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

3 Swedes in Prague

A quick update on something AMAZING last night! We had a chance to talk to 3 Swedish guys and we were able to explain the Gospel story from start to finish, and they just took it all in and completely listened to the whole thing. The one guy's grandfather just died a couple weeks ago, so he was really struggling to deal with that, especially because his grandfather was relatively young. Anyway, we just talked about religion and stuff in general and we were able to hear where they were coming from. Then they asked us what we believe. Heather and I got to explain the Gospel story all the way through, and then they asked us some really good questions--like "Have you ever felt God, or is it just something you believe?" and other questions that were very much related to life. All of their questions were extremely relevant questions, and questions that probably almost every Christian has had to ask in their life.

They said that they had never heard Christianity explained this way before, and the one guy (Marcus-it was his grandfather that died) said that he really respected what we said and it makes sense. He said he respected it because we base our life on values in the Bible, and he simply bases his life on his own values. They had also heard some skewed versions of the Gospel, and we were able to explain what the Bible says and explain how Christians have messed up living life the way that we're supposed to and how that has resulted in messed up versions of God. They seemed to respect that we admitted that Christians have often done a poor job of representing Christ, but that doesn't mean that Christ is any less that he actually is.

Anyway, the conversation was really really good and the guys, especially Marcus were very receptive and we had a great chance to listen to where they were coming from and explain our own beliefs. And, on top of all of this, they are going to Budapest next, which is where we are going, so hopefully, we'll be meeting up with them again.

Please pray for Oscar, Marcus, and David. They are really looking for something--especially Marcus. We were able to give him a Bible (we also wanted to give him Mere Christianity or Searching for God knows What, but we ran out) and he really seemed to appreciate it.

Pray that we can see them again in the next week. I hope this post makes sense...I'm kind of rambling, but I'm really excited. :)

Update from Bergen 2

June 11th, 2008

To those we love,

I write from the roof of our hostel, where a balcony overlooks the city of Prague - a sea of red clay roofs, forested foothills, and rain tarnished history (Its pretty dang awesome).

It's been a solid chunk of time since I last wrote, and unfortunately life doesn't seem to stop for one to write an email. In all this, I am finding that words are increasingly less capable of describing those that we have come to know and care for here in Europe, which seems sad, but very true to how impossibly large a person is, and how one-dimensional a word can be (some english majors might disagree).

In my previous post, I alluded to a German business man who had gone out of his way to help our team get to the hostel. He had given us his business card saying that if we had any other questions about the city, give him a call. Upon examining the business card of this enigmatic character known as Dirk, we found familiar language like "ecumenical" and "Evangelischen." Well, we met up with him over ice cream, and after hearing more about Dirk (how he is involved with an internation Christian ecumenical organization that works with something like 28 different countries, and in which he leads Youth organizations, how he hangs out with the Pope from time to time, and speaks five different languages), he asked if we would be interested in seeing the Turkish quarter. To this, Jen and I were like, "Uhh... Yeah!" As it turns out, before coming to find himself in his current position, Dirk was also a history professor. This being the case, what started out as a trip to the Turkish quarter, quickly became a grass-roots tour of Berlin, fully flavored by dialogue about our mutual faith. I cannot tell you how surreal our experience was... while some of our peers were working their caddy shift at the local country club, we sipped strong Turkish tea in a virtually untourested quarter of Berlin and listened to the perspective of an articulate and cultured leader in the European church. I think what has struck me the most since that night is how he served us, a couple of college kids from America, in complete humility and love.

I also wrote of our English friend, Kellie, who had traveled with us from Brussels to Berlin. In three days, this five-foot-two accountant became a surrogate member of our team -willingly joining in our meager meals and treks across the city (because we couldn't afford the metro), and all the while spreading among us her contagious laugher and accent. We had numerous conversations on everything from Faith to relationships, and by the time we parted, there was no question what we believed. She said when she gets back to London, she is going to start joining her family friend, Ruth, for Bible study, as our time with her lead her to believe that there are, in fact, still people with morals in the world, she was just looking in the wrong places.

Berlin itself was a beautifully historic city, and we were sad to leave the place we had come to love.

Prague on the other hand has taken its time to grow on us. Stepping off the train, one is immediately struck the forrowed brow communism has left both on the city and the people. In the less tourested parts, Prague has a cement presence that gives one a strong sense of forboding, and one does not come to find that they like the city until they have seen the castle, witnessed the hidden smile of the people, and hiked the hillside.

We have had a hard time meeting people while we've been here. There have been times when we are the only ones in the hostel, and when relationships are formed, our new friends have often had to leave the following day. This has been hard, and has manifested itself, among other things, in difficult group interactions. Our second night here was marked by a long and painful discussion about "feelings," which was necessary, but still hurt. I guess we have matured since birth, but this community is still a preteen, and everyone knows that puberty is accompanied by growing pains.

