A SUPERbowl Weekend

There is very little room for boredom when you live in a dorm, but somehow God gives us the energy and inspiration to make it even more adventurous then it already was. This weekend is a perfect example of that. Usually Friday night consists of the girls falling asleep on the couches for a couple hours before dinner and then we watch movies until lights out. Saturday is always a late start day, then gratises (chores), then free time. Often we are driving students back to other dorms and picking up our girls from sleepovers. There is always a lot of cooking to be done on the weekends since the school kitchen only provides meals on week days. These are usually 18 hour days for us dorm staff...crazy long, always on our feet, but so rewarding.

So if you thought a normal weekend sounded exhausting this weekend might make you think we are a little crazy. There are a lot of "American things" that our girls don't always understand. In this case it was the odd obsession with the Superbowl. Megan and I are not huge football fans, but we thought we would take this opportunity to educate our girls a little bit on the tradition of celebrating the facing off of two teams of men. While we didn't actually watch the Superbowl (cause it started at 12:20AM in Germany) we still had a party, cause we LOVE parties!

So this is what this weekend looked like (keep reading to see how we kept the excitement going on Sunday):
Friday night - Pizza/movie night!
Saturday - All day prep for our Superbowl party, PARTY, watch The Blind Side!
(Then RAs made lunch for the next day. YAY for crock-pot sloppy joes and being asleep by 12am)

Here is how it all went down...of corse I'm going to provide you with pictures!

But the fun wasn't over yet...


Another reason we did all this work of cooking and decorating (with the help of our good friends and subs, Heather and Brittany) was to get our girls in the mood for the PowederPuff football game on Sunday.

Sunday!!! #GoHawks
...Oh, I mean...GO Blauen!

It was a blast cheering on the girl's dorms as they competed against each other. Most of them didn't know what to do, but who cares! I mean seriously...anyone who knows me knows that those girls probably know more than I do about the sport. It was so much fun laughing along with them as they took out the quarterback, or whoever was near them...no matter if it would be helpful to the winning of the game or not.

The cheerleaders!

Practice. Get those game faces on girlies!

Since we are such a small dorm (compared to the other girl's dorms) we joined up with the Liel girl's dorm.

 Lets do this!

Katie, an RA at Palm, getting taken down. Epic.

Amy (one of our seniors) was a little over dressed, but thats ok cause it made for a funny picture. 

RAs vs. Students!!!

We love these girls!

And just when you think an afternoon can't get any better, you get a sunset like this. 

What a Marvelous Gift | Thank you!

Have you ever gotten a gift, Christmas, birthday or otherwise, that left you speechless? One where you sat there, holding it, thinking: I can’t believe they put this much time, effort and thought into something for me! Well, I got one such gift this year and I have been waiting to write this post to thank everyone who was involved. Let me explain…

I was not able to go home for Christmas this year to be with family, but that was made better by the prospect of spending it with old family friends in Wales. I would have time to rest, relax, do absolutely nothing, travel, watching Downton Abbey, walk on castle walls, eat real fish and chips (which I have missed since going to Ireland a few years ago), work on puzzles, play games, meet lots of new people, and celebrate Christmas and the new year. Anticipation of all those things (and probably some denial of how much I would actually miss being home) was making me very excited for break.

Well, it was the day after my amazingly wonderful co-RA, Megan, had returned to the States. I came down the stairs of our house and happened to glance at the mailboxes on the wall and to my surprised there was a thick, envelope sized, purple package in mine. 

Curiously, I opened it up and out fell a big pile of colorful envelopes with dates on them starting on the 19^th of December, but there was one that said “Open Immediately”. The note inside was from Megan and it explained that I would get to open one letter every day of break until the 1^st of January. I was thrilled! I love notes and Megan is wonderful at writing encouraging words, but I had no idea how great this gift was going to get.

The first six days were notes from Megan. On Christmas Eve, the sixth day, I opened my Facebook and found an additional message from Megan. It contained a forwarded message from a dear friend from college. I was utterly confused how Megan was forwarding me a message from this person since I couldn’t think of any connections between them. But the wonderful surprises were just getting started! On Christmas my letter was from my parents and brothers, the day after that was from a dear uncle, and then a cousin, and then another friend, and then another, and another!!! I was more and more excited every day to find out who that day’s note was from.

