Week three in Australia has been wonderful. I am really beginning to settle down and feel at home in my new surroundings. School is going well, friendships are forming, the food is delicious, and the weather is fair considering it's Winter. Sydney is a really remarkable place, and anyone who has the chance to visit really should jump at the opportunity.
I am taking six classes. One is the called the View from Australia and it discusses Australian culture and History, especially since it's colonization in 1788. Then there is Indigenous History, which explores Aboriginal culture, philosophy, lifestyle, and history. I really love that class and I think my worldview will be impacted most by the films, books, and places I study there. I am also taking a small class on New Zealand culture and history, but most of the learning will come at the end of the program when I spend a week adventuring through the Auckland area. There's also my Galatians class, which is super fun and seems like a challenge spiritually as well as intellectually. I am doing an independent study on the Sabbath in the Old and New Testament and especially focusing on place and purpose God has within the covenant of rest. I am also taking psychosomatic education, which is broken into two sessions. The first is about the mind and body and is more of a science class. The second is a Pilates class. Overall, my schedule is fairly relaxed but I can already tell that I will be learning in all sorts of dimensions that I had not expected.
The family I am living with is Greek-Australian. My "grandparents" came from Greece in their twenties and had my parents here in Australia. My parents have three children who are between the ages of sixteen and twenty. They are very sweet people and I have enjoyed getting to know them and laugh with them over very enjoyable dinners. My mom cooks really amazing food and she inspires me to be healthier, although I still treat myself to frozen yogurt and tim-tams frequently :)
I live with two other girls from my program (ASC) and we are getting along very well! I love everybody at ASC and I am beginning to build some great relationships. It is slower-going with the Aussie students, but I have been able to connect with a few of them and soon we will be having game nights and doing other fun things throughout the city together. I hope to learn more about Australian spirituality and philosophy through my interactions with them. I also hope to simply enjoy great friendships :)
I have been going to Hillsong City campus consistently and just signed up for a connect group, so I should be able to get more plugged in soon. I love the services there! The preaching is really great and the music is wonderful, of course. Everyone is super friendly and welcoming and I feel right at home there. I am also doing service hours with a few other ASC students at a mission in Newtown each Thursday night. We help set up tables and prepare food, and then we attend a service for about an hour before dinner starts. Then we serve the food and socialize with the many people who come for a free meal. The first week we went I volunteered to give a testimony, which was really intimidating at first but I am glad I pushed myself to do it. Afterwards I was told that I impacted a couple of the people in the service and many others thanked me for sharing. Next week we are leading worship and I am grateful for the opportunity we have to serve in various ways each week. God is so present there! He is teaching me so much about life and relationships. I am loving every second of it!
Other than that, I am not doing too much. Lot's of sight-seeing and mini-trips to the city. We went to the Barracks near Hyde Park yesterday and learned more about the lives of the early convicts. We also visited Clark Island for a tour and learned traditional aboriginal dances. I've seen the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Opera House, the Rocks, Luna Park, Town Hall Center, the State Library, and many other fun things along the way. There is so much more to explore and I look forward to doing just that! :)
If you'd like to pray for me, you can pray that I will increase in confidence, maturity, and compassion. I seek to become God's woman and no one else's. I want to speak with grace and humility and be wise in my decisions in every area of my life. I praise God for brining me here and using me in small ways already. I pray that as times progresses He will use me in even greater ways! Pray also for my continued health and protection. God is good, so just pray to Him lot's :)
I am taking six classes. One is the called the View from Australia and it discusses Australian culture and History, especially since it's colonization in 1788. Then there is Indigenous History, which explores Aboriginal culture, philosophy, lifestyle, and history. I really love that class and I think my worldview will be impacted most by the films, books, and places I study there. I am also taking a small class on New Zealand culture and history, but most of the learning will come at the end of the program when I spend a week adventuring through the Auckland area. There's also my Galatians class, which is super fun and seems like a challenge spiritually as well as intellectually. I am doing an independent study on the Sabbath in the Old and New Testament and especially focusing on place and purpose God has within the covenant of rest. I am also taking psychosomatic education, which is broken into two sessions. The first is about the mind and body and is more of a science class. The second is a Pilates class. Overall, my schedule is fairly relaxed but I can already tell that I will be learning in all sorts of dimensions that I had not expected.
The family I am living with is Greek-Australian. My "grandparents" came from Greece in their twenties and had my parents here in Australia. My parents have three children who are between the ages of sixteen and twenty. They are very sweet people and I have enjoyed getting to know them and laugh with them over very enjoyable dinners. My mom cooks really amazing food and she inspires me to be healthier, although I still treat myself to frozen yogurt and tim-tams frequently :)
I live with two other girls from my program (ASC) and we are getting along very well! I love everybody at ASC and I am beginning to build some great relationships. It is slower-going with the Aussie students, but I have been able to connect with a few of them and soon we will be having game nights and doing other fun things throughout the city together. I hope to learn more about Australian spirituality and philosophy through my interactions with them. I also hope to simply enjoy great friendships :)
I have been going to Hillsong City campus consistently and just signed up for a connect group, so I should be able to get more plugged in soon. I love the services there! The preaching is really great and the music is wonderful, of course. Everyone is super friendly and welcoming and I feel right at home there. I am also doing service hours with a few other ASC students at a mission in Newtown each Thursday night. We help set up tables and prepare food, and then we attend a service for about an hour before dinner starts. Then we serve the food and socialize with the many people who come for a free meal. The first week we went I volunteered to give a testimony, which was really intimidating at first but I am glad I pushed myself to do it. Afterwards I was told that I impacted a couple of the people in the service and many others thanked me for sharing. Next week we are leading worship and I am grateful for the opportunity we have to serve in various ways each week. God is so present there! He is teaching me so much about life and relationships. I am loving every second of it!
Other than that, I am not doing too much. Lot's of sight-seeing and mini-trips to the city. We went to the Barracks near Hyde Park yesterday and learned more about the lives of the early convicts. We also visited Clark Island for a tour and learned traditional aboriginal dances. I've seen the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Opera House, the Rocks, Luna Park, Town Hall Center, the State Library, and many other fun things along the way. There is so much more to explore and I look forward to doing just that! :)
If you'd like to pray for me, you can pray that I will increase in confidence, maturity, and compassion. I seek to become God's woman and no one else's. I want to speak with grace and humility and be wise in my decisions in every area of my life. I praise God for brining me here and using me in small ways already. I pray that as times progresses He will use me in even greater ways! Pray also for my continued health and protection. God is good, so just pray to Him lot's :)
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