One step at a time...

July Newsletter

2009-08-17T01:24:00.000-07:00

“Doing”

The majority of my month hasn’t actually been about “doing” things, which I will talk about more later, but I have had a couple of things that I was involved with leading in the last few weeks that are noteworthy. At the beginning of July, we helped run a 2-day holiday camp at a church where one of our staff is the youth and children’s pastor. We played games with the kids, did a bit of teaching about our identity according to what God says (that seems to be a favorite topic of mine), and we were even brave enough to let them do some baking! A couple weeks after that, a few of us also ran the kids program for a church camp that was going on - we occupied the kids while their parents were listening to speakers and having worship times, and then throughout the rest of the camp got to know the people there, went canoeing, and rested. It’s great being able to do those kinds of camps to bless and connect with churches in the area.

Besides camps, I’ve been loosely involved with the DTS that started on the 1st of July (which Dan is leading). Besides getting to know the students and just being a friend, I’ve been organizing one of their weekly local outreach opportunities, which has been a lot of fun for me. Every week, myself and 3 other girls visit a group home for people with disabilities (very similar to the ACR home I worked at in Minnesota, though the residents here are fairly independent) and do one-on-one activities with some of the residents: play games, talk, cook. The students have really enjoyed it, I think, and it’s of course right up my alley. I’ve loved being able to get back into working with people with disabilities a bit - it’s in my blood!

“Un-Doing”

As I mentioned before, this has also been a month of un-doing: as in not “doing” much, undoing lies that I’ve believed and habits I’ve formed, and rearranging quite a few things in my life. That hasn’t been an incredibly enjoyable process, but I know that God is in it and is teaching me things and growing me in ways that will effect how I do things for the rest of my life. The context of all this un-doing has been that for the first half of the year, I was pushing lots of things forward, working hard and a lot… and I enjoyed it. However, after the outreach team that I was hosting left (in the end of June), I had a bit of a pause in all the work and realized I was quite burnt out and that a lot of the passion for what I was doing had left. So, I’ve been taking it slow and lightening my work load a bit so that I can take time to learn to rest.

The biggest thing that God’s been teaching me through all of this is that I’ve been gaining my value through what I do, and not who I am (who God says I am!). Since I haven’t been doing as much (or getting recognized for what I’m doing), I’ve felt like I’m floundering in who I am a bit and really needing to let God re-shape the way I see him and the way I see myself. I spent almost an entire day a while back having God just tell me in lots of different ways that he loves me… just because I am, not because I do things, not because other people think I’m valuable, but just because I am. I know that it will be a life-long process to keep understanding the depth of God’s love, but I do know that I’ve reached another “layer” of understanding what that looks like.

So, through all of that, I’ve been trying to re-evaluate what I want to be doing for the rest of the year, how I can be learning and growing, and also I how I can be more and more content just being God’s friend.

News from the whole of YWAM Adelaide

Pablo and Fernanda

Our base directors, Pablo and Fernanda, are still in South America working on getting a new visa for Australia. They have overcome quite a few hurdles (needing to prove finance etc) and are now just waiting to hear if their nomination has been accepted. They are hoping to be back in Adelaide before the end of the year!

UDTS

Our Urban DTS has been running for about 6 weeks now and is going very well, I think God has already done a lot of healing in each of the students’ lives. The team is currently in Melbourne for a mid-lecture phase outreach and will be returning in a week or so to complete their lectures. Their main outreach will be to the USA and Mexico!

“Intimate” base meetings

Our staff numbers are quite low at the moment, so those of us here have been getting to know each other quite well! It’s been a bit of a stretch for all of us to keep the base running (cooking, cleaning, paying the bills…) and also move forward ministry-wise. We do have a few things in the works, though - we’ve been visiting lots of churches, supporting other ministries, and planning for events later in the year.

May/June update

2009-08-17T01:14:00.000-07:00

Well, May and June have been quite full and busy, which is why this newsletter is covering two months and not just one. I’ve been too busy doing things to be able to write about doing them! I can honestly say, though, that I know I’m where I’m supposed to be so it’s good to be busy and exciting to see things happening.

The first half of May was filled with lots of planning and sitting in my office (yes, life as a missionary is pretty glamourous). One of the things I was planning for was a school seminar that I ran in the middle of the month. The seminar was held at a school in a small country town with about 65 kids from year 1 to year 10. We were talking about creation and sustainability - basically telling the students that we believe God created the world and put us in charge to take care of it, and then we talked about ways that we can do that. The younger kids, especially, were really engaged in what I was saying and loved our illustrations and games, I think we all had a lot of fun. We got great feedback from the school and made some good connections with the staff there, so that was great!

In the course of all of that, I was quite encouraged to see how I’ve grown. This year I’ve really been thrown into doing lots of things and sometimes feel like I’ve been just dropped in the deep end with little prior experience organizing, planning or public speaking. However, I feel like every time I have a big project like this to do, it’s better than the last time. God’s really given me grace this year and I’ve seen myself grow in huge ways. Looking back, I can see that the only reason I’ve grown so much is because I’ve been willing and open to God changing me, challenging me, changing my plans and guiding me. I’ve literally said to God so many times, “You know what you need to do in my life, just do it.” Any time I’ve tried to fix things about myself or tell God what needs to change about me, he just tells me he loves me and is proud of me, so I’ve given up giving God my list and just learned to trust him (I think it’s a much better approach…).

While working on planning my school seminar, I was also pu

tting together ministry for a team of 11 girls who came from the US to do a mission trip with us. They were with us for 2 weeks in the beginning of June, mostly working with Rahab but also helping out around the base and with different ministries around Adelaide. I had a lot of fun getting the know the girls; having other Americans around was a big blessing for me and I really enjoyed it a lot. The team was great - helpful, passionate, hard workers - and we were sad to see them go (though I was happy for the break from planning 12 people’s lives rather than just my own). I think they all returned to the US with a broader vision of

what’s happening in the world (especially in the areas of prostitution and human trafficking) and it seemed that God was challenging them as a group to do something about it! Very exciting.

Other than that, recently I have felt God asking me and challenging me to be praying more about the things that we want to be happening here, especially with youth ministry. Damian, who is also on staff here, and I are meeting 3 times a week to pray and hear from God and dream about what he has for us. I feel like we are at a point where some of the groundwork has been laid (networking, connections, I’ve gained experience) and we need to hear from God to know where to go from here. I still don’t really have a clear view of how long God wants me to be involved in youth ministry here, but I do know that I have a part to play now so I want to be sure I don’t miss out on what that is. I have also felt from God to be praying regularly for the DTS that is happening at the moment (it actually just started today!). I am not actually staffing the DTS but will be working with them in a few different capacities and want to be committed to covering the staff and students in prayer. So, I’ll be seeing a lot of the inside of our prayer room in the coming months!

Like I said earlier, I’ve been looking back and seeing all the ways that God’s been moving and working in my life in the past 18 months, but I’ve also seen him doing a lot in the present. The past 6 weeks or so, especially, have been quite the whirlwind - here are a few of the things that have been happening.

New Relationship

Introducing the newest addition to my life: Daniel Anear. Dan is 25, he’s been on staff here at YWAM for about 5 years and (among many other things) is leading the DTS that just started up this month. And I am very honored to be able to say that he’s my boyfriend.

God certainly has a sense of humor and a different sense of timing than we do, but I’m so glad that he makes things happen! Dan and I have been good friends ever since I was on DTS and about 6 weeks ago he took me out to a dance performance by a company made up of people with disabilities (very perfect, if you know me at all…). That night, he told me that he liked me and wanted to see where things would go with us. After a lot of thinking and praying and talking, we really felt like God was telling us to go forward with the relationship, and we’re pretty excited about what God is doing! Over about 3 days, God had completely opened my eyes to the fact that He’s been setting things up for the last couple years for us as individuals and as friends and he also opened my eyes to what an incredible person Dan is. He loves God, listens to him, has amazing clarity of what God has called him to do - I am very blessed. The timing did seem a bit strange at first, as Dan is just leading his first DTS, and I had only just been fully embracing my “singleness”, but we’ve already seen how God is going to use me to support him during the DTS and how he’s laying a great foundation. We are trusting God and listening to him every step of the way, and are also having a lot of fun. Your prayers for both of us and for us as a couple are greatly appreciated!

New room

For the 18 months that I’ve been on staff here, I’ve lived in a dorm room with a few other girls, which has been fine but had been getting a bit hard having minimal personal space. Last week, our base leadership decided to let 6 of us single girls who are long-term staff move into an apartment in the other end of our building. After 18 months of just having half a bunk bed and a cupboard (and other storage made up of milk crates), we now have 2 bedrooms for 6 of us and also a kitchen, living room and bathroom. We are all pretty pumped! We spent a couple afternoons moving furniture and belongings (Nat and I and a few others moved 6 of those wardrobes in the picture above - go us) and are now getting settled in and having fun shopping for things like spatulas and potato peelers and storage bins.

Traveling and learning

2009-05-14T22:17:00.000-07:00

Never a dull moment... a few of us changing a tire on the way to ministry

WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING

April was an eventful month for me. At the end of March I left Adelaide and traveled to Melbourne (Southeast of Adelaide) to spend 2 weeks there doing a course on leadership - once I finish all the paperwork and assignments I will be officially certified to lead DTSes. The course gave me a lot of good insights into leadership in general, as well as time-management skill

s etc. Even with all of that, perhaps my favorite part was getting to know the other students. We were from about 5 or 6 different YWAM bases, so it was really good to network with them and hear about different ministries and visions that other bases have. YWAM Australia is doing a lot of

amazing things and impacting lots of people, it’s an honor to know these people and be a part of it.

After Melbourne, I had a bit of an adventure with planes and airports (my last blog entry tells the whole story), but when I finally got to Brisbane, I met up with a team from Adelaide and we all ran a NIKO camp there for a week. NIKO is an outdoors challenge that aims to help the participants grow in their leadership abilities and their relationships with God. We had a fun group of high school students from YouthStreet Townsville participating. To add to the planned challenges of the week, the first day we had a quite major rain storm and had to change quite a few aspects of the camp due to that. We were all quite a bit soaked and some of the kids had a hard time, but overall the participants (and staff) took it all in stride and enjoyed the rest of the week. Although we didn’t know any of the kids beforehand, the staff that had come with them said that many grew in leaps and bounds and they were really excited to see the kids stepping up onto things they hadn’t expected. I personally have learned a lot from NIKO and was excited to see others benefit from it as well.

After the week in Brisbane, we headed back towards Adelaide, stopping for 3 days in a small town called Morgan to run a kids’ program at a church camp going on there. We had about 15 kids, all there with their families, who we entertained while their parents were listening to teaching. We enjoyed spending time with the kids and in the afternoons had the opportunity to go tubing on the river nearby. I had a lot of fun reliving parts of my childhood at my grandparents’ cabin - I even got to

go fishing, although we didn’t catch anything. It did make me miss the lakes in Minnesota!

After being back home in Adelaide for only 3 days, I left again to be part of a rally in Melbourne. The rally, called “The Rescue” was being put on by an organization called Invisible Children, and we were raising awareness about the situation in Northern Uganda. For more than 20 years, children in this area have been kidnapped and forced to fight in a war they have nothing to do with. There has been little media attention or public knowledge about this situation, and for the last 3 or so years Invisible Children has been fighting it. I really believe in this cause and wanted to be a part of it. About 65 of us took a bus from Adelaide to Melbourne to be part of the rally, and it did catch a bit of media attention. We filled the night with listening to political figures speak, learning more about the issue, and an impromptu percussion/dance session. The event was actually happening around the world and in Chicago they held out until Oprah put them on her show - pretty exciting! (Pictures from the event on the right. If you’re interested in more information, visit invisiblechildren.com)

Needless to say, after all that traveling I was pretty well spent and happy to be back home in Adelaide. It’s funny how being away for a month in another part of the country has become commonplace for me at the moment, but I’m glad that life is never boring!

