Hello from Byron Bay, Australia! Byron Bay is on the eastern most part of Australia. It is a beach town with tourists from all over the world. So far I have met people from Germany, Morocco, Korea, America, and other parts of Australia. Byron is full of people with all different beliefs. People are very open here to having conversations about spiritual things.
Our host for the month is Youth with a Mission a.k.a. YWAM (pronounced why-wam). We are staying in a nearby church, called Eastgate Church. For ministry this month, we are doing outreach and evangelism. Each morning we pray as a team about what we should do and who we should talk to. We’ve met lots of people this way. Last night we had an event where we gave out free pancakes and chai, had live music (a mix of secular and Christian), and gave out Bibles. There was also a station set up where people could choose a piece of artwork that spoke to them and our team would write an encouraging message on the back. It was a nice night! Overall, our time here has been really nice! This month for me has been about coming out of my shell, re-learning confidence and self-esteem, letting go of anxiety, and praying to God for authentic growth.
Highlights:
-Finally being on the World Race, after years of dreaming and reading other peoples’ blogs
-Being back in Australia after six years
-Authentic Tim-Tams
-Beautiful beach, cool town
– Hot showers/running water/real toilets
-Getting to know my squad/team better
-Beauty for Ashes retreat with the whole squad
-Learning how to be a missionary, not just overseas, but at home too. Intentionally asking for and remembering peoples names.
Lowlights:
-Washing laundry by hand. Takes wayyy more upper body strength then I imagined.
-Missing friends and family from home. There is no wifi where we live, so we only have limited times when we can use it, which is primarily during the day time/”focused” ministry hours (Life is ministry 😉 ) This makes it hard to connect with people at home for more than a few minutes at a time. On the bright side, see above (getting to know my squad better 🙂 )
Prayer Requests:
-For boldness in sharing the Gospel and striking up conversations with people
-For team and squad unity
-For the people we have met, for planted seeds to grow
-To be able to let go of anxiety and experience peace throughout the journey (feedback…more on that later 🙂 )
Thank you guys!
Question of the Blog: What was the highlight and lowlight of your week? Comment below! 🙂 I want to stay updated with you all too!
