Hang in There

November 27, 2007

It is that time of the year, and teachers and students are tired. There are a lot of tests given in all the classes, including my English class. But we will make it...that is what I keep telling the students. Push through, and then Christmas you get a big break. Keep the students in prayers the next couple of weeks as they wrap up the semester and get ready to go home and see their families. Some of the students have not seen their family since August, and they are so ready to get home.

Christmas Banquet

November 24, 2007

This past Saturday was Christmas Banquet. This is very formal banquet for the students to dress up and take dates. A nice meal and dessert were served and there was entertainment provided by, of course, the students. Nolan and I have been hearing about this banquet since we first got here. It is really the only time for students to really dress up in formal gowns and suits. I was able to put something nice together and go and enjoy the festivities. It was nice watching the students enjoy themselves, and the girls and boys looked so handsome and pretty. Some of the students are really creative with their attire...it would be too boring for some to just wear a normal suit and tie or formal gown. As you can see Nolan participated in some of the entertainment....some of the teachers did their own version of Jingle Bells where they changed the lyrics to describe the characteristics of BFA life. Here are pics from the night.

International Mission Board Thanksgiving

November 22, 2007

The dinner was fabulous....full of the traditional Thanksgiving dishes....turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, and most importantly, pumpkin pie! After dinner, the students and some of the teachers (Nolan and I) went into the gym to throw some football and play some basketball. A nice way to celebrate Thanksgiving....especially when I was away from home. Here are some pics.

More Thanksgiving Dinner

November 22, 2007

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

So I woke up with a little sadness because I am not in the USA celebrating Turkey Day with family and friends. But God is always faithful in providing comfort when I feel homesick. Tonight the International Mission Board (IMB) is having a Thanksgiving dinner for all IMB missionaries in town and IMB dorm students. Even though, technically we are not IMB yet, we were still invited to this dinner. IMB really wants to make this day feel like home for all of us missionaries away from home, away from family and friends. I am excited to hang out with the students and missionaries, especially those IMB missionaries I do not get to see very often because they are not involved with BFA. I will share pictures in the next couple of days.....and about the food we eat (yum!)

Thanksgiving Dinner at Blauen

November 15, 2007

To make students and staff feel more at home, each dorm has a Thanksgiving dinner, family style. Since we help out at Blauen (a girl's dorm), we were invited to partake in the wonderful dinner. Nolan and I prepared deviled eggs, which was a favorite among the students....I was completely surprised. We made 60 deviled eggs, and there were not any left by the end of the meal. We ate around a big table and then shared one thing we were thankful for this year. We ate all the traditional Thanksgiving food; turkey, stuffing [northern, not southern, style :( ,pumpkin and apple pie, cornbread dressing, and big plump rolls. Of course, we stuffed ourselves! Nolan and I had so much fun visiting with the girls and hearing their stories. Some of the girls have never spent Thanksgiving in the States, but always in their missionary country. However, their families always make a Thanksgiving dinner. It was a lovely night eating and fellowshipping.

Mosaic Weekend Retreat

November 11-12, 2007

This was our weekend retreat with Mosaic, the church plant we are helping with outside of BFA. To get to know each other a little better, we headed to Adelboden, Switzerland for a retreat. We stayed at the Janz Team Mission Chalet, located in the mountains. Absolutely beautiful. This particular weekend, snow was in the forcast, and their first snow for the season...what a blessing! We just relaxed by playing cards, eating, watching a movie, more eating, and then more eating. Oh yeah, and a huge snowball fight, which was so much fun for this Louisiana girl! I can think of only 3 times in my life seeing this much snow.

There was a couple coming later that evening, so we had to shovel snow for them to be able to use the driveway. Another thing I have never done before. It was hilarious to watch all of us shoveling snow.....the irony of it is that all of us involved in Mosaic are from the south part of the world: Ghana, Africa; Australia, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana. We have one German lady, Ilona, but she was a missionary in Indonesia for 13 years. God has a funny sense of humor, how we are come together in Germany to worship our Living God.

Before leaving Sunday, we had a intimate worship service sharing our hearts and vision for the church. A great time spent with new friends. Another way God blesses us! Oh yeah, we had to get one more snowball fight in before leaving.

More Pictures from Herbst Messe

Herbst Messe is still taking place in Basel, Switzerland. It is a 2 week festival, and students attend October 31 (written about earlier in the blog). Here are some more pictures from the night all the students went to the festival.