Time for an update!

So, travel weekend was a lot of fun. I stayed at the Bode, but when on a day trip with my friends Christine, Amy, and Susannah, to Konstanz, one day. Another day I just had a quiet day to myself since all my roommates were gone, and another day went and hung out in Friedrichshafen with another group of friends and got coffee. Every night, a group of us would drag our mattresses into the lecture hall and watch a movie till really late at night. One night, we watched all of Lord of the Ring movies and went to bed at 5 in the morning. It was sooo much fun! We also had a worship night one of the nights and that was a lot of fun too. It was so good to get to hang out with a smaller group and just get to know them better. Don't get me wrong, I love the big group as well!!!

Fast forwarding a little bit...we've had a couple crossings since then and they've been really good! Sonja's come to visit me both times and it's been so great to talk to her and spend time with her. You would think living so close to her, I would see her more often, but she and I have just been way too busy to do anything lately. Hopefully we'll be able to hang out one last time before I leave. I think she will be coming to church this weekend though so that'll be fun! I'm really looking forward to when she and my cousin Lars come to visit me in Texas this summer. She's already booked her flight and my family's already thinking up cool things to do with them and to show them.

Also, a couple weekends ago my sing team went on a weekend outreach. It was so much fun and we really got a lot closer. One day, we went to a school and walked around to different classrooms and gave our testimonies, answered some questions they had, and sang some songs (obviously). That was a lot of fun. In the evenings, we would sing at the church services and then afterwards, hang out with some of the teens from the church. One night, at an evening service, I gave my testimony. It was so cool because I wasn't nervous after I prayed for peace about it and I knew the whole time that God had a plan for my testimony that night. I was chosen at random to give my testimony and no one had heard it before. The topic to be preached that night went along with my testimony and then the drama that the drama team put on right before I went up to share, was basically my testimony in a nutshell! I knew it was all apart of God's will. Afterwards, a lady came up to me and thanked me for sharing my testimony and told me she could relate some to it and asked me to keep her in my prayers. I told her of course I would and hugged her. I told her that God is all powerful and is able to do anything and is able to rescue her from anything she's struggling from as long as she's ready to need Him and admits that she can do nothing apart from Christ and needs Him to help her. The next day, a few ladies came up to me and thanked me for sharing my testimony and told me that no one has ever been that brave to share a testimony like that in church and she told me that it was really encouraging to hear how God helped me through all that and brought me to Bodenseehof and how much I've changed. She told me she hadn't known me for very long, but could tell that I'd changed so much and that I have a genuine heart for the Lord. Then another lady came up to me and told me that right after I shared my testimony, a lady went up to her and asked to pray and talk to her. She told her that she had been dealing with a lot of the stuff I went through and made a lot of the same decisions I had made and she needed to change her life around and said also that she wanted to live for God and not for herself or to please other people. She had been struggling with not feeling loved and she realized after my testimony, that it is possible for God to love her and to give her a second chance. She isn't too "dirty" for God. God loves and forgives her no matter what she's done, or who she's been in the past. I was so thankful that God made me get up there and share my testimony. I was definitely taken out of my comfort zone that night, but God showed me that it was for the best. It was also really encouraging to see once again, how God can take our past experiences and bad choices that we made in the past and help others going through the same thing and see how He uses that for His glory and in bringing others to Him. What an awesome and loving God He is!

Last Sunday, my sing team went on another outreach. However, this one was only for a morning. We went to a little kid's Sunday school class and sang some songs for them both German and English songs, and acted out a story about the Good shepherd and some of my friends on my sing team were the sheep. It was so much fun and the kids loved it! The kids were from ages 3-8 and they really liked everything we did. I think it was probably because we were so much older than they were. Then, after that, we played a game with the kids and our sing team guys really got into it. After the game was over and the parents were starting to pick up their kids, the kids didn't want to go home. They were wrestling and rough housing with the sing team guys and were laughing and giggling their little heads off! They were sooo cute! The mom's would be trying to get their jackets on and the kids were crying and trying to pull away so they could all high five us and give us hugs. It was supposed to be our last outreach as a sing team, but we kept begging our leader, Barbel, to go back and hopefully we'll be able to maybe next Sunday or something like that. We loved it!

