To Bali We Go!

It's been a week of lasts- and one of the best DTS's I've been apart of. God has been so faithful in restoring this lecture phase to me and now He's allowed me another chance at leading a team! The School leaders have desided to title me Outreach leader along side with our fabulous Cambodian resource staff, Seang Lee!

It's going to be wonderful and I look forward to the challenge and am confident in my abilities and God's grace! Rob and Jenny Blakely are still coming with their family, and will be taking more of a pastoral role for the next 3 months. Rob will have rest and Seang and I will be stepping up to the plate. Our team is amazing and I'm really excited to see how we will operate in the developing nations of Bali and Cambodia. It's a great postion to be in with a co-leader beside you AND mentors on the perifery. I'm going to miss you all over Christmas- and to give you a heads up, I won't be taking my computer or be able to make requent contact because of our more remote locations. I will send contact details after Christmas from Battambang Cambodia! We leave tomorrow at 3am Monday morning. Thankyou for all your prayers and hopefully my next blog will be from Cambodia next week!

The Road Trip!

Dear Family and Friends it’s been a post card perfect two weeks for me. I said good-bye to my parents Just last night on Sunday, they’ve been visiting since Tuesday Nov. 24. They’re off to the Cook Islands to get a 5$ drivers licenses to rent mopeds and soak up the sun as much as they can until they come back to the white, apocalyptic tundra of the north.

It was wonderful to have them meet all my friends from the North base in Oakridge to the South base in Oxford. (We had a few stops in between to pick up on some kiwi culture). They ended up for 4 days in Christchurch and had a lovely time. I spent the last weekend with them and was fully loved on with quality time, hugs, gifts, cards and words of affirmation. My love tank is FULL! My birthday was wonderful, (It was pirate themed party!) and I enjoyed all my gifts and cards and resipies and cookies! (Thank you for the baking Jackie and Marion!) It was a wonderful few weeks and I felt very much the kindness and care from Canada! The timing was perfect because of the holidays. Bali will be the place of Christmas and New years, but I got the canadian christmas when my parents were here. In Cambodia I won't have very much access to internet so my blogs may slow down I bit over then next few months, but more in that down the line.

loves from sunny New Zealand

Laura

Northward Bound!

We just came from an intense week on the topic of Lordship with Mark Parker. It was really good to see him again, he was the speaker who drove me from Oakridge to Auckland airport, and was a strong reason that I'm back here in New Zealand. We had some great break through for the students, but with our school and with the Father Heart. (The DTS for 30+) We had one of our students go to the Father Heart lectures, and had some healing so that was a HUGE step for her. There isn't much else to tell, but that we have been going full tilt with Outreach prep, weekend activities and snow boarders that keep coming and going and coming again, and then leaving maybe. Needless to say, I'm STOKED for my trip up with my parents this week, I'm leaving come 4 am tomorrow, then back Sunday, away to Kia koira this following monday.

I'm really going to miss Christmas this year with everyone, I spent the last one in New Zealand, but this next one will be in Bali. It'll be nice to have some time with family, because the next few months will be full on in Cambodia. It's a spiritually oppressive place, and so is Bali. The long term missionaries say that they can really tell those who have been praying actively against the strongholds in those nations. I've made a commitment to the Base to kick start the landscaping project here at Oxford. It seem to be (although a lot of hard work) some kind of golden pear from heaven. I get a hands on crash course on landscape architecture from one of the top designers in New Zealand! Woop Woop! One thing at a time and in it's season. I must apologize for being so far out of touch with everyone. If you have a moment, please drop and e-mail and just tell me about your lives, I probablly won't respond, but I really want to know what is happening!
Loves Laura

The Ultimate Weekend Warrior

This week started for my team and I on friday afternoon with the arrival of the snowboarder teams from all over the world- China, turkey, Chile. We also had 5 birthdays from thurday to this monday. I planned 4 of them. I'm a bit done. But each one was more epic than the next! It started with a Kidnapping birthday on thurs morning with electric coloured cupcakes. Then a hippie birthday picnic with Hummus and pitas complete with blowing fabric and a Jimbay. Then On saturday night we had a tight and bright party for Nicki, my roomie and staff on the backpackers. We made giant skillet cookies and had a huge cookie and ice cream eating contest which turned into a food fight and volleyball until dark. Sunday night we had a pajama party with all the tables on the ground with pillows and mosi nets all around, and rice pudding for another birthday from the snowboarders. All the while my team were cooking, cleaning and maintaining the base for 130 people. Needless to say, I'm taking more time off this week to recover from the weekend- it was so worth it! Huge break through for one of my weekend warriors he's a about 50ish, and he said he hadn't had so much fun in he didn't know how long- he had lost most of his family to death, and he finally was laughing and joking with all of us! Incredible stuff to be apart of- just by parting all weekend long!

