Continuing The Race For God
Hi Everyone!
This week we hit the road for our big summer trip! It was full of singing (operatic from Thomas), lots of laughs and pit stops to admire God’s beautiful creation. We reflected on our time together, studied more of God’s Word and considered all the things we will miss the most about this experience. Susie says she will miss ‘the good weather’ and the whole team say they will miss ‘good chats and being part of a really intentional community’. It has been pretty amazing how God has placed us together from all different corners of the world yet we all get on so well serving together and have the same sense of humour (most of the time)!
Road trippin! Picture this, Norm & Christy in the front and the rest of the team piled into a big old white van. Driving through beautiful South Island, destination…unknown. Trusting God (& Norm and Christy) every kilometre of the way. The excitement and anticipation of what’s to come is on everyones minds as we prepare to make the most of our last week together. With our Bibles and Uno lining our pockets, we have everything we need for this big adventure… When we arrived at a few different locations we continued to learn about what it means to take risks in life, reframe our experiences and how big do we view God. Is He big enough to do anything or is there a limit in our minds to what He can do?
Then…Sealy times at the Beach! 1843 seals at the beach. 7 OTG teammates. 2 Leaders. 1 seaweed snack.
Lots of things were spotted on the beach on our adventure. We are learning to slow down and really appreciate the moments that God is giving us. There is a beauty in ‘being’. Time without our phones has really helped us take a step back and not rush but to embrace the beautiful world God has created for us. Windswept Pia was on the loose with a full camera roll of seals, more seals and lots of seals (Please see below). During this time we had a lot of peaceful moments of reflection and conversation about how we are going to navigate life after this experience, back to where God has placed us for our next season. How will we steward our devices well? How will we look after the bodies God has given us? How will we keep in contact well as a team? We trust that God and the Holy Spirit will help us and empower us in discipleship and leadership.
New beginnings on the horizon!
On the way back to OTG Basecamp we pulled over just as the sun was rising over the ocean in the distance. It felt like a symbol of God’s new mercies and hope for everyday. The start of a chapter on one side of the world but a sunset on a day where some of us are from. Just as one chapter begins, another one closes but we have faith and hope in a God who is with us every step of the way, in all circumstances and in every moment. We are thankful he cares about the details. We have learnt the details of his Word, our teammates lives and the details in every moment in His presence. As we embrace this next beginning, we pray that in the small moments of our everyday lives we see God moments. They don’t have to be big to be powerful, it’s all about our perspective and trusting in Him.
Prayer Requests:
Please pray for us as we transition back to home life and for others as they have more travel adventures. Especially keep Elisabeth, Megan and Pia in your prayers as they explore more of South Island!
Please pray for us as a team to continue to encourage each other in our discipleship, leadership, faith and lives after OTG.
For rest for our leaders, Norm and Christy and that they don’t miss us too much!
Thank you for praying for our team!
Written by Pia (Switzerland) & Susie (Northern Ireland) on behalf of the entire OTG Team!