Well, there's 3 weeks left of school, 18 days to be exact...and I'm really sad about that. People get mad and won't let anyone talk about how many days we have left because we all love it here and don't want to go home. I miss my family though, because we're so close and my good friends, but I will miss everyone here as well. Everyone here is like a tight family as well and it's going to be hard when it's time for us to leave. I'm excited though, because we're already planning a '08-'09 reunion, and then the Texans are planning a Texan reunion when everyone gets back from traveling or Spring school. Also, my friend Lindsey is getting married, I think June 28th and a lot of people are going to her wedding. I'm not sure yet if I'll be able too, but I think it's awesome how we are all trying to figure out ways to hang out after school's over. The people here are my family, no matter how different or annoying some of them may be, and I'm going to miss every single one of them!

I hope everyone's having a good week! Thanks for reading!

Love in Christ,
Jill<><

p.s. If ya'll could be praying for me, that would be great. I guess just so that I will be able to stay focused while I'm here and get the most out of the time I have. Also, just so I have a safe trip home and that I will have an easy transition when I get back. I hear it can be quite a culture shock in so many different ways and I hear it's easy to be pretty depressed after such an awesome experience like this and then go home and no one around has had this awesome experience or learned what you learned and they all think you're like an alien by the way you think. Also, all my friends are going back to their homes all around the world and some of them I'll never see in person again...and that's a hard thing for me to think about.

2nd Semester so far...

I'm sorry I have neglected to update ya'll on the new semester so far! Well, in case you were wondering, I am once again in a four room as opposed to being in a 10 room. I have 3 amazing roommates. One's name is Janina and she's from Canada, but fluent in German. Another is Rachel and she's from California and she's really sweet! Then, there's Valya and she's from Russia! I absolutely love my room and we all get along so well. Since being back, I've been really busy. We've had a few social events like a video competition where we were given a genre for a movie and then a topic is has to be about and then we had an hour to film and edit it. It was a lot of fun. After, we were able to watch all the groups videos and that was a lot of fun. My group won for best movie and we got a free ice cream from the HoneyComb (snack bar where you buy snacks). We also had a bingo night where everyone dressed up like old people and we played bingo. We also had an open mic night where it's kind of like a talent show, but there are a lot of goofy acts as well. It's a lot of fun! It was cute, one of the guys on staff wrote a song for his 2 year old son and sang it to him. It was such a great night. Also, last weekend my sing team had outreach. Instead of leaving and going somewhere else, some Konfi kids came to visit us. My sing team was the only team from Bodenseehof that was working with them. Right before they came, one of the guys on our team, who's a big part of the team, said that he wasn't going to help much with outreach since his mom was here to visit him. That made me nervous, but also, two of the girls on my team were sick and I was the only other girl singer which put a lot of pressure on me. However, everything worked out okay and I know that God was in control through it all! I'm not sure why I got all nervous and worked up about the whole thing because God is always in control, no matter how stressed we might be, He will never be stressed and He will never be overwhelmed. That's such a comfort to me! Also, I felt a little discouraged because the whole week I didn't feel like I was connecting with the kids much or really being able to relate to them. However, before they left, I walked into the room to say goodbye and all these little boys came up and gave me hugs and shook my hand goodbye. They told me thank you and it was the sweetest thing ever! Yeah, I know some of them liked me, but the others that were softer spoken and more shy were thanking me and it really encouraged me to see. Also, the leaders of the group talked to the guy who was in charge of my sing team at school that they would talk to the kids at night and have a reflection time on the day and asked them what they liked most about it and a lot of them said that they enjoyed hanging out with the sing team and really enjoyed it when we sang. I really appreciated that and it really encouraged me. It made me realize that it doesn't matter how I feel, or what I do, it's all God and He will work through me for His glory. I think all in all it was a good weekend. It was weird having them at school while school was still in session and all my friends were doing other things, but it humbled me a lot and God really showed me who was most important and how important He is and how important His work is.

