Week 5: Reaching New Heights

We jumped into this week headfirst! Both figuratively and literally. Some of our team members decided to go against all human instinct and jump out of a perfectly functional airplane. Despite some nerves, it was an incredible adrenaline rush! From 4000 metres we had an amazing 45 second free fall. The four members who decided to jump are the clearly the most fun, daring, and adventurous of the bunch here on OTG ;)

Unfortunately, Nele was feeling a bit unwell this week, so she was unable to join the team on the tramp. She was dearly missed but is feeling much better now that she is reunited with the group!

The tramp for this week brought us to familiar territory in Nelson Lakes National Park. Instead of our typical three days, we ramped it up to a more ambitious four-day tramp. This tramp involved us hiking around a large lake to a beautiful shoreline hut. Our team really appreciated the long soak in the refreshing water following the eight hours of walking from day one. We also were treated, as usual, to a beautiful sunset just behind the mountains across the lake. Day two began with a preposterous climb up a steep mountain just beyond our hut from the previous night. The walk was strenuous and difficult but the views at the top were absolutely worth it! After the three-hour vertical climb and a short break soaking in the views, we set off for another four hours of walking to reach our hut for the night. The team walked along rocky ridge lines and mountain tops before we arrived at our hut, which was probably the best yet. The hut sat in a beautiful alpine basin just below one of the prominent peaks in the park. There were two phenomenal snow melt tarns (lakes) just next to the hut. Some team members even thought they heard some native bird calls, but it turns out it was just some of our crazy boys taking a cheeky dip in the freezing water :p.

After a good night’s rest, we had a solid four hour walk along ridge lines to our last hut for the tramp. Along the way we got to exchange lots of funny stories with each other and even shared the skies with some glider planes who were flying at our altitude. Upon arriving we were amazed to see the view of our hut as it overlooked the main valley and lake in Nelson Lakes. We were welcomed by a lovely kiwi couple who wo got to share our purpose and beliefs with. We are thankful that God can work through us and improve the outlook that older generations have on our age bracket. Throughout the course of our time staying in huts on this leadership program we are thankful that Lord has orchestrated many fruitful interactions with people from all walks of life.

There were many highlights of this trip, but one was a moment on top of one of the ridges we were hiking across. We had stopped for lunch and hunkered down below the rocks to eat our food. We sat overlooking an old ski field as the clouds rolled just over the mountain tops. Despite it being the middle of the summer, it was fairly cold at this altitude. One of our team members (Ricky) told a very unfortunate story that left many of us rolling in laughter. Norm was even brought to tears as he imagined the scenario. If you want to hear the story for yourself, ask Ricky to share.

As a team we have become more independent in leading and more aware of the things that are important to us. During discussions many team members have been able to practice their leadership skills, which has resulted in deep and insightful conversations. Our different backgrounds give us the ability to open each other’s eyes to teaching we may not have had previously. Moreover, we have taken part in many assessments which have given us valuable insight to our approach to life. Our team does a really good job of providing encouragement, and constructive criticism where it is needed. As a result, we have grown much closer to each other.

This Sunday, we were able to go to church for the last time as a group. This body of believers has meant much to us over our time here. They have repeatedly reminded us they have been and will continue to pray for us as we conclude here in the next week. Many members of the church have graciously opened their homes to us and made a wonderful effort to make us feel welcomed. Our team is so thankful for Hope Community Church and all they have done for us!

The team is now back at base camp preparing for our final week of the programme! As some of you are aware, there is a tropical cyclone which has already made landfall on the North Island. Please pray for the communities on the North Island as they have already been dealing with tremendous flooding from the past few weeks. This cyclone is expected to reach our area at the top of the South Island by Tuesday, however we have adjusted our final excursion towards a region of the South Island that is expected to be outside of the cyclone’s path. Despite these plans, we know this is truly out of our control, so please pray for a safe and enjoyable final week.

Some personal messages for back home:

JOAQUIM (Switzerland) - Salut cette équipe! J’espère que tout se passe bien au chalet, ici c’est magnifique et on en apprend tous les jours plus sur comment vivre comme en disciple. Forcément je me retrouve au bout du monde avec 3 suisses allemands (l’incroyable humour de Dieu) mais nous formons une équipe incroyable tous ensemble. Soyez-bénis !

Translation: « Hello to the team! I hope everything is alright back home, here it’s amazing and we learn everyday how to be live as disciples. Of course, I travel to the other side of the world just to find myself with 3 Swiss German (the incredible humour of God) but we form an amazing team altogether. Bless you! »

Nele (Germany) – Heyooo, ich hoffe euch allen geht’s gut und ihr genießt den Winter im Norden J. Ich bin wieder fit und genieße die Zeit hier sehr. Das Team ist super und es ist total schade, dass wir nur noch ein paar Tage zusammen haben. Ich habe viel gelernt und bin sehr dankbar für die Zeit hier. Viele Grüßeeeee!

Translation: „Heyyyy, I hope you’re all well and you’re enjoying the winter up in the north. I am fit again and enjoy the time here a lot. Our team is amazing and it’s sad that we only have a few days left together. I learned a lot and I am very thankful for the time here. See youuu! “

Dan (UK) – Hey guys, I’m having such as blast here in NZ and am learning lots! Thank you for all your prayer and support I am so grateful. I hope Josiah is enjoying the life of a 14 year old ;) Speak to you soon!

Colton (USA)- Craving Chick Fil A. Craving Waffle House. Also, we found out in the first week that the Dawgs won 65-7. Still trying to figure out exactly how that happened…Thank you Mom for all the comments! Ricky and I are being good little American boys. Also, I asked him if he had a special message to type out and he said, “I have nothing to say”, so things are pretty much normal. Love you all!

PRAYER REQUESTS:

- For everyone’s safety in NZ regarding the Cyclone

- That God would give us the ability to continue our momentum following the programme

- That we have a wonderful last week and finish well!

Please leave a comment/short note for our team!

Written by Colton (USA) & Dan (UK) on behalf of the entire OTG Team