First off... Sorry for the delay in the new blog. Things are really starting to pick up, and routines are forming...or formed really.
Let me give you a little inside scoop on our daily schedule..
6am- Morning exercises for half hour
6:30-8am-quiet time..breakfast.. or a nap :)
8am- Morning family chores.. as a base we split up into groups and clean stuff.. bathrooms, outside breezeway, kitchen clean up, sweep, mop, etc etc etc...
8:30- Mondays we have worship as a base, Tuesday-Friday we will either have a creative presentation or worship as a school
10:30- Class starts and goes until lunch
12:30- Lunch
1:30 Work duties till 3:30. My work duty for my time here is landscaping and general care for gardens at different YWAM Perth Properties.
3:30-5:30- I usually take a shower and get a thick shake from the Base coffee shop ministry call "Kaio" and head to my computer to talk to Josh or Amber over skype.
5:30- Dinner
7:00- Mondays we finish up the last part of the speaking for the day, Tuesday we have our small groups, Wednesday is a free night which usually includes going into the city or the beach/river, playing sport.. or working on Journals. Thursday we have Evangelism night(which I'll go into more detail later), and Friday we have "Friday Night Meeting"...which is church essentially.. As a base we all go, and other people come from the community.
Saturdays, and Sundays are free. Sometimes on Saturday the leaders will schedule a event for our school to a beach or something. I would say about 99% of the YP school sleeps in till about 11 or 12 on the weekends. It's crazy how tiring the week can be.. Praise God for sleep!
I spend my weekends doing journal work, exploring the city, and random beaches, going to coffee shops, and fellow shipping with new friends.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday Night Evangelism...
Every Thursday night we spilt up into teams and go out into the city and surrounding areas to tell people about Jesus. Over the next 2 months I will be heading to Fremantle which is about a half hour drive from Perth. It is a town with a lot of culture and is also a key place for loading docks, businesses, and restaurants. The past two weeks myself, and a Lady named Kathy have tagged teamed a few adventures with people in the area. The first week we talked to a taxi driver named Fernando. He is from Italy and has been living in Australia for the past 16 years. He is Catholic, but not a practicing catholic. He told us he believed in God, but he doesn't have a relationship with Jesus. We told him about our personal relationship with Jesus, and how He is a active part of our lives. He thought that was so cool, and was proud of us for standing up for what we believe in.. but Fernando himself wasn't interested in a relationship....yet. Hopefully the seed we planted there would spark something in him in the future.
This past week Kathy and myself stumbled upon two people from the Philippines. They were here for work. We soon learned that Edwin and Arlene were Catholic. They had found a church the first week they were here, and have been attending every week, and even working in some ministries in their church. They asked what we did, and we told them all about YWAM and DTS. They asked a lot of questions, and were really curious. I told them about my experiences so far, and how much God is working in my life, they thought that was really cool. After talking to them for nearly a hour, we prayed for them, and there work.. and then went our separate ways.
So every Thursday myself and about 15 others will be heading to Fremantle to tell people about Jesus. It is kind of hard walking up to random strangers and striking up a conversation, but God calls us spread His word, and once you get past being uncomfortable, You can feel God speaking through you.
--------------------------------------------------
Every Wednesday I have my work duty off. This past week and I went on a solo adventure to a beach called Cottesloe-which is about a 20 min train ride south of the city. It was extremely relaxing to have time to myself, and with God. It gave me a good opportunity to process this weeks topic of forgiveness and repentance.
Some notes from Forgiveness and Repentance week....
The week was about surrender and total faith in Christ....
*Anything that takes our eyes off Christ will stop us from following God
*Have a sheild of faith.. Stand on who God is, and EMBRACE it!
*Walk in a life of greatfulness
*God's Law- The purpose of God's Law is to reveal our sin and the state of our heart.
*Guilt is a good thing.. it shows us our sin, and what we need to repent of
*In todays world.. Morality has been replaced by the word "Ethics"
*True repentance is a heart change
*Running from our guilt makes our heart hard.
*To be free from sin, we must take personal responsibility
*When we are unfaithful.. God is ALWAYS Faithful!
