Hello, Last post on the blog. Well we all made it back to Brisbane, safe and sound - with only minor hic ups at the airports. Its freezing in Brisbane at the moment, very big contrast!
It was really good to be back on base and to meet up with the other team and share our different experiences and stories.
We are having lectures this week, as well as debrief, finishing workbooks and preparing for graduation on Friday - its a busy time!!
We all had a great outreach and i want to thank you all for your prayer support, we really felt it during our 6 weeks.
Thanks again, Solomons 1.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Final week in Noro
Hello everyone, this could potentially be the last update on our blog.
The last week in Noro we were running seminars based on Matt 22v17 (i think thats the correct reference) where Jesus is talking about the 2 most important commandments, which are love the lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbour as yourself. We broke it down in to 3 days.
Day one - teaching on how to love God and have a relationship with hium, we done teaching on Hearing the voice of God and some exercises to practice this. This went down really well and for most people was new information. Some people got really good words from God and were very encouraged by the teachings. After we had some refreshments and it was a really good time to chat with people and pray with people if needed.
Day 2 - Love yourself, we covered who God created us to be, how we lost it and how we got it back. This was split between 3 guys and so was good to get a change of speaker and a small break to keep peoples attention. The teaching was really good and so were the numbers.
Again we had refreshments afterwards and were able to chat and pray with people.
Day three - how to love your neighbour. We covered who actually was our neighbour and what things, blockages, that would hinder us in loving our neighbour. Again the teaching went down very well with people and they were taking notes and really listening. It was good to have 3 days of teaching and to get some of the same people coming to all 3 evenings.
Our last day in Noro there was no program, we all spent time with our families and people in the village before having a big farewell party in the evening, which lasted until about midnight. There was panpipes, singing and lots of dancing. We even went up as a team and done the makirina (sp) to a panpipes song, it went downvery well and there was ao\lot of laughter. We were impressed with ourselfs at how well coordinated we actually were.
we were given many gifts from our families, and other people in the village, some of these include necklaces and hats ....photos to come!
We had a really good last night and they were very sad to see us go.
Friday morning (5am) we headed for Munda airport where we then flew back to Honiara and then in the evening met up with the other Solomons Team - it was a great reunion and many talked in to the wee hours of the morning.
A few more days left in Honiara doing debrief and reflecting on outreach and DTS as a whole.
We fly back to Brisbane on Tuesday afternoon and should be back in brisbane about 5.30pm.
All for now, maybe i will do one more when we are all safely back in Brisbane. But overall we have had a fantastic outreach experience and are loking forward to meeting up with the rest of the school and then to graduation.
Thanks, Solomons 1.
The last week in Noro we were running seminars based on Matt 22v17 (i think thats the correct reference) where Jesus is talking about the 2 most important commandments, which are love the lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbour as yourself. We broke it down in to 3 days.
Day one - teaching on how to love God and have a relationship with hium, we done teaching on Hearing the voice of God and some exercises to practice this. This went down really well and for most people was new information. Some people got really good words from God and were very encouraged by the teachings. After we had some refreshments and it was a really good time to chat with people and pray with people if needed.
Day 2 - Love yourself, we covered who God created us to be, how we lost it and how we got it back. This was split between 3 guys and so was good to get a change of speaker and a small break to keep peoples attention. The teaching was really good and so were the numbers.
Again we had refreshments afterwards and were able to chat and pray with people.
Day three - how to love your neighbour. We covered who actually was our neighbour and what things, blockages, that would hinder us in loving our neighbour. Again the teaching went down very well with people and they were taking notes and really listening. It was good to have 3 days of teaching and to get some of the same people coming to all 3 evenings.
Our last day in Noro there was no program, we all spent time with our families and people in the village before having a big farewell party in the evening, which lasted until about midnight. There was panpipes, singing and lots of dancing. We even went up as a team and done the makirina (sp) to a panpipes song, it went downvery well and there was ao\lot of laughter. We were impressed with ourselfs at how well coordinated we actually were.
we were given many gifts from our families, and other people in the village, some of these include necklaces and hats ....photos to come!
We had a really good last night and they were very sad to see us go.
Friday morning (5am) we headed for Munda airport where we then flew back to Honiara and then in the evening met up with the other Solomons Team - it was a great reunion and many talked in to the wee hours of the morning.
A few more days left in Honiara doing debrief and reflecting on outreach and DTS as a whole.
We fly back to Brisbane on Tuesday afternoon and should be back in brisbane about 5.30pm.
