Posts made in May, 2008

Suffering from Jetlag

Posted by Caroline on May 27, 2008 in The Backpack | 0 comments

My body is completely out of whack.  I think I just skipped last night, but I know the crash will be coming way too soon.  I got to Springfield last night with the clocks saying 1:30 a.m, but my body telling me it was 7:30 a.m.  This morning I popped up at 7.  Something has to change.

London was an experience.  I love people watching and this was the prime spot to watch.  The melting pot for sure, this city could have offered hours of entertainment simply by sitting on a park bench.  And after the week’s activities, there were many times when I was completely content sitting.

I’ll post pictures in the next day or so when I can figure out how. We crammed a lot into those two days, and I’m sore from walking.  That’s almost embarrassing. 

Thank you again for praying for our trip.  While I’m so relieved to be in a place where we drive on the right side of the road and glad to be back in my own shower (I had a battle every time I tried to figure out the showers over there), and while it’s so nice to slip back into a routine here at home, I don’t regret anything about going to England.  I’m changed; the name of Jesus was clearly proclaimed; students came to know THE Savior; we were obedient, and God was and IS glorified.

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Friday in England

Posted by Caroline on May 24, 2008 in The Backpack | 0 comments

Yesterday Alison, Todd, and I went into the prison, and when we got there, the man asked us what we had prepared. yikes! We didn’t have anything.  However, this led to the most genuine time of sharing Jesus.  Going through security with our passports, explaining constantly why we were in the UK, we passed through gate after gate, bars after bars, chains after chains.  Only someone numb to feelings could ignore the darkness and depressing atmosphere.

We eventually found ourselves in a small room that was used for an optional and priveledged chapel service.  When we first got there, we stood in a circle with a guitar, and expecting the almost “awkward worship time where everyone mumbles,” I actually noted that it was good  I was between both Todd and Alison because they were both decent singers, and I need someone to follow to hit the right notes.  How wrong was I and how misplaced was my focus!  The first song was Shout to the Lord, and the very first verse, “my Jesus, my Savior” was proclaimed so loudly and confidently in that small room I was humbled to nothing, and the evidence of the Spirit awoke in me a new sense of what REAL worship is.  Whereas in the US, surrounded by churches, worship bands and Bible studies, such a simple song would be considered old or outdated, but amongst these men, locked in a dark, dark prison, the truth of those words offered freedom and hope.  They sang of THE God that rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves; they sang of THE God who has redeemed us and offers forgiveness of sins.

After singing, and seeing the Spirit move, each of us shared.  We became vulnerable.  We talked of having it all, yet it all being rubbish.  I spoke second using Philippians 3, and when I read of Paul counting it all as loss, I heard a slight gasp from Alison, and when she spoke, I understood why.  She had picked the same verses to share.

What I took out the most in this time was from one particular man named Allan.  At first glance the tattoos and almost gangster appearance sent off a rough message, but when he spoke, his heart echoed grace and a REAL heart for seeking after the Lord.  He opened up, asking tons of genuine questions.  At one point, Todd had explained how pride is something easy to struggle with, especially in America where we can “have it all,” and Allan piped in confessing that even after a week he was struggling with pride.  He had such a burden for his lost siblings and wanted to share Christ with them, but he knew if he were to be near them at all, drugs, alcohol, fighting, and violence would drag him back and he didn’t want to go back.  He wrote down all the verses and soaked in everything we said.

Leaving that prison, having all the gates opened for us, yet remembering the darkness of those locked behind them, changed me.  My sin should have me behind bars, but I have been redeemed– such a simple truth that convicted criminals taught me.  Oh man.  Allan’s heart was a testimony to me and surely everyone else in that room.

This morning I presented the wealth and poverty lesson with Todd.  It went very well despite the fact that we were in a class with Mr. Mac, a teacher who, in the past, has “corrected us” and called our groups out by asking accusing questions.  God is good

Thursday night was chaos… again… with the Blue team.  In all honestly, I have never seen kids be so disrespectful of authority, oblivious to their rudeness, and desperately seeking attention.  Our team spent the afternoon praying over our teams.  I spent time in our meeting room, and my awareness of spiritual warfare was heightened.  We pleaded, petitioned, requested that satan be banished.  In the past my prayers tended to be more on the end of “prepare us, give us the words” but here, it’s not a matter of words but of satan being banned.

The behavior of these students is not comparable to anything I’ve ever seen.  Cursing, provocative dress, guys being extremely inappropriate with/towards girls, harsh words, fighting… these students need Jesus.  Tonight was the same set up with teams and competition (the blue team won!), but afterwards, we watched a short movie on Romans 6:6-8, powerful verses in themselves, and Kyle shared the gospel.  Compared to years past, I hear, the attacks were nowhere as bad, and for me, even being prepared, I was shocked and prayed hard.  Students would yell out, answer their phones, be turned the other direction… it was ridiculous.  BUT our God is big.  We got in our small groups, and we were bold.  We told them that we made the decision Kyle talked about, and if they were interested in becoming a follower of Jesus, they could stay, but if not, they were asked to leave.  In every group, people stayed.  I don’t know numbers, and they’re not even important, but there are new believers as of tonight.  Tees Valley Community Church, the church we’re working with, has a great follow-up program, and I’m confident in their plan to connect with the students who made decisions as well as the many students who wanted more information.

