How Big Is Our God!
Hello everybody! Welcome back to our journey here in New Zealand. The second week is already over and it passed so quick we can’t even imagine. The week started with cleaning our Basecamp. This week our plan was to do a nice tramp in the Nelson Lakes National Park. So we did all our preparations for that and took some time to rest.
We arrived early and climbed our first mountain on this hike. From our hut we had a beautiful view over the Lake and to the next mountains. At night we had a stunning view to the stars and realised how big our God is and how small we are in the universe. We discovered some star patterns for example the unique “Southern Cross”.
On the next morning, we had a surprise and this time the surprise was not from Norm or Christy. We looked out of the window and there was snow! For some of us the first snow in a long time. So we enjoyed our time with the snow and walked all the way down the mountain we climbed up so hard. We passed a wonderful waterfall and crossed a very long swing bridge. Some of us tried to cross the bridge without hands on the rails but guess what... no one succeeded.
Because we felt so warm (not..), we decided to go swimming in the cold lake. Norm told us before that there are eels in the lake and yes, they’re waiting for us already. So we scared them away and went for a late-night swim with the eels around us.
The last day of our tramp began with a frozen water tank, it was a freezing night but fortunately, we had warm sleeping bags that kept us alive. After a good breakfast, we had a nice walk back to the van.
During the week we passed on with our study at the beginning of God’s Word. We learned a lot about God’s covenant with Moses and the Israelites. A lot of the conversations were about this covenant and what it means for us in our lives. Everyone on this team is a leader and as we learn to become better at leading, we look at every part of the Bible for things to learn. We were excited about how God helped the Israelis to escape from slavery and realised that we could trust in God. Some things that stood out for us:
Jonas: “The Israelites were standing in front of the Red Sea. They saw the Egyptians coming and thought they didn’t have a chance. But God told them to move, trust him, and move! I think God also wants us to move with him and don’t stick to one place. Meaning taking steps in our life and using opportunities that God gives us. Sometimes it seems not possible, but God will help us through the oceans in our lives.”
Aron: “In Deuteronomy 28 we read about the blessings and ‘curses’ God will give us if we obey or disobey him. If we obey Gods laws and teachings, we basically get the perfect life according to the Bible. But if we disobey the laws on purpose, there are some consequences we have to accept. Now I know we have to make the choice, either with or without God in our lives. I’ve never taken this choice so serious so it was a good reminder for me.”
The week moved on and we had a day that we could use to serve the next OTG Teams. We talked a lot in this week about serving each other and the importance of it. Christian leadership is about servant leadership. This means we do things for other people we do not know and we don’t serve them expecting something back. So we did several things around Basecamp to maintain the facility. This will ensure that the next teams have a great place to stay, just like we have.
We also had the chance to try Christy’s world-famous carrot cupcakes. They were so delicious, and when we brought some cupcakes for one of our leader’s birthday, we wanted to eat them all! ;) We had a great BBQ next to the beautiful ocean and the boys decided to jump into the cold sea. After a quick p.t. (physical training) from our coach, we jumped into the freezing sea… that was a wonderful experience.
On Sunday we were invited to a lovely Baptist church in Motueka. Here we had the opportunity to share our story on the stage, why we are here on OTG and what stood out for us so far in our Bible study. We were very blessed to meet all the people there!
Aron: Hallo allemaal! “De omgeving hier is prachtig en ik voel me al helemaal thuis. Ik heb geweldige mensen om me heen dus ik kan niet beter wensen! Alles gaat goed met mij, alleen soms een beetje moe in de ochtend, maar dat hoort erbij. Ook medisch nog geen problemen gehad dus maak je geen zorgen om mij :). Ik denk bijna niet aan jullie, maar ik mis jullie wel natuurlijk. Ik zie er naar uit om meer te leren over God en de bijbel ook al heb ik al zoveel nieuwe dingen geleerd. We duiken hier diep de bijbelverhalen in, en ik heb hier dan ook allerlei details geleerd over bepaalde verhalen dat ik eerder nog niet wist. Het is echt heel interessant. Groeten uit Nieuw Zeeland en ik hoop snel weer van jullie te horen! Dikke knuffels van Aron ;)”
Translation: Hello everyone! It’s beautiful here, the nature around here is beautiful and I’m already feeling like I’m at home. I have amazing people around me so I can’t think of better circumstances. I’m doing really well here, sometimes a little tired in the morning, but that is part of the programme. On medical perspective I haven’t got any issues so don’t worry about me :). To be honest, I almost never think about you, but I do miss you guys of course. I’m looking forward to learn more about God and His Word, even though I already learned so much! We dive deeper into Bible stories than I’m used to, and that’s also how I’ve learned new details about stories I didn’t know before. It’s actually really interesting. Best Wishes from New Zealand and I hope to hear from you soon again! Lots of hugs from Aron ;)”
Jonas: “Griaß eich dahoam! Ich hoffe es geht euch allen gut und ihr genießt den Sommer auf der anderen Seite der Welt. Die Zeit vergeht so schnell, aber ich versuche jeden Moment zu genießen. Mir geht es hier in Neuseeland richtig gut und ich habe mich hier schnell eingewöhnt (auch ohne Handy zu sein, das ist schöner als man denkt). Die Landschaft und Natur hier ist wirklich atemberaubend. Ich bin wirklich froh, dass Gott mir gezeigt hat, dass ich diese Reise zu diesem Zeitpunkt machen soll. Ich freue mich auf alles was Gott mir hier noch Zeigen wird. Liebe Grü.e aus Neuseeland, Jonas”
Translation: “Hello you all at home! I hope you are doing well and you are enjoying the summer on the other side of the world. Time here is passing so quick, but I try to enjoy every moment. I’m doing very well here in New Zealand and got comfortable very fast (even being without the phone, that’s nicer than I could imagine before). The landscape and the nature here is stunning. I’m very glad that God showed me that I have do this journey right now. I’m excited what God will show me in the next days. Love from New Zealand, Jonas”
Written by Aron (Netherlands) and Jonas (Germany) on behalf of the entire Off The GRID team