We have arrived!!!
This month seems to be absolutely perfect. Now, I know those are high expectations
and it will not, in fact, be perfect, but I am so excited about our living situations, our ministry, our location (in AUSSIE LAND) and our contacts.
We are here, in Darwin, Australia, to build relationships, encourage, love, and minister to the Aborigines people in the area. Our contacts, David and Isabelle, were the ones to start this ministry and are incredibly exhausted by how much work it is to love these people who ALL, without exception, have an addiction to either drugs, alcohol, or gambling. Even the people that have accepted Jesus are still struggling with addictions because all of society has rejected them, they have little education, and they are surrounded by influence from their family and friends. Would you turn your back on the ONLY thing, however wrong it was, that enabled you to have friends and family?
We don’t typically have to think about that. We know that we would be accepted by someone regardless of religious orientation, lifestyle or political opinions. That is not the case with the people of the Bagot community (the Aborigines). They would have no one…. That’s what we are here for. My team and I hope to gain trust in the community so we can share the companionship and relationship of Jesus Christ. They will always have a reliable friend in Christ and He is the only source of true joy. Life will look harder at first, but our prayer is that the entire community will turn to Christ and be each other’s support group to be clean, sober, loving people who will spend eternity with Christ!
We are living in David and Isabelle’s basement and in the backyard. David is a surgeon, so our accommodations are better than I expected. The girls all sleep inside on couches and beds, while the boys sleep outside in their hammocks and tents. My team is paired with team Braveheart this month, so it’s hard to have accommodations for 14 extra adults, but they have done an excellent job! We have a small kitchen, an indoor bathroom, a little pool, and lots of little lizards and interesting green frogs outside. We have three resident dogs that make it feel like home!
We live 1.25 miles from a beautiful beach with clear blue water, tons of cute shells and the most peaceful feeling. We are blessed beyond measure to be spending four weeks ministering in a place that has so few Christians, but such beautiful surroundings. Darwin is considered the outback, which is really cool, but we are staying in the city, so I haven’t seen any kangaroos yet.
We don’t have internet in our "home", but we are able to walk down the road to get it from a McDonalds. I will be trying to get to it when possible, but our ministry schedule is busy, so it probably won’t be as often as I prefer. *Just thought I would warn you!
I love you all and look forward to your comments!!