LEARNING

The last 2+ years that I’ve been a part of YWAM have been a constant process of learning and growing, and the last month or two have been no exception. As I’ve really been setting my own schedule and for the most part organizing all the ministry I’ve been doing, I’ve been learning to manage my time, think in details, manage people and plan ahead. Those have been really important lessons to learn and will be imperative, I’m sure, as I move forward in ministry.

One of the main things I’ve been working on (and learning from) lately is school seminars, where we go into a school for an hour or so assembly and talk about any range of topics from a Christian perspective. We did the first one of those at the end of April, talking about our identity and value from God’s perspective. I thought it went really well, I had a great team with various backgrounds and we were all able to share from our own experiences. I have another lined up at the end of May and lots of other schools that are interested in us coming to talk to their students. I’m really excited about this prospect, and really amazed that we have this opportunity to go into public schools and talk to kids about what we believe. I’ve had to learn very quickly how to run these, how to get people together to help me out and how to engage the kids, but I feel that every time I have an opportunity to lead a seminar or assembly or ministry opportunity, it goes better than the last, so that is encouraging!

The more I do youth ministry, the more I do feel passionate about, so I’m still talking to God about where he’s taking me with that. As I’ve mentioned in other updates, I first got into focusing on youth to support my friend, Laura, but she is still in America support raising, so that has caused me to re-evaluate where my heart really is. I have been more and more excited about the prospects that we have regarding the youth in Adelaide, so we’ll see what God does with that. I am praying regularly with Damian, another staff who wants to help with youth ministry, about options and ideas. We will see where God takes us!

Outside of “work” hours, God is still teaching me a lot in my personal life. After growing up in a very Christian environment, I’m finding myself needing to ask real questions about what I believe and why I believe it, and what God says about things that I take for granted. I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been talking a lot to my friend in Brisbane about spirituality and what I believe. It’s been a great experience, because I find that so many of the “answers” that I offer make sense to me, but they aren’t quite enough for her. I am realizing there are so many real life issues that I haven’t ever really thought through. Although it is the truth, saying “because God says so” isn’t always enough for people who don’t know God. I’m glad that I’m having to think through these issues because I know that once I’ve wrestled with things I’ll be so much stronger. I want to be able to really talk to people about God and his love and what he wants for their lives and feel like I have real answers to offer them. God is taking me on a journey, and I’m really happy to be challenged and messed up if it means being closer to him and more ready to impact other people’s lives.

Learning the hard way

2009-04-22T01:16:00.000-07:00

I’ve spent the last month away from Adelaide, studying and doing ministry, living out of a suitcase and sleeping on lots of different floors. I spent two weeks at the YWAM base in Melbourne, doing a course so that I’m certified to do training (DTSes etc.) and then at the end of that time had a flight to Brisbane, where I was going to stay with a friend for a few days and then meet up with some others to run a NIKO camp (a leadership development/team building outdoors experience). Sounds simple enough…right?

Well, add the fact that my natural hair color is in fact blonde, and we have trouble. I organized a ride to the airport, got there an hour before my flight, went to the electronic check-in kiosk…and no flight to Brisbane was listed. I quickly grabbed my laptop to check my flight details and also called Nat back in Adelaide and asked her to check my email. We both came to the same conclusion - I was at the wrong airport.

Brilliant.

The airport that my flight actually left from was over an hour away (pictured on the right, and yes, that is basically the entire airport...) with no direct shuttle so that I had to take an (expensive) shuttle

to the city and then another (more expensive) back out to the other airport. I called my friend in Brisbane, told her what was going on, jumped on the bus to the city and tried to figure out my options. At this point I was pretty certain I would miss my plane and was completely frustrated, all I could do was ask God what to do. My friend had suggested getting a taxi, and I felt like that was what God was telling me to do also. So, when I got to the city - with 30 min to go before my flight - I found a taxi driver, asked him how long to the airport and he told me it would be an hour. I didn’t even ask how much money that would be and walked away, figuring it was too late (and figuring I knew better than God, of course).

I sat at the bus station for a while, found internet so I could check on the airline’s website etc. I called the airline, was put on hold, naturally, and just as someone got to me I ran out of phone credit. Amazing. After another 30 min or so of trying to figure all that out, not being able to get on the internet to put more credit on my phone, and watching some other guy use the pay phone that I could’ve been using, I finally was able to use that phone, got through to the airline and they said they couldn’t do anything and I had to go to the airport. I tried calling the airport to avoid the $20 shuttle and got this message, “our office hours are 8am to 5pm, please try again at that time.” I looked at my watch: 5:01.

So, I finally figured my only option was to actually go to the airport, suck it up and pay the money. I had to wait an hour and a half for it to actually leave and in the meantime was at least able to finally buy phone credit. I took the shuttle, the whole time asking God to make it work out for me, to figure something out, and to make it clear to me what I was supposed to be learning from all of this. I finally made it to the airport, went to the service desk praying for someone helpful. The lady was really nice to me, but when I told her which flight I had missed her response was: “That flight was delayed for 3 hours. Had you arrived 45 minutes earlier you would’ve made it.”

0 for 5.

Recall the taxi option? Probably should’ve just listened to God - it’s almost like he was saying “I tried to hold the plane for you…”

I had hoped I’d at least be able to get on a flight the next day or something, but there was nothing else available to Brisbane for a few days. Fortunately, I had somewhere to stay in the city, so I jumped back on that shuttle to the city, took the train to my friend’s house and tried to figure out what the heck I was going to do.

It all ended up working out, although I only spent one day with my friend in Brisbane rather than 4 and I had to fly into a totally different city and meet up with others going to Brisbane for the camp. It also cost me a good chunk of money, which was annoying.

I guess the reason I wanted to tell this story on my blog was to comment on what I got out of it. Like I said, the whole day I kept asking God what he was teaching me. And I don’t know if I ever got a clear answer but looking back it was pretty clear that I should’ve just taken a breath, slowed down and listened to God and done what he directed, even if it didn’t seem to make sense. I think in this concentrated situation, I was able to see a little of how I tend to live my life day-to-day. I’m so often so busy that I am just constantly reacting to what’s thrown at me (or the consequences of being disorganized) rather than being able to step back and see the big picture. I know I should talk to God about what’s going on, and usually do, but don’t actually take all the time needed to listen for the answers to my frantic prayers.

This has been something God has really been teaching me lately, anyways, and was just another reminder that I’m getting there but haven’t yet arrived (and honestly, do you ever actually arrive?) I’m learning to plan, organize myself, say no, set boundaries… and it’s been good but hard. I am becoming more and more aware of how important those lessons are, though, so I’m getting there. I am really thankful that God allows me to reap the consequences of my mistakes and oversights so that I am able to learn, but at the same time helps me pick up the pieces and figure stuff out. He really did work things out for me, and has blessed me financially so that I wasn't at a complete loss in that area. I’ve been reminded again and again lately of his wisdom and the fact that he can see the big picture…how good is that?

Pictures

2009-04-02T07:31:00.000-07:00

Check out my picasa album (or photos link) for pictures from my time in Melbourne.

Long time coming....

2009-03-11T05:49:00.000-07:00

Hey all

Long time no update. I've basically copied and pasted a newsletter that I sent out via email, so if you've received that no need to re-read. If you haven't.... happy reading (and let me know if you'd like to be added to my email list)

We have had a very busy beginning of the year as a YWAM family. At the end of January, our base directors (Pablo and Fernanda) had an oversight with their visa and have had to go back to South America to apply for a new one. That was quite a shock and adjustment for all of us, but things have been going quite well in their absence. Ray Lind, who has been with YWAM Adelaide for 18 years, is our acting base director and is doing a great job. He is very practical and motivated and has us doing a lot - ministry, cleaning up the base, getting involved in the

community. Although the changes were quite sudden and a bit stressful I know God knows what he’s doing and that he’s using this time to prepare us for more in the future. We have also had quite a few people leave lately which is always hard and a bit sad but I know that each of them is where God wants them to be (and so are those of us still in Adelaide) so it is exciting to see what God is doing with their lives. We also had a new DTS start in February, and while I am not directly involved in it, I have been able to teach them some dramas that they will use for outreach and am enjoying getting to know them.

My job description

Like I said, there have been lots of changes to the way that we’re doing things and with that what I do on the base has morphed quite a bit. As most know, part of my longer-term vision for the next couple years is to help with the start of a youth ministry here. My friend, Laura, is planning on heading up the ministry but she is in the US raising support and so I am trying to lay some of the groundwork for the beginnings of it. At this point, I am mostly networking with people already doing youth work, running highschool seminars about various topics, and helping with youth camps through different organizations and churches. For this season, my motto is basically “if it involves youth and meeting people, I’m there”. The focus of the entire base is shifting more in this way anyway, so I am just one of the first to get the ball rolling but have many people backing me up and helping me out.

I have also been doing a few things to help keep the base running on the practical side of things. I’m learning (slowly) how to do a bit of the accounting for the base and work on that for a few hours a week. I think that’s been a great skill to learn, although sometimes it makes my head spin. I have also been trying my hand at cooking for the base which has been a good

learning experience. I definitely appreciate the courage that it takes for everyone to come to meals that I have prepared.

Travels

Life with YWAM wouldn’t be YWAM if I stayed in the same place… In the end of March I will be traveling to Melbourne (about 8 hours away) to take part in a course on training and assessment. The course is required by the government for those leading/directing DTSes and while I don’t necessarily have plans to do that anytime soon it is a good thing to have under my belt. After that, I will be going up to Brisbane to visit a friend who I am discipling a bit and then in Brisbane we will be running a NIKO camp, which is a leadership/team-building outdoors experience. And if that wasn’t enough, on the way back we’ll be helping with another weekend camp in a small town. I’m trying hard to guard my time in Adelaide and make sure that I am here for the majority of the time, but it is exciting to be able to see other parts of Australia and reach out to Australians.

CML

As a part of everything else that I’m doing, I am still involved in the Christian Missions Leadership course. We meet for lectures once a week and have some homework like reading books and articles and writing reports on outreach that we’re a part of anyway. For the next few months we are going through the classic Boundaries series and that has been really good for me. I had been realizing how much I struggled with saying no, volunteering for everything, and then feeling tired and a bit burnt

out. So, I have really been able to apply what we’re talking about in practical ways and it’s been really good. I feel like I’m still busy but able to limit the new things that I put on my plate and not feel guilty or that I’m letting people down. So, it’s been really good and I know that God will continue to teach me more through this course as well as everything else that I’m doing here.

Other things of note:

I’ve been taking a dance class once a week and have really enjoyed dancing again as well as getting to know people through that

I’ve been attending a house church that is run by YWAMers and others

God has been teaching me lots about money, time management, organization and relating to people. These are constant lessons, I know, but I am very glad to see changes in these areas of my life.

Autumn will be coming to Adelaide soon and I am actually looking forward to the cooler weather - must be the Minnesotan in me

I am incredibly blessed by all those around the world supporting me and keeping in touch, it's always good to hear from you!

God's blessings

Caitlin

New way to Donate

2009-01-21T19:18:00.000-08:00

Check out the "finances" link on this blog to see a new way to donate to me financially, if you are interested. Also, check out my latest update below!

Back in Australia!

2009-01-12T20:16:00.000-08:00

Hey all!

The last 6 weeks or so seem to have been quite the whirlwind, but I've finally found some time to sit down and document a bit of what's been happening.

I had a great month at home, got to spend a lot of time with my family and catch up with lots of people. I was really glad there was lots of snow!