Coming up soon is something called "The Crossing." It's an event that a group of students organize and put together and then we invite people from the outreaches we went on, people we met on trains or around the area, family, friends, and other people to come. This time, I'm part of the group planning the event and it's been going pretty well so far. On Friday we'll be decorating and getting everything ready for that. Also, a couple of the guys from my sing team will be singing "Dive" by Stephen Curtis Chapman and I might have an opportunity to sing with them! I'm really excited and hope that it will work out. I will have a meeting later with the guys from my sing team and we'll find out if I will be able to do it or if they've found other people. If ya'll wouldn't mind praying for the kids who were here last weekend and also for the upcoming Crossing event, that would be great! I've invited a couple that I met on a train, a guy and his girlfriend who are friends of my relatives, and some friends of mine who are coming and bringing a guy who isn't a christian. If you wouldn't mind praying that things would run smoothly and that God would open up their hearts to hear His message and just that everything we do would be for God's glory. Also, that God would speak through us and speak to those who need Him. God works in amazing and mysterious ways. At the last crossing event, a few people became christians. God is definitely working through these and I just want everyone working this thing to have a servant's heart and to be willing to help out, be there for people, and if they're supposed to talk to someone, I just want them to be willing to talk to that person and be used by God to tell them the Gospel.

Coming up soon is another travel weekend. However, I think I'm just going to stay here at Bodenseehof. A lot of people are staying here as well. It will be a lot of fun and it's free!!! lol!

We've had some really good lecturers since being back. We had Heinz (a guy on staff), Peter (the principal), and now a guy from England named Derek Burnside. I've really enjoyed all their lectures and have really learned a lot. Right now we're learning about the Holy Spirit and it's taught by Derek Burnside. I really like the perspectives he brings to everything and his teaching style. I'm really getting a lot out of it and it's all really interesting!!

Also, if ya'll could just keep me in your prayers as well. I guess, just for time management stuff. I try to set aside some time for God everyday and then I have all this homework hanging over my head and then friends asking me if I want to hang out with them. I just need to find a time for everything. I'm not sure, but I think it could be a bad thing that homework at Bible school keeps you from spending time with God...? I am learning a lot from every assignment, so, I'm not sure. I should just spend less time with friends and more time with God and on homework...it's just really hard because I know I won't get to see them much after Bible school. Yeah, please just pray for me in that area.

Sorry it had been so long since I'd updated you last. I will try to be better about that!!! Thanks for reading and I hope ya'll are doing well. I miss you and love you sooo much!!

Love in Christ,
Jill<><

Christmas Break

Well, Christmas break was extremely eventful to say the least! I traveled a lot! We got 3 weeks off for Christmas and we weren't allowed to stay at the school (course, I don't know who would...) so we had to stay somewhere else. I chose to go to my relative's house for Christmas. I was really nervous about traveling by myself in a country where English isn't their first language. The whole time, however, God provided me with a sense of peace and a lot of help along the way. Not only that, God also presented me with many opportunities to share my faith with others. It was really cool to see how God spoke through me and gave me the wisdom to answer their deep spiritual questions. I must say, the coolest experience in the world is to experience the Lord speaking through you and seeing how it touches the other person's heart, right before your eyes! I can't explain it, but it's just the coolest thing ever and I'm so thankful that God chose me!!

It's funny, because my relatives don't speak much English and I don't speak much German, so between activities or meals and they didn't know what else to do with me, they would sit me down in front of the T.V. and turn on CNN or MTV (the only English channels they have) in hopes that I would be satisfied for hours. Well, I decided to go upstairs and grab my journal so I could journal while I listened to CNN. My Oma walked in and saw me journaling and was happy that I was able to entertain myself with something else other than T.V. and seemed to enjoy it soooo much more! Well, from then on, if she didn't need any help with anything and didn't know what to do with me, she would tell me I could write in my journal. It was awesome! It was like God was telling me through her that it was time to spend some time with Him! The cool thing is, though, she's not a christian, and this nonchristian woman was telling me to spend time with God!!! :) Can you believe it???

Christmas was a lot of fun, we had a lot of different food, different traditions, and it was such a fun experience. Many of my relatives didn't speak English, but luckily I met some cousins who speak perfect English because they are studying in England and Wales. I was so happy to be able to communicate with some people who spoke my language AND who were around my age. It was sooo much fun!

