Wednesday, March 23, 2011

A Day In The Life

Last night during worship the Holy Spirit told me to take a walk to Boxi (Boxhagener Park) and then down to this sandwich shop that we discovered when YWAM Brisbane was here.  The owner of the shop was really friendly to us and Bre shared Jesus with him for a long time.

So....today around 11:45 I took myself off to Boxi.  The sun was shinning and it would have been really warm today except for a cool breeze that was blowing.  I entered Boxi and didn't see York sitting where he usually sits on the first bench.  There was a really "normal" looking lady sitting there.  As I walked down I saw Ed.  He was just strumming his guitar and I said, "Ed!"  I hadn't seen him since last summer when he joined our church worship in Boxi.  He came right to me with a big smile and shook my hand.  Next to him was tall Alex and since Ed shook my hand so politely, I think Alex felt propelled to do the same.  As we chatted and I asked Alex how life was....Curly came up off the bench and over to me.  He began speaking rapidly in a mixture of French and German.  He was obviously very drunk.  I asked him to speak English as I had no idea what he was saying and then Ed came over and said, "Be polite now" to Curly.  Then Curly got a menacing look on his face and kept stepping towards me.  I said, "Curly, only Jesus loves you like you want to be loved.  Only Jesus."  He kept on with his language and threatening when suddenly Alex came up to him and grabbed him away from me.  That was my cue to take myself off.  I was pleased inside that Alex and Ed totally came to my defense and not one bit scared of Curly.  I thanked them and told them that I loved them and left the park.  It was a strange experience but I told the Lord, "Okay...I went to Boxi like you told me to."

Then I went to the sandwich shop and ordered my sandwich from a guy I didn't know.  Then the guy we had witnessed to walked out from the back and when he saw me he said, "Hey!  Hello!  How are you?"  I was pleased that he remembered me and told him that I came back because I wanted another one of his delicious sandwiches.  The other guy began making it and put 2 pieces of salami on and he said, "Put another one on.  Make it with love!  More lettuce.  More jalapeno."  I was giggling....what favor!  I didn't feel led to say any more to him about Jesus.....just smiling and buying his sandwich was enough, I think. 

At 2pm I traveled out to Marzahn to have coffee with a sweet girl who just returned to Berlin from 2 years with Operation Mobilization in Russia.  We had a wonderful time getting to know one another and then she walked me out to the tram station and put me on a tram that she said would take me all the way home.  (This was a different way home from the way I came).  I settled myself in for the 30 minute ride, book in hand,  when after about 5 stations I heard, "This train is ending here.  All get off."  Huh???  I was so confused.  When it stopped people started getting ON and so I thought I heard wrong.  Then the train driver came out of the front and walked to the back to drive back in the direction we came from.  So....I called Fran for help and while I was explaining to her my dilemma a lady across the aisle said to me, "I know what's going on.  I can explain it to you and help you."  So I hung up with Fran and the lady explained that they are doing construction on the line.  She happened to be going to almost the same place as me and so she said I could follow her back to another station and transfer there to our stop.  She was very friendly and we chatted all the way home.  When she found out I was a Christian missionary she said, "That is very strange because I just got done reading a paper I found in the station about God.  It was saying that there are many ways to God and that Jesus is the Way."  (Inside I was jumping up and down!!!!)  What a God-thing!  Then she asked me if I was with any sect or group and I explained that I had come to Germany alone and that the bible was my guide.  She said, "I met another Christian like that".  I said, "Oh...maybe I know him/her because the Christian world is very small in Berlin," and she said, "Oh that was two years ago!"  (I got the impression that she had only met ONE other Christian in Berlin!)  While we were walking I pulled out my card and told her about der Garten.  She saw that my email was on the card and said, "I will email you.  My last name is: ________ so make sure it doesn't go in your spam box."  She lives right here in Friedrichshain!!!!!!
I wondered why Naty put me on that tram instead of going home the way I came....and it all became clear.  I was also late for a prayer meeting with Fran....Naty and I had totally spaced out on the time....and that became clear as well. 