*Coming to Christ is the oly thing that can heal us
*Temptation--->Thought--->Action--->Habit--->Lifestyle--->Destiny
*We have a choice to accept or reject sin
*God calls us to receive,and Give Love
This past Friday from 8:30 am till about 1 in the morning we had a forgiveness and repentance day. They split us into 2 groups, and there were two leaders up front. As you felt led.. you went up and prayed out to God, and repented from your sins and asked for forgiveness. Early in the week we wrote out everything we wanted to Repent and ask for forgiveness of. Writing the list was really hard, but praying out the list in front of 30+ people was also really hard. I felt vulnerable and uncomfortable, but I knew it was something I knew I had to do, and am called to do. Also hearing other peoples repentance was really emotional. When I went up and sat down I immediately broke down and fought through my page(front and back) with uncontrollable tears and emotion... of everything I wanted to repent and ask forgiveness of. My heart broke into a million pieces as I was going through my list..I felt so heavy and sick to my stomach of every wrong and stupid thing I had done.
When I was done, Caleb and Landry Prayed for me, and spoke words or prophecy in my life. I peeled myself off the chair and walked over and nailed my paper to the cross.. I felt so free, and in a sense.. born again. My slate was wiped clean, and there were no longer any dark corners in my heart, just the Love and Salvation of Jesus Christ.
It was a extremely emotionally exhausting day of crying off and on for 13 hours. But at the end of it all, we were all set free, and clean of any sin we had in our life.
Something I learned is that Repentance isn't a event.. like Friday... It's a lifestyle!
We should live our lives always coming to God and asking for, forgiveness when we have wronged.
Acts 17:28 "For in Him we live and move and exist.
-------------------------------------------------
Next weeks topic... "Intercession and Worship"
Thank you all for reading.. I know this one was long, but important.
You know where to write me...
anne.stribling@gmail.com
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Those who seek God, Will find Him!
A Revelation.....
So it's only the first day on the topic of "Character Of God"... WOW!
Just a few notes I took that pretty much floored me and brought me too tears..
What are ways to know God...
*Roman's 1:20----- CREATION
"From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see His invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse what soever for not knowing God."
*2 Timothy 3:16----- WORD OF GOD
"All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right."
*Matthew 11:27----- REVELATION, HOLY SPIRIT OPENS UP
" My Father has given me authority over everything. No one really knows the Son except the Father, and no one really knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him."
-----------------------------------------------------------*
Those who seek God, Will find Him!
*Jeremiah 29:13-14
" If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. 14 I will be found by you, says the LORD. I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes, I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you home again to your own land."
*Philippians 3:7-11
" I once thought all these things were so very important, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ. 9 and become one with Him. I no longer count on my own goodness or m ability to obey God's law, but I trust Christ to save me. For God's way of making us right with Himself depends on Faith. 10 As a result, I can really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I can learn what it means to suffer with Him, sharing in His death, 11 so that, somehow, I can experience the resurrection from the dead!
---------------------------
Intimacy With God
* Speak to God face to face
*He wants us to know Him intimately ... Psalm 63:1 "O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; My whole body longs for you in the parched and weary land where there is no water."
*Do you need to long for God 24/7?
-It's not about how much you long for God, but where your Heart is for Him, and where it's directed.
*Stir up a hunger for God
*If you haven't experienced God in a real way.... GO AFTER HIM!
Today I felt like I saw God in a new way.. He is excited for us to chase after Him.. to have a endless hunger and thirst for Him. He wants US to want HIM!
Go After Him...
So it's only the first day on the topic of "Character Of God"... WOW!
Just a few notes I took that pretty much floored me and brought me too tears..
What are ways to know God...
*Roman's 1:20----- CREATION
"From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see His invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse what soever for not knowing God."
*2 Timothy 3:16----- WORD OF GOD
"All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right."
*Matthew 11:27----- REVELATION, HOLY SPIRIT OPENS UP
" My Father has given me authority over everything. No one really knows the Son except the Father, and no one really knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him."
-----------------------------------------------------------*
Those who seek God, Will find Him!
*Jeremiah 29:13-14
" If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. 14 I will be found by you, says the LORD. I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes, I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you home again to your own land."