It was a good time to be able to communicate with people what I'm up to, freak out a little about how much everyone has grown in the last year, and have a little time off to pray and think about where God has me. When you're living in a certain reality, it's easy to forget what other options are out there, so it's always good to go home and get a little perspective. That being said, it was hard to leave everyone back home, but I do have peace about this being where God has me for now. He wants me to be seeing Adelaide as home, and committing to being here as long as he has me here. That is a scary concept, and one that I haven't completely accepted yet, but I'm getting there. I know that the only place I want to be is where God has me, but the ramifications of that on the future are a little harder to jump right into. I am really excited about the coming year(s), and can see that God is going to do some great things! I think he's still positioning us all, but it'll all happen soon!

When I got back to Australia right before New Years, I spent a day in Sydney with Zac and Graham, my Canadian friends, and then traveled up to Byron Bay for 10 or so days of outreach. We joined up with the YWAM base there and some other YWAMers for what they called Impact Summer. Byron Bay is a big backpackers destination, and a very spiritual town, so we mainly hosted events that were conducive to meeting people and having conversations with them. During the day, we'd set up volleyball nets at the beach and invite people for games. A couple times we had a volleyball tournament with people from all over the place. In the evenings, we set up in a park and gave away pancakes and chai, did some performances, and shared testimonies. Especially during the evenings, many people on our team had opportunities to share their stories and God's love with backpackers and locals. There was a local who used to be a crystal healer, and he was hanging out with us almost every night that we were there. Several people had chances to talk to him, and by the end of our time there, he wanted to be baptized. We were all there as he was baptized in the ocean and then prayed for him after that. It was an awesome experience! I personally talked to several people who had questions about Christian spirituality, and made some friends what I will be in touch with who are seeking. It was a really fun outreach - especially rough because we spent a good majority of our time on the beach ;).

Since Byron Bay, I've been at my friend Nat's house, spending time with her family and relaxing a bit. Tomorrow we'll be heading back to Adelaide and getting back to work. I'm really excited to see everyone there as well!

Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support while I was home. It was great to see so many people and catch up. I'll continue to be in touch!

Blessings

Caitlin

Looking back, looking forward

2008-11-28T00:17:00.000-08:00

As I write this I'm sitting in the Sydney airport (on very dodgy internet that I'm somehow picking up from someone for free), waiting for my plane to take me back to the States. Weird feeling.

In the last few weeks or so, as I've been anticipating heading home for a while, I've been reflecting a lot on the year: what I've done, what God's taught me, how I've changed. To be honest, it's quite overwhelming but also exciting. If I look at where I was when I left Minnesota almost a year ago, I can definitely say God has done a LOT. I think that'll become more and more apparent as I am back in my "normal" culture for a while.

I've realized that a lot of times, when I update on here

, I focus more on the practical stuff that I'm doing, so this time I thought I'd share a little bit of the things that I've learned and the ways that I've changed. I can definitely see that this season of my life is all about growing and God equipping me for the future, so it's exciting to see how he's doing that!

One huge area has been me getting used to the concept of growing up and being an adult. Being the oldest of 5, I've always had a strong sense of responsibili

ty, but the fact that I'm growing up still scares me sometimes and I find myself freaking out a lot when I have to commit to things and when I realize that life will only become more responsibility. God's working on me in this area, though, and I'm much more ready to make decisions that will affect a good chunk of my life now than I was at the beginning of the year. Growing up is scary, but it's good. I'm really grateful that God's placed me in YWAM and in Adelaide, because the

people there have really become a second family to me and helped in the growing-up process.

I've also taken big strides when it comes to friendships, communication, relationships in general, my self-esteem. Why is being who God made you so hard sometimes? Why do we so often try to be like other people, tell God that he made a mistake, wear masks?

Insecurity has been a stronghold in my life for too long, and God's really been working on me hard-core in that area. I'm learning to be ok with only what God says about me, not what everyone else says (or what I think they think about me). I'm learning to believe God when he tells me who I am. Sounds simple. Is simple. Is also hard.

At the same time.... wow, it's nice to be myself. God just continues to free me from so many mindsets and beliefs that were such a part of who I was, but were so wrong. The exciting part is, I know so many girls and women struggle with the same insecurities that I have struggled

with, and I know that as God heals me he gives me the authority to speak into other peoples lives and help them. yay!

Looking back on the year, I'm so grateful for where God's brought me

. I know that I have so far to go, but I also know that the reason he's growing me and teaching me and blessing me is because he wants me to impart those things to other people. He's been revealing more of what my calling is, which is exciting, but also makes me very aware of the fact that I have a long way to go. I'm really grateful that I've had this time to grow and learn - not just in general, but in the exact areas that God wants me to grow in. He knows the future (SO comforting), and knows what I need and when I need it. Pretty cool.

On the tangible side of what I've been doing: the last month was pretty crazy. A bunch of us went to Melbourne for the National Leaders Meeting, which was good. I did some good networking with people regarding Youth Street, so it was a productive time. The week after that, we had a fund-raising dinner for the base and that went fairly well. I helped decorate and serve on the day and random other things, as usual. We had a pretty good turn out and raised some good funds (so therefore were successful ;) ). We also had

all the different ministries share about what they do and where God's directing them. That was a good opportunity for people to hear about what's going on in the world of YWAMSA and what God's doing through us. Last weekend, most of us volunteered at the Schoolies Festival, which is a 3-day party for all the graduating high school students. We picked up lots of rubbish, manned road blocks, helped drunk kids, and had quite a few good conversations with 18 year olds who needed a friend or a shoulder or a kick in the pants. Usually the first two. We also didn't get much sleep, but that's all part of the fun.

A few fun things of note: a few of us went cliff jumping in a gorge about an hour away a couple weeks ago. We had some good fun and no one got hurt so it was a good trip (besides having a bit of trouble finding the place). (Pics are on the pics link). The highest point we jumped from was probably about 8 or 9 meters up. I also celebrated my birthday several times - one being with the party-in-a-box that my mom sent me (thanks, Mom!). I'm officially 21, which apparently means I have to act mature and behave and stuff.... bummer :). I'm also continuing to really enjoy and appreciate the people that God's blessed me with - which is good, because we all live together and it would be a bummer if I didn't like them (thanks, God!).

Well, this has gotten long. Thanks to those of you who have made it this far.

I'll be in the States in a few hours, and in Minnesota in a few days. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you! I hope that I can see everyone I'd like to - I know that 4 weeks will go quick, but please give me a call or send me an email, I'd love to catch up. I'm around till Christmas.

God's blessings to each of you, thanks so much for your support. I'll be trying to send out a newsletter covering the whole year, with pictures and other info. I'll try to get that to everyone!

Cheers!

Caitlin

October

2008-10-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

It's been a while since I updated... I've been keeping myself busy, but none of it has been too newsworthy up till now....

The first week on October, 11 of us from the base went to a youth camp for a weekend. The camp was different from camps I've been to in the past - there were small groups from several different Uniting Churches all coming together for the camp. I think there were about 400 kids there, all camping in tents out on the football field (we got to sleep inside, which was nice). Our role there was to be "chaplains" - we were there to talk to any of the kids who needed it, we helped with the large group speaking times, and just generally were extra hands and bodies. YWAMers tend to be good at doing whatever's needed and volunteering for the less-fun jobs, so I think the leaders really appreciated us being there. We did things like security shifts from 3-6 am, setting up tents, running workshops.... I always enjoy doing things like that, so it was fun! It was a huge blessing, also, because we made lots of good connections with people involved in youth. I've been trying to network a lot more lately, because that will be the key to having Youth Street work, so it was great to be able to meet people from around Adelaide who are passionate about youth as well.

In the weeks after that, we were just doing a lot of work around the base. We painted and fixed up one of the houses on base so that Paullette can move in, which was a big job. I also worked in the vineyard next door for some extra cash, and have continued working in communications and other odd things around the base. Like I said - I've been busy, but nothing too newsworthy.

This last week was different, however. We had another ministry come to bless us - called Vistorious Ministries Through Christ (VMTC). They are a Holy Spirit-lead healing ministry. We all received ministry through them, and also learned the principles behind their ministry so that we can use them to bless people as well. I think it was really good for all of us - we each got a personal ministry time with 2 people from their team, where we went through confession, forgiveness, and also processed any other things that the Holy Spirit brought up. It was amazing the things that God brought up to me... some hurts from the past that I didn't expect, but they really helped me to see the root of issues that I've been experiencing. God is good!

Other than that, I've really been enjoying the people here, as usual. There has been a mass exodus in the past few months - God calling people to other places - so that has been a bit hard, but it's exciting to see God moving in people's lives. Those of us here, though, have been enjoying each other - I think God is giving us a greater appreciation for the community he's given us and it's exciting to have new things happening in our ministry. There are also a couple Canadian guys here Mission Building (volunteering around the base), and we've enjoyed hanging out with them... despite the fact that they're Canadian ;)

Next week, the majority of the base will be traveling to Melbourne for the YWAM National Leaders Meeting. I am not a national leader, but I am going. It's a good time to network with people, see what other bases are doing, and receive God's vision for YWAM Australia as a whole. I'll be celebrating my birthday there as well!

That's about it from me! I'm really looking forward to being home in December and seeing all of you in Minnesota! Please have snow :)

God's blessings

Caitie

September

2008-10-01T22:46:00.000-07:00

Family and friends around the world....

September proved to be a very busy month for me! As I talked about in my last post, Laura and I visited Newcastle for a week at the beginning of the month and saw JJ off. After returning from that, we spent almost 2 weeks at the base - in that time, we worked a lot on developing new dances and dramas and I've also been working on promotions for the base, among other things. I am definitely keeping myself busy!

From the 19th to the 30th of September, 13 of us (Oxygen and others) traveled 8 hours to Melbourne to work with an Anglican church there (check out photos in the "photos" link on the left). The church we were working with has a beautiful cafe set-up and we helped them start out a ministry through that. All week, in the mornings and evenings we gave away free espresso to anyone passing by. We had several people just come in and grab coffee, but others would stay and chat. We had a few different opportunities to have good conversations with people. One inparticular was a group of nursing students, all from overseas, who came in a few different times. We talked to them about their religions, their plans for the future etc. One of their instructors came in with them, and he said that he had previously been involved with curch but had gotten burnt out and wasn't going anymore. We hope that we were able to help in the healing of that experience for him, he was at least very grateful and positive about what we were doing.

In the evenings, in addition to coffee we had a program each night that included 2 people from our team, Zoe and Fauger, singing playing live music, our team doing dances and dramas, and then people from the church shared testimonies. Although we only had a few people from outside the church come in the evenings, it was the first time many people had shared their stories and so was a great first step to the people around them The pastors and church in general had a huge heart to reach out to their community, which was very encouraging. All in all, it was a great week - and we were kept going by lots of free coffee! :)

In the coming weeks and months, I'll continue working on promotions for the base and also making new dances for us to use. The whole focus of our base is changing a lot, so it's interesting and exciting to see how many things are shifting and changing. We're getting a lot done - becoming a lot more involved in the community, doing fundraising, getting lots of building projects done around the base. At the same time, this entire year, God has really been challenging all of us to prioritize our relationships with him, rather than just doing all the time. That has been a personal challenge for me: it's so easy to just feel good about myself because of all the tasks that fill my days, but lose sight of why I'm doing all these things. God is calling me, and all of us, to be working hard and getting things done, but it must all come out of my love for God and nowhere else. Quite the challenge!

That's about it from me! I'll be traveling to various other places before coming home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. To all of you back in Minnesota, I look forward to seeing you over the holidays! I'm hoping for a very white Christmas!

God bless you all!