At 6:15pm when Fran and I were done praying, there was a knock on the der Garten door and I opened it right away thinking that it was Michael come for worship but instead it was Olaf - another man from Boxi.  We met Olaf 2 years ago when we first stared going into Boxi.  We watched him kick his girlfriend in the face.  It was horrifying. Then months later I started having conversations with him and one day the Lord told me to tell him that HE was his Papa.  I had found out that he was raised in foster homes and didn't know his mom or dad.  After that, every time I saw him I said, "Your Papa loves you!"  One day last year, he came bouncing into der Garten with 2 friends.  He said, "Here they are!  Here are the Chrisitans!"  Turns out a friend of his had just come into Berlin and the friend jokingly said, "Where are the Christians?"  and Olaf immediately said, "I know where they are!" and brought his friend to der Garten.  Before they left he said to Bre, "Will you pray for us?"  When she prayed the power of God came down on them and they were visibly moved.  They took der Garten fliers with them to place in their new Squat-House bar and they invited us to come at anytime and pray for people there.  Olaf informed us that he was done with Boxi and would now be working in the bar.  Well.....almost 7 months have gone by since I have seen Olaf.  When I was in Boxi today I thought, "I wonder what Olaf is up to?"  .  He was a bit drunk and so when Fran left, I was a bit apprehensive but I asked him if he wanted a coffee and to my relief he said he did and so I busied myself with that and soon Michael arrived who was to do worship.  Then Michael's girlfriend Helena arrived.  I told Olaf that we were going to pray before worship and he seemed glad.  He wanted us all to hold hands and he told me to look into his eyes when I prayed.  So I did and I asked Helena to translate what I prayed into Deutsch.  I thanked the Lord for sending Olaf in that day because I had just been thinking of him.  I said that Jesus was his Papa and loved him so much and I asked the Holy Spirit to come down and fill his heart and life with his love.  Then Helena prayed in Deutsch and Mike prayed.  After the prayer time, I got up to light all the candles and wonderful Helena began ministering to Olaf.  She asked him if he had a bible and he didn't and so I got him a bible and another small booklet to read (all in Deutsch).  (BLESS Helena!!)  I was so thankful she was there to talk to him in German.  Then all of a sudden Olaf began coughing in spasm's.  Really bad coughing.  I got him some water and he told me it was asthma.  He stood up still coughing horribly and I laid my hand on his chest and began praying.  His coughing stopped almost immediately.  About a minute later, he took my hand and placed it back on his chest so I would pray some more, so I did and I believe the healing of Jesus came all over him.  I gave him lots of hugs and it was so fun to pour the love of Jesus upon him.  He left not much later and took the bible and booklet with him. 

Hallelujah!!!  Our worship was so sweet.  There was only 5 of us but the atmosphere was filled with the presence of Jesus.  We were all relaxed under the sweetness of Jesus.  

THANK YOU LORD for a day of walking with YOU and working with you.  There is just nothing else quite like it!

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Sounds of Thunder

Two times this past week, Luke 21:25 was brought to my attention.  Two separate writers stated that they felt this verse is talking about Tsunami's.  "And there will be strange events in the skies - signs in the sun, moon and stars.  And down here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides.  The courage of many people will falter because of the fearful fate they see coming upon the earth, because the stability of the very heavens will be broken up."

One of the writers was a man named Wolfgang Simson.  He is a German man that has written books on the home church movement in the world, notably, "Houses that change the world".  If you want to read more about him, you can go to his web page, www.simsonwolfgang.de/html/welcome.html,  He has a good article entitled: "Better than the Hippies".  ANYWAY!!!!! I got a newsletter from him where he sites some statistics about how things ARE worse now than ever before.  The main thing I hear when I say, "These are the signs of the times" is, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, people have been saying that for generations."  So, I wanted to share what Wolfgang found. 