All for now, maybe i will do one more when we are all safely back in Brisbane. But overall we have had a fantastic outreach experience and are loking forward to meeting up with the rest of the school and then to graduation.
Thanks, Solomons 1.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Church Crawl
Hello Everyone,
Just a quick update about last week. We were working with many different churches in the area which was really good.
We had Monday off, Tuesday we were sharing in the SSEC church which stands for South Sea Evangelical Church. they were more lively than the anglican church and there were more youth. They were really excited that we were able to visit them and after they gave us "Staka Kai Kai" = Lots of Food. We stayed and talked with them and they really appreciated it.
Wednesday we shared in the Catholic church this was good as many of us had never been in to a catholic church before. We were able to share dispite the difference of denomination. They sang songs for us at the end and again gave us lots of food.
On Thursday we were back at the SSEC church and this time we shared on the importance of having quiet times with God and how to do this. The week before they had a rally or camp with all the SSEC churches in the area, where many young people became new christians so the youth leader informed us of this and wanted us to encourage the new christians and help them grow closer to God. A few of us shared a short testimony on how they spend time with God and i think they really enjoyed it as it gave them practical ways to do it for themself.. It was good to go back and meet people who we had met a few days before.
Friday was a day off.We couldnt really do anything though as it rained and rained and RAINED!! Its rainy season now in Western Province and so it rains everyday and its really heavy.
On Saturday we split them team in two. One half went to United church for a youth group. it was small but the message was really encouraging for them and us too. We spent some time with the youth afterward and were able to pray for healing for 1 womans back.
The other half of the team went back to SSEC on saturday night and camped in the church with the youth group. They woke up early on sunday morning (4am) and spent time with God in some of the ways we had mentioned a few days before. They then shared a message in the sunday service before heading home very tired.
Sunday afternoon there was a service for the sailors called "Sea Fair". This was a service to pray for them before they went out on the fishing boats for some up to at least 3 months. There was singing and we shared a gospel message as many were not christians.
On Sunday afternoon, about 11am there was a massive explosion and all our houses shook. We found out later that the Australian police are over and location old WW2 bombs and setting them off. So we have now experienced a WW2 bomb going off - it was LOUD!
Thats our week in a nut shell, we leave on Friday morning back to Honiara where we reunite with the other Solomons team and i will then update you on our last week in Noro.
We then fly back to Brisbane on Tuesday 21st.
thank you for all your prayers, and please continue to remember us. We do not want any trouble in the airports again like the last time. Pray that we will all safely actually get back to australia.
thank you, solomons 1.
Just a quick update about last week. We were working with many different churches in the area which was really good.
We had Monday off, Tuesday we were sharing in the SSEC church which stands for South Sea Evangelical Church. they were more lively than the anglican church and there were more youth. They were really excited that we were able to visit them and after they gave us "Staka Kai Kai" = Lots of Food. We stayed and talked with them and they really appreciated it.
Wednesday we shared in the Catholic church this was good as many of us had never been in to a catholic church before. We were able to share dispite the difference of denomination. They sang songs for us at the end and again gave us lots of food.
On Thursday we were back at the SSEC church and this time we shared on the importance of having quiet times with God and how to do this. The week before they had a rally or camp with all the SSEC churches in the area, where many young people became new christians so the youth leader informed us of this and wanted us to encourage the new christians and help them grow closer to God. A few of us shared a short testimony on how they spend time with God and i think they really enjoyed it as it gave them practical ways to do it for themself.. It was good to go back and meet people who we had met a few days before.
Friday was a day off.We couldnt really do anything though as it rained and rained and RAINED!! Its rainy season now in Western Province and so it rains everyday and its really heavy.
On Saturday we split them team in two. One half went to United church for a youth group. it was small but the message was really encouraging for them and us too. We spent some time with the youth afterward and were able to pray for healing for 1 womans back.
The other half of the team went back to SSEC on saturday night and camped in the church with the youth group. They woke up early on sunday morning (4am) and spent time with God in some of the ways we had mentioned a few days before. They then shared a message in the sunday service before heading home very tired.
Sunday afternoon there was a service for the sailors called "Sea Fair". This was a service to pray for them before they went out on the fishing boats for some up to at least 3 months. There was singing and we shared a gospel message as many were not christians.
On Sunday afternoon, about 11am there was a massive explosion and all our houses shook. We found out later that the Australian police are over and location old WW2 bombs and setting them off. So we have now experienced a WW2 bomb going off - it was LOUD!
Thats our week in a nut shell, we leave on Friday morning back to Honiara where we reunite with the other Solomons team and i will then update you on our last week in Noro.
