Our Outreach is approaching very fast, and while I'm writing this, I can feel that It starts to tickle a little In my stomach. The time flies when you are on DTS – it sometimes goes too fast. But then we must just enjoy the time we have while we still can. For the last few weeks we have been on a road trip In Queensland and New South Wales. We Started our trip in "Lamington National Park”, located on a mountain. Here we hiked out to a waterfall and relaxed a bit after a busy week at the base in Brisbane. Below you can see pictures from Lamington: After Lamington National Park We went to Byron Bay, which is a surf-town located in the state: "New South Wales". Byron Bay is a real hippie-town where many backpackers and surfers come to seek meaning in life. Therefore, it was a good opportunity for us to tell people about Jesus there. It is also a place with a lot of spiritual darkness, which could also be felt when we were there, because many of us had bad dreams and strange experiences. But despite darkness in this world, God is bigger and his light shines in us and through us! We spent some time on the beach, where we shared snacks, played volleyball, and told about Jesus. Most people were very open and friendly, and I (Edith) also got the opportunity to play some worship-songs on the beach. We also had the opportunity to go swimming in the sea one of the days, and some were also out surfing. This week we had both teaching about evangelization, and then we were also out and evangelizing, which was very cool to practice after we had heard about it. One of the evenings we were together with YWAM in Byron Bay, who every week has an evening where they give out free pancakes in a park in the city. This was an amazing event where we had pancakes, were chatting, played music, and had a cozy time – all in the honor of our Heavenly Father. In general, this week was truly characterized by generosity and God's love, which we were able to spread in Byron Bay. We also had a "family-night" with our DTS, where we had delicious food and shared Testimonies about what God had done in us on the DTS. After Byron Bay we went to "Mount Warning" where we had the opportunity to swim (in a pool), hike and relax in the beautiful nature. Here we also met some Aboriginals, who showed us their beautiful paintings of Australia, and played their Didgeridoo for us. They also told us that the word: "Kangaroo" In fact means: "I don't Know" – this was because when the English saw the Kangaroos and asked the natives what they were called, the natives could not understand them and replied: Kangaroo (I do not know). And speaking of kangaroos, there were many of them in Girraween National Park, which was the next place we went. In Girraween We had teaching about “Spiritual Warfare”, which made good sense after our week in Byron, where many of us had experienced the spiritual darkness, which was in the city. It was a very interesting teaching where we were reminded of the authority we have in Jesus, and that we have nothing to fear - because God is with us. During the week, we also had the opportunity to hike in the mountains, and it was so amazing to see the beautiful view. It also reminded me that even though things can look difficult and be “uphill”, God wants to take us to the top of the mountain with him and to show us his perspective. Our trip ended and we drove home to the base in Brisbane. But on the trip home, one of the tires on the bus blew up, so we had to wait in the hot Australian sun for three hours before we could drive again. Luckily, there was a friendly lady who lived right where we had stopped and who allowed us to sit in the shade on her porch. When the wheel was changed we drove home to the base in Brisbane, where our trip ended. This week we have had Steve Aherne, who has been teaching us in the topic: "Relationships.” Besides that, we are also preparing ourselves for the outreach, which already starts in 7 Days! Lately it has been very challenging for me (Edith) to rely on God´s provision – especially since the outreach is coming closer and closer. It led to, that I this Wednesday broke down and surrendered it all to God again. Our DTS prayed for us that morning, and it was really cool to experience the strong unity there was and how people stood with us in prayer. And before the day was over, God had given us all of the money that we needed for the outreach – thank you Jesus! And it also turned out that God had given us more than what we needed for the journey itself, so we also can afford the things we need to buy before we travel. God is faithful and good, and when we give it all to him, he takes over and shows his faithfulness. While we didn't have the money yet, God continually reminded us that we should trust him, and as we also say here in ywam: "If good guides, he provides". It has been challenging to trust 100% in God – especially when we are used to have everything we need in Denmark. But it has also stretched us and made us more dependent on God. There was also one of our speakers who said to us: ' If a child does not worry about if its parents would give them the next meal, why are we worrying about if God will give us what we need?" God is a good father, he is faithful and he always keeps his promises! All we can do is trust him and let him lead us wherever he would – for he always knows what is best for us and he is good! Thank you for reading this blog post. I hope that it enriched you and was helping to show you what a great and faithful God we have! Many thanks to all of you who support us – both financially and in prayer. May God bless you richly back! Prayer Topics:
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The rain is gently dripping on the roof while I'm sitting inside with a hot cup of tea. It is spring in Australia, and you can really feel that! The days are getting longer, the birds chirping merrily in the morning, and the flowers sprouting up on trees and bushes. It's strange that it's raining so much here in Australia – it could well be mistaken for a rainy summer day in Denmark. But it is also quite cozy – especially when storms come and we sit inside and look at the great and mighty lightning, which rumbles and roars outside. It also reminds me of Denmark, and gives me a homely feeling. Speaking of Denmark, there are actually 8 other Danes here on the base. Therefore, we decided to make a Dane-evening (several weeks ago), where we ate “Koldskål” (Buttermilk-dessert) and meatballs with gravy and potatoes, sang Danish worship-songs, prayed for Denmark and spoke Danish together. It was a really good evening and we hope to be able to do it again after our outreach – which is fast approaching! It's crazy how quickly time passes when you are on DTS (Discipleship training school), and how many things we learn in such a short time! Lately, we have had teaching about; Mission, Biblical worldview, the Holy Spirit, Fear of the Lord, intercession and Lordship of Christ. These weeks has truly been filled with God's presence and freedom – and we have experienced God in totally new ways. I experienced, among other things. to be filled with God's joy, since we had about the Holy Spirit, which made me laugh for a very long-time. I experienced a great freedom, and was met by God's presence and love. In the past several weeks, God has really broken through on our team with his freedom. People have experienced to be set free from the things of the past, from condemnation and from sadness, and God has also shown his great love and faithfulness over all of us! Our week at the Gold Coast was filled with breakthroughs in our hearts. We had teaching about the Holy Spirit, and God spoke clearly truth upon our lives and met us with his presence. In the morning we had teaching, and in the afternoon, we were out on the coast and shared the Gospel with people. We also had a day where we gave free barbecue out to those who passed by and chatted with them. There was a young guy, who actually was from Denmark, who received the message of Jesus and got a Bible to take with him home. We were also swimming in the sea one of the days, which was pretty wild because of the waves, which were very violent. Fortunately, there weren´t any sharks, but there were also many lifeguards to look after us. We ended our trip on Mount Tamborine, where we spent the weekend with an elderly Christian couple. It was very relaxing, and their home was filled with God's peace. We also went to a park and fed birds, and ended by a river where we baptized 5 people from our team. It was truly a strong moment, and it was a proof that the old is past and something new has become. On Sunday we took part in a church service, where we led worship and shared testimonies with the congregation. We ended the weekend at the home of the Christian couple, who prophesied over all of us. It was a very powerful moment, and I will never forget this couple, and their great hospitality and love for all of us. Tomorrow we are going on a two-week road-trip to Byron Bay and Girraween National Park. In Byron Bay, we are going to have teaching about evangelism and then we will go out and practice it by evangelizing to people in Byron Bay. In Girraween, we are going to have teaching and we are hiking in God's beautiful nature. I look forward to see more of Australia's beautiful nature, and I've heard that we might even see kangaroos in this park. Until now, we have only seen dead kangaroos (who had been run over on the highway), so I am looking forward to seeing them alive :D. A little update on our outreach ... We are, as previously written, going to India with this great team: We call ourselves the "Team CurryRoo" (a mixture of "Curry", which is very common in Indian, and "Kangaroo", which is Australian). In India, we are going to spend the first three weeks in New Delhi, and then we go to Uttarakhand for a week, where we are going to hike and pray for the area. After Uttarakhand we are going to Varanasi, where we will be sharing God's love with people in the area. Varanasi is an area with a lot of spiritual darkness, and it is one of the holiest places for Hindus — many go there to have a holy death. There are also many foreigners who come to hike and seek a purpose in life. We are going to spend Christmas, new year and Aron´s birthday in Varanasi, so it is going to be very exciting! We are flying from Brisbane on November 18th and returns to Brisbane on January 20th. Thank you for taking time to read this blog post! And thank you so much to all of you who support us, both financially and in prayer – may God bless you richly again! Ps. This is our crazy and amazing DTS-team: Prayer topics:
The sound of the Australian bird "Kookaburra"s wild laughter reached my ears, and immediately memories came back from the previous week, where we visited the world's largest sand island: Fraser Island! Originally the plan was that we should have been there the week before, but a large forest fire on the island was guilty of postponing our trip until the week after. But this did not matter that much, while we got some extra time to prepare for this exciting adventure. I remember when we finally arrived at Fraser Island (after a three-hour drive and a small boat trip to the island), how God's beautiful nature stretched out in front of us – and this was just the beginning of the trip. We were driven by taxi over the sand to the place where we should start our hike. Iiiihh how fun it was – yes, it was tickling in my stomach when we drove over the many sand-bumps on the beach! And the clear blue water which crashed next to us, really reflected God's