Week 9 & 10

      Hey guys! Sorry it's been a while; the last two weeks have been a little crazy. I can't go into too much detail but I'll try to give you a brief overview of what's been happening !

      Week 9 was on relationships and forgiveness. We had the base director Annette come and speak to us all week and it was really good. Christianity is all about restoring relationships; with God, others, and yourself. Relationship with God is the reason we were made and it's the first commandment. The second commandment, to love your neighbor, is the reason we're on earth.We spent a few days discussing dating and marriage relationships, and later moved on to conflict resolution. I learned a lot about how important it is to honour others, how the rules God has made for us are out of love, and how the devil twists the truth to create a less valuble substistute.  Forgiveness also really stuck out to me this week. Often when someone hurts us we often complain to God and say we can't forgive them because 'no one understands what they did to me'. God knows how we feel in every situation;  He's been there and he paid for it all on the cross. Jesus died for us because we have value, therefore we forgive others because they have value, not because of what they've done. It's not a sin to aknowledge your feelings towards someone, just make sure that instead of acting on them you act in love and forgive them. It might take a while, but the emotions will slowly follow. Forgiveness is a desision, not a feeling. Overall it was an awesome week learning about God's heart for wholeness in relationships.

     This past week was what Aussies call 'schoolies week'. Basically this is the end of the school year and the graduating class heads to the beach for a week of staying in hotels and partying. This happens all across Australia but 30,000 students come from all over the country to be at Surfers Paradise for this week. There's a lot of drinking, beach parties, and unfortunatley a lot of crime, sickness  and assault that come with the crowds. As the week progresses situations get worse, friendships break, and schoolies get depressed when they realize they're not satisfied with this worldly lifestyle.

     As a DTS we partnered with another Christian organization and became a part of the team of 800 volunteers on the Goldcoast. We were in small teams of 4 or 5 with one person we knew from DTS. My team had 9 floors in one of the main hotels that we were responsible for checking in on rooms, but we would often get emergency calls to other floors. From 6pm until sometime between 3 and 5am we would check in on hotel rooms, clean up after parties, take care of the sick & hungover, call paramedics, cook pancakes, provide mediation, and walk kids home from the beach to their hotels. The schoolies knew who we were as volunteers because of our t-shirts, and were ecxited to see us walking on the streets or through the hotel lobby handing out candy and helping them. Through this positive reputation we were able to make relationships with schoolies that slowly grew over the week. The main goal of this week was not to shove the Bible down people's throats, or even get kids to change their ways; rather it was to love and serve regardless of the situation or person. The hope was that through our actions they would begin to question why weren't involved in what they were, and would see the light within us. Once they noticed we enjoyed serving them and asked why, the doors would open to share personal testemonies and the gospel. As an organization we saw 97 schoolies decide to follow Jesus at the church service (Glory to God!!) with hundreds more experiencing the gospel through the actions and words of volunteers. It was a physically, emotionally and spiritually challenging week, but I can honestly say it was worth it.

     This week along with learning about spiritual warfare, we are spending a lot of time planning our trips to India and Nepal as teams. We sent in visa applications, are visiting travel immunization clinics (I am up to date, praise the Lord!) and are going shopping for appropriate clothing and gear. Please continue to pray for communicaton to finalize plans with our contacts and for the many team members that still need finances! Please pray against anything the enemy has planned to stop us from moving forward! Your prayers are so powerful and I am so thankful for every single one!

     Also a MASSIVE thank you to all of you who have donated money to me for my trip!! I appreciate it so much and I'm getting closer and closer to reaching the full $4000. If you would like to support me still you can either get in touch with my parents back at home or donate online using this website. http://www.ywamgc.com.au/finance/paydonate-online19.html?view=donate
Please make sure that in the comment box you write that it's for Rebecca Jobse 's outreach fees and you're golden! Thanks again!

Love and peace and many blessings to you all !!
Bec