We then fly back to Brisbane on Tuesday 21st.
thank you for all your prayers, and please continue to remember us. We do not want any trouble in the airports again like the last time. Pray that we will all safely actually get back to australia.
thank you, solomons 1.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Rendova, Falog and Talowa
Hello everyone!
Sorry for delay in this update - the internet was closed for a few days due to Independance day celebrations.
So Last week we went to Rendova (spelt correct this time) it was a couple of hours on the boat and we arrived just before dark.
We were staying in a half built house, as in just a frame. It had a roof, most of the floor, but no walls....they put up big tarps and made walls which was good otherwise we had no privicy at all - and people are always watching us here!
They had a few welcome songs for us and told us a bit about their island and the people and how they were effected by the Tsunami in 2007. The place was completely destroyed and building work had started but still not completed - thats the island way!
The next day we went snorkoling and the boys went spear fishing with many people from the island - they never caught much but the reefs and fish were beautiful.
We swam to the next island and got fresh coconuts from the tree to drink - very nice - this is the life haha.
We held services every morning and evening - so most of us got the chance to share something, we shared on topics such as Gods love, God as a father and hearing the voice of God. It all went very well and the people were really challenged and encouraged. They were so happy for us to visit them and they were very welcoming to us.
Even though we were only there for a few days they had a big leaving party for us with pan pipes, singing and dancing - they even got us white people up to dance!! haha
The food was very good here - there was "staka" of it (that means lots), so much that on our last day we were sat in someones house and the floor collapsed while we were sat on it = haha so funny and i have pictures!
It is very basic on this island - no showers or toilets so it made us really appreciate Noro.
Falog
After our time on Rendova we left for another island, Falog. It was a few hours away on the boat, and it rained the whole way! we looked as though we had just jumped in the sea! our bags were covered - thank goodness! i think it was probably the first time we had all been Cold in the solomon islands so it was nice for a while. When we arrived at Falog the boys just jumped in the sea and it was like a warm bath - seriously! We rested in the afternoon there and then shared a short messgage on the lost son (luke) before having dinner and heading back to Noro back to our families.
It was nice to be back, and our families had missed us.
The next day we went to another island close by called talowa, they were very happy to have us visit them and we shared a message on Identity in christ and being children of God.After we had shared the message in the church a snake fell down from the roof at the front of the church, and one of the church leaders had to kill it - it was scary for a bit but also it tied in nicely with our message of crushing Satan and living as children of God. This is a very small island, only about 5 or 6 families live here. we again had a big impact on them and also had a farewell party for us with singing and pan pipes - even though we were there a few hours.
All in all its busy, but great. we are all being stretched and having to step out of our comfort zones which is great. we are all healthy and happy.
Please remember us in your prayers as we only have 1 more week here in Noro.
thank you, Solomons 1.
Sorry for delay in this update - the internet was closed for a few days due to Independance day celebrations.
So Last week we went to Rendova (spelt correct this time) it was a couple of hours on the boat and we arrived just before dark.
We were staying in a half built house, as in just a frame. It had a roof, most of the floor, but no walls....they put up big tarps and made walls which was good otherwise we had no privicy at all - and people are always watching us here!
They had a few welcome songs for us and told us a bit about their island and the people and how they were effected by the Tsunami in 2007. The place was completely destroyed and building work had started but still not completed - thats the island way!
The next day we went snorkoling and the boys went spear fishing with many people from the island - they never caught much but the reefs and fish were beautiful.
We swam to the next island and got fresh coconuts from the tree to drink - very nice - this is the life haha.
We held services every morning and evening - so most of us got the chance to share something, we shared on topics such as Gods love, God as a father and hearing the voice of God. It all went very well and the people were really challenged and encouraged. They were so happy for us to visit them and they were very welcoming to us.
Even though we were only there for a few days they had a big leaving party for us with pan pipes, singing and dancing - they even got us white people up to dance!! haha
The food was very good here - there was "staka" of it (that means lots), so much that on our last day we were sat in someones house and the floor collapsed while we were sat on it = haha so funny and i have pictures!
It is very basic on this island - no showers or toilets so it made us really appreciate Noro.
Falog
After our time on Rendova we left for another island, Falog. It was a few hours away on the boat, and it rained the whole way! we looked as though we had just jumped in the sea! our bags were covered - thank goodness! i think it was probably the first time we had all been Cold in the solomon islands so it was nice for a while. When we arrived at Falog the boys just jumped in the sea and it was like a warm bath - seriously! We rested in the afternoon there and then shared a short messgage on the lost son (luke) before having dinner and heading back to Noro back to our families.
