the walls and most surfaces here are made of metal, so magnets stick everywhere! they abound in cabins, holding up anything from postcards to maps to photos to scarves.

 

my cabin

i share a small cabin with 3 other girls from 3 different countries (australia, malaysia & hong kong)… it feels quite akin to a college dorm room, but a tad smaller and a heck of a lot more international. there are 4 beds, 4 very small closets, 2 shelves, and 1 desk with 4 drawers. there is no window, which means it’s dark in there when you wake up. which means lots of unintentional oversleeping occurs… oops!

my bunk is on the bottom left. it's definitely not the cleanest, but at least it's not the messiest!

we are lucky enough to have a bathroom in our cabin. hooray! many sections have a community bathroom where all the girls living in the cabins in that section have to share one. much rejoicing ensued when i opened the door to my cabin and spotted a toilet.

  

my week

the structure to everyone’s weeks here are pretty much the same: 5 days a week are spent working, 1 day is an e-day (short for experience day – basically our ministry day), and 1 day is a day off. we can spend it however we like – visiting the nearby area, drowning in the internet (when we happen to have a solid connection), sleeping the day away… so if you happen to see many photos from a particular port on my facebook or flickr page, it’s safe to assume that they were ALL taken on the same day. if i were in each of those photos, the scenery behind me would change, but my outfit would not.

each morning we have devotions at 7:45, and we also have a weekly prayer night, worship night and sunday church service.

 

my job

short-termers (what i am considered, even though i will eventually become long term) are assigned to one of two areas – the galley (kitchen), or accommodation (housekeeping). we didn’t get to choose our departments, we were just placed there. right before we found out where we would be headed i had my fingers, my arms, my legs, my EYES crossed praying for the galley! my mother can testify that cleaning and making beds has never been my forte, so i knew that for the sake of myself and the ship as a whole, it would be best if i were in the galley. and… ta da! i am! i get to help prepare (and clean up after) meals for roughly 500 people just about every day. the uniform is a tad cheesy, but i love working in there. my 3 most favorite things about it are:

    1. preparing food en masse. i.e. 4kg of onions for lasagna dinner
    2. shocking my cabin mate bethany with tales of how much “en masse” the ingredients are
    3. cleaning with a hose. we use a garden hose to clean the floors and much of the equipment in the galley. i love it. it makes me feel like it’s summer and i’m 7 years old.
    alternate: working right next to the bakery and smelling its deliciousness all day long (this is only an alternate b/c the delicious smells are pretty much always coming from cakes, which i can’t eat because i get sick, so it borders on torture).

 

my community

there are about 350 people living on board (singles AND families) from 46 different countries. it’s amazing the different cultures that all get along (and sometimes clash!) and live together on board – i think that’s one of the things people unfamiliar with the ship find to be the most incredible thing about it. i feel blessed that english is the ship language, but at any given time there are at least 3 languages being spoken within earshot. it’s become fun to teach new friends some english words and to learn some of their language in return.

i have been able to make some great friends on board and i am really liking it here. i love sitting around a table with a group of 10 or so people and suddenly realizing i’m the only american there. and also that 4 of us may have english as our first language, but none of us speak it the same way.

ok, so 1 of these girls is american… the others are australian, english, south african & dutch

granted, there are some things about ship life (and some people) that are a bit difficult for me to live with, but all in all i’m so happy to be here, and feel content in knowing this is where i’m supposed to be.

  

so, i guess that’s it for now. more to come as soon as i’ve got it.

 oh, and i’m not actually a pirate. i love peter pan too much for that to ever happen…

“please, please me”

so, i’ve arrived on the ship. hooray!! i’m loving it here and promise to post an update with info and photos very soon. but for now, a little more emotion on the process of me arriving here…

 

when i found out that i would be heading to ship very quickly, i started writing, writing, writing every single thought, feeling, question, emotion i was having towards the many scenarios regarding when i would leave, my time on the ship, and even my time after the ship. two pages later, i stopped writing. after i stopped, i read through all of it, and noticed a glaring theme staring back out at me from the page – “what will people think?”

i have been so frustrated the past two months by this concern being at the forefront of my mind and sending my stress levels off the charts. all my life i have, by nature, been a people-pleaser; i want everyone to be happy with me, with each other, with what’s happening. i want to be liked and considered low-maintenance by all. the past two months, it has been quite difficult for me to feel either, being that God’s most recent call on my life and my choice to follow it has created a flurry of work and effort on the part of many individuals other than myself. i don’t WANT to make things difficult for anyone, i don’t WANT to change plans that were made weeks and months ago, i don’t WANT to make people unhappy. but i DO want to do what God says. and in this calling to this ship, God has continued to say “please me. not them… me.” and it seems that God is truly putting me to the test. this is the first situation i can think of where what will make God happy is clearly different from what may make those around me happy. God has generally played a “go-with-the-flow” kind of hand with my life, and i’m grateful that most of what he has called me to do in life has been okay with pretty much everyone. until now…