~ Cait

Changes, Road trip, Bible Study and Rahab

2008-09-04T21:56:00.000-07:00

Friends, family, loved ones,

Life has been quite busy lately, since the DTS finished up. We've gotten back into the swing of things back at the base... although what that looks like is changing quite a bit.

For most of August, our whole base took part in a 3-week Bible study seminar where we learned to do inductive Bible study, look deeper into what we read in God's Word, and effectively apply it to our lives. It was a really good course, and I think we all got a lot out of it and God spoke to us a lot.

Since getting back from outreach, I've also been more involved in Rahab, which is our ministry to women in prostitution. On Friday nights, we go to brothels all over Adelaide and bring the girls a can of coke, talk to them, and let them know we're there if they ever need legal help or just someone to talk to. 2 weeks ago, myself and another YWAMer met a girl in a brothel who seemed to want help, and since then we've been able to get her into rehab and out of her former work. It's been quite amazing to see that happen. I'm really enjoying that ministry and feel like I have a lot to learn from Paullette, the woman who heads it up. She has an incredible heart for these girls, and also incredible wisdom into how to really help them. I'm really grateful to have that opportunity.

I also just got back from a week on the East Coast of Australia, in a town called Newcastle. My friend, JJ, was moving out there, so Laura and I drove with him. We spent the week at a YWAM base there, where they have a youth ministry called Youth Street, which is like the one we're hoping to start here in Adelaide. Laura will be heading it up, I'll most likely be helping. It was a really good week, we learned a lot about how it works and got some insight into how we'll need to start it out. It's going to be a big project, but we're really excited to see how it all comes together. An extra bonus to the trip was that I got to see Liz Kennedy from church back home, as well! She's doing her DTS in Newcastle at the moment, so we got to spend some time together.

Besides looking to start Youth Street, the base is going through a lot of other changes at the moment, which is really exciting! We're focusing a lot on building relationships within our community of YWAM and also in churches, the city, schools etc. I'm working 2 days a week with a communications/promotions team, and we'll be getting to know the people around us a lot more, serving the community where we can, and developing promotional material for the base. It's a good experience for me, and also very needed. I'm excited to personally get to know more people around Adelaide as well, since I'll be here more steadily now. I do love getting to know people!

That's about it from me... I am planning on being home for almost all of December, and I'm REALLY excited to see everyone. Thanks for keeping me in your prayers!

Caitlin

2008-08-10T07:14:00.000-07:00

Check out my "Financial Needs" link for a testimony.

God is cool

~Caitie

End of outreach

2008-07-19T22:15:00.000-07:00

Hey All!

I'm writing this from chilly Adelaide, safely back from outreach.

I believe the last I updated this blog was in Chennai, so I'll go from there. We spent a good 2 weeks in Chennai, which was probably my favorite part of outreach, especially going into villages to share with people there. God spoke to me a lot during that time, and I was thinking a lot about my future, so it was a really good time.

After our 2 weeks there, we planned to

leave on Thursday to go to Kolkata (Calcutta) by train. However, because it was monsoon season in Kolk

ata at that time, the tracks were flooded and all trains were cancelled. Like so many other times, though, we saw God provide, and just that morning we had enough money to be able to fly to Kolkata instead. So, we flew on Friday and arrived to the last leg of our journey in Kolkata.

The first thing we did

was travel (again) to a village about 6 ho

urs away. There, the Kolkata YWAM staff was putting on a youth retreat for about 120 students there. Most students were from a Hindu back

ground, so it was amazing to be able to share with them. Though language was a barrier, we had several opportunities to pray for them, and they all wanted to accept Jesus as their savior. The most exciting part of that, though, is that the school principal wants YWAM to come back twice a year to run a similar program, so we know that the kids will have good follow-up and continue to hear about Christ.

After that, we returned to the city for our final 2

weeks, where the other half of our team joined us after being in Bejing. We did lots of different things there, mostly working with kids' ministries. YWAM has 2 different houses where homeless kids can come to shower, play, receive love from the staff, and a hot meal. We had lots of fun working with those kids and being able to support the staff that work there full time. I think my favorite, though, was one afternoon going to the street where lots of those kids live and see their families - some people played guitar for them and we provided medical care for those who needed it. Helping people in need like that really hit where my heart is at, and I can see myself doing something like that in the future.

We also worked for a few days at the Mother Teresa ministry. The ministry has several different homes for different people - I worked at a home for boys with disabilities, which I loved (of course). We went in the afternoons and played with the guys, fed them, and helped

out the Sisters as we could. It made me really miss my job back in MN!

All in all it was a really good time - very challenging and different as staff. The team got along well and were all excited to see what God was doing. We saw God provide for us so many times - we so often had just about no money and didn't even know where the money for our meals would come from, but we never actually ran out, and always saw God provide. I know that all of us will be coming out of this trip knowing first-hand that God is faithful to provide for us.

We're home now - basically unscathed. Several of us picked up some parasite friends along the way, and are still not 100% healthy, including myself, but we should be alright after visiting the doctors here. Actually, through a few interesting events, (which included receiving $250 in exchange for my stool sample...) we met a great travel doctor in Kolkata who saw many of us, and he was great - definitely God's provision.

Thank you so much for your prayers for my team and I during our time away. I'll continue to keep you up to date with what I'm doing in Adelaide - I know that God still has a lot for me here! God bless each one of you!!!

Caitlin

India!

2008-06-14T22:50:00.000-07:00

Loved ones,

Hello from Chennai, India! I trust that you are all doing well.
My team has now been in India for just over 2 weeks - after a delay because of visas, we all got to Delhi safely on the 29th of May. There, 16 of us all stayed at IHOP (International House of Prayer), where we joined them in prayer and intercession, did a few practical things, and sweat a lot! After only about 5 days there, the 2 teams split up and my team of 8 traveled by train to Chennai. We've been here, now, for just over a week and will be staying for 5 more days. The above picture is of my team and Vimal, our guide/translator. Here, we have been working with many different ministries. One day, we traveled to a village and lead a women's meeting there and then handed out tracts in the village and prayed for people. They were surprisingly open to us praying for them, and we were able to pray for healing for a few people - we didn't seen any instant healing, but are trusting God to continue his work. We also did a kids program at a home for people with HIV. The kids were great and really enjoyed hanging out with us, and we were also able to spend a little time with the ladies that were taking care of them. We've also been going on a lot of prayer walks around the city, which is so good because the spiritual world is so prevelent here. We walked by temples and areas where YWAM does ministry and just invited God's presence.
In the next few days, we'll be working with a leper ministry, and visiting some villages again, and then on Thursday we'll be traveling to Calcutta, where we will spend the rest of the outreach. We're really excited to see what God has for us there!

During this whole outreach, we've really had to trust God a lot, as many things have seemed to be not going our way: trouble with visas, very little finances, ministry being rained out, buses breaking down.... It has been really cool to see God bring us through everything, though, and we've seen his provision many times when we weren't sure if we'd have the right amount of money when we needed it. I think God has been teaching us all a lot about trusting him and about the fact that he can see the big picture, even if we can't. Personally, God's been teaching me a lot about loving him, and about how I can love others, and many other things. It's been a really good time of growth for all of us, I think, and even though it's been a bit tough at times, I'm so glad that God knows how we need to grow and how to get us there. He is truly amazing.

Thank you for your prayers for our team! God bless each one of you!

Caitlin

Outreach

2008-05-15T05:26:00.000-07:00

Hey all!

I wanted to give you all an update as to what my team will be doing for o

ur outreach that's coming up in just about a week now.

Our DTS will be splitting up into 2 teams. I am staffing my team with 2 other girls, and we will have 5 students with us (pictured on the right). We will all (16 people) be traveling to Dehli, India together and spending 2 weeks there working together with a YWAM base that is also part of IHOP (International House of Prayer). I don't have a lot of details about what we'll be doing, but I know we'll be doing intercession, as well as serving the base there and encouraging the staff.

Next, we'll split up - my team will go to Chennai, India, and the other team will go to various places in China. In Chennai, we will work with a YWAM base (which

is the same base that North Heights teams have been to). As far as I know, we'll work with a leper ministry, possibly an orphanage, and wherever else the base sets up for us. Our team has been trained in a few dances and dramas, so we will be able to use that as an outreach tool as well.

We'll spend 3 weeks in Chennai, and then move onto Calcutta, where we'll meet the other team and work in different practical ways there. A lot of what we're doing is still being coordinated, and I'm sure we will have to be flexible and figure a lot of it out as we go. We are confident that God will be guiding us, though, and are going trusting that he will have us in his hands.

We are in our last weeks of lectures now, which will be outreach prep. We are all getting really excited for all that God has for us in India - we've been praying about it as leaders and as a team, and God has been showing us a lot about how he will use our teams to bless the people we come into contact with. I know that I am so excited to be able to do practical things to help people, and work with those who need God's love so much. I know that God will use us in really amazing ways.

I thank you all for your prayers... please keep our safety, unity, finances, and everything else in your prayers. Both teams are still in need of a lot of finances, but we are trusting God that he will provide!

God bless you all! Check out the photo link on this page - I have some pics up from a conference we road-tripped to last week. I'll also update the financial and prayer info soon.

Love you!

Cait

Learning all the time...

2008-04-09T03:17:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I hope this update finds you all well!

The DTS I'm staffing started just after my last post, and we're about a month in now. It's going really well so far! We have 5 girls and 5 guys from 5 different countries and they've been a really good group. The first 2 weeks of lectures were very intense and the students all dealt with deep stuff from the past. It was so good to see them come into freedom as God dealt with things that had been there for so long. Last week, we participated in a wilderness/survival-type camp for 5 days and God really spoke to all of us through that, as well as binding us together more as a team. Personally, God did a lot in my life last week, too. He really spoke to me about trusting him no matter what the situation looks like, as well as about hearing him, and so many other things. God is really cool!

We're also planning our DTS outreach, which will be to India. (I probably told some of you that I'd be going to Kazakhstan. That was the plan, but God spoke to us some different things, and we have peace that this is what God wants. Kazakhstan may just be for later) We'll split into 2 teams, mine will stay in India and the other will spend some time in China as well. I'm really, really excited. I know this trip will be stretching and challenging, especially since I'll be helping lead the team, but I know that God will use us in really cool ways. We're currently in the process of finding contacts in India and raising funds for the trip as all students and staff need to raise all their own money. It's always an exciting time to see how God provides for these trips!

As a base, we're continuing to focus on ministering in the city. We all go and do various things in the city on Friday nights - everything from picking up trash, to talking to people, to supporting other ministries. Last week, I started going out with Rahab, our base's ministry that works with those trapped in prostitution. We drive around and go to different brothels around the city, bring them gifts and talk to the girls. Some of the other girls who went out with us got the chance to pray with one of the working girls last week, which was so cool! I'm excited to keep working with this ministry.

Thank you so much, all of you, for your continued support. I do miss you all, and love hearing from home!

Check out the links to my photos, prayer requests, and financial needs, I'll post new information there, too.

God bless you all!

Caitlin

DTS

2008-03-06T20:41:00.000-08:00

Hey all!
It's been a while, sorry I haven't kept in touch very well. I've been keeping busy with DTS prep, outreaches, life etc.

The DTS officially started yesterday, and it's off to a good start so far. We have 4 girls and 4 guys here right now, and another guy from NZ hopefully coming this week. It's been a bit of a shock to realize how much I actually have to do, and I feel like I know so little, but I am excited. I'm taking a leadership course also, so that I'm learning and doing at the same time. I keep getting words from God about stepping into leadership, so I'm really glad that I have these opportunities available - because I definitely have a lot to learn.

We've also narrowed down outreach locations for this group - we'll be sending out 2 teams, one to India and possibly Nepal, the other to Kazakhstan and possibly China. I am still praying about which team I'll be going on. That outreach will be in June and July. No matter where God wants me to be, I am really excited and I know it's going to be an amazing time!