It was nice to be back, and our families had missed us.
The next day we went to another island close by called talowa, they were very happy to have us visit them and we shared a message on Identity in christ and being children of God.After we had shared the message in the church a snake fell down from the roof at the front of the church, and one of the church leaders had to kill it - it was scary for a bit but also it tied in nicely with our message of crushing Satan and living as children of God. This is a very small island, only about 5 or 6 families live here. we again had a big impact on them and also had a farewell party for us with singing and pan pipes - even though we were there a few hours.
All in all its busy, but great. we are all being stretched and having to step out of our comfort zones which is great. we are all healthy and happy.
Please remember us in your prayers as we only have 1 more week here in Noro.
thank you, Solomons 1.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
In Noro
Hello, so turns out we do have internet!
We arrived safely after a great flight over all the beautiful islands and were met at the airport in Noro. It was a short drive to our village, it is so beautiful here.
When we arrived we were welcomed by Father Andrew ( we are working with the Anglican church)and given breakfast at his house. We were still in the dark about where we were staying or what we were doing.
After breakfast we were informed of our accomodation...we were all split up and living with different families in the village - this was a big shock, but also a great oppourtunity to build relationships and see how Solomons people live. The first few days were hard, and communication between us and the islanders was difficult due to the language barrier.
We each have a list of pidgin words to learn, eg - staka = many/lots, pikinini = child etc
We were all invited to a wedding the same day we arrived, it was for 9 people - very long!
We were informed of our schedule for our time here in Noro:
Week 1 - each night we had to give a teaching so almost all of us had a go.
Week 2 - (today) we are leaving for another Island, Rendover, this is a place that was hit bad by the tsunami so we do not know what to expect.
Week 3 - Similar to week 1 but in different churches in the area.
Week 4 - first half of the week we are running a few seminars on practical teachings since we will be leaving that week.
When we arrived they put on a welcome show for us, it had many traditional songs and dances it was really good and we have many videos and pictures. We have been told to expect a similar farewell show on thursday.
We have really enjoyed our time here already, and are making a big impact on the village. We are the "talk of the town". Everyone knows everything, you tell one person and the rest of the village know in no time at all.
The boys have been many spear fishing trips, even one at night which was there most successful yet. This has been a great way to make relationships with the people.
We have been 1 snorkoling trip with about 20 people from the village, the reefs here are so beautiful.
I will update once we are back from Rendover.
Thank you for all your prayers, we really appreciate them.
Thanks, Solomons 1.
P.s Laura (solomons 2) finally arrived in the Solomons on Tuesday and has reunited with her team - woohoo!
We arrived safely after a great flight over all the beautiful islands and were met at the airport in Noro. It was a short drive to our village, it is so beautiful here.
When we arrived we were welcomed by Father Andrew ( we are working with the Anglican church)and given breakfast at his house. We were still in the dark about where we were staying or what we were doing.
After breakfast we were informed of our accomodation...we were all split up and living with different families in the village - this was a big shock, but also a great oppourtunity to build relationships and see how Solomons people live. The first few days were hard, and communication between us and the islanders was difficult due to the language barrier.
We each have a list of pidgin words to learn, eg - staka = many/lots, pikinini = child etc
We were all invited to a wedding the same day we arrived, it was for 9 people - very long!
We were informed of our schedule for our time here in Noro:
Week 1 - each night we had to give a teaching so almost all of us had a go.
Week 2 - (today) we are leaving for another Island, Rendover, this is a place that was hit bad by the tsunami so we do not know what to expect.
Week 3 - Similar to week 1 but in different churches in the area.
Week 4 - first half of the week we are running a few seminars on practical teachings since we will be leaving that week.
When we arrived they put on a welcome show for us, it had many traditional songs and dances it was really good and we have many videos and pictures. We have been told to expect a similar farewell show on thursday.
We have really enjoyed our time here already, and are making a big impact on the village. We are the "talk of the town". Everyone knows everything, you tell one person and the rest of the village know in no time at all.
The boys have been many spear fishing trips, even one at night which was there most successful yet. This has been a great way to make relationships with the people.
We have been 1 snorkoling trip with about 20 people from the village, the reefs here are so beautiful.
I will update once we are back from Rendover.
Thank you for all your prayers, we really appreciate them.
Thanks, Solomons 1.
P.s Laura (solomons 2) finally arrived in the Solomons on Tuesday and has reunited with her team - woohoo!
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