Thoughts from my head

It is late here and I have an urge to blog out some of my thoughts that have been tumbling around in my head today. It is rainy and crappy today...I guess this has been the worst Spring that the Wellingtonians (can I call them that?) have seen in years. They say that the weather should improve with time and that February is usually a great month. Mom and dad, you have chosen wisely in your visiting plans, grasshopper. My teammates and I are actually praying that God will change the weather here in Wellington. It really seems to have a negative impact on people. The rain and crazy wind here personally make me want to stay inside all day, curled up in a blanket with a cup of tea. Not a bad idea. This past week has been pretty rough for Josh and I. The honeymoon is over and the fact that we are far away from friends and family has really hit home. It makes me sad to think how many weddings, family events, Thanksgiving...we will miss. This is my favorite time of the year and it is hard for us to be away from everyone that we love. It really makes you count the cost. I have been reading Bill Bright's autobiography called, "Amazing Faith." Today I read about his original vision for CCC and how this vision contained a wave coming up out of Australia. My heart believes that there is a reason the God has brought our team here. Maybe we can be a small part of seeing that the wave of revival comes from the South Pacific. No matter how hard it is I know that the souls that will be reached for the Lord are far more important than my happiness...just think of all of the celebrations we will have in heaven together. We will all be together. It has been good for me to be in a different city this time around. I feel like I am getting a clearer view as to what it means to be a New Zealander. There seems to be a big difference between the North and South Island. The biggest difference is seen when you compare the cities. For example, one of my kiwi friends here mentioned that If you live in Auckland people would ask you what you do. If you are from Wellington people would ask you where you are from...and if you are in CHCH people would ask you what school you went to growing up. Wellington is a transit type city...many people come in and out of the city. The weather/wind here is really bad and it really wears on people. I guess they say that you either love Wellington or you hate it and I am assuming that the weather plays into the love/hate scenerio. It will be interesting to see how these dynamics play out in our ministry when things start up here in the Fall. Wellington is very different from Christ Church (CHCH). I enjoy Wellington, I am thankful for the new friends that God has placed in my life here, for the church we have been attending, and for all of the cool artsy things that this city provides, but this city is so much faster than CHCH. People drive so dang fast here and they are sooooo crazy!!! The roads are tight and the lanes are small. In CHCH people never seemed in a hurry to get anywhere, but here everyone drives like Mario A. The city is much more spread out, which makes it harder to get to know people really well. In CHCH we all lived in a 1 mile radious from eachother, so I saw my friends literally every day. I enjoyed to fellowship. I have also noticed that I have offended about 1 kiwi every day here. I never noticed this in CHCH. It never actually ocurred to me as I felt so accepted and enjoyed by everyone I met in CHCH. I was talking to this nurse today on the phone and when I asked her where the best place to find something for my son was she responded with, "well, we are a little behind here...we don't have as much as you do in the states." It is hard being an American here because it feels like people automatically assume that we as American's think that the way we do things is better, which makes me sad because I love New Zealand and in many ways I prefer the way kiwi's do things here. This is why I am here. I just pray that the Lord will allow people to see us for who we are as his children and not what country we were born in. My citizenship is in heaven, not here on earth. I could keep writing, but I really should hit the hay. If you are reading...we miss you guys. M and D--I can't wait to see you in February. Thank you Jesus!!!!