*Philippians 3:7-11
" I once thought all these things were so very important, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ. 9 and become one with Him. I no longer count on my own goodness or m ability to obey God's law, but I trust Christ to save me. For God's way of making us right with Himself depends on Faith. 10 As a result, I can really know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I can learn what it means to suffer with Him, sharing in His death, 11 so that, somehow, I can experience the resurrection from the dead!
---------------------------
Intimacy With God
* Speak to God face to face
*He wants us to know Him intimately ... Psalm 63:1 "O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; My whole body longs for you in the parched and weary land where there is no water."
*Do you need to long for God 24/7?
-It's not about how much you long for God, but where your Heart is for Him, and where it's directed.
*Stir up a hunger for God
*If you haven't experienced God in a real way.... GO AFTER HIM!
Today I felt like I saw God in a new way.. He is excited for us to chase after Him.. to have a endless hunger and thirst for Him. He wants US to want HIM!
Go After Him...
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Sand Dunes.. and Dead Kangaroo's
So the past few days here at YWAM Perth have been pretty busy. Class started up on Wednesday and this week was all about hearing God's voice and submitting our lives to Him. We also talked about when you go into a time with God, you need to come prepared with a open heart and mind, and get rid of all sin in your life. It was pretty stretching and challenging, but I learned a lot, and I'm excited to see where this week's topic goes.. (Character Of God)
The weekend here was pretty fun. Friday we had church as a base, and people from the community came and worshiped with us. Saturday the entire YP school headed out to the a beach that was about an hour drive.. can't remember the name at the moment... On the way there we saw a few dead kangaroo's on the side of the road.. I guess they are like deer... to us in North America. The beach was cool because on one side was the ocean.. and over this sand bank was a river.. it was Beautiful. So we swam, had some lunch and did some skim boarding. Then later in the afternoon some of us headed to these dunes down the road from where we were and hiked back.. and during the hike we saw a few lizards, which was creepy but also really cool! After we got back to the river we swam across to these HUGE dunes. They weren't as high as the ones in Oregon, but definitely really steep. So after a very long and somewhat painful hike up, we began waxing the boards for our adventure down the dunes. A few guys went first.. then it was my turn...
Looking down from the top it was kind of scary but after all I was on top of a dune in Australia..and before I knew it I was running and jumping on the board. About half way down the Steep hill I saw a strange bump coming... as I got closer and closer.. I realized I was going to hit this bump and probably go flying.... Which I did.. but it was sooo fun! I flew into the river really fast from the dune and proceeded to try and get all of the sand out of my swimsuit in the water. This was probably one of the coolest things I have ever done! Sliding down a dune super fast into water, on a hot summer day.. nothing can beat that! Which reminded me how blessed I am to be here, and experience all of these fun things!
Today (Sunday) was pretty laid back... Slept in, did some laundry, worked on some homework, and hung out with friends.
Right now some of us are watching Stranger Than Fiction in the lounge where I live.
Tomorrow is our start of 6 am exercises, so we'll see how that goes.
Thanks all for reading, and for your support.
Much Love
-Anne
The weekend here was pretty fun. Friday we had church as a base, and people from the community came and worshiped with us. Saturday the entire YP school headed out to the a beach that was about an hour drive.. can't remember the name at the moment... On the way there we saw a few dead kangaroo's on the side of the road.. I guess they are like deer... to us in North America. The beach was cool because on one side was the ocean.. and over this sand bank was a river.. it was Beautiful. So we swam, had some lunch and did some skim boarding. Then later in the afternoon some of us headed to these dunes down the road from where we were and hiked back.. and during the hike we saw a few lizards, which was creepy but also really cool! After we got back to the river we swam across to these HUGE dunes. They weren't as high as the ones in Oregon, but definitely really steep. So after a very long and somewhat painful hike up, we began waxing the boards for our adventure down the dunes. A few guys went first.. then it was my turn...
Looking down from the top it was kind of scary but after all I was on top of a dune in Australia..and before I knew it I was running and jumping on the board. About half way down the Steep hill I saw a strange bump coming... as I got closer and closer.. I realized I was going to hit this bump and probably go flying.... Which I did.. but it was sooo fun! I flew into the river really fast from the dune and proceeded to try and get all of the sand out of my swimsuit in the water. This was probably one of the coolest things I have ever done! Sliding down a dune super fast into water, on a hot summer day.. nothing can beat that! Which reminded me how blessed I am to be here, and experience all of these fun things!
