Buon Natale!!

Let's see, where to begin since last writing. We have recently been talking about plans for the future and how we can make things better. We are trying to figure out ways to really show people Jesus, rather than just talking about Him. One thing we have decided to do is try and have more service oriented events. All the Avanti workers have been feeling a stirring to help homeless people. So we thought that's where we would start.

There are a lot of good things going on with this. First of all, we went around to several bakery's and asked if we could have the leftover bread at the end of the day to use to feed homeless people. Every one we went to was more than willing to help. Some said we could come every day if we wanted. Almost every time we have gone, they have given us a ton of bread and even some leftover pizzas and sandwiches. We used the bread from the bakeries to make sandwiches and have been going to help other volunteers hand out food to homeless people. It has been one of the most interesting experiences. There were so many people there. We handed food out and then stayed and talked with some of the people. It was really cool to see the other volunteers that we were helping and how they were interacting with the homeless people. They knew their names and about their families. They even knew what kind of sandwich each person liked and who could not eat meat and other small details about these people. Talking with the people has also struck up some interesting conversations. One night a homeless lady asked a  volunteer why there are so many different churches and how do you really know what is truth. An Avanti workers told her that it was in the pages of the Bible and you had to have faith that it was truth. Ryan, an Avanti worker, has become friends with one of the homeless people. He and one of his friends has come to our Bible study some and to church one Sunday, which was very encouraging.

Preparing the sandwiches.

We have been telling our students about doing this and several of them were very excited about it so we have invited them to come with us. To help involve them in other ways have asked if on movie nights here at the Bible school they would bring a non-perishable food. Last week we had a huge bag full of food that students had brought to help out. Some of them even came to the Bible school just to bring the food even though they couldn't stay for the movie. One of the students came with us this past time that we fed the homeless people. It was great to have him there. It's crazy how serving can open so many doors and really bring people closer.

Another thing that we are working on is spending time at a local retirement home. We went the other day and all the residents and workers were so excited that we wanted to come and spend time with them.   They have  several different activities that they do that we are going to try and be a part of. It is within walking distance of the school so when we have free time we are going to try to go there. It also has been really good because some of us have taken our students with us. Our choir that we started this semester went and sang Christmas songs the other day.

We also had our Thanksgiving dinner with our students and their family members a few weeks ago. We asked them to bring food for the homeless as their  "entry fee," which the students were more than happy to do. We collected a very large amount. There were about 70 people who came to the dinner so it was quite a big process to prepare all the food and decorations but it turned out great. The Italians loved the food, especially the pumpkin pies.

Last week was our last week of the semester to meet with students. Many Avanti workers are traveling. I recently had a friend from the States come visit which was a lot of fun. It was very encouraging to see someone from home. We traveled to Rome for two days and stayed with Marta (a girl from the Church there who I wrote about in an earlier post). It was great spending time with her. She is such an encouraging person to be around. She showed us around Rome and the hospital she works at. She told us stories about the homeless ministry there. We also got to meet the people that donate food to her. She has really built a good relationship with them. Marta is one of those people that just being around her makes you want to do something good. Something that matters. There is something unexplainable about her and the goodness she has. You can see the Spirit in her. People just love being around her.

Me, Mart, and Karis at the bar that donates food to Marta.

For Christmas Eve I went to the Pepperdine University directors house here in Florence. Christmas day I spent the day with some other Avanti workers.  For New Years, I will be traveling to Albania with Ermenita. We are planning on spending time at the orphanage in her home town. On New Years, me, Ermenita and some of her friends are throwing a party for the kids there.

These past 4 months have been some of the most interesting, unique, challenging, and awesome experiences. I am thankful to have a bit of a break to process everything and to plan and prepare for next year. I am looking forward to having more students next semester and to having more time to spend with people since I will not have language school anymore.

Although I do miss home, I am thankful to have the opportunity to be here. I want to thank everyone again for your prayers and support. Thank you for your encouraging words and believing in this work. I hope everyone had a great Christmas!         

Essere Audace..

