The things kids say...

On Thursday we drove out to a village school called Maposa, it has 196 students and 4 teachers. One room, with clay wayys and a straw roof (to give you a visual). We were pretty far out in the bush. The kids were so excited to see us. They loved our pupets shows, dancing, songs and the Bible story we told and acted out about Daniel and how he loved and trusted God.

As we were playing with the parachute - which they also loved and were facinated by, a little boy called Moses came up to a girl on the team and began asking her something in Bemba, the native language. She took him to the teahcer to have him translate and we all fell in love with him a little bit more when we found out he was asking if we were going to paint them to look like us, he thought we were painted because he had never seen white people before!!

On another note, the team is doing well. They had to kill a baby spitting cobra next to our house the other day, one of the girls on the team spotted it!! It was only a few feet from her so we are very glad she wasn't hurt.

I am loving africa, and learning more and more Bemba words everyday. I have learnt thunder (inpoopoonga) and rain (infulla) - i guess this gives you an idea of the weather we have been having - it is their rainy season. The monsoon type storms break up the humidity though so we welcome them even as we run in to save our laundry from the line int he garden!!!

Home based Care and other stories from Zambia

Today we went with the Home Based Care teams for the first time, we will be fgoing out with them twice a eek. They go and visit the sick in the communiyt, oraying and encouraging them with scripture, as well as helping them practically in any way they can.

We were in pairs. We went to a house where Elizabeth lived, a woman in her 70's. She sat on a mat in the front garden, sitting in her own urine, unable to get to the bathroom, flys all around her, and on the piece of bread which was her meal for the day. Her son was her carer but he was also taking care of his children while his wife was away. Elizabeth was not able to speak much, but we prayed with her. Then the carers saud we were going to bathe her. We helped her up and walked her to the back of the house where there was an outhouse, and a fire heating some water. We helped her undress and then helped her to bathe, and wahed here soiled clothes. We redressed her and took her back to her mat. She looked a million times better just with fresh clothes. She semed brighter and more alert, but it broke my heart.

We also visited a mother and her son we are sick with HIV/AIDS, she lost her husband last year and now takes care of her sons aged 4 and 10. The elder boy is not sick, and all the time we were visitin gwith them i just kept looking at his beautiful smiling face, he had so much joy. At the back of my mind i kepy wondering what his life would look like in a few months or a few years, and if his smile would fade?

We then visited Nicolas, he had been orphaned from AIDS and now lives with his uncle, he looks about 8 but told us he is 16 years old. He has sores all over his body and lookd weak and tired. He asked for prayer for healing. I flet so small. As i prayed i asked God to give me the faith to pray for this beautiful and frightened young man to be healed, for me to believe the words i was praying. Please pray for him also. I am asking for a miracle for Nicolas.

Life with the team continues to be fun. The farm gives us plenty of work and we all fall into bed about 9pm!! We do get up at 6 though so i guess it all even out. Last night we were kept awake by the hugest rainstorm. Lighteneing filled our little room, anf thunder rocked mangos out of the tree!

The night before we were kept awake by the pigs that live justa few meters from us. They are so noisy, and like to be the noisiest at about 5am!

Our first African church service last week was amazing and everything i could have imagined church to be and much more. During worship i broke down, and cried the worship was just so powerful. People singing and dancing, falling on their faces weeping and just shouting and screaming!! I LOVED it and can't wait to go back this week.

We are all keeping well and noone has got sick so far. On of the girls on the team had to take it easy one day because she had a mild case of heat stroke, but after drinking more water she was fine, and i think we all took that as a reminder for us to be taking water breaks!!

We also visited orphan schools and have loved dancing for them, doing own clown and puppet routines as well as teaching them fun songs and dances!! We will be doing lots more of this too!!

This is just the tip of the iceberg but time is limited and internet slow. I have to go and meet the team at the store to grocery shop!!

We're in Zambia!!

After a very long time of travelling, planes and airports and too much airplane food, we finally arrived here in Zambia. We then had a 4 hour bus ride to the farm where we are staying.

Last night, the jetlag meant we were all awake in the middle of the night, and of course as we struggled with mosquito nets and hearing bugs and deciding if we needed the toilet badly enoguh to get out of our beds, we laughed harder than i have in a long time!!! We really are on outreach.

The place where we are staying is pretty basic but nice and i know already we will be sad to leave in 2 months.

The team is doing well and all seem to be adjusting pretty easily so far. It is really hot and humid, so we are trying to remember to drink enough water, luckily the water in the taps at the farm we are staying at is from a spring and is safe to drink.

We have been good at taking our malaria medicine at the right time, but a few people have learnt that you must not take it on an empty stomach or you will get sick!

