How great is our God! I think it will take me years to process all the information that has been poured into me since I've been here (and we've just barely passed the 1 month mark). He has been teaching me what it means to hear and to listen, as well as what it means to just be still and give Him the control. There has been revelation about people in my life I need to forgive and incredible clarity in some areas of the Trinity. It has been a roller coaster, and I'm hanging on for the ride.
Life here in Townsville has been busy. We're applying the lessons we learn in lectures into our ministry placement every day. Scrubbing mold out of showers and mopping the floors has a way of pushing deeper the truths we've learned and God's love deeper into our souls.
Last week I came down with cold like symptoms which turned into a nasty cough. Coughing through two nights and days was uncomfortable. Some antibiotics later I have leaps and bounds more energy, although I still have a pesky cough. It's getting better though.
Then I arrived in Townsville. And everything was moved upside down. From the very first day it was obvious that YWAM TSV has a huge heart for the nation of PNG. Just 676 miles north of Townsville, Port Moresby (the capital of PNG) is also their sister city. It seems like every day there was a new story about how YWAM TSV was working with the people of PNG. It started softening my heart. Living on the Medical Ship has also in a way made me more sensitive to PNG. You can't help but feel the heart for this nation here.
I found myself more and more open to the possibility of going to PNG. We knew that some of our teams would be going there and that some would be staying in Australia, but that's all we knew until last Friday. The other thing holding me back was a comment that my momma had made to me. She said something about my dad not wanting me to go to PNG.
I respect my parents, and I really wanted to honor them. So we found out what our outreach locations were going to be on Friday. Here were the major outreach options:
1. Darwin
2. Milne Bay, PNG
3. Port Moresby, PNG
4. Western Province, PNG
The fact of the matter was that 75% of us were going to PNG. As Markus (our school leader) was reading out the options, there was one that immediately stuck out to me. We were given the weekend to pray about it, and Monday morning we wrote our pick on a piece of paper and handed it to our small group leaders. I believed the Lord was leading me to PNG, so Monday morning I called my parents to see what their reaction would be. It was mixed, but they said they would talk about it. I wrote down the option I felt led to.
Tuesday evening we found out our outreach groups. Our staff sent us all to different rooms and told us that they had to give last minute presentations. I am so excited for my group! There are 8 of us, and we have 1 staff member. We are going to Gold Coast for our minor outreach, which is two weeks long. Then we are going to Milne Bay (pronounced Mill-in Bay) for our major outreach, which is seven weeks long. Here's a handy map.
So the last week has been crazy with exciting news in addition to our Thanksgiving celebration. While it wasn't like turkey day back in the States, it was still a great celebration with friends and family.
This Sunday we leave to go camping in Hidden Valley for two weeks, which equals no internet for that time. We're excited for some hang out time and a little bit of a break.
It's about time to head back to the ship for the night. I will talk to you all in two weeks!
Until then,
Katie
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