Turkey!

We arrived in Istanbul early Sunday morning and went straight to the hostel. The next day was filled with mosque visits, scavenger hunts, and getting to know our way in turkish culture. Then, we hopped on a bus and rode over to Edirne. We met our hosts and went home for our first meal in a turkish home. My host, D, was a college student studying physics :)

Over the next week we would visit different sites in Edirne. We went into several mosques; one during a call to prayer which was.... erie. We visited famous bridges and saw various historical sites of the former Ottoman Empire capital. But what mattered the most to each of us was the time we got to spend with the different hosts. We had dinner together each night. Some hosts would sight-see with us each day. We all went out together for M's birthday. We became friends.

The most precious time I had in Turkey was with my host, D, and her boyfriend, C. The Lord guided our conversation to be about the differences between Christianity and Islam. I was privileged to share with them that God has provided Jesus in our place, as our Saviour who saves us from judgement. I was able to share with D later about how God created us for relationship with Him and how He desires that with us.

In Edirne Islam is more tradition than anything else. D and C are very nominal Muslims, saying many times that all religions are the same. The work in Turkey is slow. There are only three families working to share the Good News of Christ in a region of 1.5 million people. We must pray for more laborers. We must ask God for a harvest from Turkey!

Berlin!! Part two...

Hey everyone!

My apologies-- an update is long overdue. In the last two weeks in Berlin we did our mini dts, some evangelism, and lots of intercession. The mini dts went really well--it was a small group of students each day but that was nice because we were able to connect with each of them. I taught last Thursday on the kingdom of God and missions (thank you for your prayers!) and the students responded really well. That afternoon we went out to a big public square to do some evangelism. Please pray for Jessie, a girl I spoke with who is really searching right now but unable to accept the miracles of Christ--pray her eyes would be opened and that she would be saved!

This past Sunday I shared a message with a small church plant; it was really a privilege to be able to speak to them and urge them on to seek the Lord. This week we have done a lot of intercession and reading of the Word in public places. We are also preparing to leave for Turkey--we leave on Saturday!

Please continue to pray for our team--for our time in Turkey; we will probably each be in a separate host home. Please pray for opportunities to share the Gospel and for receptive hearts.

Thank you all so much!

Much love, Megan

Berlin!

Hey everyone!

Our last week in Hamburg was great! It included times of prayer and evangelism in a famous red light district, returning to an elementary school for English lessons, and returning to a kids ministry in the mall. It was really nice being able to go to the same ministries a few times. Please pray for Hashad and his sisters Jasmin and Lisa. They are Muslim children who come to the ministry in the mall three times a week. When I asked Hashad about Jesus he just shook his head and said, "we are not that.". Also pray for a man named Asha who I met on the streets. He has been homeless for the last seven years but told us that he likes being homeless. He refuses to recognize that he has any need whatsoever. Please also pray for the ongoing ministries of YWAM and others in the city.

We arrived in Berlin on Sunday evening and the first thing we did was eat delicious doners (pronounced doe-nair) which are a Turkish dish similar to a pita with roasted meat :) they are so good! Other notable things we have done are: prayer walks throughout the city, culture orientation, and making preparations for a mini discipleship training school (dts) here next week. This is a huge prayer request for the team; we are doing all the teaching and everything for the mini dts. I will be teaching on the kingdom of God and missions. Please pray for me in this! We are praying for 20 students to come to this. It will be mon-fri next week (Jan 30-Feb 3).

Other things I am looking forward to are: my friend Kristina is coming tomorrow (Thursday!), the mini dts should be an amazing opportunity to have a role on deepening some youths' relationships with God, and after that I think we are doing some ministry with Muslims, AND then we are going to Turkey! These next few weeks will fly by I am sure. Thank you all SO much for your prayers, love, and support!

For His glory!

Megan

Here's a few pictures: we made waffles with the kids in the mall and i'm not allowed to put pictures of their faces on the internet...so that explains the first picture :)
the next two are at the berlin wall!

Hamburg!!

Hallo friends!!
We arrived safely in Hamburg on Thursday of last week. We hit the ground running with full days Friday and Saturday. We helped teach English to first and second graders, went to a Christian youth center and hung out with the kids there, helped a ministry that gives immigrant children a place to play and learn, saw the city of Hamburg, and went to a house church on Sunday :) on Saturday my friend, Tabea, who I met in Nepal but is from Germany, came and visited till sunday so that was really great to see her!

It has been really eye opening being here--the staff here tell us that Hamburg is less than 2% Christian. Parts of Europe are even worse than that, making many places qualify as unreached. The German people are great but are not super open to talking to eager Americans ;) I am excited though because this week we are going back several times to the places we've already been so we will hopefully see the same people again. This week will also include at least one trip to one of the red light districts here. Please pray for us as we go back to these ministries, that we would connect with people and that we would bring Life wherever we go. Also pray the God would increase the laborers in Europe.

Thank you all SO much for your prayers and support!!

Megan


The pictures are from my phone... Hopefully they are decent... It's a beautiful city!

Over Thanksgiving we organized a Thanksgiving Outreach for YWAM Louisville--We had five teams go out on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Thanksgiving week doing lots of different things like serving meals to the homeless, distributing Bibles in a low-income area, and various service projects. My favorite time was Bible distribution because it was so great to be able to offer hope in the form of the Word of God to people. We were able to talk with one woman, Starr, who had been struggling with depression. We prayed with her and encouraged her with Scripture. She was so happy--she kept saying, "I'm so glad I opened my door!"