This past weekend we went to the youth retreat in Aprilia. It is a small town close to Rome. The theme for the weekend was "How tall are you?" It was based around Ephesians 4:13.  Robbie Shackelford, the Harding University in Florence director, was the speaker. He asked questions about how do we grow spiritually, where are we going, which fruit of the spirit are we mature in and what do we need to work on.  One question that had the most interest and provoked the most discussion was, "how to act as good Christians in the world and live at peace with non Christians?"  This question was looked at from several different viewpoints. There were several responses such as love and gentleness, but it was also said that it is not possible. It was discussed how Jesus came and was so bold and totally turned the world upside down. He was not at peace with everyone. Several of the teens talked about sharing their faith, but also not being forceful, and to accept others. A dad that attended, took more of a perspective of being bold about what we believe and not just go with the flow. Being BOLD  is definitely something that teens and  a lot of people struggle with.  It can be a hard balance between boldness and love, accepting people but not condoning their lifestyle, respecting others but sharing your beliefs with confidence.  It also is very difficult here since there is such a small number of Christians in general.

                                         Potluck on Sunday                                    Some of the teens

The mother of my host family in Aprilia

One of the sons in my host family

I was very encouraged by some of the teens at the retreat who definitely are bold and really do live out what Jesus told us to do. One girl, Marta, is 21 years old, from Naples, and is studying nursing at the University of Rome. So here is just a little about her...

Every Tuesday her and a group of her friends make meals for homeless people and go to different places in Rome and hand them out. The thing that I think is so awesome about Marta and her friends is that they really know these homeless people. They know their names and about their families. One of the homeless people used to be a teacher so the group brings her books to read. Laura, an Avanti worker, went there this past Tuesday to help Marta and her friends.  Marta also feeds homeless people on her way to school. Every day she goes to the same bar (coffee shop) and so she has gotten to know the workers there. She asked them if at the end of every day, the food that they would throw away, if they would save it for her and she would get it the next morning. Then on her way to school she hands out the food to homeless people she sees. She sits down and talks with them and asks them if there is anything else they need. Marta is just such an awesome example of putting into action what God says. She is so bold. She gave one of her friends a Bible and told him they were going to read this together. And she is very persistent about it. She also walked up to a priest one day in the Vatican and said "so I looked up online that your robe costs 70 euro, why do you spend so much on your robe?" the priest responded about how he is representing the bridegroom and needs to be presentable for God. He said you would not want to wear bad clothes at your wedding...Marta just said well the man I'm going to marry is going to love me no matter what I'm wearing. I just loved hearing that. Walking up to a Catholic priest in Vatican City.

Me and Marta

The retreat was good for the teens and for us. It  got us started thinking about being more bold, and also about reaching out to homeless people more. We decided that for next Friday’s event we would make meals and invite our students and members from the church to go feed the homeless people. Our cooking school that we had this past Saturday  raised 50 Euro from selling American measuring cups, which will help in the cost of the meals.  

Me, Angela, Laura, and Ermenita before cooking school.

Cooking School

Laura teaching how to make chili.

Today at school we had Italian high school students come in and help us with conversation. One question a guy asked was if we believed in God. I said yes and  asked if he did. He said yeah but he didn't really know. I told him that I believed in the God and the Bible. I asked him what he thought about the Bible, which he responded with that he thought it was strange to believe in a book that old. I  asked if he believed in Jesus and he said yes that he thinks he existed. Then he went on to talk about how he doesn't like the Vatican and that it is very hypocritical. They have all this money but don't do any good. This thinking seems to be fairly common among young people here. They don't see faith lining up with people's lifestyles.    its a coincidence that  everyone involved in a service type project benefits in some way. That is what we hope to start doing with our outreach to the homeless.

My lessons with all my students are going really well. I was reading John with a student the other day and we read about Jesus first miracle of turning water into wine. I asked her what she thought about it and she talked about how it was so interesting that He saved the best wine for last. It talks in John 2:10 about this. So from the first miracle Jesus did, he was going against tradition and the norms of the culture. Once again, Jesus was so bold and turned everything upside down. I thought it was interesting that my student noticed that in particular. That has not really stood out to me before.