The youth pastor of these church is one of the most selfless people I’ve ever been around.  He made fun of me constantly, yes, but his ministry is strong in a spiritually dead part of England.  He constantly in the schools and knows hundreds of students by name.

I’ve never been more physically tired.  I’ll sleep the whole train ride to London tomorrow; we leave in 5 hours!!

BUT it is oh-so-worth it.

Thank you so much for praying.  God isn’t done.

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Wednesday in England

Posted by Caroline on May 21, 2008 in The Backpack | 2 comments

I ought to come up with better titles.

Just now when I typed Wednesday for the title I was almost taken off guard.  It’s difficult to keep the days straight, and while the time has FLOWN by, I like seeing how much we’ve done.  Every moment has been packed, and seeing the purpose with each of those moments has been a reminder to not let the rest of the summer mindlessly pass.

This morning half the group went to All Saints at 9:00, but because of miscommunication we found we weren’t needed until 11.  This ended up being a blessing on countless levels.  The youth pastor took us to a shopping center, and it wasn’t long before I found myself asleep in a Costa’s, which is basically an English Starbucks.  Afterwards, Todd and I taught our lesson on why people believe in God.  Before we went in to teach, I was filled with a sense of urgency– not an urgency to speak, because we’ve done that quite a bit. It took me a minute or two to pinpoint.  It wasn’t an urgency to be bold, or to not shy away, but rather, it was a sense of urgency to be rid of my plan, my way, and my definition of success.  Many of the same discussion questions arose in that class period, but the attention that the students gave us was almost penetrating.  Leaving the class, I was humbled, pleased, and challenged, not because the class itself or the message changed, but because my view on it did.

For the afternoon we spent a few hours in Durham.  It was an absolutely amazing city, and I found myself laughing at myself because of all the ways I assumed England was similar to the US.  The city seemed ancient.  We hiked up a hill to see a cathedral that was built in 1093 as a memorial of the man who first brought the gospel to England.  It only took 40 years to complete, and I have no earthly idea how they completed it in that time frame.  Right next to the cathedral were equally beautiful buildings which were actually part of Durham Univerisity.  The dormitories were actually in a castle!

Tonight my Blue team is still in first place, and I have no idea how because we constantly lose points for not listening and being too loud.  We’re the largest, loudest, and the most wild group for sure.  The boys who wouldn’t cooperate last night actually brought more of their friends, which magnifies the chaos, but increases the need for God to intervene.  I have to laugh because I know God is up to something, and working in MYSTERIOUS ways.  Whereas other groups are able to have meaningful small groups (praise the Lord!), Geoff, my partner for this team, and I are having to get creative.  Tonight in our group, which is now about 40 kids, the kids that didn’t want to listen talked to Geoff about soccer, while those who were eager to hear, listened as I shared.  It’s very stretching, and again, it’s a reminder that my defintion of success is often far from the Lord’s.

During the workshop time I went to a dance class.  I’m not cordinated or meant to do hip hop dancing.  I silently encouraged the group by being so bad.

Prayer Requests:

1. Tomorrow morning I’m leading an aseembly for about 50 students.  Pray that they would be attentive and also see Jesus in me.

2.  Tomorrow morning, Alison, Todd, and I are going to a prison.   I have no idea what we will be doing, but pray for us to be used.

3. Oh the Blue team.

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Tuesday in England

Posted by Caroline on May 20, 2008 in The Backpack | 1 comment

Today mirrors yesterday in the sense that it was far from typical, filled with surprises, yet amazing all in the same.  We led assemblies at Egglecliffe school at 9 a.m. and then came back to the church to practice the games that we were to lead in the evenings.  Although we were all wiped out, the games became very competitive immediately in an almost humorous way. Before we went to the schools for the afternoons, we got to explore the city of Yarm for about 30 minutes.  It was so refreshing, and I’m beginning to appreciate other cultures more and more.  The landscape is absolutely beautiful, and the old architecture tells stories in itself.  On most of the buildings you can find a little sun emblem.  Years ago the fire department only served those buildings that paid a subscription, so if they got to a burning building and didn’t see the sun emblem, they would watch it burn.  I love the history.

When I taught today, it was the 5th time I gave the lesson about why people might believe in God, and each time I become more grateful for such a topic.  Every class is different and while my personality normally likes plans and outlines, I’m beginning to see spiritual preparation as the only vital component of the lesson.  And once again, I’m so thankful and rest in knowing the Lord has gone before us, instilling questions in the students as tip-offs to share what HE would have us share.