Today (Sunday) was pretty laid back... Slept in, did some laundry, worked on some homework, and hung out with friends.
Right now some of us are watching Stranger Than Fiction in the lounge where I live.
Tomorrow is our start of 6 am exercises, so we'll see how that goes.
Thanks all for reading, and for your support.
Much Love
-Anne
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Registration Day
Oh registration day....
The Auditorium of YWAM Perth was buzzing with new students today. Lots of long lines to get keys, books, pay money,get pictures taken, and fill out paper work. After all of the craziness that is registration day, the whole base headed to City Beach for a afternoon of swimming, food and games. I spent about an hour and a half in the water boogie boarding. I caught some pretty good waves.. but also got TOSSED by some. They are huge here.. well compared to the Oregon coast they are huge. Anyways....
We also played this one game called "Twine Wars". Pretty much... There is a piece of twine stretched out from end to end.. and then a group of people one each side of this twine. The point of the game is to pull people over from the other side on to your team It's pretty fun but can get pretty physical. After all the activities, we had some awesome dinner and dessert and fellowship with one another. It's really cool sitting next to new people and hearing why they are at YWAM Perth, and there stories.
Also.. I got SUPER burnt today on my arms after being in the water for over an hour... I tried this Italian sunscreen that I thought would work.. but NO!!! DIDN'T WORK AT ALL!! My arms of crazy red... I have been applying aloe like every 5 min...seriously! I think it will be tan in a day or two.
Well I'm off to bed.. I am having a hard enough time keeping my eyes open, and my fingers typing...
Goodnight all...
Much Love
-Anne :)
The Auditorium of YWAM Perth was buzzing with new students today. Lots of long lines to get keys, books, pay money,get pictures taken, and fill out paper work. After all of the craziness that is registration day, the whole base headed to City Beach for a afternoon of swimming, food and games. I spent about an hour and a half in the water boogie boarding. I caught some pretty good waves.. but also got TOSSED by some. They are huge here.. well compared to the Oregon coast they are huge. Anyways....
We also played this one game called "Twine Wars". Pretty much... There is a piece of twine stretched out from end to end.. and then a group of people one each side of this twine. The point of the game is to pull people over from the other side on to your team It's pretty fun but can get pretty physical. After all the activities, we had some awesome dinner and dessert and fellowship with one another. It's really cool sitting next to new people and hearing why they are at YWAM Perth, and there stories.
Also.. I got SUPER burnt today on my arms after being in the water for over an hour... I tried this Italian sunscreen that I thought would work.. but NO!!! DIDN'T WORK AT ALL!! My arms of crazy red... I have been applying aloe like every 5 min...seriously! I think it will be tan in a day or two.
Well I'm off to bed.. I am having a hard enough time keeping my eyes open, and my fingers typing...
Goodnight all...
Much Love
-Anne :)
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Sunday... Bloody Sunday...
Hey all!
So today.. (Sunday) was pretty laid back...
Slept in till about 9. Started my morning my talking with Josh on video chat.. which was awesome!! I haven't seen him on it since the Hong Kong airport which was like 4 or 5 days ago.
A group of us hit Cottesloe Beach which is about a 20 min train ride from the base.. It was my first time there. I liked it a lot.. kinda touristy but still a cool place to go hang out. AND.. I had the BEST fish and chips of my life! SO TASTY! I will say though that I like Scarborough Beach better. The waves are WAY bigger and its closer to the city. But after all, any beach in Australia is so incredibly gorgeous.. it's crazy how pretty it is, and how blue and clear the water is.
After swimming and burning the back of my legs, we headed back to base and had some dinner and hung out.
A ton of people came in yesterday and today, so it's been cool getting to know new people from all over-- Denmark, Norway, England, Switzerland, Australia, United States, Canada, Indonesia, Brazil, Ireland, and Scotland.