walking in what i am confident is the Lord’s will for me (despite not fully understanding it), has left me weak, vulnerable, and rarely as “with it” as i appear. it feels as if i daily confront question marks on faces, seeming to say “i don’t buy it” as i share my story of how the Lord has led me from point A to point B to unexpected point C. along the way some have even spoken up and against this, considering themselves the voice of reason and/or concern – they are quite loud voices that make a lot of sense, and they are speaking thoughts that i myself have entertained. i am grateful for the insight they have to offer into the situation, but when it comes down to it, at the end of the day and the end of life, it’s me and God… and no one else. regardless of what someone may believe about God or the way he works, i know what i believe to be true of him and the way he works in my life. i am accountable for what i have heard from him and from him alone. no one else.

 

so riddle me this…
if i DO know what i believe is true of God, and i DO know how he works in my life, why then, when he says “please me”, do i have two whole pages of so many thoughts about others… and no thoughts of “yes Lord” ???

rock the boat

so, this post is quite a few weeks overdue… sorry! i’ve written many a draft, none which have satisfied me, either because i didn’t feel like i had proper perspective on the entirety of the situation, or i just didn’t have a way to end it. but now that i’m working heartily on the former and have locked up the latter, a post is berthed sharing news which many of you know…

i am leaving bosnia and joining the crew of the logos hope, part of the OM ships ministry. i actually am probably either on my way there or in training as you read this. it all started happening two months ago in germany – the Lord started unraveling what i thought i would be doing in bosnia and calling me to serve him on the ship, something i never expected.

i’m not really sure of any other way to share how certain i am of this calling with all of you than to share the moments in which God has confirmed it to me. i apologize in advance for the longevity of this post, but at least it’s not clogging up your email inbox! and hopefully it will be easy for you to take a break if necessary and return to reading later. i am taking off my “english student” hat, and probably will not be making smooth transitions from one story to the next, so fine literature connoisseurs beware!

throughout my life, the Lord has most often used other individuals to speak to me, and he continued working in the same way to confirm that he indeed was calling me to the logos hope. i hope those individuals do not mind my using their real names as I share how they have played a part in this journey, as some of them may not even know they have been used by God to speak to me. please enjoy…

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i shared with no one the calling i felt to head to the ship. i feared being laughed at, my motives being misinterpreted, and a number of other things. the evening of our day of prayer, i was approached by daniel, a sweet friend from the US. he said to me “gina, i think  you are supposed to join the ship with us.” i asked him why, to which he replied, “i can’t explain why. i don’t have a reason, i just know you are supposed to be on that ship with us.”

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the day after the day-o-prayer saw an evening full of celebration and sending, as people were beginning to depart for their fields, including the crew of the logos hope. after celebration and candy-eating, many individuals were milling about in the main room. my french pal jeremie noticed something wasn’t quite right with me and asked what was going on. i shared with him that i had a growing desire to join the crew of the logos and thought that God was calling me to do so. he encouraged me to tell someone so that i could leave with them in an hour (which i wouldn’t have been allowed to do anyway), but i resisted, stating that i had made a commitment to going to bosnia and had gone to germany planning to head to bosnia, NOT the ship. he proceeded to drop some knowledge on me, telling me that there are many times the Lord calls us to one thing to test our obedience of him, and then once he has our attention in a place where we are ready to hear him he will call us to the next step. little did jeremie know that just one month prior the Lord had led me through studing the initial call of moses with the burning bush, and i had prayed that i would not focus only on the incredible thing the Lord does to get my attention, but that i would also listen for the call that would come next…

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i headed to bosnia on my designated departure day, all the while feeling knots in my throat and stomach, knowing that i should not be going there. i still hadn’t shared this with anyone on my team, and couldn’t do so just yet, for fear of the rolling tears that would come out if i opened up my mouth. on the evening of my arrival i was g-chatting online with two wonderful friends from home, kelley and meredith. i shared with both of them that i had some reservations and uncertainty about being in bosnia. chatting with kelley, i asked her to pray something very specific for me – as silly as it sounded, i asked her if she would pray that the Lord would very very clearly show me bosnia or logos… where did he want me to be? i needed to know for sure so that i could either move on from what may have been nerves and get started with life in bosnia, or so that i could work up the courage to share this shocking news with my field leader and see what could be done. as i asked kelley to pray, i prayed this myself, and we continued chatting. shortly after this, in my conversation with meredith, she started sharing with me about a sermon on the book of revelation she had recently attended, and just had to share her favorite part with me. the instructor/pastor did a small study on a greek word… the word was logos…. the very word i had asked the Lord to show me if that indeed was his plan for me.