Tomorrow, we head off to Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic, on our traveler's retreat, which is meant to give us a breath from our two weeks of traveling, and I imagine working through group dynamics will be on the docket. Please pray that we learn how to better love and serve one another.

Having written about the difficulties, its easy to forget how God has provided. Today, because we had not met any one with whom to minister, the rest of the team and I traveled to the top of a mountain where we found trees full of cheries. There, shared lunch looking out upon the sea of buildings that is Prague, and the solitude and splendor of the moment fell. We found ourselves laughing together... and free.

In Peace and Love,

Jeff

Also,

Grace's blog at http://sharingcharis.blogspot.com gives another person's perspective on this whole adventure. Worth checking out, I would say.

Update from Bergen 1

Hello Friends and Family!

My teammates and I have now been in Bergen, Norway for a week, and it's been wonderful! We've hiked mountains, familiarized ourselves with the town, and toured the Leprosy Museum (not to be visited less than an hour before or after eating). We've enjoyed getting to know our two Norweigian hosts/co-workers as they've shared their churches, schools, and homes with us. And God has blessed us with the chance to be in one place in a while and rest our tired bodies.

However, it's not all relaxation and tourism. The hostel we are staying at, Intermission Youth Hostel, is also the hostel that we will partner with to work at for the next two weeks. Intermission is a Christian hostel open only during the summer months that is usually run by teams from various churches, schools, and countries around the world. This past Thursday was the first day the hostel was open, so we spent our week setting up and preparing for guests. The beginning of this week was marked by mopping, scrubbing, and cleaning bathrooms and kitchens, as well as transporting and putting together 60 plywood beds. One of our hosts, Jorgen, called us "immigrant workers".

Since Thursday, however, my teammates and I have been working in shifts to run the hostel. We take turns manning the reception desk, preparing breakfast and coffee, and cleaning and washing up after guests. It's been an adjustment as our bodies are getting used to night shifts and we're learning how to use the financial spreadsheets, but in all, things have been running smoothly. The hostel won't be very full until July and August when the traveling season is in full swing, so luckily the four of us (plus our hosts) can handle the guests that we have.

Despite our new schedules and busier days, the Lord has continued to press on our hearts the importance of meeting daily for team devotions. It is absolutely astounding how He has bound our hearts together and drawn us into Him, even over the past two weeks. We so deeply appreciate your prayers for team unity, as we can already see the results in our relationships with one another. We really believe that effective ministry must be preceded by strong team relationships, and we can see how the Lord is preparing us in this way.

Without your continued prayers, my teammates and I would be nowhere near the place we are today. We can already see the effects of your prayers as we find ourselves having more patience and grace with one another and with hostel customers than we would ever expect to have on our own. The Lord continually provides us with energy and peace in Him. Thank you so, so much for your thoughts and prayers regarding our journey. God is faithfully answering your prayers and doing His work in us.

We look forward to meeting more new guests in the coming weeks as we serve those who come our way. God has already brought students and travellers to us from places as far away as Brazil and the Philippines, and we know that He will continue to bring people to us from various backgrounds and countries. We pray that He will faithfully enable us to connect with those we meet and open ourselves up to them.

Thank you for your continued support! Your prayers and thoughts are really appreciated!

In Him,

Stephanie Thomas

Update from Amsterdam

Hello friends and family! It is a beautiful Sunday evening here in Amsterdam and I am enjoying a moment to relax. Life is fast-paced here. The once laidback activity of biking now requires full attention in order to avoid trams, cars, tourists, and other bikes. Busy schedules mean that Rachel and I rarely see each other, even though we are living in the same house. It's difficult to describe a typical day here, but most include working at the cafe, Bible or film discussions in the evening, staff prayer before each shift, and conversations with guests in between. The first few days here, Rachel and I were both a little overwhelmed, but as get the hang of things, it has been really great.

Each day some situation causes me to stop and realize what a unique opportunity it is to be here. At dinner Friday night in the hostel, my table had people from seven different countries. Three of those people were scientists in town for a conference, and after dinner we talked about God and the way their job shows them there must be a Creator. I have been surprised at people's openness in talking about God. Many have told me that they are "very religious" but go on to say that they don't really know which religion or its just something they believe and doesn't have much to do with their lives. It is clear that many people stop in Amsterdam in search of fulfillment, and it is amazing to be working at a place whos goal is sharing with guests the true fulfillment comes from a relationship with Christ.

Please continue to pray for us as we get to know fellow staff members and connect with guests. Pray for strengh when working early in the morning or late at night, boldness in sharing Christ, and patience in trying to communicate while not speaking the same language as guests. Also, pray for the city of Amsterdam; while there is much beauty in the cobblestone streets and scenic canals, there also seems to be a deep sadness hanging over the city. Thank you for your prayers already.

love, Hannah (for Rachel as well!)