I am really looking forward to doing more service events and inviting our students. One of my students that I have spent a lot of time with talks a lot about wanting to be involved with things like that.  Seeing action really is the common thing that people crave here. Several people that I have talked to believe in God, but that is about all they know. I have always known that people are turned off to hypocriticalness, but being here I am seeing how much of an affect it has on people. From people I have talked to and after talking with other Avanti workers about their experience, people have had bad experiences with "religion" and "church”. They have not seen someone putting their words into action, so it's like they find no reason to search any further than just accepting there is a God. One of my students also struggles with why bad things happen. Which I would say is a struggle for many people.

One of my students has a good friend that I met the other day. She is the sister of Lorenzo, who is close friends with all of us here. She hasn't really ever come to the Bible School before, but she does want to learn English, but she is shy, so next week my student, her good friend, and I are planning to have coffee. She is a really sweet girl so I'm hoping she will decide to start coming, or at least hang out with her friend and I. I'm really love spending time with this student. Her English is pretty good, so we are able to talk about more things and build a deeper relationship.

That about covers what has been going on these past few days and weeks. Once again, a lot of things. Thanks you so much for your support and prayers. It means more than you know.

So much in so little time...

Ciao! So a lot has been going on here. I am about a month away from being done with language school, which is exciting and sad. I have met a lot of great people there, but I am excited to have more time to focus on practicing conversation with people. I have a friend here, Lorenzo, who has been helping me a lot with the language. He has been coming to the Bible School for several years and his parents are close friends with the directors, David and Debbie. Lorenzo's mom is a doctor in Florence and his dad works at the Harding University campus here in Scandicci. Lorenzo comes to almost all the events here and has started coming to the men's Bible study on Monday nights, which is exciting. We also had his family over this past weekend for American breakfast. We had pancakes, egg casserole, bacon, American coffee, and chocolate milk. They especially loved the pancakes. There were about 15 from their family that came! It was a lot of fun.

American Breakfast!

Watching the pancake process...

My students have been wonderful. I have truly enjoyed getting to know them. I went to Florence one Saturday with one of them and she showed me some of her favorite places to go. It was so much fun! We have had some really good talks. We have talked about the Italian culture and what people believe here. We discussed her beliefs, thoughts about life and what she wants to do in the future. She is a sweet girl and really does have a good heart and wants to help other people. It has been so encouraging spending time with her. She has also been helping me with Italian. There was an Italian holiday recently so I did not have school. She came over for an American breakfast. She loved the pancakes and peanut butter! She stayed for almost three and a half hours talking and helping me with Italian.

Another one of my students, she is 22, is also so nice and has also been a blessing. She is helping me with Italian as well. Last time we met I asked her how she was. She immediately said, "Oh I am just down right now." Come to find out, her aunt had died the week before from cancer. I felt so terrible and didn't even know what to say. I was telling my roommate, Ermenita, who has lived in Florence for 8 years, and she explained to me how that is pretty common for Italians. When they are feeling down, they do not try to hide it. It really made me start thinking about how great that is. They do not try to put on a face and act like everything is okay when it is not. I was encouraged to hear that because, in a sense, I think that is how it should be. So often we tend to say, "Hey, how are you?" "Oh I'm good." but we don't really know what is going on in other people's lives. At our Bible study at the University of Florence a few weeks ago we watched a video called Fellowship. The narrator talked about the importance of what "fellowship" really means and how vital it is. He was saying how it is important that others see us, as a body of believers, interacting with each other. That's one place where they can truly see Jesus. Seeing a group of people interacting, who truly love and care about each other, is attractive. It is something people desire. A group of people truly involved in each other's lives. We were put here together for a reason. He also told a story in the movie about a man who used to be a member of a gang and then was converted. One comment the man made was how he thought that being part of a church would be like when he got into his gang. When someone is in a gang, everyone "had his back." They were like family. But he didn't feel that kind of relationship with people at church.  A family kind of relationship. This video was very impactful on a lot of the Avanti workers as we are trying to understand what true fellowship looks like, how it should be here in the Church in Florence, and what needs  to change. One thing that has been very good for "fellowship" is our visitation days that we do every Thursday. Meeting with church members outside of church really gives you a chance to get to know them and encourage them. Every time we meet with people they always talk about how much they enjoyed the time, which we do too! It's a win win..haha..but really it is so good to spend time with people other than 15 minutes every Sunday morning. That is one thing I have learned more about after being here.

