german jungle: December 2009

christmas on the streets

today we went out to deliver gifts to the homeless at werder platz. i was expecting a small group, but due to flu season and dario throwing out his back, only christine from the salvation army and i could make it. no worries! we made a lot of coffee and tea, prayed and headed out.. we had 26 presents, and were able to pass out 18 of them and have some good conversations. it doesnt seem like a lot- especially compared to the almost 200 gifts we passed out last year in bremen- but karlsruhe is a different place, and the fringe groups aren't as easily accessible. since there were two of us, i think this was a pretty good group.. this way we were able to talk to a few people more in depth and also give two of the men gifts for a wife and kid and an elderly neighbor. afterwards christine took me for pizza and we talked about my vision for the city and where i see myself.. i think good things will come of it. stay tuned...

show what i sew

kathi opening the blanket i made for her baby boy. these blankets have buttons on them, so they can also be sleeping bags... like for the stroller.

the "boy" side of the blanket i made for damaris' baby.

the "girl" side of the blanket i made for damaris' baby.

my bear jake modeling a baby scarf i made.. it has velcro in back.

a cherry-stone pillow i made for andreas' mom.. you heat it in the micro and it works like a hot water bottle. this one i added pockets to, so she can warm her stomach and hands at the same time.

chirstmas basement party

yesturday i helped out with gospel tribe's christmas party. we had invited all the poeple from werder platz and the punks from the market, as well as friends we knew from around town. it ended up being an interesting mix! there were awesome cookies, chili con carne, and hot punch. and testimonies, singing and a short sermon.

even andreas came along! (disquised as a punk in y leather jacket) it lasted all evening.. and i think a good time was had by all. (despite the fact that it was below freezing for the first time) i am really enjoying the opportunity to work with gospel tribe! i will miss them when they leave for their three month outreaches!

witnessing with waffles

i just got back from a loooong and cold (barely above freezing) day with gospel tribe. we met up early enough to have been done with prayer and set up by about 9am. if you know me, you know what a sacrifice that was! i started out with a very bad migraine, that woke me up! (ok, it was more effective than an alarm at that hour..) after taking the "blue pill" and waiting an hour, i made it to gospel tribe, shaking and queesy and aparently pale enough to cause several people to ask if i need to sit down. and i did. they prayed, the pill kicked in, and things got better.

so how are waffles a witness? and what of? we passed them out for free at the werder platz to.. well, anyone who wanted one. we also had a hot fruit juice/tea/spices punch that really was good for warmth. the witness we were hoping to make was one of God's love. it was surpirising the various reactions we got- some people were surprised and joyful, some were skeptical and asked what the catch was, some wouldn't even stop long enough to hear what we were offering. every hour we sang some christian songs, did a short theatrical sketch, and had a message. this went until a bit past one.

after our meeting to sum it all up, we were treated to homemade eggplant lasagne from one of the teams mom- a real italian! a real treat to warm up to. then i stopped by a special event at kubik with a friend and came home... a long bike ride in the cold. my fingers are still defrosting and i can't feel my cheeks yet..... it's winter!

this little missionary went to market..

this has been a pretty cool week. care package arrived, had some company, baked more cookies than i could eat.... but the real highlight was going out wednesday with the gospel tribe. (this is becoming a rather good habit) we went to the marketplace, where the punks hang out. it was the first time in karlsruhe i hung out with the punks. we had coffee and tea and some lebkuchen (kinda cakey type cookies). it was cool because it was a punkers birthday.. and he turned out to be from bremen! it was an immediate connection, and i was able to use that to help us all get into more personal conversations and invite them to the christmas party we are throwing sunday.

cardboard box care

is there anything better than unexpected packages? i can't think of anything! i am munching some yummy treats while writting this, blown away by how cool it is to be thought of. i love mail!

back in bremen?! erm.. no..

ok, so this picture is from bremen.. its hans. today i went out again with the gospel tribe to do some street ministry. we hung out at the "werder platz" (which is funny, because the name "werder" is the bremen soccer team name) and i talked to a man that was so similar to hans that it made me homesick for bremen. they could be brothers. they aren't. this guy is a few years older, but has the same build and tone and manner. i think he used to be a doctor, but it seemed like he didn't want to go there, so i didn't ask directly. he travelled a lot and has read a lot. he kept singing the names of the notes we played on the guitarre, since he didn't know the words. one of us would play, and he would sing "a-c-a-d.." if anyone else had done it, it would of been annoying. he was charming. i really hope i get a chance to know him better and help him get to know God a bit.