So, after my time with my relatives came to an end, I was going to take a train to my friend Sonja's house (My friend that I met on outreach). However, the train experience there was absolutely horrible! Everything was fine until I had to switch trains in Ulm...just for the record....I hate ULM! Anyway, I got off my train and only had 5 minutes to switch trains because my train came in late and my track was way across the station. Well, I went into the station and called my friend's mom to let her know and she told me that the next train wouldn't get there for another 2 hours. I was looking around for somewhere to go or something to do and nothing seemed appealing. As I continued to look around, I realized an older man looking at me as if he knew me. As he walked passed me, he kept looking back at me. When he reached the other side of the station, he stared at me with the same blank look. It was so weird. Whenever I would glance in his direction or look at people who passed by him, he was still looking at me and the other people never phased him. I prayed and I told God that I was scared, I told Him that if I looked back at that man again and he was still looking at me, then I would know that he was a creep! When I glanced at him again, he was still staring at me with that blank stare and I decided that I would brave the negative 5 degree weather and wait at my track. As I walked out of the station, I looked back and saw him starting to follow me. I was terrified! I started walking faster, but couldn't walk a lot faster because my duffle back was so heavy. The more I started to panic, the heavier my duffle was. When I reached my track, I looked behind me and there he was! He had no suitcase, no one with him, and he waited at my track for a whole hour before he decided to go inside because he was too cold. I was freezing and looking forward for my train to come. Then, I looked at the sign with all my train information on it and it said that my train was delayed another hour! I was so frustrated, so cold, and so nervous that I just wanted to leave. Another hour passed and I glanced up at the sign to see if there was another update on my train and realized that my train information had switched to another track which happened to be so conviently at a different platform! When I got there, I waited about 10 minutes and then there was an anouncement talking about the train I needed to take. I asked someone around me and they told me that my train was at track 8 which was waaaaaaay across the station and that I needed to hurry! There was no way I was going to miss this train again so I ran as fast as I could! When I got to the top of the stairs and reached my platform, I saw a guy that works at my school!!! By that time, I was so happy to see anyone I knew and ran up to him and started talking to him. He helped me with my suitcase and everything was good from there. I was so happy that God provided me with Nills to help me. God knew that I needed someone I knew and He provided!!

Finally, when I got to Sonja's house, her mom had prepared a bath for me and they totally took such good care of me. I had a lot of fun with Sonja and her family and really enjoyed getting to spend time with them. I was able to spend a lot of time with Sonja and she and I had some awesome conversations!!! She and I get along so well and we're looking forward to spending more time together. When we talk, it's almost as if we've been friends for years!!! It's sooo awesome. I'm really looking forward to her coming to visit me in Texas!

After that, I had an awesome train ride to my friend Tanja's house wich Sonja's mom and sister so graciously helped me get that also went straight to where Tanja needed to pick me up and I didn't need to change trains along the way. When I got there, she met me right at the train, helped me with my luggage, and went to her house. When we got there we packed up our stuff so we could go to our friend's Helen and Christian's house for New Year's. At their house, we had a traditional German New Year's dinner, watched Dinner For One, then went out and did fireworks, sparklers, and other fun explosive fire things, and drank some sparkling wine to celebrate! It was soo much fun, when we got back, we watched Ratatouille and went to bed. The next day, she and I were driving back through the black forest and stopped at a small cafe right in the middle of it and after we ate, took a walk around a canyon in the forest. The rest of the time, I stayed at Tanja's house and went to the Mercedes Benz Museum, got my picture taken with Lewis Hamilton's car, went to the T.V. Tower, and did a lot of shopping. While I was there, my favorite jeans ripped and I was able to buy two pairs of jeans for 25 Euros!!! It was totally awesome! God sure provides!!!

It was definitely a great trip! Tanja and I had an awesome trip back to school and it's so great to be home with all my friends again! I have a new room and 3 new roommates and I love it! My roommates are so sweet and today we had our first lecture. So far, school's going well and I'm really excited about how God will continue to work in my life!

I'm so thankful that God is so faithful and will never leave me, espeically when I'm all alone in Ulm! :)

I miss all of you and love all of you so much! I hope everyone had a great Christmas and a good start to the New Year! Let me know if there's anything I can pray for. If you wouldn't mind praying for me and my continual growth in Christ, that would be great!

Love in Christ,

Jill<><