beauty and strength. We arrived at a small notch in the wood (which was next to the beach), where we were dropped off. From here began our hike together with each other and with God. It was truly an amazing week, filled with adventure, beauty and the presence of God. One of the things that struck me most was God's greatness and beauty in the nature. One of the days, we came to a big lake, called: "Lake McKenzie". During the day, this place was like a paradise island, with its clear blue waters and gorgeous white sandy beach. But at night the sky opened up above us, and we were able to see God's beautiful creation in the stars. In the midst of God's greatness and beauty, we stood together and sang; "How Great is Our God", and I was filled with great AWE. How amazing is it that such a great God, knows me and wants to have a relationship with little me! It is truly wonderful! God is good! During the week, we were also taught on the subject of hearing the voice of God, which also was really wonderful to do in the midst of His creation. One of the things that stood out for me was the fact that there are different voices we can listen to, but by getting to know God better and spend time with him, we also learn to recognize His voice. Something else was also the importance of the fact that God is a God of relationships, but at the same time, He is also a great and Almighty God. It made me be so grateful to God and all that he has given me — that I am allowed to be his child and that he loves me unlimited. Every week here at DTS helps to reveal new sides of who God is. We have among other subjects had about the father heart of God, where we truly saw his fathers-love, and about mission and worldview, where we were allowed to see God's heart for people in different cultures. It's also amazing to be able to praise God, together with so many different nationalities, and it really shows God's heart for diversity and for the Nations. And speaking of the Nations ... we know where we are going for outreach! We are going to India with this amazing team: We are going to be in the North-West of India, close to the Himalaya mountains, where we among other things are going to help out in some of the churches and organizations, with the work that they are already doing. More information about our outreach later on. In addition, we are going to "The Gold Coast" tomorrow, where we are going to stay in a church, and have teaching + do evangelism in the city. This will be an exciting week for our team, which you are very welcome to pray for! We are very grateful for all that God is doing through us and our DTS, and we are looking forward to get to know God, ourselves and each other even better. Finally, I just want to say thank you so much to all of you who support us – both financially and in prayer! May God bless you richly again for this! – and thank you for reading this blog post. You are very welcome to pray for us and our journey with each other and with God.
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The sun is heating on my pale skin, while a gentle breeze strays my cheeks. You would think that it was in the middle of the summer here in the country "Down under", but it is not – on the contrary. This would be a perfect summer day at home in Denmark, but here in Australia they call it winter. While the summer home in Denmark now is about to end, spring is slowly coming forth here Australia. Whew – it will be exciting to see how hot it gets during summer down here! But enough about the weather, because we talk enough about that in Denmark already. We are now in "Aussi-land", as they call it down here (in Australia they use a lot of slang and many abbreviations), in a town called "Brisbane" – which is in the State "Queensland": Here we are doing a DTS (Disciple Training School) in the missionary organization YWAM (Youth With A Mission). Our DTS is called "Pathfinders" and it focuses particularly on finding your way in life with God, which is what we want the most for this time – to find our way in life with God and with each other. When we arrived in Brisbane, it was late night and therefore quite dark. I remember that I squeezed Aron's arm when we came out of the airport and enthusiastically exclaimed: "We are in Australia!". Then a familiar face popped up to pick us up – it was one of the other Danes at the base, who we knew from home. We got our luggage and ourselves stuffed into the car, and then we started to drive towards our new home. When we arrived, we were shown around the YWAM base, and then we got our own "Honeymoon-suite" (as they called it). We were so tired and sweaty that we went straight into bed, after a short shower. The next day we found out where we where: On the video and the images above, you can see our new home. When we arrived, it was so dark that it was hard to see where we were, but the day after our arrival, we began to find out where we were– approximately 15.000 km. from home, in the country of Australia. This was also the start of our new adventure with each other and with God. Since I only know Australia from other’s stories about "Kangaroos", "Aboriginals" and "the Outback", it surprised me that Australia was much like home. I imagined dry land and more primitive ways of life, but instead I found Palm trees, rivers, big cities and stunning natural scenery. The first week I was shown up to a point, not far from the base, with a fantastic view over the city. Since then I knew that this was not Denmark, but Australia. Another thing that surprised me is the many different birds which they have down here. Some of them sound like monkeys, some sounds like an alarm clock (trust me – it is really annoying to be woken up by them!), and others have a lovely little melody, which they whistle again and again. But it is neither