Psalm 71:14-19

14 But as for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise you more and more.

15 My mouth will tell of your righteousness,
of your salvation all day long,
though I know not its measure.

16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD;
I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.

17 Since my youth, O God, you have taught me,
and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

18 Even when I am old and gray,
do not forsake me, O God,
till I declare your power to the next generation,
your might to all who are to come.

19 Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God,
you who have done great things.
Who, O God, is like you?

Another Party in Heaven!-Bergen 1 Update!!! PLEASE READ!!!

Dear Loved Ones,

I am sitting by the window in our hostel, watching the rain come down, and it has just struck me how beautiful this entire week has been, as well as the week before that. Our time here in Bergen has been blessed by the hand of God, as He has so perfectly intertwined our four lives with the lives of travelers from around the world. He has made himself so undeniably present every moment of every day here, and my teammates and I are in awe that He would choose to use us as a part of His work.

We've just finished our second week working here at Intermission Hostel in Bergen, and the four of us can hardly believe how quickly it has gone by. Work was slow at the beginning, as we had only 10-15 guests for the first few days that Intermission was open, but over the past week we have had a steady increase in travelers. It has been an adjustment, but we've all loved getting the opportunity to meet so many new people.

In the past week, we have each had the pleasure of conversing with the most diverse group of people any of us have seen. Joy spent a few hours talking to Felipe, a student from Brazil who recently ended a difficult relationship. Liz stayed up till 3 am one morning talking religion and politics with a Russian man named Marat. Amy invited Kaz, a Japanese Buddhist, to eat dinner with us last night. And I have had the pleasure of getting to know Marie, a woman from Paris who is looking to attend Art Therapy school. God has given us the privilege of representing Him to these people, not only through our conversations and words, but also through the act of serving and cleaning up after these people.

We have also been privileged to get to know, over the past week, two particular hostelers that have come to mean a lot to us. Martin, an older man from Australia, came to us about a week ago and left only yesterday. Over the course of this week, he was bombarded with questions and excessive amounts of laughter from the four of us girls, but he ate dinner with us almost every night and let us talk to him about everything under the sun. Martin told us that he had come to realize that, while a career is important, there's got to be something more to life. We had the pleasure of sharing this 'something more' with him over the past week, and when he left, he told us that we had made the hostel feel like a home to him. We are committed to continually praying for him on his journey as he travels alone through Scandinavia.

The second hosteler whom the four of us have all gotten to know very well (in one short week) is Marcello, a 20 year old from Italy. He told us he came here 'just to fish', to escape the memory of his girlfriend's death in February. Over the course of the past week, every single one of my teammates and I have had separate open and vulnerable conversations with Marcello about our own struggles and how our faith has affected those situations. We have spent almost every night conversing early into the morning with Marcello, and he grew more and more curious about 'what we had' (in his words) as he spent more time with us. We have been praying feverishly for his heart to be turned to God, and last night, God answered our prayers. Joy woke Liz, Amy, and me at 4 in the morning whispering 'There's a party in heaven! A party in heaven!' She and Marcello had been talking and reading through the Bible, and he told her that he wanted to have what she did.

!!!!

Who could that be but the God of the universe?
Who could work like that?

It was beautiful. We are continuing to pray for Marcello, and we would ask for your prayers too. We feel so lucky that he will continue to be staying here until we leave as he looks for an apartment. Only God has brought us this far, and only God could have brought us Marcello.

Looking inward for a moment, I am also astounded by how the Lord has been working within our team and our relationships with one another. He has been bringing us closer to Him and molding our hearts to fit his mold, and it has been beautiful. Perhaps what is most amazing is how God has been healing each of our own hearts through the conversations we have been having with our new friends here. As we have been open and vulnerable with near-strangers, God has used those strangers to send His love and words of wisdom to our own hearts.

Friends and Family, this summer is going to offer more than any of us can realize.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. We have been blessed with God's favor on this trip, in the small things like physical comforts, but in the big things as well, as apparent in Marcelllo's case. We look forward to keeping you updated on the rest of our time here.