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once things had been set in motion for me to join the ship at some point, i started sharing this news with family and friends. i received a message from a friend i had made in Germany, an american girl named katie who was heading to france to serve with OM. she shared with me how grateful she was to hear that i was heading to the logos hope… from the time we first met in germany the Lord had laid it on her heart to pray for me that i would join the crew of the ship. she never told me, unsure of why she was to pray this (and i think a little unsure of how i would respond), but is now so grateful to understand why she was called to pray this and that the Lord answered.

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this week i am attending bible school in mostar, a beautiful town in the southern part of bosnia/herzegovina. on our second day of class our instructor began our second session by sharing some visions the Lord had laid on his heart for some of us in the class. he pointed to me and said “that girl over there… i’m sorry but i don’t know your name – the Lord has showed me that he is in control and knows exactly what he is doing with you. you shouldn’t be nervous or worried about where you are headed. the path that he his taking you down is very different than where you planned on going, but the things he is going to do with you there will be much greater than you could ever have expected or asked him for. walk securely in the knowledge that he has planned all of this.”

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i hope you find as much encouragement as i have in the ways God has continued to confirm where he wants me. i know that to our human eyes and ears, he doesn’t always seem clear in what he is saying, so i feel very blessed that he has chosen to speak to me quite openly through this entire process. and i hope he continues to do so! i am grateful for all of the the prayers offered up on my behalf, and i am thankful that you have all been a part of this. i can’t wait to share with you more of my unexpected adventures of what the Lord is doing!

the miss list, volume 3

do miss

cracker & cheese combos
all-day school – kids here typically only go for half-days, and alternate going in the morning one week and going in the afternoon the next week… kids everywhere all the time!
dr. pepper
degrees fahrenheit
hulu/snl/abc/nbc/cbs.com – they don’t work outside of the US!
my sewing machine
dairy queen blizzards
conan o’brien
payless shoe stores
singing worship songs in english

 

don’t miss

salty wet roads turning the bottoms of my jeans white
letter-size paper – call me crazy, but i love A4!
tipping in cafes, cabs, etc… they don’t do it here
a car being my only transportation option

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in other news, this week I am attending bible school in mostar, a town in the south of bosnia. the town is beautiful and WARM! and bible school (after only 1 day) has been amazing… in a hide-my-face-so-that-the-instructor-can’t-see-me-because-then-he-will-know-that-i-know-that-he-is-talking-about-me-even-though-there’s-no-way-he-could-know-these-things-about-me kind of way…

crazy…

you say vesnra, i say vesnja

i started bosnian language lessons this week, and late this afternoon was given my first “test” – to use my newly acquired skills (counting to 10) at the pekara (bakery). i was to order 10 kiefle (“kee-flay”… delicious little breads) and 1 vesnja (“vesh-nya”… a cherry-filled flat-ish bread) and bring them back to the office. i marched down to the pekara through the flurrying snow, repeating my order over and over in my head. i walked in and pronounced my order to the woman behind the counter. she packed up 10 piping  hot kiefle and i watched as she used her tongs to reach for a bread-wrapped hot dog (a.k.a. pig-in-a-blanket).  i started to panic. “ummmm… no… no… no….” were the only words that would come out. she started speaking to me in bosnian, assuming i could understand because i had just said “one”, “ten”, and the names of two bakery treats in her native tongue. having no idea what she was saying, i just kept saying “vesnja! vesnja!” over and over, as she waved the bread-dog at me saying “vesnra! vesnra!” finally, i stopped and said “no… vesnja. nja! NJA!” she then put down the bread-dog, walked to the other side of the counter and held up a cherry-filled bread treat, smiled and said, “vesnja.”

i do believe this was the first instance of a foreigner repeating something slower and louder, over and over and over again actually working.

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in other language fun, this afternoon i had my language lesson with my bosnian tutor, miriana. we were going over words for various foods, including fruits and vegetables.

something of note before i go any further: if you have ever studied a language other than english, you will know that nouns are either feminine, masculine, or neutral. sometimes when a native speaker of such language is speaking in english, they will occasionally translate the gender-appropriate prounoun into english and inanimate objects will become referred to as “he” or “she” rather than just “it”.

resume story… miriana was telling me about her favorite and least favorite fruits. one of miriana’s least favorite fruits is the mango. she proceeded to tell me about how she doesn’t like it plain, only in fruit salad or something else mixed. it was here that miriana made the translation mix-up i tell of above… and instead of saying “i don’t like it plain” she said “i don’t like him plain” and “i only like him in fruit salad.” i could have easily managed to focus through the rest of her mango story (which included something about egypt) and the rest of the lesson, if only saturday night live did not exist. more specifically, if chris kattan from saturday night live did not exist. or even if she had called any other fruit or vegetable in the entire world “he” or “she”.  instead, my mind went straight here.

and i don’t think i really learned much after that.