 

I want to thank all of you who took part in this gift to me! You have no idea how God used your words to encourage me every day. There were days when there was something bothering me and then I would open my note and you had written EXACTLY what I needed to hear. This was the gift that just kept on giving every day, making me feel close to home and not a continent away. Thank you all for this wonderful Christmas surprise! Your love was so tangible in those letters and I love you all. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

p.s. I also want to thank those of you who had sent letters to me while I was away. I loved getting all your Christmas cards and pictures!

Blooming Where I'm Planted

When I moved to Germany three months ago I was jet lagging, overwhelmed, enthusiastic, bottling up tears of homesickness (that were catching me by surprised), eager to meet my girls and find out what staff/dorm I was to join, and all of it was flying past me at a million miles an hour. Times 3! Honestly the details of those first days are about as clear to me as the scientific method, but one thing has stuck in my head that has come up many times in conversations and in my journaling. It was the Sunday three days after I had arrived at BFA and I was attending my first service at Black Forest Christian Fellowship. I was meeting tons of new people and trying to be engaged as I got whiplash from my nodding head. As the sermon began I remember thinking, “Pay attention, Larisa!” And I’m so glad I took my own advice because the sermon was on “growing where you are planted”. This theme has given shape to my first 3 months of missionary life.

The key to the message for me was an analogy of a palm tree and how it will grow wherever you plant it. Usually it is a tropical climate, but they can adapt and do well in most others (maybe not the Arctic I’ll check into that so that this metaphor doesn’t fall apart). At first I had a very romantic idea of this for myself: God and me will grow and thrive and it will be wonderful and happy…all the time…no matter what hard things happen…forever…right? Well, lets just say that God has been bringing me past that unrealistic and downright ridiculous perspective to one that is healthier.

So what was wrong with that idea? It was good that I wanted to rely on Christ for my strength and know that I wasn’t going to do it alone, but I forgot that he never promised ease for those who love him. He only said that he would “work it together for our good”. The key word here is “work”.  I have been learning that the excitement that I have for this job of being an RA, adjusting to a new life, building a reputation in a sense, and feeling very alone in a lot of it, has been part of the work that God is doing in my life and learning to completely trust him. “God is lovingly removing things I think I need, but things that may be holding me down, holding me back, or holding me captive.” (Source) 

Growing where I’ve been planted can be wonderful because I can see the growth! I can see that I’m learning to rely on Christ for my identity now. Moving into a ministry role where no one knows who I am, what God has done to get me here, or what “credentials” I have, can be really hard. (And I would like to take a quick moment to say that if you are going to do this and haven’t before its OK to feel out of place and like your identity has been stripped from you and have nothing to offer. BUT it’s false and it’s a lie that Satan will use against you! Be open with people about what God has done in your life and what skills he has given you to do the job that you are in. Take it has an opportunity to give God the spotlight.)

As a young woman on the mission field I have begun to experience the hard moments of being alone and not having my close family and friend there to bounce ideas off of or cry to. But I this has given me space to plant my own roots into Christ and what he has told me to do with this chapter of my life. So this is what planting looks like for me: allowing the challenges to come even if they make me want to crumble, because I have a God who is loving and tender with me. He has not given me anything beyond what I can handle and I trust him to prune me because, “Pruning is actually God's loving surgery to let His light go deeper into your life than it has ever gone before.” (Source)

Catching Up

Hi friends! I have to appologize for not keeping any of you well informed about my life since moving to BFA. It has been a crazy several weeks of my life and I feel like I am just now settling in and it is feeling like home. I love it here and I adore the girls that I get to serve every day. But before I tell you about them I want to catch you up on what the last 7 weeks have looked like. And pictures are still the best way for me to communicate so here it goes...

As support raising often goes it was down to the wire. One day I was at 70% and the next I was at 93% - on the phone with my mission and getting the "go ahead!" My "See you later" party was a special time to give final hugs and I only shed a few tears.

I flew out of Seattle on the 7th and it was way harder then I expected. I thought that after two years of waiting, praying and anticipation I would be ready, but nothing could have prepared me for the tears that came in the security check line. I had never received sympathy from a security guard until that morning.

