Hello all!
Here is my first letter from Sweden. My Discipleship Training School (DTS) started just over a week ago and already I’ve learned so much. My Swedish experience started with a lovely 22 hour bus ride from Amsterdam to Goteborg, a city about an hour away from my school. I had been living in Holland for the summer working as a Nanny. My bus ride was LONG and hot, due to the broken air conditioning on the bus. I guess I should have expected that when I chose the cheapest form of European transportation! When I arrived at the bus station in Goteborg, I had to hall all of my bags about a kilometer, which was quite the feat. I had a large backpack, a large suitcase, a large shoulder bag, and a backpack. I was going for the big and heavy theme with my luggage. By the time I reached the train information desk, I was sweating buckets. I exchanged my money, bought a train ticket, figured out how to use a Swedish pay phone, and boarded my train to a small city near my base. On the train I took advantage of the small bathroom and attempted to make myself presentable because we all know first impressions are very important. I brushed my teeth, put on some make up, and tied my hair back. When I got off the train in Ljungskile (pronounced Young Sheela...) I met Mikel, one of my Swedish staff who was there to pick me up and bring me to the base. I was the second student to arrive at Restenas (our base.)
So what were my first impressions of Sweden and YWAM Restenas? It is beautiful here. The landscape where I am is similar to Canada, but the mountains here are not nearly as big. They are more like very large hills. My base is in the countryside and is literally in the middle of nowhere. We are a five minute walk from the sea. My expectations and preconceived ideas of what my DTS would be like were not even close to correct. I thought everyone would be between the ages of 18 and 22 give or take and that we would have international staff. I also didn’t really have an idea how living with 4 girls in such close quarters would be. My classmate’s ages range from 18- 38. There are married students, engaged students, dating students, and then the single ones! We are a class of 25 students from 11 different nationalities and everyone brings so much to the class. Everything that is said is said twice -- once in Swedish, and once in English. At first it really bothered me but now I like it. It gives me a chance to process what is said and take notes without getting behind or having to write insanely fast.
NIKO- My first week of DTS was spent in the woods doing a program called NIKO. Niko is a greek word which means ‘to overcome,’ and that’s exactly what we did on Niko. It is a program designed to prepare students for their outreach in the developing world. Niko also focuses on surrender, teamwork, leadership and servant hood. We were challenged spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and PHYSCIALLY. I really wish I could tell you what the week entailed but we are sworn to secrecy so that if others do a Niko, their experience will be as rich as ours was. I will however tell you a little bit about what I learned.
• I learned that you can accomplish so much more when you work together.
• I learned what it means to lead in humility and to lead from underneath as a servant
• I learned that when you put others ahead of yourself great things are accomplished
• I learned what it means to surrender your rights
• I learned what it means to support your team members
• I learned about the power of encouragement -- that a small encouraging word can be exactly what you need to keep going.
• I learned about perseverance and what it means to keep fighting when you just want to give up.
• I learned about Loving through actions.
• I learned how to dry your wet clothes when it’s raining and there is no place to hang them (sleep with them in your sleeping bag and they will dry overnight). Each night I slept with my pants in my sleeping bag and all my wet socks nicely against my stomach and chest underneath my shirt. I smelled great!
• I learned that if you tuck your wet socks into your pants while you walk your body heat will dry them and you'll always have an alternate pair for halfway through the day when you need to change socks.
So I hope you have a little idea of what I’ve done here so far. Our real lectures start this coming Monday and our first topic is on Hearing Gods Voice. I am very excited about all that I’m going to learn here and all the lessons and wisdom I’ll be able to take with me for the rest of my life.
so thank you!
Heidi
No comments:
Post a Comment