It was a busy but rewarding week :)

Last week our teaching was on Missions. God used it to remind me and emphasize to me that the next step after SOMD will involve some sort of preparation in developing a skill that I can bring into a country. The speaker emphasized having an "entry strategy" that will allow me to enter and stay in various countries. There are so many possibilities--education, business, health...lots of options. I need to seek the Lord and get some further guidance about which direction to step, but i am excited as I think about the work of proclaiming how great our God is to the nations :) Sometimes it seems like such an impossible task--to go to people who have never heard the Gospel and expect them to change everything they believe and follow Christ. But in these times the Spirit always reminds me of Christ's victory in the resurrection, the hope He has given us, and the power of the cross. God is so amazing. the Gospel is so amazing. truly good news. how quickly i forget these things if i take my eyes off of Christ Jesus even for a moment. The Gospel is powerful. Praise God His kingdom is not dependent upon my ability but on His Spirit and His finished victory! this is the message we carry to the nations--that God alone is worthy to be praised!

Last week we went to the southeast conference--all ten bases in the southeast gathered together for a week of worship together in talladega, alabama. There was a lot happening in each meeting and i think the main thing God was showing me was about how what God says is done--is done. That when God says, "It is finished" then it is truly and completely finished with nothing more to be done. when we repent of something and God says He is faithful and just to forgive--He is. When God says we are in Christ and our sin is no longer counted against us, it's true. When God says we are saints and beloved and that we are new creations--we are! It is so amazing the faithfulness and goodness of God.

God is also showing me a lot about grace. I think a lot of it started with Don Stephen's teaching on the Kingdom, which was the week before last. He talked about God's grace and how we are no longer under the law. period. Perhaps if this conference had been before that teaching i wouldve been there trying to do things to clean myself up. Instead, i was able to receive the truth that there is nothing for me to do, nothing that i have to do. I kept asking the Lord this week if there was something i should be doing and He kept saying no--He has done it all.

Amen!

Father Heart of God and Spiritual Gifts

This past week I was privileged to attend classes with the DTS on Father Heart of God as well as go to my own classes which were on spiritual giftings. It was a busy week :) I was in class basically all day every day with only an hour break for lunch. But it was good. I had the teaching Father Heart of God during my dts but it was our first week of teaching and the day before the teaching was kelly's accident so....i wasnt really into it.

One of the most impactful things was hearing the speaker, Doug Easterday, talk about his relationship with his children and his wife. He told stories about doing little, special things for them just because he knew they would like it. The way he talked about his love for his family helped me see God as a good father--caring for His children. God helped me see this week that i have not looked at Him as being a personal Father, but often a distant authority. Hearing Doug talk about his love for his kids helped me to see God's Father love for me. It helped me expand my view of God--He is big enough to be personally intimate with all His kids!

One thing that I have struggled with a lot in the past and this week has been reconciling God's sovereignty and our free will. It has been a struggle for a long time without conclusion. This week it was cool because Doug hadn't addressed the topic at all but for some reason Friday morning it was the first thing he talked about. He recommended a book on the topic and simply said that God is sovereign and we make choices. I'm not sure i will understand more than that. in fact, im pretty sure i will not. But it was really awesome how God brought it up and it allowed me to be more open to the teaching that day which was on forgiveness.

Our teaching this week was about God's calling on individual lives. Our speaker described discovering our calling like the putting together of a jigsaw puzzle--many times God shows you one piece at a time and as you walk it out the whole picture becomes clear. This week was great for me because God confirmed a lot that was in my heart already about going to India and reaching the unreached with the Gospel. God used this week to help me see that His vision is in my heart; I am excited to be preparing for it and living it.

God reminded me this week of His sovereignty. Every now and then I go through times when I dont want to move for fear of failure, but this week the Lord reminded me that He is sovereign. Our speaker said that basically we can expect to fail--but God is bigger than our failures. I can trust the Lord that He will guide and direct me. I can also trust that He will correct me. This is surprisingly comforting :)

It has been a full week at YWAM Louisville! This week our speaker was Donna MacGowan--who (with her husband, Mark) was my DTS Director at YWAM Denver. It was awesome having a teacher that I knew so well. The subject was Biblical Counseling. I loved it because it not only applies to helping us minister to others but it was incredibly helpful in the working out of my own salvation. God used the teaching to remind me and reveal to me again how He desires complete restoration in people. He is not simply satisfied with one being saved, but is interested in making them whole as well. The Lord was so good to me this week by showing me different things within me that He wants to heal and restore. God is so good.

We has the opportunity this week to "practice" doing ministry on each other--we got to share with each other about something we wanted prayer for and walk through the process of leading someone to the Lord and allowing Him to bring revelation and restoration in their lives. Through this exercise I realized how little I knew about counseling others. It was amazing though--to see how the Lord spoke to people and worked in the midst of my weakness. Once again--God is so good.

It was hard for me this week--I find myself being so reluctant to go through the process of restoration. I want it to just be done. But God is always so patient and gentle with me--never giving me more than I can handle. God is so good!