Here is, yet, one more short story about Germany and the Sister...
God doesn't care about the language barrier...
(Remember what I told you about the Sister's bookmarks?.... good.)
the story...
We were out and about buying souvenirs, all of us well supplied with bookmarks (just in case) ;)
As I was checking out at the store I looked at the clerk and thought, 'why not, she looks like she needs some encouragement... I'll offer her a German bookmark and told her God had a message for her'. She looked at me politely and took one. Then it happened, I saw what many of the Sisters have seen many times before... God at work through the bookmarks...
The woman's countenance completely changed, she was happy. All smiles she spoke to me in German (don't know what she said, but it was good) She was so impressed by it that she took me to the other clerk, who was with a customer, said something in German to her then pointed at me to give her one. hahaha...
There I was witnessing God in action, reaching out to ppl (despite my inability). What a GOOD God we serve!! I can scarcely believe how much He loves us and how relentlessly He seeks us. To think that He planned this little moment, to reach this one store clerk, to lavish His love upon her through this tiny little encounter... wow!
I learned that day that God is not really minded by the 'language barrier'... He is not minded by any barriers at all, He will cross oceans, He will leap over walls, He will create the most ridiculous- I speak in human concepts- circumstances to express His love to us.
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
Sunday 26 September 2010
Monday 6 September 2010
Sharing Good News with a Costume
Here are more stories about my time in Germany :)
Sister L., the Sister in charged of us during the Summer, decided to take us to this town in the South called Rotemburg, on a day trip. Our purpose was to sepend time together, sight-see, buy souvenirs and do missions (that's what they call evangelism). So we set out in the morning with a nice pack lunch and a back-pack full of bookmarks in German, English, Spanish and who knows what other language...
{Side note: I should tell you that the Sister's bookmakrs are well known in many parts of the world. They have different messages about God, Jesus, His love, plans and desire for us. The bookmarks have very nice pictures and are well made but the great thing about them is all the prayer that goes into them. When the bookmarks are being put together the Sisters pray that God would speak to the people that will receive them in a very special, very real way. They do this with their books and pamphlets as well. Consequently they have received testimonies of people who at the verge of despair a bookmark has made it into their hands and God has revealed Himself to them.}
Back to the story...
At first I was a bit weirded out as ppl kept staring at us. I didn't undestand why they looked at us so intently, then I realized it was because of the Sisters. (hehehe, after spending some days with them one gets so used to the habits as to forget they are dressed quite differently than 'civilians') I thought to myself: 'Oh no! this is going to be a hindrance... who wants to talk to a 'nun'?!' (not that they ARE nuns, they are Sisters, but to the untrained eye they look like nuns)... Well, to my surprise- EVERYONE seems to want to talk to them. Hahaha, there were indeed few people who refused to take something from them or share a word. When we set up to sing about God many ppl came over to listen. Their smiles disarmed the hardest countenances. Praise God He is glorified!!
It was a great lesson for me. Here are this Sisters, their desire is to love Jesus and have other people love Him too, they (even though they might be a little afraid of sharing with strangers just as much as any of us are) want to be obedient to God's command and therefore are unhindered by things like apperance. They are free and courageous, they do not worry about being 'relevant', politically correct, having the right words or examples to share with people- they simply obey out of love for God and God uses them in response to their abandonment to Him.
At the end of the day I thought, they really are just regular ppl sharing an extraordinary God... only they do it while wearing a costume ;-)
Joy is Ageless- Fact!
Hullo!!!
It's been over a month since I set out from Washington DC on my adventures.
I arrived in England on the 28th of July safe and sound. (Thank you for your prayers!)
Departed for Germany on the 31st of July to spend the month with the evangelical Mary Sisters.
And I 've arrived to England again this past Wed.
My time is Germany was very fruitful, and although I am still processing all that I've learnt, I will like to share some hightlights.
There are 144 Sisters in Darmstadt. 144 women fully committed to serve Christ, to seek God's face, to hear His voice and follow His lead. They are not perfect by any means but they have learned the secrets of identyfing themselves with the sufferings of Christ. They have been involved in very many different ministries since the Sisterhood was founded. They now have branches in over 20 countries and have literature translated in almost 100 languages.
But the thing that impressed me the most about them was not the reach their ministry has, nor all the buildings and land they have aquired by simply (literally) praying, believing and trusting in God; no, the thing that impressed me the most was the joy they had which bubbles out everywhere they go.
I met many Sister well over 75 who as soon as they started to talk about Jesus, remembering all the things He has taught them and how He's guided them, would break into big smiles and giggles as if they were still school girls- their eyes would sparkle like I've never seen before. For a moment, despite their wrinkled faces, white hair and glasses they would transform and you could no longer tell how old they actually are. The joy of the Lord is their strength! Their childlikeness is delightful and contagious. What Jesus says about being childlike makes sense when you are around them.
Wherever they go they are welcomed and I saw the grumpiest of persons be transformed in their presence. Not because anything they had to say but because God's presence is evident within them.
They are bold and lovely. I learned a lot about the importance of taking care of our inner life with Jesus, of not losing our first love of Him. Jesus above all else MUST come first: ministry, relationships, the cares of this world, what we eat and are clothed with, is secondary. Jesus must take first place in our hearts and we are to be vigilant against any idol that would like to put itself in His place (yes, even ministry!)
As Jesus said: "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you aide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (Jn 15:4-5)
It's been over a month since I set out from Washington DC on my adventures.
I arrived in England on the 28th of July safe and sound. (Thank you for your prayers!)
Departed for Germany on the 31st of July to spend the month with the evangelical Mary Sisters.
And I 've arrived to England again this past Wed.
My time is Germany was very fruitful, and although I am still processing all that I've learnt, I will like to share some hightlights.
There are 144 Sisters in Darmstadt. 144 women fully committed to serve Christ, to seek God's face, to hear His voice and follow His lead. They are not perfect by any means but they have learned the secrets of identyfing themselves with the sufferings of Christ. They have been involved in very many different ministries since the Sisterhood was founded. They now have branches in over 20 countries and have literature translated in almost 100 languages.
But the thing that impressed me the most about them was not the reach their ministry has, nor all the buildings and land they have aquired by simply (literally) praying, believing and trusting in God; no, the thing that impressed me the most was the joy they had which bubbles out everywhere they go.
I met many Sister well over 75 who as soon as they started to talk about Jesus, remembering all the things He has taught them and how He's guided them, would break into big smiles and giggles as if they were still school girls- their eyes would sparkle like I've never seen before. For a moment, despite their wrinkled faces, white hair and glasses they would transform and you could no longer tell how old they actually are. The joy of the Lord is their strength! Their childlikeness is delightful and contagious. What Jesus says about being childlike makes sense when you are around them.
Wherever they go they are welcomed and I saw the grumpiest of persons be transformed in their presence. Not because anything they had to say but because God's presence is evident within them.
They are bold and lovely. I learned a lot about the importance of taking care of our inner life with Jesus, of not losing our first love of Him. Jesus above all else MUST come first: ministry, relationships, the cares of this world, what we eat and are clothed with, is secondary. Jesus must take first place in our hearts and we are to be vigilant against any idol that would like to put itself in His place (yes, even ministry!)
As Jesus said: "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you aide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (Jn 15:4-5)
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