Last weekend we went to a retreat in a small city called Bondeno. It was for all the churches in Italy. It was definitely a unique experience, but I loved it. Everyone was extremely welcoming. I am still getting used to the Italian greeting, which if you don't know, is an "air kiss" on either cheek. Definitely not American..haha..but it is the norm here, whether you really know the person or not.  So as soon as we walk into the Church in Bondeno, there are about 30 Italians all greeting me with the Italian kiss, and not to mention all speaking Italian, a bit overwhelming, but so much fun. That night we stayed with different members from the church. The family another Avanti worker and I stayed with were great. The dad of the family, Stefano, was hilarious. He was such a character, so charismatic and outgoing. On Sunday morning before church he was wandering around  with a can of Cherry Dr. Pepper offering it to everyone. They love Dr. Pepper, but you cannot buy it here.  Most of the time at the house I had Laura, the other Avanti worker, who could translate for me, but on Sunday morning at breakfast while she was getting ready I was on my own. It was so much fun talking with the family, with the amount of Italian I know and the amount of English they know. It was a lot of charades, but I think we understood what each other were saying...haha. One thing that has been great here is that the tune of a lot of songs are universal, so when I walked into the kitchen for breakfast, even though I didn't understand all the words, I knew Stefano was singing the tune of Happy Birthday to me..haha. Which is also the tune to a song that teachers in Italy sing  to children when they come into the classroom..."Good morning to you, good morning to you..." haha. We talked about their daughter who married an American and is now living in Nashville. I loved staying with them. I plan on visiting them at some point to spend time with them and work on my Italian.

Our hosts!

So the retreat went very well. I met so many great people. There were a lot of young members at the church which was really encouraging to see. Many of them I will see next weekend when we go to a city near Rome for a youth retreat. I am very excited about that!

New Friends!

Like I mentioned before, one thing that has been extremely encouraging is that the church songs have the same tune as the songs at churches in America. Even though I don't know all the words, I know the English words and what the message of the song is. That has been one of the most helpful and encouraging things here, since I do not know the language extremely well yet.

For Halloween we went to a party at the Harding University Villa. Everyone was dressed up and we helped the HUF director, Robbie, with a "scary walk" that the students did. They walked around the villa and listened to a scary story while we did different things to scare them. Several of the members came from the church. Their kids dressed up and went around to the rooms where the Harding students stay  and "trick-or-treated." It was so funny seeing all the Italian kids running around trying to say "trick-or-treat." I also saw a few kids around town, most of which were dressed up as ghosts. haha...they do not have entire stores dedicated to Halloween here, so the costumes are limited, but it was refreshing to see simple costumes.

Sunday we had a the "agape" at church. It is basically a pot luck. There was a lot of good food and it was good for everyone to spend more time together. Pot lucks have only a few difference here from the ones I have experienced. One is, obliviously the food. There are not 10 different kinds of potatoes casseroles with corn flakes on top, which is definitely one of my favorites at pot lucks in America. But, the first thing we eat at the "agape" is pasta, which is really the first course.  Then you get up and dig into  other foods. And of course, after lunch and dinner here you have café, which is, in my opinion,  very strong and bitter espresso. I am still getting used to it, but they love it here.  I don't think Starbucks would stand a chance here. I explained  to my friend who came for breakfast about different creamers and how in general, Americans love to put all kinds of flavors in their coffee. Here, they take a shot of espresso at the bar (coffee shop) in the morning and leave. They don't carry their drinks to work in mugs like we do..haha.

Some the Avanti workers have been meeting with a family that attends the church in Florence every Thursday. This family has 7 children and all live in a motor home. They do not have jobs so they come to the Church on Thursdays to learn how to weave. They make scarves and other things to sell. I am not able to work with them while I am still in school, but we have been praying a lot about that family and that they are benefiting from that time. I know it has been a tough experience for some Avanti workers, but they have been so great and had so much perseverance with that family. Robbie, the HUF director, has also been so great with this family. He has so much compassion for them and just genuinely loves them no matter what. No matter what their motives are or their past is like or where they are now. It has been very encouraging and inspiring to watch him with that family.

