Quick Update

Hey everyone!

     Just  a quick update, I asked for prayer the other day, because we (my teammates and I) were having some trouble with our new work permits and with our visa renewals. Well, answer to prayer, we received an extension in our passports to return later in September, which is great news since we already had non-refundable tickets! We still will have a lot of finagling to do when we return in the fall but for now things are on the right track.

   Also, we officially began the moving process this week. This is going to be a two month deal because while our stuff has moved out and into its new home, the previous owners will still be living there for an indefinite period of time. The hope is they will be moving out about the same time that I return from America in September so my teammates and I can move into our new home. It has been a bit of a stressful week, but God has really been good and both processes have gone smoother than anticipated and have been a blessing.

    This week has been a crazy week though! We have moved, my school has had one of its biggest events of the year all week long that has involved Czech news and radio and 800 children, we have visited the foreign police, and tomorrow, I am going to Junior English Camp for a week. There is nothing quite like finishing the year with a bang! It has been a year of joy and ups and downs. Too much to ever put into a few blog posts, but I look forward to visiting with many of you when I come home in just over a week!

Přeji vám pokoj jež můžete nalézt pouze u Něj! (I wish you a peace that can only be found in Him!) 

Silly and a little sad

   My teammates will tell you that in the flat I am obsessed with a few things when I see them outside our windows. One I have already blogged about and that is our flame (I still shout, "Flame on!" as though I am Johnny Storm every time I see it). And the second is hot air balloons. 

I think they are just so beautiful! At some point I will probably write a separate blog about what I find to be the significance of those magical zeppelins floating in the sky, but for now, 

 

I thought I should just document what was probably the last time I would see not just one but TWO out my fantastic windows at the Korunni flat before we move.(FYI, my roommates, I think, hate whenever I see a hot air balloon, because I holler and shout for them to come look and I don't think they really care. Oh well! 

Don't worry you beings of advertisement, your wonder is not yet  lost on me). So here are my photos from that morning.

AND my roommates (Ashley- left, Shelly- right) giving in to my impulsiveness and taking some crazy photos of our last meal in the Korunni flat. We had breakfast casserole, and boy, was it yummy! Even if I do say so myself! 

You can also see some of the packing insanity that is going on and how I officially permitted each person to have only one of each kitchen utensil and packed the rest away. I have been a bit OCD with getting ready to move, but we will be ready come Wednesday! Never fear!

 


So long Korunni flat! You have been great and we have had a lot of fun living here! You will be missed! But we are looking forward to our new home! Look out here we come!

Moving

     Moving, such a simple verb, but by definition an action which actually alters our physical state of being. And moving house, or as we Americans shorten it to--moving, a word that by definition usually alters one's life so completely that there is no going back. Think about it, nothing is ever the same. So not only is this verb the biggest hassle in the world, but it will turn your world on its side (maybe not in a bad way, but it will definitely be different). 

     Have you ever moved? If you have, you know what I'm talking about. First the painful search for somewhere new to live, next comes the always excruciating chore of packing and unpacking-the endless juggling of items, redding out those items you never really use any way, finding boxes, and bubble wrap with which you precariously store precious items now and have hours of delightfulness with later popping. Then, the sentimental or hurried good-bye as you leave your old home. Next, you settle in to your new place selecting just the right spot for each keepsake trying to maximizing on the storage in your new home, attempting to bring order to chaos. Finally, the hardest part of all comes the new normal. Your new life, wherever you moved, is something that you must learn to thrive in.

     This month in Czech we are, yep, you guessed it, moving! However, unlike my move to the CZ I do not think this move will be quite so life-altering. But I am keeping an open-mind--the Lord can do some pretty incredible things. To quantify this move for you guys though, my teammates and I have to be out of our flat by the end of the month, but we can't quite move into our home for the fall yet because the owners are still living there. We will be nomads for a few days until we leave for the summer. Then when we return in the fall we will pull it out of closets and rooms that we have stashed it in and complete the moving process. The flat we are moving to has a huge kitchen/dining area, an even larger living room, 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, entryway, computer room, and a terrace. It is about 15 minutes away from my current place and is in the center of the city, next to my favorite cafe! (One downside, the place has a four floor walk-up! Yay, nice calves!)

    The other major difference with this move will be a change in our team. We are moving forward in time. Two of our team members will be going home in just a few weeks and they won't be returning to Ostrava next year. I will miss them very much, but I know for them that this is the correct choice. Jessica is going to Atlanta and will be participating in a missions organization called Mission Year. Ashley will be heading home to spend some time with her family and begin job hunting. Erica, Shelly and I are excited to meet our new teammate, but I'll tell you about her in another blog after I meet her.

     In so many ways we move in life both physically and metaphorically, that it can be daunting, energizing, terrifying, awe-inspiring, and so many other feelings that make you want to add an emoticon in extra large print to your life. No matter what though, when we live a life with Christ we have a hope that does not disappoint us because we have been given the Holy Spirit and his love which he has poured out in us through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). And during all these experiences and regardless of what life brings us, we can continue on in his strength.

For our light and momentary troubles [although they may not seem so light and easy in this life] are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 

2 Corinth. 4:17 (comments added by me)