September - November

When I first arrived to Vienna, our team traveled to the mountains for a retreat, which gave us time to know each other a little better. We spent our time praising God, talking, hiking, and partaking in "gemutlicheit" (relaxing fellowship with good food!). I enjoyed this time and was able to see the heart of Austrian history and culture in the country side (cow bells, drendles, log cabin homes tat serve beer along remote hiking trails, and accordian music too).
In September, the Lord blessed me by allowing me to travel to Franciscan University's campus in Gaming. This is about a 2 1/2 hour train ride from Vienna. Oh my goodness, I needed that time with my peers. We had Mass in English every day, visited with friends I did not realize would be studying there now, and I did what I really love...talking about missions, especially about our work with Kerygma Teams. That weekend there was a day-long hike (16-17 miles) to the oldest Marian shrine in Europe at Mariazelle. Gaming was a breath of fresh air!
Our first outreach to Zagreb, Croatia took place in October. Zagreb is a 5-6 hour car ride from our mission base. We began the "Following Jesus" seminar, which we will administer one weekend a month for the next 10 months. This seminar is specifically for the charismatic community leaders in Croatia. I found myself so fulfilled after this outreach. The Croatian community is so beautiful and hungry for God's peace in their lives. Luckily, several of the group members speak English because of the influence of western cultures TV shows. So, we used this cultural influence for Gods glory and helped them to encounter a deeper, personal relationship with God. Many Croatians are still controlled by fear after the past years of war in their country. To my surprise, our testimonies of how God asked us to give up many things to enter the missions was the ticket to their hearts. All weekend they spoke of their desires to live a radical life of trust in God and to be disciples for Christ. Wow! I continually look forward to going back to Zagreb.
So, you might be wondering what I am learning and what God is saying to me here. The first 2 months have allowed me a chance to really focus on God's call for me to be a Light to the Nations and His calling me to know Him more and more so that others may fully know Him. I realize that God's call for me as a lay missionary is a real call and one that Go is calling more and more to say "yes" to. Living and working with people from so many DIFFERENT cultures is eye opening and stirs the flame in my heart for all Nations to know our loving, gracious Father God. In our staff formation teachings, we hear the glory stories and the times of struggle in missions. I come to know daily what it is that I am saying "yes" to in this life as a missionary for Christ. Praise God!