Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

| by archiveworldraceblogs

We are at our approximate half-way point of our technology fast. We have one hour to log on for the sole purpose of posting a blog. This has been the first time I’ve typed since December 2nd. I haven’t been able to check my e-mail, catch up with the latest news on facebook, listen to my ipod, or skype with my family. I’m  not going to lie and say it’s been easy. But there has been something very freeing about it. We aren’t burning our computers and ipods at the end of this two week period, but we do plan to be more intentional about the way we spend our time.

We’re currently living in a one bedroom apartment in Istanbul. We’re in a really neat part of town. We were amazed to see many comforts from home when we arrived, including McDonalds, Starbucks, Burger King, KFC, and Subway. This is gourmet dining! Our budget doesn’t really allow us to eat at these places that often, but they’re nice treats to remind us of home, especially during the holiday season. We’ve decorated our apartment to the best our ability/finances will allow. We have one strand of Christmas lights, a cut out picture of Santa from a gift bag, and tons of white snowflakes that we made. As soon as the fast is over, we plan to make a Cribs video and give you a proper tour. Instead of a Christmas tree, we each cut and decorated our own tree out of green construction paper. For gifts, we’re taping ornaments on each others’ trees. On the ornament, you write encouragement or “words of life”. We’re also making three dimensional boxes of paper with the same principle. We’re celebrating Advent each night by reading the assigned verse. It’s hard to be away from home during Christmas, but I’m excited about spending it with my team. The plan is to go ice-skating! 

We realized the other day that this is the last month in which we’ll be able to say that there are more months ahead than have already passed. This is month five…almost half a year. It seems like yesterday that we were huddled miserably in our tents in Ireland. This life is becoming normal. We’re learning the difference in necessity and luxury. And the more time passes, the smaller the necessity category becomes. It’s fun to see how our daily lives are changing to model that realization.

 
We shower two, maybe three times a week. This remains true even if we have a hot shower available, which in itself is a luxury.
It’s not strange to wear the same shirt for four days straight. Nobody questions, because they’re doing the same thing. When you own seven shirts to your name, you have to make them last. We’ve had real laundry (washer and dryer) done maybe three or four times so far. Putting on clean clothes is a huge blessing.
 Like I said before, McDonalds is gourment dining. Our food budget is $1.25 per meal, but we’re surviving. Actually, we enjoy having home cooked meals and have the freedom to be creative with food. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to throw away food after this trip. We were in a mall the other day (yes, a mall!) and we treated ourselves to Arby’s. It was amazing. Anyway, a man and his son were sitting next to us. The kid was fussy, so they left. leaving two chicken nuggets and a box of fries behind. We didn’t have to think twice about eating it before it was thrown away. It’s the logical thing to do.
Buying anything is a very big deal, and cause for celebration. I bought a long sleeve shirt in Israel to prepare for the cold Turkey weather. When I called my grandmother, she had already heard the big news. I also bought some raspberry lotion the other day. It’s been hard not to be able to tell anyone at home or update my facebook status accordingly. Feel free to jump up and down in excitement.
If our destination is less than three miles away, we’re most likely walking. I think I’ve walked more over the past five months than I have in my entire life combined. I’m not a big fan of walking. I lived about a mile from campus last year. I would drive my car to campus, park at Wesley, jump on my bike, and ride to class. I usually avoid walking at all costs. This month is a blessing. Our last three homes required walking up GIGANTIC evil hills every single day. And when I say evil, I mean evil. Biggest hills I’ve ever seen! Our apartment is in the middle of the city, so flat ground abounds. Love it.
Fighting to communicate with local people has become routine. I can’t tell you how many times the phrase, “Do you speak English?” comes from our mouths each day. Out of five countries, Ireland has been the only one in which English was the primary language. Easy things have now become difficult….like ordering food, asking for directions, and making friends. It also lends quite a bit of frustration. We ventured out into a small town a couple days ago to distribute packets with Bibles and DVD’s. We felt helpless because we couldn’t explain much to the people, even though some seemed very interested. We’re working on finding a translator.
Community living is becoming normal. I’m constantly surrounded by five other people. Since we have a one bedroom apartment, Nick and Lacey have the small bedroom and the rest of us are in the common area. Chelsea and I are sharing the couch-bed, while Colby and Anthony are on the floor. It’s quite similar to our living conditions in Romania. We share what we have with each other. Out of five months, I’ve had a bed to myself 1.5 months- Albania and half of Israel. The other half of Israel was spent sharing a top bunk (twin size). That’s good bonding. We see each other in the good times and the bad. Colby paints Chelsea’s nails and I help him shave his neck hair. It’s nice to know we don’t have to impress each other.

We’re not hippies who are covered in dirt and have group hugs every night, though I do love when we “hug it out” after feedbacks. We’re just seeing life in a new way. The line between luxury and necessity has often been blurred for me, and it’s freeing to see all the things I can do without.

 
Please keep us in your prayers this month. Turkey is literally the most unreached nation in the world. Number one on the list. A country is considered unreached if less than 2% claim to be Christian. In Turkey, the percentage is 0.05. Out of 73 million people, only 3000 are Christians. I would say this is the darkest place we’ve been so far. We realized a couple nights ago that our street offers work to a group of prostitutes. This month has reminded me that we’re really out here…we’re trying to bring light to darkness, but it’s a battle. There’s been a negativity in the air that’s been affecting us as individuals, as well as the team as a whole. We’ve recognized it and we’re standing strong in this together, but your prayers are definitely needed too.

Hopefully this little update can put some of your minds at ease since I haven’t been able to talk to you. You can expect the Cribs video next week, as well as a Christmas surprise coming up! I hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday season. God bless!