The children's class is going very well. Last week we had about 8 kids. They are always enthusiastic and excited to come and learn. Below are pictures of the class.

We also had a reading at the local library a couple of weeks ago. We read a book in English and taught them some new vocabulary. Then we did an activity with them. This time we played Bingo, which they loved! There were about 30 kids there and the parents love that we do it. That was the first time that I remember a child saying something to me and me actually understanding! haha..I don't know exactly what words she used, but I somehow understood what she was saying to me. The language alone has been such a unique experience.

People always ask me how things are and what it is like here, and really all can say is that it has been one of the most unique and interesting experiences I have ever had.  I go to language school with people from all over the world. Some of which, the only language we have in common is Italian, so it makes it interesting when we are trying to work together..haha..I was lying in bed one night listening to my roommate, Ermenita, who is from Albania, talking on the phone in Albanian and realized how many different languages I hear on a regular basis.  I hear Italian, Dutch, French, Spanish, English, and Albanian almost every day.  Then building relationships and learning about people from totally different backgrounds is so interesting. Seeing how people come to believe what they do, how Churches are here, and just the culture in general, is, for lack of a better word, awesome. I have learned so much about myself in this short time, but also about others and God. I have definitely come to realize how small I am and how huge the world is, but even more so, how much bigger God is than all of this. God's mission is so much bigger than all the little things that I tend to worry about. Life is too short to not spend it on something that matters. God is too big and too powerful to not put complete trust in, even when it is hard. I admit, there are definitely some hard days here. It is not just like a vacation, but because of God, it's ok. I don't know how to describe it, but there is a certain kind of solid assurance and peace that I know only comes from God. I am also so encouraged by the other workers here and their perseverance through different issues they have to deal with. And I know that none of this would be possible for any of us without your support and especially your prayers. Thank you so much for all of that and for all of your comments. God is definitely using you as an encouragement to me! And we will definitely be in touch!

Inizi....

Buongiorno! I have been in Italy a little over a month now. I am feeling a bit more settled.  I am continuing language school every morning. I am beginning to understand more which is encouraging. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we speak only Italian at lunch, so that has been very helpful. I also have a friend here who has been meeting with me during the week to help me practice Italian. So slowly but surely, it is coming along :)

I have met with all my students several times now. I have five students, plus a children's class. I started reading the book of Luke with a few of my students. One of them is 22 and is studying chemistry at the University of Florence. We read about the birth of Christ. She had heard the story before but was surprised to learn that the Catholic Church uses a different Bible, also that I am not Catholic. She also talked about how she liked the Bible we were reading from better than the Catholic Bible because it was easier to understand. We then got on the subject of prayer, which is a difficult word for some Italians to pronounce.  She asked about prayer and what the most important one was. She was referring to the prayers that are said at Mass, like Ave Maria. It was such an interesting talk and I think that reading Luke will provoke more good conversations.

I will start Luke with another student next week.  She is about 19 and is also studying at the University of Florence. This week she asked me to help her with her English homework, which was analyzing an 18th Century poem. There were words in it that I did not even understand! haha...but we worked through it together and I learned a few new English words from it. I am really excited about getting to know her. She is very shy, but she really wants to learn and she comes to all the events we have at the Bible School, which is very encouraging.

I am also meeting with two other women. Last week was our first meeting. They are such nice people and are so eager to learn. I will also be reading Luke with them as well. They come to the Bible School with their boyfriend and husband, who meet with another Avanti worker. The men are also studying Luke.

Another student I meet with is 19 and is studying French and English at the University of Florence. Her English is very good so she is mostly coming for conversation. I am so excited about getting to know her. She has been so sweet and has helped me feel welcome in Italy. She has offered to help me with my Italian and to show me around Florence and take me to her dad's restaurant. I am really looking forward to spending more time with her.

On Wednesdays, I am helping with a children's class. We usually have about  4 to 5 come. It has been so much fun! We have been teaching them colors, numbers, shapes, etc. We also read a Bible story with them every week and teach them new words from the stories.  Some of the Avanti workers have also gone to a local school to teach an English lesson. The parents love it and keep asking us to come back. I will also help with reading at the library. We read to between 20-30 children and do a small activity with them.