the birds, the weather or the beautiful scenery, which made us come to Australia. We came here because we want to learn to know God better, and find out what He wants with our lives. The first weekend, our DTS took us on a camping trip to a place called: "Triple C". Here we took a hike up a creek, where we got the opportunity to go swimming in a lake. But this was also a time where we were able to share our testimonies and stories with each other. It really struck me, how many people had experience to be broken and had wounds from the past. But it was also an eye-opener for how much God appreciates the fellowship. To be able to share your burdens with the fellowship, was for many the beginning of a new process, which will lead us all towards more freedom and healing. This week we had our first teaching about God's character and nature. Dean Sherman, one of YWAM´s founding fathers, taught us about this. This week came with many new revelations to us about who God is, but the most important thing I got from this week, was the importance of knowing God. I truly realized that the more we know God, the more we will also know ourselves. We are created in His image, and that is why we are also created to show who He is. This week has also shown me the importance of relationships, and if there is anything that I can pass on to you, it is that God is a God of relationship, and He is not just a God who is far away in the sky — He is a God who wants us, loves us and who wants a relationship with us. It is truly amazing, that such a great God, wants to have a relationship with us! He's just waiting for us to come to Him – He wants to show us more of who He is, and thereby also to show us who we are in Him. Therefore, I can say with great joy and anticipation that this DTS will be a new beginning, where we can learn to know God more and more, and also find out who we are in Him and what He has called us to do. Thank you for reading this blog-post!
Please pray for us, and our journey together with each other and with God. You can also pray for: 1. The breakthrough of God in our life 2. Clearness from God about which path we should follow 3. On saturday we will go on a week hiking-trip, on "Fraser Island" (The biggest sand-island in the world! :D), where we are going to have teaching on hearing the voice of God. - Please pray for the trip, and for protection over the team.
The car speeds along, while I slowly consume the Danish landscape. The countdown has begun, and soon we will leave this lovely country, our families and everything we know, to go forth into the unknown, with God and with each other. While I sit here in the car, I am thinking back on the day a month ago, when a new chapter in my life begun - I was married to Aron.
But let us start somewhere else ... It was a cold and stormy afternoon in Thy, where my friend took me out to sea. We drove out to a small town called "Vårbøre", where my friend parked the car and took me with her on a walk down the pier. It was so windy that the waves were foaming over the pier, and we got wet shoes – but it did not hinder us from continuing the stormy ride out along the pier. Eventually we came out at the end of the pier, and suddenly I spotted him: a young Dutch man standing at the end, waiting for my arrival. This young man was Aron, and when I saw him, I was so overwhelmed that I could hardly say anything. Instead, Aron took the word: "Edith, you're my best friend! Will you join me and follow God's way "* Aron fell on one knee" will you marry me? ". In even greater enthusiasm, I made my "jump of joy" and replied "YES!". And so it went loose with the wedding planning.
I do not want to tire you with long details about table decorations, food and budget, but instead I'll tell you about how great God has been, and how faithful He's been through it all. You see – it was Him who put the idea in our hearts, and Him who planned the whole thing. All we had to do was to follow Him and His will. Therefore, I thank God for his faithfulness and goodness upon us. Without Him this wouldn't have been possible!
When I, just over five months ago, said yes to Aron, I didn't know what it would mean for me in the following months. But God has truly shown me that NOTHING is impossible for Him! Even in the midst of 3rdg´s (3rd year student in Danish gymnasium) bustle and exam pressure, He was there with His peace. Through planning and relocation, He was there with his surplus and His grace. Through forgiveness and reconciliation, He was there, with His love and freedom. He has always been there and is still with us. All I can say is: "a thousand thanks Dad!". And so we graduated - In the midst of planning and moving, and then the big day came, which we had been waiting for so long – our wedding day. There are too many words to describe this day for a single blog post – and since a picture says more than a thousand words, here is a movie that gives an insight into this special day:
I just want to say that the day surpassed all my expectations, and it was like God's gift to us. It was filled with feasting, dancing, singing and joy – and last but not least, it was filled with God's love and presence.
The best moment was when we said 'yes' to each other – before God and before people. This ‘yes’ was indeed the start of our new adventure together with God and with each other – and it is a Yes for life! God has really shown us his faithfulness and goodness upon us in this time - and my hope is that people around us also would be able to experience his love through us. The adventure has only just begun, and the month that we have been married by now, has gone so fast! Now I can only look forward to the upcoming time where we together with God and one another are going into new adventures – both in the world, but also in life. |