Tonight we had a little introduction to the DTS and what YWAM is about. It was really cool to hear it from Quenton and the other leaders. We all went around and said our name, age, Where we reppin from, and something interesting about us. Of course mine was my Finger Tattoo Mustache! :)
After that we played a game.. kinda like speed dating... BUT NOT!! Just a big circle of chairs.. and you have 30 seconds with a person.. it was fun! We then has dessert and just hung out and talked.
Right now I am relaxing in the lounge in the house I live it.. it's a pretty good set up, and the girls I live with are HILARIOUS!
Tomorrow we have worship at 8:30 am, and Orientation all day. So it should be a good day.
I'll write about it tomorrow night....
I'm off to walk to the petrol station as the Aussie's like to call it.. AKA.. Gas Station to grab some Mountain Dew and my hunt to try and find Dots!!!!!
Goodnight all!
Much Love!!
-Anne
So today.. (Sunday) was pretty laid back...
Slept in till about 9. Started my morning my talking with Josh on video chat.. which was awesome!! I haven't seen him on it since the Hong Kong airport which was like 4 or 5 days ago.
A group of us hit Cottesloe Beach which is about a 20 min train ride from the base.. It was my first time there. I liked it a lot.. kinda touristy but still a cool place to go hang out. AND.. I had the BEST fish and chips of my life! SO TASTY! I will say though that I like Scarborough Beach better. The waves are WAY bigger and its closer to the city. But after all, any beach in Australia is so incredibly gorgeous.. it's crazy how pretty it is, and how blue and clear the water is.
After swimming and burning the back of my legs, we headed back to base and had some dinner and hung out.
A ton of people came in yesterday and today, so it's been cool getting to know new people from all over-- Denmark, Norway, England, Switzerland, Australia, United States, Canada, Indonesia, Brazil, Ireland, and Scotland.
Tonight we had a little introduction to the DTS and what YWAM is about. It was really cool to hear it from Quenton and the other leaders. We all went around and said our name, age, Where we reppin from, and something interesting about us. Of course mine was my Finger Tattoo Mustache! :)
After that we played a game.. kinda like speed dating... BUT NOT!! Just a big circle of chairs.. and you have 30 seconds with a person.. it was fun! We then has dessert and just hung out and talked.
Right now I am relaxing in the lounge in the house I live it.. it's a pretty good set up, and the girls I live with are HILARIOUS!
Tomorrow we have worship at 8:30 am, and Orientation all day. So it should be a good day.
I'll write about it tomorrow night....
I'm off to walk to the petrol station as the Aussie's like to call it.. AKA.. Gas Station to grab some Mountain Dew and my hunt to try and find Dots!!!!!
Goodnight all!
Much Love!!
-Anne
Friday, January 2, 2009
First few days....
So the first few days here at YWAM Perth are pretty cool. Its been layed back, and we can do whatever we want until school starts. Yesterday, the 1st.. I un-packed and met a bunch of people. Then in the evening we went to a park and played games, and had coke floats.
Today, we went downtown and did some shopping for stuff we needed, like sunblock...pillows and such. After wandering around downtown Perth for awhile we got on a bus and headed to Scarborough Beach. IT IS BEAUTIFUL! I have never seen such a gorgeous beach in my life! We spent a good 3 hours swimming, boogie boarding, and laying in the sun soaking up the Australian Rays.
We then came back to base and had some dinner, and then headed back out to Kings' Park which has a awesome view of the city!! Its just too bad my battery on my camera ran out of juice.. but I'm sure we'll be going there again in the next three months.
I'm exhausted...
Goodnight all
Much Love
-Anne
Today, we went downtown and did some shopping for stuff we needed, like sunblock...pillows and such. After wandering around downtown Perth for awhile we got on a bus and headed to Scarborough Beach. IT IS BEAUTIFUL! I have never seen such a gorgeous beach in my life! We spent a good 3 hours swimming, boogie boarding, and laying in the sun soaking up the Australian Rays.
We then came back to base and had some dinner, and then headed back out to Kings' Park which has a awesome view of the city!! Its just too bad my battery on my camera ran out of juice.. but I'm sure we'll be going there again in the next three months.
I'm exhausted...
Goodnight all
Much Love
-Anne
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
