in between two chairs

Ireland

Here I am

Here you are

Is this all real?

Forever rolling green hills 

Forever supply of grazing sheep

Forever beautiful accents

Cold rain

Cloudy days

Sacred and sparse

Sunny days

It’s beautiful

To see this part of the world

Green upon green

Narrow, winding roads

Buildings older than my home country

It still hasn't clicked yet that this will be home

for the next 8 months

I have now become a part of a team

Who is passionate about seeing the church grow

In a land less with than 1.5% Evangelical Christian

Reaching the unreached 

This team has gathered from all around the world-

Germany, Korea, Switzerland

France, Brazil, The Netherlands

Australia, Ireland, Canada

America

(Who would have thought I'd serve with another girl from Wisconsin)

 This team has a culture of it’s own

all together for one purpose

So here I am

Learning to wear a few different hats

Administrative assistant and hospitality

Helping out the office in any way that I can

Feel free to call the office and 

you'll most likely be greeted by my voice, 

"Hello, this is OM Ireland. How can I help you?"

Joining different teams for different outreaches

like going to schools and doing gospel presentations

with students who may have never touched a Bible before

Or joining the Big Red Bus team and doing street ministry

offering free coffee and tea on the bus as a way 

to build relationships with locals

in hopes of pointing them to 

Christ

One other thing I've been able to be a part of

is something I didn't expect

Once a week I join a family from

Abbotsford, BC (crazy, I know)

 and we go to a hotel

where about 200 Syrian refugees live

Drinking cup after cup of tea,

we just go to hang out and see how they're doing,

helping them practice English, trying to learn Arabic from them,

listening to their stories,

crazy, crazy stories

Realizing how much of this world I don't know about

 I've really enjoyed getting to know them

I have no clue what all will come of this

but I'm so thankful for this opportunity

Through all this

I feel like I've only seen a glimpse 

of this need for the Gospel 

to be presented and lived out

 to a nation where people are 

constantly trying to do the best they can

hoping for the mercy of God

believing that works is what saves 

when really it's only by grace 

O Ireland, look at Jesus.

I'm being stretched to serve

In ways I’ve never done before

Stretched to not be ashamed

Stretched to be bold

Stretched to trust

It's only the beginning

Even though it's been a very cool experience so far, 

I need to be honest with you, 

I still don't feel as though my heart has followed me here yet

I want it to

I need it to

But I can’t deny that there are still days when

I still feel lost

and confused

as to why I’m here

I learned a french saying since being here:

être assis entre deux chaises

Translated it means "to be sitting between two chairs"

To feel both good and bad about something

Torn

In between two chairs

And that's only how I can explain this mixed feeling

I'm thankful for this time

I'm excited to see what God is going to do

I pray that I will be open and available

to be used in ways that God wants

but I don't know what it'll take

in order for my heart to take the next plane

and catch up with me here

I guess we'll see what is to come

Thank you for being a part of this

Thank you for you prayers

Through it all, we can trust that He is still good and He still reigns

All for Him,

Ell

⇿⇿⇿

First day helping out with the Big Red Bus ministry in Athlone.

I'm thinking of creating a photo album of just the Irish doors. Why not.

It's a dream that one day I'll be able to get a selfie with a sheep.
One day. 

Walking the streets of Galway.

I'm glad to see that Ireland loves Canada, too.

It's beautiful and dark all at the same time. 

This bookstore in Galway was filled, absolutely filled, with books.
I found out that bookstores have a way of making you feel at home. 

Took a pit stop at the smallest chapel in Ireland.
A husband built this for his deceased wife to demonstrate his love for her.
I guess he set the standard high.

Wisconsin came to visit.

Trying to sing carols.

Still trying to sing carols.

For some of the kids in the neighborhood, this was only their second time where it snowed enough for them to make a snowman. 

They still can make better ones than I can.

“Indeed, God is not abandoning the city. In spite of moral and spiritual decay and socio-economic deterioration, in spite of every prophet of doom’s statement that the city’s sickness is unto death, the church must believe that even if there is spiritual, moral and economic death in the city, our God is able to speak life into it and call for resurrection in the city”

-George McKinney, No Stranger in the City, 38

Amen and amen.