Today we are in otwn exchanging money, grocery shopping and emailing, and later we will meet with Pastor Jacob and find out more details of our weekly schedule. So far they have been very concerned that er rest and recover from our travelling!

The countryis beautiful and just the way i imagined from TV. As we drove along the main road, little villages of mud huts appear every mile or so. I can't believe we are here.

The place where we are staying has mango trees everywhere including next to our houses and we have enjoyed lots already, they are delicious - we did discover though, that they fall from the tree at random times during the night, we we really scared by the banging until we realised what was happening. I think the tin roof on our little brick houses makes it sound a lot more threatening than it is.

We have encountered a few big bugs, one giant snail, a millipede and a huge flying thing which had settle in my bra overnight - quite the surprise when i went to get dressed thismorning. The snakes that come out during the rainy season have kept away so far but the other team that is here saw a souple last week!!

I look foprward to updating you soon...please keep praying for us!!

Commissioning Service

On Saturday night we held the commissioning Service for the DTS. This is a time for us to celebrate what God has done in the last 14 weeks, and then look forwards to our time on outreach. The base leaders pray and commission the Outreach Team Leaders and then we as leaders pray for our team members. It is a special night.

The team leaves for Thailand on Monday and we leave for Zambia on Tuesday. I can't believe it is coming so fast, i have to do my packing tomorrow - yikes, nothing like leaving things to the last minute!

Once in Zambia we will be working with an organisation called 'Hands at Work', who are serving the HIV/AIDS community. We will be doing kids programs in the schools which they have set up and run, because Zambia has no public school system. Children who have lost parents to HIV/AIDS can not afford to go to school, and so do not receive an education. The man we will be working with is called Pastor Jacob. He and his wife started 18 schools for children who are orphaned or disadvantaged by HIV/AIDS, the disease which 16% of Zambians now have.

We have lots of fun ideas and are taking lots of supplies to help us love on these kids. We have been practising puppets and clown routines as well as a hip-hop dance, you can just imagine how cool I look doing that!!) So I am excited to share those with the kids we meet and make them smile.

We will also be taking trips out to the villages and doing home care visits with people who are dying of AIDS. We will help take care of them in simple ways, and spend time praying and ministering to them as well as taking care of their physical needs the best way we can.



Please pray for us
For safe travels, we leave Tuesday 9th Jan and arrive Thursday 11th Jan.
For grace at immigration and that we will get our Zambia visas without any problems
For health for the team
For UNITY!!!!That we might be a true example of Christ's love through our actions towards each other
For amazing opportunities to share our stories with people in Zambia

Thank you so much, and i look forward to seeing you SBC ers this spring when the team and I will debrief in London on our way back to Seattle. We will be sharing at the morning Service, so mark that one in your diaries March 4th 2007!!

Winter wonderland

I feel like i have really embraced the cold weather this winter season, and participated in some colder activities. Seattle got quite a lot of snow a little while back and right as the heaviest and most beautiful flakes started to fall Brandi and I were walking home. The was a wonderful calmness that fell with the snow and it there was a magical feeling in the air. Here we are out in the snow!!


We celebrated Jolene's birthday with a night of ice skating fun, what a very cold and extremely funny way to spend a night! Our time was made evn better by the music they played, we sang our hearts out as we skated to the likes of Enrique Igleasis and Kelly Clarkson!!

DTS Christmas...(Yes, another Christmas blog!)

We also did some festive celebrating with the DTS student. We made a brunch for them and did secret Santa gifts, as well as playing games including Pass the parcel, and then having the gingerbread house making challenge!! Enjoy the pics...




This team won the creative award for their gingerbread Seattle scene, including the space needle, Lake Union and the mountains!!

Christmas Ships

This year we as YWAM Seattle made a new friend, his name is Steve. He is a businessman who lives in Seattle, his son has done a DTS in Australia which is how he knew of our organisation, he found us, and is wanting to help us in whichever ways he can. A couple of weeks ago, we the staff were told that the details of our Christmas party would be a surprise, and that we simply had to be at a certain place at a certain time and dress warmly. At that certain place and time, we piled into the van and started driving (a few people knew the surprise because they planned it - which is how we knew where to go!!) We drove to a beach, and there at the end of a dock was a boat covered in Christmas light. We were told that this was to be our party venue, and to climb aboard - and how Steve fitsinto this whole story, is that he was the boats owner and captain!