We're continuing outreach into the city, as well, on Friday nights, and our team has had some really good conversations with people as well as covering the city in prayer. The first week we prayed in the city, one group found an abandoned building where there were obvious satanic rituals going on. They prayed over the building and the next week, the police had cleared it out and locked it up. Down the street from that building, there is a minister with a cafe where he does outreach, and he told us that since we've been praying and that building got cleaned out, he's seen several people come to the Lord and had spiritual breakthroughs in the area. It's amazing to see these things happening, and we're believing for more!

Thank you for your prayers and support, I hope that everything back in MN is well (and you're staying warm. Here, it's verging on 100 today!)
Check out the prayer request and financial need links for updates, as well!

God's blessings,
Caitlin

Two months in!

2008-02-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

Hey all,

It's hard to believe I've almost been here for 2 months already. I'm continuing to enjoy myself and the people here, and I'm excited for God to move!

As an overview of the last couple weeks:

3 Highlights:

1. Bonding with everyone in my ministry (shopping, homemade water slides and chocolate fondue)

2. Beginning dance training again and learning more about the studio I'm involved with

3. Webcamming with my family

3 Challenges

1. Missing family and friends at home

2. Fighting against getting comfortable and missing out on what God has for me

3. Learning to drive a manual transmission car on the left side of the road

3 Things I'm looking forward to

1. A base prayer week next week - a time of seeking God and hearing from him

2. Talking to people in the city

3. The DTS that will start in a month!

3 Things God is Teaching Me

1. Forgiveness and letting go of hurt from the past

2. Communication in relationships

3. Trusting him

3 Things I'm Praying About

1. For God to give me his heart for people

2. Guidance for the future

3. More students for the DTS in March, and for the students who are already accepted.

Love you all, I pray that God is blessing you and your families.

Catalina

It's all about the journey...

2008-01-21T23:06:00.000-08:00

Hey there, loved ones.

The last few weeks here have been pretty full! Last week and the one before, starting Jan 7, seven of us here took a course in training and assessment. Basically, it's what we need to do so that the government allows us to staff the DTS, but it was a lot of good information. We learned a lot about leading small groups and mentoring - good stuff overall!

This week we've been learning some dances, which we will use for the DTS as well. We'll be practicing about 3 hours a day - I'll be teaching technique to the other girls, we'll be working on strengthening and also learning and creating dances. We'll also learn dramas that we can use for outreaches. We're helping some friends plan their wedding, too - a couple that met on DTS here last year will be getting married in the beginning of February.

I had been praying a lot that God would give me opportunities to get more involved in the community here and do more ministry outside of the base.

In other news, both of the Brazilian families here on base have had babies in the last month - Isabella and Nicholas were born 3 weeks apart and are both healthy and happy! It's really fun to be a part of these growing families' lives.

That's about it from me! I am so happy to be here right now, and I know it is exactly where God has me right now. I've been learning a lot and God has been cleaning some areas of my life, readying my heart for all that is to come. I'm really excited to see what he does!

Take a look at the links on the left hand side for financial info, prayer requests, and soon, photos!

Thanks so much for your prayers! Love you all

Caitlin

2008 so far....

2008-01-05T21:23:00.000-08:00

Hey friends!

Sunny greetings from South Australia! It's been

quite warm here these last weeks, which has been nice because we've had time off for the Holidays so we've spent plenty of time at the beach and playing volleyball outside. The majority of the people who live here have gone home for Christmas and so it's been pretty empty!

Other than Celebrating Christmas and New Years in true Brazilian fashion with lots of food, we've been getting back into normal life here. Our main focus right now is preparing for the DTS that will start in March, but I've also been helping some friends out with little things. For the last couple weeks we've been meeting to pray for the coming DTS, for more students, provision for their visas etc. We accepted two Australian students last week and now have about 10 students and are praying for more. On monday, we will start a 2 week course that will make us certified to lead small groups and assess the students, so tha

t will keep us quite busy!

Besides things around the base, I've been looking into other places I can get involved around the city of Adelaide. I'd love to take some dance classes to keep my skills up, and am hoping to perhaps find a group home of some sort to visit and we've been talking about making that an opportunity for the DTS students, too. A few of us have also gone to a church in the area a couple times that we really like. There are only about 100 people there on sundays, but they are super friendly and seem to have a great youth and young adult program. I do enjoy the smaller, homey atmosphere after growing up in such a big church. I will hopefully get more involved with that church. They also have a dance studio running out of it, and I've talked to the girl who runs it about getting involved. We will see how that goes, as my schedule will be crazy come March. It's an exciting opportunity, though!

A few prayer requests:

- A couple other girls and I are looking into the possibility of buying a car for more flexibility with transportation. We don't know if we'll have the finances to be able to do so, and so need wisdom and provision in that area

- Continued unity in our DTS leadership team and the entire base.

- That the right opportunities to become involved in the outside community, and wisdom so that I don't over-commit myself (not that I have the tendency to do that or anything.....)

Blessings to all of you! I hope that you all had a wonderful holiday season and were able to enjoy your families.

Caitlin

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-21T19:35:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

Merry Christmas from sunny Australia. Actually, it's been raining lately, which is awesome because we're in desperate need of rain! Thank you to all of you who have been praying for that!

It is really warm here, though, which is kind of weird to be celebrating Christmas in this weather. It's fun to have a new experience, though! We'll be celebrating with everyone on the base on Christmas Eve, and then a few of us will probably to the beach on Christmas day - crazy, huh? I hope that all of you, too, are having a blessed Christmas season!

Some of the other things I've been doing is catching up with everyone, helping some friends paint and move into their house. A lot of people are on Christmas vacation right now, so those of us here are just kind of doing little things that need doing. After the holidays, we'll get back into more normal life. We're going to begin having daily prayer for the DTS and our outreach. Right now we're praying to decide between 4 different places, we'll chose two of them and split the group in half for outreach. I'll let you know as that develops.

Some prayer points:

~ Wisdom and guidance in our outreach locations

~ That God would bring the right students to the DTS

~ That my relationship with God would continue to grow and be alive

~ That we, as DTS staff, would work together in unity, not let the little petty things divide us

~ For our base leaders, Pablo and Fernanda. They just had a baby, Isabella, and are adjusting to all the changes that brings

~ Continued prayer for rain

Thank you for your prayer!

I love you all! I love hearing from you - my email is caitlin.wiese@gmail.com, feel free to drop me a line anytime!

I hope you all enjoy your white Christmas! May God truly bless your holiday season

Caitlin

Adelaide!

2007-12-11T02:39:00.000-08:00

Hey all

Well, I'm finally here! My friend Laura and I traveled together from MN, got stuck in San Francisco overnight because of snow delays out of MSP, but we made it here in one piece, and during the last couple days have been getting settled back into life here at the base.

We got here on a Friday, so had the weekend to relax and settle in. We had a goodbye dinner for our former leaders, 2 barbecues, watched some movies.

This week, we're starting preparations for the DTS. Laura and I as well as Anne, who was on my DTS, and Michelle, who was my staff, will be staffing in February. We've been sitting in on the lectures of the DTS that's going on right now and practicing dances and dramas with them. They're going on their outreach next week and we'll join them for a couple performances. Next week we'll take a course that's needed for us to be able to do assessments and small groups during the DTS. I've been talking to Fernanda about dance training for all the dance staff, and will be trying to find a good studio to go to for some good training. I'll also maybe help some of my friends with dance technique, since not many of the girls here have lots of technical experience. I am really looking forward to taking some classes again, it's been a really long time.

That's about it from me! I'm doing really well and I'm excited for all that's coming up. Some things to pray for:

- That I'd really be listening to God about the little tasks he has for me here

- For more students for the upcoming DTS, and for their visas

- Fernanda (the base director's wife) will be having her baby (Isabella) any day now. For their health and safety!

Thanks all of you for your support! I will keep you updated as the weeks go by!

Love you all

Caitlin

Going back down under!

2007-12-02T23:52:00.000-08:00

Wow, 4 months has flown my, and I'm just about ready to leave for round two visiting YWAMSA. I really can't believe it. It's crazy to see even how much I've grown in this time home, it's been such a blessing, and I know God has changed me so much, taught me so much, healed lots of things. I really do feel ready (as ready as I'll ever be) to go back and serve him more. I know that the only way I'll be able to do that is to totally rely on him - there's no way I'll ever do this on my own. Actually, I'm praying that it won't be easy. Today at the Heights, Ben was talking about God interrupting your life, putting things in it that aren't easy. I prayed that God would do that, and that will continue to be my prayer. I don't want this next year or so of my life to be easy, I don't want to coast through it. I want to struggle, be uncomfortable, be stretched. Not just so I can say I did all that, but because I know that's when God can work the most. When I'm broken and aware of my weakness. Cuz that's when I'm the most aware of my dependence on him. So, please join me in praying for that.

Thank you all for your amazing support in this adventure. Today I had an amazing group of people pray for me and send me off, and it was such a blessing to see all those people who believe in what I'm doing and are behind me. Thank you so much! I can honestly say there's no way I'd be able to serve God the way I will be if it weren't for you guys. I love you!

Some prayer requests:

- my family, I'm going to miss them like crazy, and I know they'll miss me too. Especially for the little ones to understand I'm not leaving them for good

- safe travels. God blessed me by putting my friend Laura and I on the same flight, so I have a travel buddy! It's still a long flight and there are lots of connections we have to make.

- that I wouldn't miss anything God has for me. This is all his thing, I'm just the vehicle. I don't want to get in the way of anything God's gonna be doing.

- my team. Our leaders are having a baby and taking over the entire base within about a week, as well as having to dealing with all of us :). They're awesome, but will definitely need some extra grace. We also are praying for more students to sign up for the school.

Thank you so much, again!

Blessings to all of you, I will be in touch!

Caitlin

Life

2007-10-29T09:35:00.000-07:00

I'm down to a little more than a month before I leave - crazy! I'm still trying to figure everything out logistically. I have a ticket to Sydney booked, where Laura and I are going to meet and spend a couple days. Laura, one of my really good friends from DTS, is planning on coming back on staff, too, which I'm really excited about! I have ALMOST enough money to pay for my ticket, and I'm sure God will get it to me in the next couple days - I'm not too worried about it. He's already provided in some cool ways.

It's so weird thinking that I'll be gone soon, and that it'll be for so long. The other day I started thinking about not seeing my family for such a long time and I couldn't help but cry - it's going to be really hard. I knew that would be one of the hardest things, though, and way back on DTS, God had been speaking to me about putting them in his hands and not feeling like I'm letting them down by leaving. It's still hard. I have so much to do in a month, holy cow. I will hopefully get to go visit Lea in NY after Thanksgiving, I have to get my visa figured out, packing and buying necessary travel items...it's gonna be a crazy month!

Life's been good, I guess. It's still sometimes hard to get back into the swing of things and feel like I really belong here, probably because I won't be here much longer. My relationship with God, though, is good, and I feel like I've continued to grow while I've been home. I've gotten to the place where I just see his hand in so many new things, and it's really fun to have my eyes opened to how he's working, when before I would've just taken it for granted. God is really cool. I'm getting so excited to get back into ministry and meet new people and start dancing again! I think I'll realize I missed it more than I think I do.

well, that's where I'm at, just some random updates. If you could be praying that God continues to bring me provision (I know he will) for my visa and airfare, that would be great. The visa situation is a little sketchy and a lot of us are waiting to see what's going to happen. I'm sure God will work it out for us, though!
Thanks for your love and prayers!
Caitlin

Home!

2007-10-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I have obviously been home for a long time, but I thought I'd give an update on here as to what God's been doing with me and what God's been leading me into for the next time here.....

