Fernsehturm

One of the major landmarks of Berlin:  The Fernsehturm.

It's a TV tower.  Built by the atheistic communist government, the tower was intended to show West Berlin that the communist government was thriving.  As it rises higher than a nearby church, it seems also to have been an attempt to mock the church.

BUT.

Jesus wins, every time.

Because when the sun shines on the tower, it makes the shape of a cross.

Yesterday afternoon, a teammate and I ventured around various parts of the city hanging flyers.  Berlin is over three times as big as the largest city I've lived in to date... and I love big cities, so I'm thrilled.  It's so interesting to me that I can get on any number of u-bahns (subways), and when I surface from the underground, I'm in yet another unexplored part of the city.
I haven't been nearly as faithful in bringing along my camera as I should be, and many times yesterday I found things that I would have taken a picture of but couldn't.  I may have to return to capture them on film.  Things like:
*  A street sign reading "Christstrasse"... which means, "Christ Street."
*  Red ivy climbing up a sky-blue building.
*  The "Carpe Diem Cafe."
*  A huge, iron-gated, red-brick building that could easily become the setting for a scary movie.
*  A jungle painted on the wall of an u-bahn station.

Life in the city = :0)

What I'm learning...

The chance to move to another country and talk about Jesus is absolutely amazing.  However, regardless of how much I want to be here and how great my time has been... there are still things I miss.  Recently I put my finger on one of the biggest of these:  I miss being known and loved by the people around me.  Though my team is great and I do feel loved, we haven't known each other very long... so they couldn't meet this need.  So I've currently been feeling sort of lonely, in a strange sense. 

BUT.  This weekend, our speaker told a story about a time when God revealed something to him.  The words from the Lord were, "I know, and I love you."  As I heard his story, I thought, "Oh, yeah, that's good."  But it wasn't until I was reflecting later that I realized:  This is exactly what, just a few days before, I'd said that I've been missing.  Being known and loved.

I felt the Lord's love for me this weekend in a way that I really needed.  How sweet it was to know that what I need, God does.  A favorite verse of mine:  "It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man."  Ps. 118:8.  I'm learning... however slowly... to take refuge in the Lord.

A look ahead:

School starts this week!!

We'll be getting out on campus to talk to students, handing out flyers about upcoming events, and this weekend we have a retreat for students!

Retreat:

We'll head out to a retreat center, where students can hear from a speaker, worship the Lord, and have good fellowship together to start the year off. 
I'll be helping with the worship... I think we'll sing a lot in English, but we're hoping to try to sing in German, too!

Observation:

*Fall is great.  This is not a Berlin-specific observation... I always love fall.  But, the season here doesn't disappoint!

*Plastic bags from the grocery store aren't always free... so, people often bring their own bags when shopping.  I've sometimes carried my groceries home in my purse, but yesterday I paid 6 (euro) cents for a bag, because I forgot to bring something big enough to tote things home!

Apartment= Check!

We're moved in!!!!

Here's the story of God doing great things:

When we arrived in Berlin, only half the team had apartments.  Hunting for the remaining two apartments needed had been in progress all summer, and continued into fall. 

A couple of weeks ago, the guys were able to move into their (awesome) apartment.  But as my two roommates and I waited for the last apartment-- which would be ours-- I began to think it was impossible.  And I began to think that God wasn't listening. 

This is false.  God listens.

Last Sunday, I opened up an e-mail to find our schedule for the week.  We had committed to praying hard that week for apartments, and we knew that people around the world were praying, too.  So, the schedule said that we'd be moving in on Friday.  Mind you, we had no offers at this point.  They had simply said in faith that Friday would be move-in day.

And then, on Wednesday... we got an offer on an (awesome) apartment.  Seriously. 

And... are you ready for this?  We moved in on Friday.

How awesome is God?

My team works with universities in Berlin, but other Campus Crusade for Christ ministries have a  presence in the city, too.  Today, we had the Berliner Treffen, which is a meeting where all of us come together.  Members of my team were able to share what's planned for the universities, and we heard from people involved in ministry to athletes and someone whose ministry is to businesspeople.  Sharing in prayer for these things was great, and I was encouraged by what the Lord is doing in each of these areas and the vision He's given.

So last night, I made a coffee cake for the meeting today.  I love to bake, and let me tell you:  this is a really fun experience in another country.  My roommate and I went to the grocery store to find what I needed, which was an adventure.  Check out these ingredients:

If you can't tell, they are: (back, from left to right) sour cream-- looks like yogurt containers; flour; brown sugar; white sugar; butter.  In front, the little vials have vanilla-- not the same, but similar enough; and the little packet of "Back-pulver" is baking powder.

After measurement conversions, temperature conversion, and subsitutions... the finished product, though not the same, was edible!  The middle was a little gooey, though... but that's nothing new for me-- I almost always under-bake...

Tomorrow afternoon, we get to spend some time on campus!  Classes start this month, so tomorrow we'll do some planning for that within our campus teams-- you can pray for us!

 "This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."  Psalm 118:24

A good description of my Sunday, and it comes from my favorite psalm.  Yesterday was a beautiful day in Berlin!  Before I had even entered the sanctuary of the church I visited, I was surprised to see a familiar smiling face-- someone I'd met a couple of weeks ago.  After I found a seat, so many more people came up to say hello and introduce themselves... it's so valuable to be welcomed.  Worshipping the Lord was a blessing. 
After talking to a sweet new friend after church, I walked back... The sun was shining through the trees... the leaves were trying to decide if it's summer or fall... and I found a gorgeous pink and white building that would fit really well in Charleston, S.C.-- one of my favorite cities.
In the afternoon, I talked with my home church through Skype!  I was able to share about what's going on in Berlin, and it was so encouraging to watch a bit of the services and even see the congregation waving!  As I prepared to leave the States last month, one of the things that made me really sad was the fact that I'd be away from my church, and it's so cool to stay connected while I'm here.
After Skyping, I took a walk down the street, bought a bratwurst for dinner, and took some pictures in the evening light.  Good day.