The Weekend Update! (entry 3)

The past week has been one filled with overflowing amounts of joy, knowledge, Jesus, and freedom. I honestly can't believe we've only been here a week because it seems like a month has gone by. I mean that in a good way of course. One of our speakers, Jason said that one DTS is the equivalent to a seven year friendship and I totally get it now.

This week we have been focusing on the Character and Nature of God and Intercession. It was a week that I thought was going to be really boring and not get a ton out of because, hello, I've been a Christian since I could breathe. But in one of Jason's talks I realized something. That I, like most Christians say that we are Christ followers, but that we don't really KNOW him and his personality. That may sound silly to you, but think about someone walking into the room that you have never met before and declaring to everyone that they are your best friend. Now ask them to share what they know about you with everyone else in the room. They probably aren't going to say much are they. They may guess your favorite color, or be able to suss out your favorite football team, but they don't KNOW you. That was really convicting for me. After my Dad was healed, I was still really angry with God and stopped trying to repair our relationship and try to know him better. I thought that if I tried to forget about it, everything would get better... Luckily Leah took to mentoring me over the last year so that I could start getting to know him again. I started hearing his voice more clearly and being more obedient and boom, I'm in Australia. But I never realized how much of what God said I either ignored or put on the back burner because I didn't want to sound stupid. A few of the exercises that we did involved listening to God and sharing words with people, which I HATE because I'm always worried that I'll mess it up or share something that I shouldn't, or whatever! But God gave me a lot of freedom in that this week and I was able to be used to encourage others, which in turn encouraged me!

This has also been a week of relationship building. For anyone who knows me, you know that on the spectrum of relational to functional, I'm definitely a relational person. I'm also rather shy when it comes to meeting new people, but following the theme on my blog, God provides! He really cracked me open and filled me with joy and love for others. So much so that I didn't care if I acted stupid because I was just so freaking excited that they were here with me! I have played more card games in the last 8 days than I have in pretty much my whole life.  I mean a few days ago me and my pal Jeffrey played speed for almost 2 and a half hours straight.  They has also been about 3 volleyball games, several walks around the loop, and a lot of just spending time together and hanging out.

The base is pretty awesome too guys. I mean, truly a beautiful place to live. There is a great view of the mountains and valleys, and watching a storm come in is prime. We've only had a few so far, but watching lightning from above the cloud is really something everyone should experience at least once. I have an alarm clock, though I rarely have to use it because the kookaburra that lives outside our house wakes up at 5:05am and sings for all his lady friends to hear. At first I was annoyed, but as I started to make a habit out of waking up early to journal, read, or pray, I realized how much I enjoyed that extra hour.

Friday and Saturday were some of the most revealing days of the week so far. I mean there has been opportunities to talk to people and share your stories since we got off the plane, but this was TESTIMONY WEEKEND! Both my favorite and least favorite time. I loved to hear everyone else's story, but having to share my own has always been something that has made me uncomfortable. But I toughed it out, and only shed a few tears, and was rewarded tremendously. I love everyone here so much, but after we all shared some of our stories (some happy, most not), my heart was practically bursting. It really takes a lot of guts to sit in front of 40 people and share your traumas and heartache. But you could feel how much closer everyone was afterwards. God uses our pain and sharing our stories to bring us into community with others, and to bring others into community with Him.

This post is getting pretty long and there's like a billion other things that I want to add, but just know that right now, I am most certainly in the place where I am supposed to be. So I want to thank everyone that has helped me over the past few years, and everyone that helped get me here. I could get on a plane this afternoon and come back a completely different person and I can't wait to see what the rest of DTS and beyond has to offer. If you would like things to pray for, continue to pray for our awesome staff that they would have rest and be energized after long days of meetings and notes. Pray that our speakers tongues are blessed and share only what God wants for us each day. Pray that my joy is continuous and my spirit unwavering. Pray for unity and acceptance in the base, and wisdom with our words. Pray that everyday each person learns something new that helps them KNOW God better. And most of all pray that God's will is done here every freaking day, because doing what God asks us to do all day everyday is something that is pressing on everyone's hearts here.