BUT I hopped on my flight to Germany and slept most of the way. Got there safely and met up with a friend who joined me for the last leg of the trip to Kandern. We were picked up after our last flight in Basel Switzerland and driven in our post-flight-haziness to Kandern. I had a few days to recover from jetlag and get to know the other RAs as they arrived for orientation. This picture is from a castle that we hiked to on one of the first days. I miss summer already.

This is Kandern's main road that runs through town. Isn't it so cute?!

After two weeks of orientating ourselves and getting to know the other RAs and dorm parents there were decisions to be made. God was so good and put together a wonderful team for the Blauen Dorm. This is my staff on one of our first outing together.

Sally (DP), me, Megan (RA), and Butch (DP)

We did a lot during the 3 weeks of orientation. There were countless meetings and trainings on language, culture, student wellness and care, dorm life, how to work as a team, driving training, and the list goes on...but one day we got to go on a picnic to the Rhine. Ya know...no biggie.

 Behind us is our lovely little dorm. Blauen is located about 15 minutes from school, "Up on the mountain." I love it up here! Its so beautiful and the fact that it is a ways from the school really makes it feel like a home.

So, we set out the flowers....

Baked the treats...

 And then the girls came!!! There are 14 lovely ladies in our house and I just love them all.

Here is a funny movie we made to "prepare" them for the rules. Du du dun!

Life in Kandern and at BFA is never boring. Germany has lots of fun holidays and festivels. The picture below was taken at Budenfest the week after students arrived. The girls got a little money for lunch and then were set loose in pairs. This was a little break for me to spend some time with some of my new friends, Emily and Sarah.

Remember how I said nothing is ever boring? Well this is a perfect example. This is at the Fall Party were the theme was "Through the Decades". As you can tell I am fully embracing the oddities of youth ministry.

But there is a sense of normal life in this job. There are always sports events, practices, clubs, sleep overs, and shopping trips to drive to. I try to take every one of these as a chance to invest in relationship with these girls.

And then there is some extra fun too. All res-life staff only get one day off a week. For RAs that is on Monday and Dorm parents are off on Thursdays. This is much needed time, but BFA also gives us a few weekends off a semester. Since we happen to live in such a central location four of us decided to take a little trip down to Italy. We spent a wonderful time relaxing, sightseeing, processing, cooking and sleeping. Those four days were the perfect rejuvenation that I needed to go back to the crazy life that I love so much.

If you made it this far and are still reading you are amazing! Thank you for your prayers and I will try and give more regular updates. If you want to be on my monthly update list please email me at larisawmissions@gmail.com and I'll put you on the list.

These 30 Days Will Fly By

Dear Readers,

This month is zipping by faster than I can keep up. It is officially 30 days from today that I will be in Kander at BFA! I began this month at training in Chicago where I met a lot of people who I will be serving with over the next two years and those relationships are a huge encouragement as I say goodbye to so many here. In those hard goodbyes God is giving me wonderful memories: road trips to my favorite camp and beach, hikes, weddings, coffee dates, movie dates, and so on and so forth. I hope to have time to say goodbye to everyone, but like I said, time is flying by so fast.

So what do I have left to do in this last month in preparation to move? Excellent question! Starting off I need to keep going through boxes of stuff to donate, store, or pack. I can’t believe how much stuff I saved from high school and thought that I would want it down the road. Can anyone relate? Part of the packing process is determinate on how many bags I can bring. Through my mission agency, if I can book through a specific airline, I will be able to bring 3 checked bags. WOAH! I know. I had the same reaction. So once I get to 90% of monthly support I will book my flight and then know how to pack.

I’m spending a lot of time raising support, meeting with potential donors and mentally preparing for the job that I am about to step into. If you would like to meet with me or have questions about joining my team I would love to talk to you! Even if you don’t know how you can help I would be honored to answer any questions you have and try and help you find a way that is freezable for you. To contact me please email at larisawmissions@gmail.com

Also, if you would like to sign up for my prayer letter shoot me an email and I’ll put you on the list.

Every weekend of my remaining month is filled with weddings that I am either in, photographing, or attending. I’m grateful to have these times to celebrate with friend before I go!

