Russian Arctic

The Team arrived safely in Orlando on Sunday evening, and today, Monday, they are on the beach enjoying themselves.

The past couple of days have been very very busy.  We did a program at a school and a street performance in a Sami Village.  We also had to say our good-byes to the team from Belarus as we parted ways...

For the most part the last two days have been full of traveling but it has been a fun time and everyone has kept a great attitude!

Today we arrived at the YWAM Base in Norway and were welcomed with an amazing meal.  We even had the opportunity to swim in the Arctic Ocean!!!  It was cold!  Until next time....

This afternoon we did some team building so that everyone would have the chance to get to know each other better. Everyone was split up in three different groups and as a team they had to complete different difficult tasks. A little bit later in the day we went over most of the dramas and dances in preparation for the program later that night.

The ministry time at the Culture House was just as amazing as we had expected earlier this morning. A little over 150 people showed up which filled up the entire space! We also were able to see seven people give their lives to Jesus! Everybody was very excited to be able to see fruit from the ministry that we had cried out to Jesus for this morning! God really does listen to and answer our prayers! Later, after the program we had a team bonfire where we had a good time of fellowship and got to hang out with some of the people who were at the Culture House, and near the very end of the bonfire we saw another man come to the lord and throw away his beer and when his friend came and gave him another one he gave it to a leader on our team to dump it out! It was an amazing time! God is good!

Happy 4th of July from everybody here in Russia!!!!

Yesterday we went to a soccer field and had the opportunity to minister to Russian youth through sports. It was a really good time of fellowship and helped to start relationships between the people on our team and the people who live in this town. Tonight we will have the chance to do a full program for the town. We are trusting that God will reveal himself to these people and that they will turn their hearts towards him.

This morning during worship, teaching, and prayer we really felt God work in our hearts. We prayed for each other as well as the people of Russia and specically the people that we will be meeting with later in the day. We cried out to Jesus for souls in Russia and for revival for over an hour and a half. It was no ordinary time of worship but was unbelievable! I believe that nobody left the room the same as they were when they came in! After that we also had a great teaching on Intimacy With God from Eric. Through a combination of all of these things we left this morning with a renewed sense of the presence of God and how much he is with us always! We are more excted than ever to see how God is going to use us these next couple of days. Until next time...

The last two days we have been traveling to nearby cities to minister. We have gone twice to an amusement park. The crowds get bigger and bigger everytime that we do a program through this we are able to see God´s faithfulness!

Yesterday we met up with a team from Belarus and they are going to be a part of our team until early next week. They are very talented group when it comes to both dancing a singing!

Today we have the opportunity to minister in the city we are staying in. So pray that as we dance and show them our joy that it will minister to their lives and that God would reveal himself to the people that we encounter.

On Saturday we went to a youth park and did friendship evangelism. We played some music, did some dancing, and played soccer, football, and basketball. It was a very fruitful time! We connected with one of the youth and he ended up going to the church we were working with the next morning and giving his life to Jesus! It is amazing how God is able to use our team in unique ways; he is able to use us even when we are not able to openly share our faith!

Yesterday was our last day in the area and as we left we know that we have made a very significant impact on the area. We had the opportunity to participate in a city-wide youth hip-hop celebration! We did all of our dances in a program that was filled with rapping and break dancing! The crowd loved it. After we finished there we took off in our bus to our next destination where we will stay for the next week.

Today we had a free day in which we got to explore the city a little bit. Some people went to the bank, some got to access the internet at the local post office, some explored the surrounding area, and some even got their hair trimmed a little bit. It was a great time to everyone to catch up on their much needed rest! We are ready to go full out these next couple of days!

A few days ago we left for Russia.  We got past the border very quickly with no real problems! All of our days have been packed full of things to do!  Going to this city has been a priveldge and an honor.  For many years it has been closed to foreigners but God has opened up many doors while we have been here!

Yesterday we had the opportunity to go to an orphanage and connect personally with all of the kids.  We did a short program for them and they did one for us as well.  Later that day we had the opportunity to go to a information center for a local nuclear power plant.  This was a cool opportunity becuase this is the very reason that the city has been difficult to get into!  The people at the orphanage were so moved and excited to hang around us that they invited us back later that night.  They served us a Russian dessert called, "perogi" and we played soccer with them!  Everybody had a blast and all of the kids there were great!  We also had a great time of fellowship watching a soccer match between Russia and Spain.

Today we went to a Christian Rehabilitation Center.  This is the only rehabilitation center of it kind in the area.  While we were there we got to minister to the people by doing work service projects such as cleaning, chopping firewood, and digging a ditch for electrical wires.  We also got to share testimonies and share our ministry program.  We went there expecting to minister to them and they ended up ministering to us a lot as well. The stories of how God has impacted all of there lives is absolutely amazing!

On Sunday we will have the opportunity to do some of our dances at a large youth hip-hop concert!  This is a program in which leaders are coming from as far away as St. Petersburg to see.  This is an amazing chance that we get and just another one of the many doors that God has opened up for us while we have been here!

Please pray for rest as our days have been long and our nights have been bright!  We are in the land of the midnight sun!  Also pray that as we encounter different people that they will be impacted by our presence and and our program.  Pray that God will reveal himslef to the people that we meet!

Last night we drove for about four hours through Sweden and into Finland.  Once in Finland we spent the night in a wonderful church!

In the afternoon we had the opportunity to do something that people come to Finland from all over the world to do.  We got to go to the village where Santa is supposeldly from, along with all of his little helpers.  This was very exciting and everyone had a blast.

