the first four weeks...

have passed and hardly a day goes by without me thanking God for bringing me here. I'm feeling right at home here - like pigs in clover. :-) (I read that expression somewhere once and thought it was funny) ... and this in a double meaning.
For one thing that I can really serve here be it with the cooking, the interpretation, in praying and interceding with and for the students... there's always things to do around here...
At the same time I can tell how I am healing more and more on the inside and this in an entirely unspectacular way... most of it happens my times alone with God, but also in the community and fellowship of the others where I can learn to be myself again, to take off my false identity and take on my real identity anew. It's... I'm at a loss for words. All I can say is: our God IS so so so so so good!
I'm experiencing in a most real and personal sense Isaiah 43:18-21:
Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. The wild animals honour me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.

But there is also one big PRAYER REQUEST:
Finances. This isn't a supplication or a begging 'post', that's not what this is about. I know that my God is good and that He will come through, I myself have experienced it countless times. No, it's about being open with you, about being transparent so we can stand together in prayer in this.
The current status is that I've had a cutback of about 50% in my monthly support when I left Thailand, contrary to this is that my living expenses are slightly higher here then they were in Thailand.
Also, January through March I'll be joining the DTS outreach. Both the leadership here and I felt very strongly from God that I was to join the team, that I was simply a part of it.
We are headed towards India for 3 months and possibly a second country - which I can't name her, since we are still praying about it, which also means that the students don't know anything about that yet! ;-)

Have a wonderful & blessed sunday everyone...
yours Hanna