Three out of the five times this particular lesson was given, it was before the same teacher.  She’s a non-Christian with lots of head knowledge about all religions, and I know our presentation being different each time allows more time for her to hear the truth and hear us express how our God is a personal God that we can know– different than all other religions.

After tea, oh yess… we have tea, we headed back to the church for the evening activities. I don’t know numbers, but I do know it was packed.  My team is the blue team (which is currently in 1st place– a HUGE deal), and my partner Geoff and I have about 15 kids in our group.  I personally was able to make strong connections with some of the girls, and our prayer is that the same kids will return tomorrow night with their friends.  There is a constant excitement that fills the church combined with mass chaos.  There were people everywhere and it was challenging to watch the youth pastor, Barry, remain composed with so much patience.  oh so much to learn.

Tomorrow I’ll be back at All Saints School with half the team from 8 a.m. through lunch time.  In the afternoon we’re going to briefly explore the city of Durham.  I have no idea where it is or what it is, but I know I’m excited.

Prayer Requests:

1. The Blue team. We have 3 boys who know they’re cool.  Pray for patience that they would not be a distraction to the rest of the group and that they might come to know Jesus.

2.  That the All Saints lesson might be clear and that the students as well as the teacher would see Jesus in us.

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Monday in England

Posted by Caroline on May 19, 2008 in The Backpack | 2 comments

As soon as we walked into the schools, students started whispering about us being Americans, and we immediately had their attention when we went into the classrooms.  They were enamoured by us being American and asked us almost humorous questions.  Do we ride horses to school in Texas? Have we met Zach Efron? One girl, when finding out I was from Springfield, asked me if people were yellow like the Simpsons!  They also got a kick out of us trying to speak in British accents; they told me I should go to the queen’s parish with my accent. hmmm…   With genuineness, which broke my heart, a girl named Bethany asked me if it was always sunny and happy in America, because that’s what she saw in the movies.  Bethany also wanted to know if she would get a boyfriend right away when she visited America.  With such a skewed vision and her lack of hope, it saddened me that she believed “the life” was in America.

Today I was blown away.  I knew the schools that we would be visiting would be spiritually dead, but I had no idea to what extent or how evident the lack of hope and purpose would be.  I could feel it.  One of my favorite verses comes from Psalm 73 when David talks about how “it is good to be near God.  I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”  This morning in the schools, like never before, I was overwhelmed with how truly great it is to be near the Lord, and the reality of a life without a relationship with the Creator and Savior became alive in a new way.  The apathy of the students towards the things of God was so apparent, and as we spoke about our Lord with enthusiasm and how we had a relationship with Him, the students were surprised and taken off guard.  They didn’t know people like us– Christians– existed.

Some girls during lunch with their sweet purple uniforms.

At home, for me to be claim to be a Christian is nothing out of the norm.  Here it is completely different; the students are dumbfounded and intrigued by this concept.  We are young, we are normal, and we choose to follow Jesus?  We asked the class who went to church this past Sunday. no one.  Past month? no one.  The last time anyone had gone was at Christmas when the school went together.  And when we asked if anyone was a Christian, there was no one who volunteered.   The pastor was sharing that unless someone is incredibly serious about their faith, they will not claim to be a Christian.  This is so contrary to home.  The Church of England is viewed as extremely boring and reserved for old people, and, in their minds, God is lumped together also as boring, outdated, and dull.

As for our lesson, we had the class write on white boards everything they knew about Jesus.  They were great with some facts; Jesus was born in Bethlehem, crucified on a cross, and they even threw in some info about the Romans and Pilot.  However, amongst the correct ‘facts’ they had ideas about Allah, prayer mats, and other religions intertwined.  When asking them what it meant to pray, they told us you had to kneel at an alter in the cathedral.  My partner Todd and I went in boldly and shared. and shared.  and shared.  In one class we just sat on desks in front of the group as they poured out questions– many of which I know the Lord put in their mouths simply so we had the opportunity to answer.  One boy asked how to become a Christian.  We got many tough questions too, but all lead us to present the gospel in the most basic terms possible.  I have never presented the gospel so articulately, and I know I can claim nothing.  I’m getting a glimpse more of what it means to live by the Spirit.

Tonight at the church our team met with some leaders from the church, and their hearts spilled over as they prayed.  Their authentic prayers to see the Lord move in the city was moving.  The key focus of this trip has been prayer, and the prayer time tonight solidified it in my mind: in missions, it is nothing I can do except be obedient to the One who changes hearts.  That’s so freeing yet challenging to not miss any chance to stand in obedience.

Tomorrow evening the activities start, and in the morning we’re doing training after we teach a class.  One day at a time

Prayer requests:

1. Tomorrow I’m leading the lesson by myself with an older group.  Pray again that they would be attentive and responsive.

2.  Please pray for rest– both mentally and physically.

3.  Tomorrow evening.  Pray that students would come and the evening to flow smoothly.  The evening times will build until the gospel presentation of Friday, but we will be have opportuniities all throughout the week to share.

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