We have 5 weeks until bali, and 13 days until my parents come. God has begun to give me a heart for the Khmer people, which is awesome, it is so natural, I don't have to force myself to love. God gives you that love for others! We're having awesome intercession times and great small groups, the earthcare students are so wonderful- such a joy to be around! Despite all the business though, there's still a large amount of worship, fellowship and time to build a three bin compost (that I'm pretty proud of too!)
loves
Laura

Ounatai (Oct. 27-31) Character and Nature of God week...

It's a combined blog this week from last week and this one I'm afraid. Last week the earthcare school spend our time on the wild waters of the west coast- we stayed in a canvas tent where the lagoon meets the river, which meets the Tasman sea! It was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen- it was ocean to the west and snow caped peaks to the East, every sun rise and sun set was magnifacent! Each of us did a solo overnight, I stayed in the Jungle! We had crazy NZ bush men teaching us survival techniques and more about soil and water irrossion, It was unbelievable. I drew sketches and made spears and learned to weave flax. We had HUGE bonfires and spirit led worship, we slep under the stars- and on one occasion, the rain! It was almost a full moon and the beach lit up so clear that there were shadows cast in the middle of the night! It is a magical place.

Needless to say, we were all exhasted from that week, so I've spend most of this one catching up from Ounatai. It's the character and nature of God week with Hank Overem, and I think I had him on my dts- it all gets strangly familiar after a time. I'm trying to focus in lectures, but really with all the student journals to mark and my little push to graduate with the snowboarders school. Things are moving quickly with outreach fast on our heals, but that's fine- better too many options than hardly any! the weather is getting warmer, and I'm anxiously awaiting my parental unit's arrival come 3 weeks from this last monday! Lots to plan much to look forward to!
loves
laura

Lilacs and Snowcaps

Hey all! This week as been phenomenal with Jono turner teaching on the father heart this week, and I think I'm getting more out of it then the students. (As usual) I also have a bit of a leader now, and we had a one on one that was really awesome. I was able to tell her about Oakridge without crying!! It was great and I'm it's getting easier to share about it. I also had a great small group with our earth care girls that was super amazing- the girls were so honest with themselves and with all of us.

It's getting harder to get to bed- there are too many things that are happening, too many hang outs and reasons to stick around and away from my bed. :s I really don't like missing stuff- but I'm a bit of a walking zombie I'm afraid, and less sleep makes laura cranky and sick. :( I think I'm about to hit a cross roads, We're spending a week in the bush on monday- so maybe I'll just crash. Conflict. Conflict. Not much new, just lots of awesome stuff that snowballs into a wicked as time!
love
laura

There baAAAack...

We spend our first week of lectures on the Father Heart of God! Two schools, the cross roads and the earthcare worshiped God for about 3 hrs a day- it was unbelievable! For our second to last day we were suppose to spend over night in a hut, but the weather didn't look like it was going to co operate, so we spend the afternoon in ps. 104 and worshiped the Father in nature! Minus the storms of sand flies, it was a fantastic time! I got to summit a peak that looks over all of the Canterbury region, and then RAN back to the car with one of the student it was flipp'n awesome! I loved my time there!

This DTS is absolutely amazing! I don't want to get my hopes too high, because I know the schools' are in a honey moon stage, but I'm still just enjoying every minute of this time. I know that I'm going to miss it! It's a real step back in responsibility, and It's humbling but so restful! I'm just doing my best in the areas of responsibilities that I've been given, and enjoying the ride- so much team work, love and real friendships, it is wonderful to be apart of! I'm gutted to miss thanksgiving- we didn't do anything for it at all, but that's okay, they are having birthday celebrations about 3 times a week, so that keeps the kitchen pretty busy!

I'm learning heaps about the Father heart of God, and I just wanted to share this scripture with you guys:

Hosea 6 1-3
Come, let us return to the LORD! He has torn us in pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds. In just a short time, he will restore us so we can live in his presence. Oh that we might know the LORD! Let us press on to know him! Then he will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.

pr. 16:9 we can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.

Love,
Laura