Well, as I think most of you know, I'm going back to work with Oxygen, the arts group at the YWAM base in Adelaide. While there, I'll be staffing a DTS (same as what I did last year, just in leadership), going on outreach with them, and a couple other outreaches, and taking a course called a Basic Leadership School. I really feel that this is what God has led me into for this next season of my life. At this point, I'm loosely thinking that I'll be there for a year, but it really is up to God! I have no further plans after this, which I'm finding is a really cool place to be.

So, I've been home for over two months now, and I have really seen God working in so many ways in my life and it's really been a good time to be home, to process everything that happened in the last 6 months, to relax, spend time with my family, reconnect with people.....

At first, I was really finding it hard to fit back into my old life - God has changed me so much, and I felt out of place in most contexts, had to learn again how to relate with people who hadn't been with me for the last 6 months. In no way was it that I felt in any way higher or better or whatever, it was just so different to what I'd gotten used to - reverse culture shock, I guess. One of the things was really striving to do was to find my purpose here, to see what God wanted me to DO, what group I should volunteer with, whose life I could impact. And then I was getting really frustrated, cuz I just didn't see how I was doing anything productive, I felt like I must be missing out on whatever I was supposed to be doing. Part of it was that I was so used to be doing ministry all the time, I didn't know how to not do that anymore, I didn't know how to just have a casual conversation without assuming that it was superficial or shallow. All of this was stuff I knew to expect, I knew "re-entry" was going to be hard, but living it is different than hearing it "in theory". So, anyway, I just kept asking God to show me my purpose, my mission, my task here (hmmmm, sure sounds like Martha in the Bible to me), but what I was missing was that time just sitting at Jesus' feet, keeping myself acquainted with him.

Well, I honestly don't know all what changed, but this last week has been very different; my friend, Laura, from DTS sent me an email encouraging me to just look around where I already am (she said this in a more blunt Laura way, which was what I needed to hear - thanks Laura), cuz this is where God has me, and she was very, very right. I also just started spending more time just talking to God like a friend- usually out loud in the car :) - telling him what I'm feeling, thanking him for what he's given me, praying for my friends and family.......and it has been SO different. My eyes have been opened to the little opportunities that there are every day, and I think that once my focus isn't so on DOING stuff, God has actually given me lots of more little things to do, that have all given me so much joy. I've had several opportunities to talk to friends who are planning to do a DTS somewhere, encouraging them, giving them packing advice, praying for them. It has been a HUGE blessing to me that God is using me for that! The other thing I've done is just been praying before I go to work, asking God that something I say to the other girls I work with will make a difference to them, and I have had a couple good conversations. I'm really hoping God is using me there, even in ways I may never see!

I've also been able to look back on my time home, and see what God HAS been doing. There were several things I still needed to process from DTS, baggage I needed to get rid of and move on from. These were all definitely important things for me to work through before I go back to do more ministry. Just realizing that there HAS been purpose and growth was a big relief. I think that my heart has turned from asking God for things and changed to being thankful for what he has been doing and what he has given me - and that has been a huge thing. I'm glad that only took me 2 and a half months to figure out...........wow, I'm so thankful that we serve a patient, merciful God. Of course, realizing this has made me see little opportunities that I probably missed, in the great search of my purpose - haha. But, again, thanks to God for his grace!

You know, that just made me think of a verse that I think God gave me a little bit before I left for my DTS, 1 Timothy 1:12 - "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him." Wow, thankfulness really is the key to my service to God. And remembering that he chose me, I didn't choose him.

Well, this has gotten long, but tonight I have just felt so much joy, so blessed (and my good mood is only partly due to the obscene amount of caffiene that I've consumed today) and I thought I'd share it with......whoever reads this thing. Getting perspective and letting God open my eyes is a really good thing.
Well, blessings to you!
Your prayers for my coming year are greatly appreciated. I am so blessed by all those who I know love me! I love you, too!!!!

My prayer is that each of you can so clearly see the things that God is doing in your life, too!

Home at last!

2007-07-30T13:53:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!
I wanted to send you all a final update and let you know how I am!

The last 2 days of outreach were amazing, crazy, intense, and not what we expected, but really good!!! Friday was the big theater performance, which I talked a little about in my last update. It was amazing how it all came together, and I think it was really powerful! Saturday, the 7th was our last day, and the day of the big event in the streets. What was planned was some of our dances and songs, the hip-hop group from Montevideo, and a woman named Cecilia who is also from Montevideo and has a christian rock band. Unfortunately, it rained all day long, and we weren't able to have it in the streets as planned, and it was relocated to the church. It was a little bit disappointing, but God knows best! We did all the planned performances, and it ended up really good. We had about 1000 people come, they estimated, so lots were reached! Cecilia gave a very direct Gospel message, and we performed our big drama again. It was amazng to finally speak the name of Jesus, since in schools we hadn't been able to!

After the event was a very emotional round of goodbyes, and then we sat up with people from the church till 5am, just hanging out. Our bus left at 5:30am for montevideo, we were able to meet up with our friends there for a short while, and then we began the 30 hour trip back to Australia. It was a very emotional few days, but very powerful, and we were all so grateful to God for all of the opportunities he gave us the whole time, and especially the last few days. He is truly amazing!

Looking back on this whole experience, God has really done so much in my life. I've learned to be more myself, and who that really is. God's healed me of things from the past, but mostly I feel that I've been given so many tools to use in the future - how to love people, how to hear God's voice, wise principles for relationships with people. I know that these are things that I will carry with me for the rest of my life, and I am so glad that God's given me this experience.

As for the future, as I've told various people I've talked to, I feel that God has opened the door for me to return to Australia to work with the creative arts ministry some more. I am planning to go back in the beginning of December, and will be staffing the DTS in February. After that, there are some more outreach opportunities possible. I'll also be taking a course called a Basic Leadership School, which should take about a year. After all this, I'm still not sure where God will be leading me. I am still planning on going to college at some point, and I think that where God is leading me is to major in dance in some way that I can use it to work with people with handicaps. I'm still not sure what all that will look like, and when that will be. I've found that it's better to just do what God is leading me into for now, and continue to trust him that he'll guide me in the next step. Kinda scary, but really exciting!!! I wouldn't want to be anywhere else but in his hands!!!

So, all that said, please keep me in your prayers for all of this!! I'm still making final decisions, and I'll need to be looking into getting a visa, plane ticket, and support for the time that I'll be there. Right now, I'm trusting that if I'm really where I'm supposed to be, God will provide all the logistics. He has more than proved that in my life in the last year!!

God bless you all, and I want to thank you all again for all of your support while I've been gone. It's good to be home, and I'm so excited to keep doing God's will wherever I am!

Thank you so much! Love to all
Caitlin

Uruguay Update

2007-05-15T09:15:00.000-07:00

Hola from Uruguay! We're now into our 3rd week here, and God has been blessing us so much, and we're looking forward to much more to come. We arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay, late Sunday night, and were immediately welcomed into the community where we were staying, called Beraca. Beraca is a rehabilitation community for women that is run by the church we were working with. They graciously gave us beds, fed us in gigantic proportions, and were amazingly welcoming to us for the whole time we were there.
We spent the first day getting to know the city and the people there, getting over our jet-lag, etc. We then began working with the church, running clinics on creative arts ministry. Pablo talked to them about how the bottom line must always be evangelism, and that arts are just a tool, and he also taught all of us a new drama. During the week, some of the girls from the DTS also began teaching one of their dances to the people from the church. It was a challenge for all involved, for us to communicate, and for them to learn, but they picked it up very quickly, and really enjoyed the time.
During the week, we also went to many schools to perform. It is amazing that we were even able to get into schools at all, because the public education system strictly prohibits speaking about religion or politics. The pastor of the church we worked with has been trying for years to get into the schools in some way, and was amazed at God's provision for this team. We were honored that God chose us to bring His light into these places. At the schools we performed our dances, songs and dramas, shared some testimonies and we also brought along some members of the church. Four guys, in particular, were a huge part of our ministry all week. They have put together a rap/hip-hop group they call Impacto 07 and it was a great blessing to have them perform with us. The fact that God brought us to work with them was a huge encouragement to them and we could see God stirring a fresh fire in their hearts through what they did with us. We could see that in the future, many more doors will be opened to them for them to continue their ministry.
The contrast in the different schools we visited was incredible. At one school, which is in one of the poorer neighborhoods of Montevideo, and the kids were all really excited that we were there. There were three Christian kids there, all about 14, who were so glad that we were there, and obviously had such a heart to see their classmates find Jesus. Praise God we were able to bless and encourage them! We really felt that God brought his light into the many schools we visited, where the Gospel has previously never been able to come. The next day, the school was the polar opposite. This one was a high school in an incredibly rich neighbourhood, but was such a good reminder that we're all equal before God, and we all need God's love. It was so great to have such differing experiences and see broad spectrum of what God has for us.
One intense day, we had performances at three different schools. Right before the 2nd performance, Fernanda began bleeding and had to go to the hospital, which was very scary, but God provided for us in incredible ways. One of the students' parents was a doctor, and spoke Portugese, and so she helped Fernanda get an ambulence and helped all the way to the hospital. Also, one of the people who had come with us from the church knew English and could translate for us, since Pablo wasn't there. God is truly faithful, especially in the hardest situations. Fernanda and the baby are both fine, and she spent the rest of the time in Montevideo at Pablo's sister's house, resting and taking care of the baby. For the team, it was a big time of growth and building unity, as we had to continue on without Pablo and Fer's presence. The staff stepped up into leadersip and we all had a greater sense of dependence on God and each other.
Our stay in Montevideo was extended to work with the church longer, because they were so blessed and encouraged by the work God was doing through us in the schools. During this time, God provided us with a few more schools to visit, one of them being a military high school. It was an amazing opportunity to bring the Gospel there, and they were incredibly receptive to what we had to say.
We met some amazing people from the church in our time there, and God truly blessed us with their hospitality. One couple in paricular, Jesus and Susy, took care of us all week, and they were awesome. It was really hard to leave them, the Impacto guys, and everyone else, because God did so much in those 2 weeks. We feel that even if we were to go back to Australia now, our time would have been well-spent, but we know that God has even more amazing things for us in Rivera, our next adventure.
Thanks to all for your continued prayers and support, God is truly blessing us! We are all looking forward to everything God has for us here, and for all that he's going to do in Uruguay through us. God bless you all!

Outreach - tomorrow!

2007-04-28T03:07:00.001-07:00

Hey all! Blessings from Sydney! We've been here for the last week, at a conference/gathering of all the South Pacific YWAM bases. It was a really good week of hearing from the Lord corporately, and worship and fellowship. It was really fun, personally to catch up with all the people from Melbourne that I got to know when I was there in February. We're now staying at the YWAM base in Sydney, last night and tonight, and we'll be leaving at 5:30 tomorrow morning for Uruguay!!!

Let's see, what's been happening lately? Our lectures the last few weeks have been more outward, missions focused, which has been really good, and gotten me really excited about outreach! We are continuing to see our funds come in in really cool ways - God has provided! Our last week on base, we fasted certain meals and prayed all week, and have been getting really excited! All of our tickets are payed for, though we still need our funds for food and transportation during the trip. Your prayers in that area are greatly appreciated!

I have been increasingly excited about Missions, it's really given me a whole new outlook - even going out to the city on days off, I look for opportunities to talk to people, and have had a few. I'm really looking forward to all that is ahead on outreach!

Other prayer concerns:

~ Continued unity
~ Protection as we travel tomorrow
~ Protection from any spiritual attacks
~ Our leaders
~ The base in Adelaide, they're trying to start new ministries in the city

Thanks for your continued prayer and support! I'll be over on your side of the world again soon.

Bless you all, I love you tons!
Caitlin

Outreach - tomorrow!