In a few hours we will begin our eight hour jouney towards Russia. 

Bootcamp has officially ended.  We have learned just about everything that we will need for the programs.  Everyone is sad to have to leave this church because everyone here has been so hospitable and wonderful!  The most exciting part of the day for most was the chance to call home and talk to family.  We are all packed up and ready to leave at about 7 tomorrow morning!

For the next two weeks we will not have internet access.  If we find somewhere with internet we will try to update but this is unlikely.  As soon as we get back there will be updates on what has been going on.

As we travel please pray for patience and safety during the long time of travel.  We hope that it will be a nice time of rest and a time to get to know each other better!  Until next time....

Today we had our first two ministry programs; they went really well.  Both were at church services and everybody who shared their testimonies did absolutely amazing.

At the first service the Pastor shared a word he got from God that God has gone before us into Russia and knows what is going to happen, where we are going to minister, and who we are going to minister to.  He also reminded us that God will be with us while we are there.  This word from the Pastor was really comforting and confirmed what had been in many of our hearts over these last couple of days in Sweden.

The second service was at the church that we have been staying at while we have been in Northern Sweden.  We got to do everythiing that we have prepared up til this point.  God really showed up during the program and many were left in tears because they were so overwhelmed by the presence of God and the power of the testimonies.  After the service the Pastor and the rest of the congregation prayed and sent off our team.  We all really felt the presence of God in the church!!

Please continue praying for our team as we move closer and closer to leaving for Russia, there is still a lot that needs to be done and not a whole lot of time to be able to do it.  Pray specifically for God to reveal to everybody a new aspect of who he is and who he wants us to be.

Tomorrow is our first program and everybody is excited to be able to use all of the skills they have obtained over the past week!  The last two days have been filled with new dances and dramas.  Up to this point we have perfected two dances and dramas that we have been working on. 

We have had the opportunity to do some of extra things as well.  There are saunas by the showers that we have been able to use; we were excited to be able to participate in this cultural pasttime.  We were also able to attend a part of a christian conference and watch a couple of Swedish christian bands perform.

Please pray that everyone will remember all of the dances and dramas that they have learned and also pray for those who will be sharing their testimonies;that they will share what is on God´s heart for them to share and they will not be nervous but will know that God is with them and will give them the words to speak.  Until next time......

We have arrived safely in Northern Sweden!

After roughly 24 hours of traveling on three different planes and a bus we have made it to our Swedish destination.  Here the team will finish up learning the ministry program.  The team has also grown bigger; we have now connected with members of a team from Sweden and Finland and will meet up with a team from Belarus for about a week.

God is already at work using our team, even before we reached Russia or even Sweden for that matter.  He began to use us on the airplane:

Soon after we got on the airplane, Eric and Andreas started talking to a flight attendant who was wondering about our group, what we were doing, where we were going, and what we stood for.  She seemed very interested and we were able to give her our card and postcard.  After we got to our cruising altitiude and were served the in-flight snacks the pilot came on the intercom to make an announcement.  He said something along the lines of, "We have a group in the back of the plane from Youth With A Mission Orlando who is traveling to Russia on a missions trip!"  It was super exciting.

Last night everyone was excited to be here for many reasons including the great dinner that was prepared, the showers that were available, and the time that we were going to be able to sleep!

This morning Eric gave a teaching on giving a testimony.  Everyone is hard at work seeking God and preparing a testimony to share with the people of Russia.  So far training today has gone great but we still have a long way to go.  Until next time............

Here´s a little update:

Since the last time we talked, this is what we`ve been up to. Tuesday night was family night, which is a time when the entire YWAM community meets for fellowship, teaching, and worship. During this time our team was prayed for and released. After family night there was a Walmart run for those who needed some last minute things for the trip. After that everyone went home and packed up for the long journey to the Arctic!

On to the morning:

This morning everyone weighed and changed up their bags so that we were within the 50lb weight limit. Everybody worked together wonderfully. This time was very good because teamwork is going to be an essential part, along with the fact that we had to get things packed and ready in only 2 or 3 hours!

Packing, leaving for the airport, and security have gone well! We have about an hour until we take off in the airplane and will be traveling until about four o`clock tomorrow afternoon. Everyone is so excited to get over there; our team morale couldn´t be better and everyone seems as if they have been friends for much longer than a few days!

Please pray for people to be refreshed physically, emotionally, and spiritually as we enter this long time of travel. Also pray for strength to be patient and flexible because we have a long couple of days ahead of us.

Thank you, God bless and until next time...........

On Sunday June 15th all of the students arrived in Orlando.

Over the last day or two there were many times set apart for get-to-know-you-games as well as times in our family groups. Also, we have been poured into by different members of staff through worship and teachings such as Worship by Kathryn Nettles, Quiet Times by Dean Sangrey, and The Father Heart of God by Ezra Griffiths.

The family group time is a way for the students to feel as if they are a part of a smaller unit that can function similarly to a family unit. There is a "Mom," a "Dad," and an "Uncle" in every group. During these times there is discussion of teachings and how things are going. This time is also used to pray as a team for any needs. Last night´s family time was super and the groups had a great time of ministry for each other.

During the little time in Orlando, the team has been busy learning. Monday and Tuesday have been filled with dancing in preparation for the ministry program that will be used in overseas evangelism. Though it is a long time to be dancing, everyone has maintained a great attitude.

Today and tomorrow will be filled with packing and preparing; we leave for Sweden on Wednesday afternoon. We appreciate all of your support through prayer and are excited to see how God is going to move and use this team to reach the nations.