As anyone can see, something of an apocalyptic nature is happening on the planet, to the planet and sometimes through the planet; something that at this intensity and speed has not happened before. The tip of the iceberg: In the year 2008, Reinsurance giant “Swiss Re” lists 311 (173 of them “man- made”) catastrophes for that year, killing about 250.000 people and costing 7.4 billion US $. Add to this the credit crisis. Year 2009: Swiss-Re lists 850 catastrophes (damage of 50 $ b); Year 2010: Swiss-Re lists 950 catastrophes with about 295.000 dead (and a damage of 130 billion $); 250.000 alone die after the earthquake in Haiti; worst floods in Pakistan’s history displaces millions; mud buries folks in China, and fires devastate the area around Mt. Carmel in Israel. Year 2011, so far: Australia experiences unimaginable draught, fire and floods. Much of the inner city of Christchurch (New Zealand) is leveled, its Cathedral badly damaged. Speak of a symbolic place… The Arab world is like a sea in uproar…

So I found this all very interesting.  I feel an excitement tingling in me if it is all true and we really are NEAR the END.  

If you knew Christ was returning in a couple of years, would you be living any differently?  I ask myself this question a lot.  

Jesus said, "Watch out!  Don't let me find you living in careless ease and drunkenness, and filled with the worries of this life.  Don't let that day catch you unaware, as in a trap.  For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth.  Keep a constant watch.  And pray that, if possible, you may escape these horrors and stand before the Son of Man."              Luke 21:34-36

 

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

der Garten Worship

We had no allusions when we made the decision to do worship every night (except Sat. & Sunday) in der Garten cafe.  I even said to BreAnna and Thilo, "I feel pretty sure it will be just us worshiping in there every night."  They agreed that this was most likely so.  Furthermore we all agreed that this was okay.  Our goal in doing worship is not to make crowds but to glorify Jesus.

Last night in der Garten I felt that my heavenly Father's heart was filled with joy.  I know mine was.  Mostly because of Louis.  We met him two years ago in Boxhagner Park when we first went in there to evangelize.  He came right over to us and started talking to us in his half-German/half-Spanish speak.  He told us he was a Pilgrim following after God.  We told him the whole story of Jesus and he was excited to pray with us and be filled with the Holy Spirit.  Louis is from Venezuela and  dresses colorfully just like you'd imagine a Venezuelan to look with lots of jewelry and colorful shirts.  He was in a bicycle accident some years ago and had a brain injury.  He walks with a shuffle and his speech is hard to understand but his smile is huge and every ready.  He calls me "Mutti" even though I am only 4 or 5 years older than him.  When we take tracts about Jesus to the park, he takes handfuls from us and passes them out to every one.  Usually when Louis comes into der Garten he only stays long enough for a cup of tea and a prayer for his brain.  "Mutti, Mutti, beten fur mein kopf!"  (Mom, pray for my head).  But last night Louis stayed for an hour and a half.  He was dancing and praising and really seeking God!  I saw his face turned up to heaven with joy and wonder all over his expression.  He was playing the tambourine and we laughed together.  I was so excited that this Louis whom we met two years ago was now a full-fledged son of the King enjoying life in the kingdom.

Another gal was there who has been set free from horrific child-abuse.  The minute she came in she began singing.  Her joy & freedom are so precious to her that she just bubbles over at times with joy. 
Another young lady was laying on the couch...soaking in the presence of God.  Then there were the sounds of a harmonica being played by a man who is our only regular worshiper.  He comes in night after night with his harmonica's and joins in to the guitar playing and piano.  Another lady was sitting on the carpet pouring over her bible receiving words of revelation.  Then there was our neighbor who is in a wheelchair.  He can't dance or even clap his hands but the joy on his face was evident. My daughter was at the piano learning to play chords with the guitar and I was tapping out tunes on the xylophone.  I looked around me and joy started spilling out of me.  All in all there were ten of us worshiping!  All of us weak and with failures.  None of us successful by worldly standards.  Yet I believe we made the Father smile.  I felt HIS smile and pleasure and that makes me strong and successful.