2007-04-28T03:07:00.000-07:00

Learning more and more every day.....

2007-04-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

Hey, all my lovely friends back home! It has, again, been far too long since I've updated and I do apologize for that. It seems to get increasingly difficult to find time to sit down and think over all that's happened in the last weeks. The last couple weeks have been really good - as usual. We had a speaker on the Holy Spirit for only 2 days, but those days were packed with goodness. He had some really good insights and I learned a lot. The last day he was here, we had a ministry time that was very intense for a few of us - dealing with spiritual things from family histories and some other things. I've only experienced anything like that once before, but it was a huge thing to see the power of the Holy Spirit working through other people on our team. The rest of that week, we prayed and talked a lot about outreach, and have gotten some cool words and direction for that. I am definitely looking forward to putting all that I've been learning into practical ways.

Last week, the topic was technically church planting, but wasn't what I expected, although still really good! We started off talking about what the Gospel really is, and Kris (our speaker) encouraged us to look at it with a relational point of view rather than a legal standpoint. The biggest thing for me, though, was talking about community, and how the church should look. It should be about every area of society, not just a building and meetings once a week. We talked about how a community totally surrendered to God and committed to serving him would look like - what would be different about the arts, business, commerce. It was really exciting to look at that ideal, and then really think about ways to get there!

We've also been working on creating the dramas we'll be performing and using on outreach. We are still in the ideas stage, but will be working really hard on those in the next 3 weeks, and I'm excited about that. I'm really enjoying the drama and dance part of our ministry - ironically, coming here I swore I'd never be in creative arts ministry! I'm sure glad God knows better than me, and knows exactly where to put me, even if it's against my will at the beginning.

This week, we're talking about relationships, which has been great so far, and will also have 2 days on spiritual warfare. We have this week and 2 more here, then are traveling to Sydney for a week for a conference, and will be leaving for Uruguay straight from there. I can't believe it's coming up so soon! For a financial update: personally, I have everything paid off, so praise God for that! We do still need finances as a team, however, and are trusting God to provide about $20,000 still. We've already seen God come through in some really cool ways - one of the girls needed about $2500 for her lecture fees, and in 3 days of fasting and prayer, we saw it all come in for her, and even more for outreach. God works in really cool ways! So, that being said, I would just invite you to pray, and if God leads you to give anything to bless my team, we would be grateful! Know I'm not asking or expecting anything, but we're trusting that God knows where all the money will come from and that he will bring it into us! So, if God leads you to be a part of this part of my ministry, you can either give through the website, (https://ywamsa.org.au/payments_page.aspx?menu=donations) or give my parents a check, and they can put it in my account, and I'll make sure it gets to the right place. Again, thank you all so much for all that you've already contributed, and know that your prayer support is the most important thing you can give me. I am very blessed by each of you!

Prayer requests:
~ Wisdom and creativity as we put together our dramas and dances. That we would be able to get across the gospel the Uruguayans need to hear.
~ Financial provision in God's timing.
~ Wisdom as I'm looking toward the future, deciding what to do after DTS.
~ Homesickness - pray for me, and my family!
~ That I'll continue to soak up all God has for me

Thank you so much for all your love! I do love and miss all of you!

God bless you greatly!
Caitlin

caitlin.wiese@gmail.com

Worship, Calling and Kangaroos

2007-03-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Hey all! I'm so sorry that it's been so long since I've updated. Our schedule is insane, and there always is someone to talk to around here, so it's hard to get away to sit down and write. I love letting you all know what's going on, though, so I made sure I had time today :).

Hmmm, so in the last 2 1/2 weeks (wow, it's been a while), we've done tons. The rest of Steve's teaching on the Father Heart of God was amazing. On Friday, we had a ministry time where we could speak out to everyone else anything that we needed to confess, or just anything that God was showing you in your life that needed to change. We then were prayed for and ministered to for a while - I talked to Pat, this great lady on base who is SO wise, and another woman named Josie, who is actually a friend of Dave Miesner's. Anyways, they prayed over me and gave me lots of good stuff to think about, and I think I've finally let go of a lot of my old ways of thinking that weren't good for me. Most of all, that I have lived so much under other people's expectations, and haven't really been myself. I've now learned to let other people help me, to ask for prayer, and to let other people see who I really am. I used to be so good at hiding how I really felt, because I thought people expected me to be a certain way, and God has totally taken that away. So, that was really good!

That weekend, we had a retreat for the whole base - it was really fun! We had some great teaching and worship, and most of all just had fun being with other people we don't always see. It's such an amazing community here, it's what my heart has always known is possible, but I've never experienced anything like this before!!! It's so cool to see everyone working together, and that we're all here for the same purpose. I love it!!! So, the retreat was good, lots of good fellowship - and food, of course. I also learned how to play cricket, so it was a very productive weekend :).

The next week, we spoke about Worship, and it was absolutely amazing! The speaker, Rob, is an excellent musician, but focused very little on the music part of worship. He encouraged us to discover how HUGE and awesome God really is - we watched a movie about the sheer enormity of the universe, and we also went out and took pictures of nature, just to appreciate all that God has given us, and how much bigger he is than anything we could imagine. He simplified worship so much - that it's just apprecitating who God is, being in awe of the fact that he CHOOSES to have a relationship with ME! A lot of that hit me, and I spent the week just completely in awe of everything around me. Just to imagine that there is so much of God that we don't know about, but he's revealed to us the most important part - his love. It was an incredible week, I feel like I learned to much, and saw so many things in different ways than I ever have. It was sweet!!!

That Friday, we also had a really cool experience in outreach. We went to this ethnic market area, and were supposed to be doing random acts of kindness around the place, to be a witness in practical ways. My group, though, actually got into a long discussion with a 20ish guy about God and his beliefs. He was catholic, but didn't seem to really know what to believe, and asked a ton of questions. It was so cool that God used us in that way when we weren't even looking for it. It also got rid of so many of my fears of that kind of evangelism. He was so open to listening, and it was just so easy! It was definitely a divine appointment, and so cool!

Then, this last week, Pablo was our speaker, and he spoke about our identity, dreams, and callings. It was a crazy week, but so good. Pablo is just such an incredible guy, and the fact that we know him and can see the fruit of what he was talking about in his own life is so cool! We first talked about our identity, and how that can get stolen by the people around us, their expectations of us, and by experiences that have hurt us. We can so easily put up walls around our true selves to avoid getting hurt. God had already been talking to me about that, so it was really cool. We also talked about the things that would be hard to give up, but we have to in order to truly follow God. Again, I felt like God had already brought me to that place of complete surrender, but that day we had a physical representation of that by nailing all of those things to a cross, so that was really cool. It was really emotional - seeing all that God may ask me to give up - but I know that anything I lose will be replaced by something SO much better, I never want to go back to the place of holding on for dear life to all the stupid earthly things. That was Thursday, and that night we also talked about our passions - that God puts things in our hearts that speak to us about what our destiny and calling are. Mine definitely is working with people with handicaps, and those who have a harder time in life. I'm also realizing that I really do have a passion to dance, though for some reason never thought I'd use it. We each spoke out what passions God had given us, and Pablo affirmed those in us. it was a sweet night! anyway, Friday, we had a time of worship and prayer. The staff had prayed for each of us for a word, and a new "name" that we would be anointed as - a reminder of the things God was calling us to. Pablo prayed for me, and gave me the name "Waterfall", that I would be a cleansing force to other people, a source of electricity and power. That was cool. Pablo also had a word that I would teach girls to dance, and be able to show them their worth through that. Girls who are hurt or trapped, and I can only assume kids with disabilities. He had prayed something similar over me before, that I will help young girls see their true worth. God then kinda reminded me of times when I had just felt an overwhelming love for my 7th grade girls - I so want them to see their beauty. I think that's going to be my ministry - to show girls who don't believe it that they are beautiful! Right when Pablo finished praying for me, I just felt this release to study dance further - I think as my Major in school. I still don't know what life holds for me next year, but I think this may be part of it. This is still a huge area of prayer, and I don't know the hows or whens, but I feel like God has given this to me, and I am to pursue it. It's funny - I came here absolutely sure that dance is not my ministry, and that I could never be a teacher. God truly gives you the strength to do the things that you never thought you could!!! I'm so excited to see what else God has for me in this area!!!!!

Sooooooo, this is really long, but I think I'm about at the end. It's so hard to explain everything that God is doing in my heart, and how he's changing me, but hopefully this gives you a little taste. And I am definitely different! God has given me so much joy and freedom. And I think I get louder every week. I never saw how outgoing I really am, until people on my team told me I'm the loudest one here, and I realize that I can't get enough of other people. Like I said, I love the community, and am really thriving here!

Thanks for your continued prayers, I know they are being answered! You are all such a blessing to me, I am so grateful to have such great support from home. Know that as I minister to people, you are a huge part of it! I couldn't do it without you!

I love you all, and miss you!

Caitlin

caitlin.wiese@gmail.com

Week 3!

2007-02-26T18:50:00.000-08:00

We're a day and a half into our 3rd official week here in Adelaide, and it promises to be another good one. Last week our speaker, Paul Wilcox, spoke on sin and repentance, which wasn't as scary as it sounds. God showed me alot last week - some through the lectures and some through just him speaking to me. It was so great! I've felt that I need to commit to God my future, to say "yes" to his plan, though I don't yet know what that is. Now that I've asked him for his will for my life, I am so excited to see where he brings me and what he shows me about my destiny. We're actually talking about that some this week, but I'll get to that later. Anyway, last Friday, we had a big ministry time of confession and repentance, and then embracing the truth that God gave us through his forgiveness. Many people, including myself, gave up sins to God, realized lies we were believing and saw that we needed to let go of things that had happened in the past. It was an amazing time of healing, though very draining. During that time both Paul (the speaker) and Pablo (our DTS leader), prayed for me and gave me words from God, which were very encouraging. There are such amazing people of God here!

We spent the weekend kind of recovering and relaxing. Saturday I caught up with my family and Jordan on the phone and worked on some of our homework. Sunday, we went to a great church called the Edge, where the message was also about destiny, and really good. I've seen that as a recurring theme lately, and I think that God is going to show me some cool things in the coming weeks.

This week the topic is The Father Heart of God, and the speaker is Steve Ahearn, who is the national YWAM director for Aussie. His teaching style is very different, but very good. He really makes you think and come to your own conclusions, instead of just giving you information. He actually isn't approaching the topic as I expected, but I like how he does it. He's been saying that Jesus knew the heart of God, and that's how he did everything he did on earth, and so we can look at Jesus' life and see what the Father is like ("You have seen me, and so you've seen the Father"). He's also said that we can have that relationship with the Father, just like Jesus did. The other interesting thing that he's talked about is that Jesus was truly fully human while on earth - he didn't have any of his "God powers". And so, he heard from the Father the same way we do, he didn't have any extra advantage, or know anything God didn't reveal to him. That might not make sense, as we just had this teaching an hour ago, and I still am processing and feel like my head's going to explode! Just a little taste of what we're learning!

One other news note: we are in the early stages of preparing for our outreach to Uruguay, and are hoping to pay for our plane tickets by tomorrow. I should have enough to cover it, though my final paycheck from work wasn't as much as I had expected. Anyways, long story short, I'm doing ok, but if you do feel it on your heart to give any more financial support, you can donate through the website: ywamsa.org.au. I trust that God will provide, and am not desperate at all! I wanted to make that available, though, if you felt that God wanted you to give in any way! Thanks again for all that you have already given to get me here!

Other than that, thanks again for your love and prayers! Right now, my only prayer request is that I would get everything God has for me - there is so much information coming at me. Also, that he would speak to me, in his timing, his plans for my future and that I would hear him and continue to have a willing heart for all he asks me to do. I am so excited to discover what that is!