Last week we had our first event at the Bible School. It was movie night and we had about 14 people come! It was a lot of fun. And this weekend we had our American Cooking School. We taught how to make scalloped potatoes, stuffed hamburgers, vegetable dip, banana splits, and American coffee. There was a great turnout of people. Several of my students came. They loved the vegetable dip. I told my students how at most American events, there will be some kind of dip.  The events here are a lot of fun and are good time to talk with our students more.

Preparing for Cooking School. (Peter, Ermenita, and I)

Cooking School!

My student and I!

We have started what we call "The Gathering." An Avanti couple who is working at the church in Florence, started this as a way to get more involved with the students at the University of Florence. There are two girls that come who are from Albania. They are not able to come to church on Sundays so this has been very encouraging for them. We are continuing to think of ways to get more interest from other students.

There are a lot of things going on here. So many opportunities to talk with people. We have had several people who just come up to our door and ask if they can study with us. Just this week we had a man come to our door as we were leaving and ask if he could come to church with us. He has a brain tumor and has maybe one to two years to live. He said that he was Atheist, but was looking for a church. He came to our Bible study at the church this week and also had lunch with us.

So those are some of the things going on with the work in Italy. Thanks again for your support and prayers!  This would not be possible without you! We'll be in touch!

Benvenuto in Italia!!

Ciao! I made it to Italy on Monday, Sept 5, 2011! These past few days have been quite interesting. I began language school two days after I arrived. I am in a class with about 10 other people from  America, Holland, Germany, France, Australia, India, Mexico, and a few other places. It is so great meeting so many people from different places. Language school is a lot to take in, and can be very exhausting, but I really enjoy it. I'm learning a lot and am getting to know a lot of different people.

Although I have been to Italy before, I have been reminded of  some things since being here.  One is that most cars are very small here. There aren't any trucks or really any big SUV's, which considering the roads are so narrow, is probably a good thing. In the mornings and afternoons I see people sitting around on park benches talking or at a coffee shop, which is called a “Bar” in Italy. Most places do not open until 9 or after and close from 1:30 to 3:30 for lunch with the family and maybe a nap. Italians also love American desserts. Brownies and cookies are a huge hit here! These are just a few observations...so far...haha

Things are starting to pick up around the Bible School. Last Wednesday we had a meet and greet with the people who want to study at the school. I've never experienced something like that before. Having people standing around me just wanting to listen to me talk and loving my accent, haha...the students are so nice and friendly. They were so excited to be at the Bible School and they are so eager to learn. We have about 70 students on our list.  Then on Saturday we went to a meeting with the women of the churches in Tuscany. It was great to meet all the women there. The topic of the meeting was "who inspires you." Each person talked for a few minutes about a person in their life who has really inspired them in their Christian walk. Even though I couldn't understand a lot of it, haha, I could tell by the looks on the women's faces and the emotions in their stories that everyone was so encouraged. 

On the way to the womens meeting.

I had my first student today! It was such a unique experience talking with her. I know we will both learn so much from each other. I am so excited about spending more time with her as well as my other students which I will meet later this week!  We also met with a lady from the church, Liliana.  She turned 92 years old today so we took her a cake and talked with her and her sons for a while. Liliana was part of the church in Florence when it first began and has such a strong faith. She has been such an encouragement to the Avanti Italia workers.

 So, now that things are getting on more of a schedule here, this is what a typical week at the Bible School might look like...

 On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesdays we meet with students. Monday nights we have Bible study in English. On Wednesdays we have an English class for the kids. Thursdays are visitation day where we do something with different people from the church. That night there is an English conversation class at the church in Florence, followed by a short supper and devotional.

Thursday night Bible study.

 Friday is “Physical Fridays”. Basically we just take care of things that need to be done around the Bible School or the church. On Friday nights we have different events with the students like movie nights, American cooking classes, and we might be starting a chorus. I will also be attending language school every week day for about 3 months. We also have several other activities throughout the year that I will tell you about as they come :) There is a lot of good work going on here. I'm so excited about getting started! Thanks for your support and please continue your prayers for this work! Ciao! We'll be in touch!