We were all very excited as we don't get to hang out on classy boats very often. I for one was wishing that i had chosen my outfit with more emphasis on 'Christmas Party' and less on warmth, because i felt decidedly underdressed!! As we got onboard, Steve told us the plan for our evening. We would be following the Christmas ships. Here in Seattle they have an event around Christmas called the Christmas Ships. They are cruise ships decorated for Christmas, they have a dinner on board and choirs that sing Christmas songs, however they sail and stop at different beaches for the concerts, so people can come and watch from the shore too, As they Christmas ships sail, many other smaller boats, just like ours sail alongside them and stop in the water to hear the music and watch the other ships.

It was so much fun being together on this boat, just laughing, drinking hot chocolate, eating good munchies and did i mention the laughing?!!

Here are a few pics from the night...
Coming soon!!

When the ships stopped we would walk around to the front of our boat and watch the choirs from there. It was such a wonderful way to celebrate together another year of YWAM Seattle...and what a blessing to be able to celebrate in such style!!

Christmas 2006

I thought i would write in seperate posts instead of one huge long piece of writing to hold your interest!!

I hope you all had wonderful Christmas's and were able to spend time with good friends and family. I had a great Christmas, but of course i missed being at home with my family. On Christmas Eve some other YWAM friends came over for lunch, the kids played and opened some presents. It was really nice to celebrate together, this autumn has been so busy, it was nice to be together and just enjoy hanging out, without any agendas. In the evening I went to the candlelight service at my Church. We sang lots of Chrsitmas carols and then before the last one, Joy to the world, they turned all the lights off in the church, and just had some large candles burning at the front. Our Pastor lit a small candle from one of these and then from his candle 2 more were lit, then the people holding these candles walked up the aisle lighting the candle of the first person sitting in each row. From theirs, each person in the row would light their candles, and pass the light along the row. Slowly the building filled with light - it was beautiful.

My friends Katie and Amanda were spending the night so we went home and played cards and games before heading off to sleep, and waiting for Santa to pay a visit!

On Christmas Day we woke up, had a really nice breakfast and then opened presents, That was alot of fun, especially because Zara was really enjoying her 2nd and was understanding that there were fun things in the boxes wrapped up under the tree! Here we are opening some presents, of course, stilli n our PJ's!



I got some nice presents and felt very spoilt! When the presents were opened, we headed to Starbucks for a Christmas treat, it isn't Christmas anymore without a gingerbread latte!

Then we went on to Greenlake, and take a walk, it was such a beautiful day, a little chilly but the sun was out too.

At 4 o'clock i left and went to my friend's Phil and Amy's house for Christmas dinner. I made roast potatoes, which tasted amazing, if i do say so myself! We sat down to a delicious meal, after which we watched 'Home Alone' my absolute favourite Christmas movie!! Emma who is 4 had never seen it and i loved being able to share it with her. I spent the night there, Emma and I had a slumber party!

So that was my Christmas... how was yours?

So much to say...

Hello friends, this will indeed me a multifacited blog, covering the wide range of things that have happened since i last put finger to key and left a post on here. I am sorry that it has been so long!

First of all i should mention Thanksgiving. This holiday takes place the last Thursday of November. I was blessed to spend this this years celebrations with my housemates and their family. We ate an amazing turkey dinner with all the trimmings, and spent lots of time sitting round the table, talking and laughing. It was exactly what i needed.

November had been a tough month for me emotionally and spiritually i was burnt out, as a result of being so busy mentally and physically. It is always so hard for me to ask for help when i am struggling. I was trying to do everything myself and really becoming much too independant. It felt like if i let anything go, everything would crumble, and if that happened, I felt like I would be the one left to pick it all up again, which felt like more work than simply holding onto everything in the first place!! The weekend after Thanksgiving I took a mini retreat and stayed at my friend Sarah's house. I had lots of time alone to pray, journal, read and think. This time was so important for me to be able to get my perspective back. I realised that my focus had switched from discipling and serving the students and showing Christs' love to them, my community and the city of Seattle. Instead my time and stress was taken up with making schedules and lists, then checking off said lists or maybe just making even more lists?!! I was so caught up in this whirlwind that i didn't know how to stop.

After this time away i really able to do the things i would have said were my priority, and hand over or make less important the things that had been consuming my time but brought me no life whatsoever. Since then I have truly been able to enjoy this school much more, and especially my one on one times, which i would have said were my favourite parts of the week, but somehow became such a burden. I was reminded how much i love what i do, and also gave me a huge illustration of God's grace at work in my life during a time when i had nothing to give and could have potentially done some damage to the people and relationships i care about here as i was living in my own strength, and feeling very stressed. I see His covering so evident during that time.


Here is picture from the Thanksgiving parade, the cheerleaders brave the weather and smile as they spread holiday cheer!