I have one big prayer request this week:

• I am having a fundraising dessert this Monday (the 15^th). Please pray that God would urge many to come and that they would feel excited to join in this journey that God has brought me on

Thank you again for your prayers! They are more encouraging than you know!

Training! Its Gettin' Real!

Hi guys! Quick update.

This Sunday, the 23rd of June, I will fly out of PDX to Chicago for Pre-field Orientation. This is something that my mission agency puts on to help prepare us for our move overseas. I will be learning from seasoned missionaries and agency staff about what to expect and how to prepare further. I have had lots and LOTS of paperwork to fill out and we will be going over the logistics of living in another country. I've also been told that we will learn a lot about how to work with others in the types of settings that we are all headed to (mostly education settings).

I'm really looking forward to this week in Chicago because it will be the first time I meet anyone who is going to be an RA with me at BFA. I don't know how many RA's TeachBeyond (the agency) is sending, but I know I'm not the only one so I'm stoked! I will also get the chance to meet people who are going to be doing different jobs at BFA and at other locations around the world.

Please be praying that this would be an encouraging and informative week for myself and all others attending. Pray that God would give me insight into the challenges that I have ahead so that I can learn how to prepare better. Also pray that it would just be a lot of fun as I get to do my favorite thing in the world: meeting new people! Oh, and prayer for safe travels and good weather in the Windy City would be appreciated.

Thank you all and I will be giving an update when I get home on June 29th!

A Heart at Peace

Today I was driving home from work, slightly annoyed with some of my students (but 1st-3rd graders tend to have that effect on most people at one time or another), and thinking about what kind of people I hope they grow up to be. I was very lost in this train of thought when something came on the radio that brought me back to the road just as I drove past the airport. Now, the airport always sends me into day dreams about that day that is only 72 days away when I will step off a plain and into this dream that God has been building in my heart for nearly two years. This time as I drove by I put the to thoughts together and came out with a question for myself: How are you able to even focus on life here when you are so excited to be somewhere else?

*At this point I would like to note that I have written and re-written this blog 3 times tonight and I hope that I am able to get out what I really mean to say*

Over the last 5 months God has been showing me how the little lessons that I am learning here are really preparing me for things ahead. I've been learning how to be patient in very difficult circumstances that I have no power to change, loving to those who I don't understand, sacrificial at times that I just don't want to be. And in all of those things I have learned something that I have just found the word for, peace. Its not complicated. I've just learned that peace is the feeling that I have when all those tough things are going on around me and I can still sit back and know that everything is going to be ok. Not because I am in control, oh no. But because I'm learning that I'm not doing or going through them for myself. 

Now, to be a little vulnerable. A few months ago I was looking over finances, counting up what I needed to raise to make this move, and how that all tied into my new temp job. I had a melt down over some silly little thing. My poor dad...I don't know what he had asked me, but the burst of sobs was not the answer he expected. My wonderful parents sat with me and listened to me cry about how I didn't know how it was all going to work and how I didn't know what my life would look like in 9 months. They listened, prayed with me, and let me cry it all out. At that point I was very self-relient. I hadn't learned about this wonderful peace thing yet because I needed to start breaking. I had to start letting go and just be willing to learn. 

Today when someone asks me where I'm at in my support raising I really am not worried (all though the faces of those asking me show that they think I should be). But I am secure in what I know to be true of God. He works all things together for the good of those who love Him. I don't know what that looks like right now. I could be stressing out and loosing sleep, but He has shown me that BFA is where I need to be and He will get me there. 

Thank you for all the prayers, encouraging notes, and hugs, as I am going through this journey. I'm still learning to take deep breaths to take each new hurdle. 

And as a last note. Please don't think that I am trying to over spiritualize my life. Its not perfect and I still have moments when I clutch the steering wheel and think, how is this all going to come together?! But then this peace comes back and I keep going. 




Specific updates and prayer requests:

• For every other missionary who is currently raising support and preparing to move to BFA.
• That God would be preparing my heart for Pre-Field Training at the end of June in Chicago. 
• And lastly, that God would be raising up more people who will join me financially. Praise Him that I am currently at *45.5%!!! (for specific updates on where my support is at look here)

*I had previously had a typo here that said I was at "54.5%". Sorry about the confusion! But who knows? Maybe I'll be there very soon!