Much love from Toowoomba,

Kate

Day 1-2 Settling In

Yay, we did it! I'm at the base and having tons of fun exploring and making new friends. It's raining cats and dogs out, but I love it because sounds lovely on the roof especially and hopefully it will keep the heat and humidity at bay for a while :)

Traveling went great! There were a few minor hiccups but nothing we couldn't handle. I was in the first group of students to arrive so we had some time to bond and explore before the rest showed up. More are expected to come today, but with the weather, I'm hoping their flights aren't delayed. One of the area's we got to check out of a road that everyone here calls "The Loop" it takes about an hour to walk it all the way through and get back to the base, but like everything else here it is beautiful.

I was surprised by my lack of jet lag when we arrived and got settled in, I didn't started to feel tired until about 5 or 6pm and finally crashed around 9. It was fun though. After dinner we were all in the main house and several different games broke out. I mostly watched because of how exhausted I was, but I did hang around the piano and sing with some of the students and staff. 

Speaking of which, the staff here are awesome, they are all such sweet, genuine, beautiful people. They were so helpful with getting our bags to our houses, and loved showing us around. 

I've decided that Toowoomba is pretty much Michigan and Costa Rica tossed together and dropped on an Island Nation. It's absolutely gorgeous. The houses are very eclectic and so is the wildlife, like "oh look a cactus and a palm tree sharing the safe tiny area of land". The view is AMAZING. There is a mountain (or large hill depending on where you come from) called Table Top that you can see from the point. We are up in the mountains so you can see for miles around when its not terribly foggy. 

Today is the last "lazy" day before the chaos, orientation starts tomorrow and then we are off!

As I've said a thousand time before, and will say a thousand times again, thank you all so much for your prayers and support! You are wonderful human beings and I will miss you all dearly, and can't wait to share everything with you when I return!

Preparing To Leave

It's incredible to think that my plane leaves in less than a week. Up until a few days ago, none of this has really felt very...real. I went from working hard in my classes and job, to not having to worry about either of them and suddenly having a million things that need to get done and zero time to do it. The amount of unknowns involved with this trip is a little overwhelming for a control freak like myself, but I think that giving up CONTROL and having more FAITH is one of the biggest lessons I'll learn on this journey. 

Along with the uncertainties and stress is a whole lot of joy. I haven't  felt so much of it in a long time, though I think that kind of joy comes more readily when you are being obedient to what God is asking of you. I honestly feel like I am bursting at the seams with excitement for what comes next. I have definitely had my anxieties about the trip, but God continues to push me and prove how much bigger than those anxieties he really is. 

One of the biggest components of the trip that I've had to "worry" about is finances. From the day I decided to apply to YWAM Toowoomba Music DTS, I knew that it was going to be a pricey trip. When I got accepted, I was overjoyed and instantly nervous about the money part. Being the sassypants that I am, I said "Alright God, if this is what I am supposed to do, you need to pay for it, because I can't handle the strenuous schedule of the DTS and worrying about money, so if you could pay for it in full that would be cool". Within days of this conversation I had offers for side jobs flowing in. God provides! I worked really hard all summer and fall to raise the funds I needed on my own, I didn't want to have to ask people for money because that just wasn't something I'm comfortable with. Eventually I received another nudge and wrote the letters and set them out. Promises of support, and actual checks started flying in, God provides! (Seeing a pattern yet? ;)) 

Not only have I been able to make all of my tuition payments in full, but ahead of schedule, with money left over for my next payment. I have been completely blown away by God's response to my anxious demands for money, and can't wait to see how he is going to use this DTS to shape me and how I will play a role in other people's journeys. 

Now that the finances are completely in His hands, I can worry about packing my life into boxes for storage, and then put the rest in my backpack. I think Friday will be a big day for packing and finishing cleaning because I won't have to worry about packing something that I still need. My last Sunday with my Southside family is fast approaching and I'm not really sure how I'll react yet... This week has been filled with cleaning and goodbyes. I have a few more people to hang out with and birthdays to celebrate, and then I just have to...go! 

Oh just as a heads up, I'm not really planning on proof reading these, so Grammar Nazis beware! Hopefully I can continue posting at least once a week to keep my wonderful church family, and friends up to date on my adventures.