"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus"
1 Corinthians 1:4
Every time I return to America, mainly Chicago, this verse always pops into my head. I feel so blessed to be able to enter a community of believers that provides such encouragement, prayer, and laughs every time I come home. I am so thankful for this community.
Over the Christmas holiday I spent a lot of time with my family, extended family and friends. It was very refreshing and relaxing and difficult to say goodbye.
.JPG)
I sent out a Christmas letter and in case you didn't receive one, here it is below.
To sum up my year, I’d like to briefly share 12 moments from
2013 to the tune of The Twelve Days of
Christmas.
|
12
|
months that I had been out of the United
States.
This past year I
decided to stay in Vienna for a full year. My family came out and visited me last Christmas in Vienna
which was a wonderful experience.
|
11
|
times I have eaten the Wiener Schnitzel.
The Wiener Schnitzel
is the traditional Austrian dish.
A breaded pork dish, it is a staple at almost every restaurant in
Vienna. Whenever I have had
visitors, I have always introduced
them to this meal.
|
10
|
girls on my volleyball team.
I had the privilege of
coaching two teams of 10 girls on the Varsity and Junior Varsity Teams. The Varsity team took 3rd
place in our end of season tournament in Budapest.
|
9
|
different nationalities that make up my
classes.
This year I have
students that come from 9 different countries: America, Austria, Germany,
Jordan, Korea, Nigeria, The Philippines, South Africa, and Thailand. I love learning about their
cultures
and assigning projects in which they must bring in their national food for the
class, aka
me, to eat :).
|
8
|
students that have decided to go to
France for a mission trip.
Becca, my roommate, and
I will be partnering with Wheaton Bible Church and leading a missions trip to
Lille, France this April. Our
focus will be training our students in evangelism and how to
share their faith as
we are among the French and immigrants from North Africa.
|
7
|
different classes that I taught this
past school year at ICSV.
Similar to my first
two years at ICSV, I am teaching Spanish to High School Students and ELL
(English as a Learning Language) to Middle School students.
|
6
|
High School students that are a part of
my bible study group.
This past fall I
started mentoring six girls. They
come from all different faiths and backgrounds. With a fellow teacher, we are teaching them about the
assurance of their salvation and how to live
a godly life.
|
5
|
different groups of friends that came and visited my
roommate, Becca, and me.
Living in Europe
encourages many family members and dear friends to visit and explore. We created a lot of memories with close
friends who came to see our lives in Vienna.
|
4
|
students that have
made a profession of faith to Jesus Christ.
Our students hear the
message being preached everyday.
Our prayer is that their ears would be open to this message and accept
it. Thankfully, this prayer is
being answered at ICSV. Our hope
is for them to take this message to their home cultures and spread the Good
News.
|
3
|
German classes that I took in order to
better communicate with Austrians.
Still need a lot of
practice :).
|
2
|
fundraiser events that I hosted in order
to raise money for different charities.
One way to teach our
students about “giving back” is to host events at our school in which the
students raise money and then donate to a local charity or ministry. In the Spring of 2013, I led a
mission
trip to Romania and we hosted an event titled “ICSV’s got Talent”. The students raised
over 1,400 euro and
donated it all to a care home that we serve. This past month our school also
hosted an event to support
those affected in the Philippines.
|
1
|
more year that I have committed to teaching
at ICSV.
After much prayer, I
have decided to commit to one more year at ICSV.
ReplyDeleteSay, "O People of the Scripture, come to a word that is equitable between us and you - that we will not worship except Allah and not associate anything with Him and not take one another as lords instead of Allah." But if they turn away, then say, "Bear witness that we are Muslims [submitting to Him]."
O People of the Scripture, why do you argue about Abraham while the Torah and the Gospel were not revealed until after him? Then will you not reason?
Here you are - those who have argued about that of which you have [some] knowledge, but why do you argue about that of which you have no knowledge? And Allah knows, while you know not.
Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allah]. And he was not of the polytheists.
Indeed, the most worthy of Abraham among the people are those who followed him [in submission to Allah] and this prophet, and those who believe [in his message]. And Allah is the ally of the believers.
A faction of the people of the Scripture wish they could mislead you. But they do not mislead except themselves, and they perceive [it] not.
O People of the Scripture, why do you disbelieve in the verses of Allah while you witness [to their truth]?
Holy Quran 3:64-70
http://fragrantbreeze.blogspot.com/