I love and miss you all!
God bless you for your support
Caitlin

caitlin.wiese@gmail.com

2007-02-19T22:59:00.000-08:00

Hey all! It's been a great week here. We're continuing our lectures, this week our speaker is Paul Wilcox, an Australian native who now lives in Thailand. He's talking about "Clear Conscience", so far we've been talking about how the past shapes our lives and that we should embrace even the hard stuff because we can learn and grow from it. It really spoke to me today, because I've been dealing with some things that I didn't really even realize were there........hard to explain, but it was cool! These months are going to be emotionally draining for sure, but I know they'll be so good. Please continue to pray that God shows me those things that he wants to change in me - thank you!

In other news, we just found out where we're going on outreach! We'll be going to Urugay - actually a city that borders Uruguay and Brazil. We're working with Pablo's (our DTS leader) home church in this huge event that will be happening at the end of the year. We'll be developing a drama/music/video production that will be shown as a way to share the gospel with 25,000 teens in December. We'll also be performing dances and dramas throughout, and having intense intercession during the time that we're there. I'm so excited to get prepared and learn more about what we'll be doing.

That's about it, and I have to go cook dinner now! Thank you for all of your prayers and love!
Caitlin

2007-02-14T20:38:00.000-08:00

Hmmm, let's see what's happened since my last post.

Yesterday, we started our real lectures - we had a quick one on intercession in the morning and then have been talking about the character of God for the last 2 days. The lady speaking to us is this older lady named Pat Derham, who is amazing. She has only been in missions since her 50s but has so many amazing stories of her many travels to India and Malaysia. It has been so good so far! This afternoon we also had auditions for the music part of the DTS - through which it was confirmed to me that my calling IS NOT singing. yep. I am, however, really excited about dancing. I always forget how much I miss it until I have an oportunity to dance, and I get so excited! And what better reason to dance than to spread the gospel. I'm so excited to start working on it!

Other than that, it's been pretty quiet around here. Our group has been sharing our testimonies every night, which has been cool to hear. This afternoon we have quite a bit of free time, which is nice to relax, though there isn't a whole lot to do. I've been working on some of our required reading and homework, and just hanging out with people. I can't believe I've only been here for a week, it seems like I know these people so well! I can't wait to see how close we get after a few months.

That's about it from down under. oh, and it's right about 100 today, and beautiful out! Sorry to all who are stuck back in MN :)

thanks for your prayers, love you all!

2007-02-11T23:59:00.000-08:00

Hey all! Sorry it's been a while. Everything is great here - I'm really liking it. I know my last post was a little negative - rough day. Since then, though, I've really gotten to know people here, and gotten into the swing of things, and it's great! I'm so excited to see what God will do with the next 5 months.

It's still all been orientation for the most part - talking about schedules and boundaries and such. Our staff is great! Pablo is leading the DTS - he's from Uruguay and has done a lot of ministry in Brazil. His wife, Fernanda, is an amazing cook and will also be helping us out with the dance side of things. We also have Fauger, who is the music leader. He and his wife, Ana, are also from Brazil. The rest of the staff are twenty-somethings: Sam, Zoe, and Michelle. They are all sweet, and have had some awesome experiences, and I'm so glad i have the privilege to learn from them!

Over the last few days, we've gone into the city a couple times go get aquainted with it. It's a great little city - definitely not as big as Melbourne, but I really like it a lot. We're about 30 min away, up in the hills, which is really nice. We have a nice yard and the base is surrounded by bush, so it feels pretty secluded up here, which I really like. Yesterday, we took a hike into the bush to where some waterfalls used to be - there isn't any water flowing over them now because Austrailia's been in a draught for the last few years. It was a lot of fun though - even though I realized how out of shape I am! Today, we heard a lot more about how creative arts will be fitting into the DTS and outreach, and talked a lot about how we need to take back the arts for Christ. It was really cool, and I am so excited! Even though I didn't think this was where God would call me, I definitely feel that I belong here, and am so excited to see what he will do!

Thanks again for all of your prayers! I hope you are all well back at home and are braving the cold! I hear I got out just in time!:)

God Bless you all!
Caitlin

Adelaide!

2007-02-07T23:09:00.000-08:00

I made it safely to Adelaide! I spent a good 5 days in Melbourne, which were really cool. I actually got to know all of the people at the DTS there really well, and it was really hard to leave :( I sat in on all of the sessions during the week, a few of which were everyone sharing their testimonies, and so that inevitably brought everyone really close. I'm really going to miss them, but it's awesome knowing I have family there in Melbourne.

I took a bus last night and got in at 5 this morning - so I'm a little tired, but doing fine. I had kind of a rough morning, just because I was tired and really missed Jordan and everyone else, and just didn't want to go through meeting a whole new group of people after getting so close to the guys in Melbourne. Once I got into it, though, it was really good and I think the group is going to be great. One thing I did find out, though, is that we are all doing the Creative Arts DTS - I thought half were and half weren't......that's fine, since I do have dance experience, but I really hadn't wanted to do one of those. I guess maybe God has different plans, and that's cool! I've never really felt that God specifically called me to use dance as an outreach tool, but maybe that was just me and I haven't heard him. Anyway, I know that this is where God wants me, and so I'm here for a reason. It's a bigger step of faith than I thought, but that's awesome, and I'm really excited to see what God does!

Some prayer requests:
- That I would quickly feel at home here, and bond with the other people
- For overall unity in our group
- That I would be completly be open to what God has for me
- For Jordan and I - I miss him!

Thank you for all your love and prayers. I love you all!

G'day from Melbourne

2007-02-05T18:04:00.000-08:00

Hey all! I first of all want to thank you all for your prayers and interest - I've gotten several emails, and my mom said several people asked about me. It's a blessing to have you all as partners in my ministry.

My time in Melbourne is coming to an end - I leave tomorrow night - but it's been so great. I've really gotten to know all the people in the DTS here, and I'm going to miss them all! Last night we had a time of sharing our testimonies, which was awesome. It's making me really excited to get on to my base and bond with everyone there, even though it's going to be hard to leave the family I've acquired here. That's what's so cool about this type of ministry, though, is that it really is a family, and I know that we are all together in the spiritual sense. It's gonna be awesome to hear everything that this DTS does, since I know all of them now. I'm still blown away that I have this opportunity - it is so amazing. It's comforting, too, that as much as I feel at home here now, and I love the people, I know that God has called me to Adelaide, and it will be even better. It will be good for Jordan and I to have seperate experiences, too, because it would be very challenging to be in the same school. I know God is going to bless us both so much, even though it will be rough.

Other than that, I'm trying to get the last minute details before I leave here, and to find the best ways to communicate via telephone. They sell really cheap phone cards here, so that's great. Later today we're having an "Amazing Race" around Melbourne, which will be really fun, and we have another testimony time tonight.

thank you for your prayers and love. I'm loving it here, and so excited about everything God's doing and will do.
Love to you all!
Caitlin

We're here!

2007-02-02T22:28:00.000-08:00

We finally got here! We arrived yesterday morning at about 11 Melbourne time - 6 pm at home. We unfortunately had some trouble with our luggage - it got lost at some point, so we had to deal with that for a while, but by about 12:30, we got out to meet our YWAM contact. He was there with another girl, Ilsa, who is from Vancouver, and actually on our same flight from Sydney. We then all waited for another student, Eliza. Once we found everyone, we headed back to the base, which was about 45 min. away from the airport. The base is an old orphanage about 20 min outside of the city. We all got settled, met some of the staff, who are really cool, and walked down to an area of town with several small shops. It seems like a really cool area. Later in the night, the staff who will be heading up Jordan's DTS made us dinner, and we talked to them for quite a while about the DTS and Melbourne and their experiences. They seem like really cool people, and I'm really excited for Jordan, it's going to be a great group.

Today, Jordan and I went into the city and walked around for a few hours. The downtown area is a lot of fun, and has a ton of stuff to do and see. There's a river that runs through the middle and a lot of little cafes and shops in that area. I'll probably have a lot more time to explore in the next few days, and there definitely won't be a shortage of things to do!

Everything's going well so far, except for the luggage that's MIA. Hopefully it's come in today!
'
Thank youfor all of your support, I will keep you updated!
God bless,
Caitlin

Today's the day!

2007-01-31T07:42:00.000-08:00

We leave today!!!! Wow, this has been a crazy adventure so far - and it's only really just starting! The last couple days have been packed full with seeing people and getting ready, and I think I finally am prepared. Our plane leaves at 3:20 today, and we'll be traveling for 28 hours - crazy! Please keep us in your prayers, for safety, and that we make all of our connections. When we get to Melbourne, I'll stay at Jordan's base for a while before taking a bus to mine.

God has been so amazing in this whole adventure, his provision is amazing! I can't wait to see what else he does in me! Thanks again for all of your prayers and support, I really am overwhelmed. I'll keep in touch! God bless you all!
Caitlin

6 days and counting!

2007-01-25T13:19:00.001-08:00

Hey all,
I just thought I'd update you with less than a week to go now! crazy! I've been cleaning out my room and packing all week - not a quick job! I'm getting set, though. Financially, I'm doing well - I've actually found some money from graduation and my birthday in the process of cleaning, so that was a nice surprise. I have exactly what I need for the tuition, and am counting on some more to come in to cover the outreach. Jordan is doing well, too - we're trusting God for the last chunk to come in in time, but it's been awesome to see how God has provided so far! Thank you for your prayers in that area.

As far as prayer goes, please continue to pray for my spiritual preparation (this has still been overlooked too much), and for safety in my/our travels.

Thank you all again for your support - I am blessed to have such wonderful people behind me in this. I love you all!

Two weeks to go!

2007-01-17T12:52:00.000-08:00

Hey all! I'll be hopefully posting here regularly.

I'm leaving on Jan 31st to go to Adelaide, Australia for a YWAM DTS. There I'll be seeking and learning about God, then going on an outreach after the first 3 months. I am super excited!

As far as travel plans go, Jordan and I are leaving in the afternoon of the 31st, and 3 stops and over 24 hours later, we will arrive in Melbourne, which is where his base is. Because of the time difference, it will be the morning of Feb 2nd. Jordan's DTS starts the 4th, so hopefully he and I will be able to travel around the city some, and he'll be able to get settled. I will probably stay in Melbourne until the 7th, when I will meet up with a couple other students from my DTS, and we will all take a bus over to Adelaide - which is about a 12 hour trip. We'll get there the morning of the 8th, and our school starts that afternoon! Hopefully the couple days in Melbourne will give me a chance to rest some before the crazyness of the next 5 months!

If you would like to know how to pray for me at this point, here's what's been on my heart:

- That I would be preparing myself spiritually - I've found myself very distracted with the logistics of everything, and I haven't been spending enough time preparing myself for the real reason I'll be there

- Finances, especially for Jordan. I am basically set in this department, if everything I anticipate comes in, but Jordan still needs a pretty big chunk. We're trusting God to get him there, though! Also, for wisdom in how I manage my finances while I am there, so I don't get myself into any trouble :)

- For both of us while we're gone - that we would find a healthy balance, and not become a distraction for each other. God has put us in a very good situation, in that we're far enough away to hopefully be focusing on ourselves, but at least close enough to be able to keep in contact. Please pray that God would give us wisdom, and that we would both get everything we are supposed to out of this.

- The relationships I'll make with the people on my team. I've made contact with everyone via email, and will be traveling with a couple of them (who are from Wisconsin, actually!). It seems like it will be a great group - please pray that God would bring us together into a community that honors him

I am so excited for this opportunity, and so blessed that you all have a part in it with me! THANK YOU, again for supporting me!!!

I will write again soon, feel free to email me with questions or anything
caitlin.wiese@gmail.com