In Him,
Stephanie Thomas

Backpacking Ministry Spreads to Geneva, Illinois

Funny story of how my sister in law, Krista, really wanted to support backpacking ministry--even if it's in Illinois. She said in an email:

I'm enjoying your updates and our Bible study was praying for you and Heather the other night. I saw a guy backpacking along the highway and thought of you so I went home and made him some food and took it to him. Tried to help him find a place to stay for the night but I don't know if he took me up on it...
Just as I was pulling away, my cell phone rang. It was my Mom saying "what are you doing on the side of the road talking to a strange man??!!!" I can't do anything in this town without my Mom finding out!

Calvary Chapel Budapest

Another quick update that I forgot to mention in my last post--On Sunday, Heather and I were able to attend Calvary Chapel Budapest. It was great to walk into a completely packed out and thriving church in the middle of the city. We introduced ourselves to the pastor and shared a bit about YHM. It was a great encouragement to see what God is doing in this city, and it was also great to simply be able to share with other Christians what YHM is about.

Budapest

We're hear in Budapest, and things are going well. We've gotten to know and hang out a little bit with Luciana, a girl from Argentina. Heather talked a bit with her about beliefs and religion and what religion is like in Argentina, which was great, but there wasn't much conversation after that. Pray for Luciana--that maybe we will get to share the Gospel with her. But even if we don't get to share the Gospel message with her, pray that she will see Christ somehow and that others will cross her path who will point her towards Christ.

Please continue to pray for the Swedish guys that we met. We haven't heard from them, and we were hoping to meet up in Budapest, but they haven't emailed us yet.

On a different note, I am nearing the end of the Fellowship of the Ring. It's awesome--and if you haven't read it yet, you should really get on it.

Don't forget earplugs

Just a quick word of advice: If you are traveling and going to be staying in a dorm room with a bunch of other people, make sure you bring earplugs. I thought that I had heard some intense snoring up until this point in my life. I've heard NOTHING compared to the snoring of some guy in our room.

Just thought I'd throw that out there...

Update from Bergen 1

Hi friends!

We are nearing the end of another busy week here at Intermission Hostel, and we feel so fortunate to be a small part of how God is moving through people in this hostel. The first week of business was pretty slow, with only about 10-15 guests every night, but we had a whole crew of French folk walk through the doors yesterday, so we had a great night of free waffles and conversation last night with the guests. The four of us Americans had the responsibility of the hostel all to ourselves yesterday, which made for an interesting afternoon when the fire alarm went off, and we hadn't a clue how to turn it off. Luckily, two students living upstairs were able to figure out the switch, and pride wasn't too badly damaged. Later that night we blew the fuse in the kitchen, but the friendly French guys cooking themselves duck and potatoes fixed it for us. The best thing about working in a hostel is being able to build relationships with people who stay for more than just one or two nights. We have especially been able to see God's hand at work in the life of Marcello, a young guy from Italy. For about five nights in a row, we have each been able to spend time with him, singing and playing guitar and piano, and sharing our faith with him. He has so many questions and curiosities about who we are and why we are so passionate about spiritual things. The other night, Joy and I went out with him to watch the EuroCup soccer match, Italy against France. Italy won! So we celebrated back at the hostel and eventually stayed up until 4 am. Joy was able to share the entire gospel with him. Two nights ago, he told us he was sad to know that we'd be leaving in two weeks, as he is planning on staying in Norway for two months. Please pray for his salvation! God is at work, but so is Satan, and Marcello is so open right now to accepting God's love.

I must admit, the adrenaline rush that kept us going for the first week is definitely slipping from us. I now feel the effects of staying up late and waking up too early. Pray that God will replenish our energy as a team and that we will have discernment about staying up to talk to people. Some of the best conversations and connections have happened past 12 midnight and later, but it is important for us to get sleep so that our ministry during the day may also be effective.

In some ways, running this place kind of feels like we're "playing hostel," and although it's a good thing that we're having so much fun welcoming guests, putting out breakfast, washing bed sheets, and cleaning bathrooms, it's also important that we continue to take our responsibilities seriously. As more guests continue to fill this place, it could be harder to keep our attitudes and positive and our energy levels high. The Lord has been so good to us, just pray that we would show that love from Christ to the people we meet! It's hard sometimes to know how to show Christ's love, whether it's through sharing dinner with travelers, loving people through actions and smiles, or directly confronting people's need for God. There is a time and a place for each kind of expression of love. Pray that we would be open to the Holy Spirit's guiding for which expression is most effective for each situation.

Thanks again for your prayers. Know that God is here in Bergen working! Love you all and hope your summer is full of God's presence.

In Him

Amy