Hej! It's hard to believe our time in Sweden is coming to an end :( It's been a wonderful couple weeks, but it will definitely be good to be home. Here's a quick overview of what's happened over the last couple days.
Friday
Friday was a more relaxed day. We got to sleep in, and the late morning/early afternoon we spent shopping and sightseeing in central Stockholm. It is such a beautiful city! In the late afternoon, we met with David and Laura Moench and Eric Haney to have orientation for Make Musik Stockholm, which happened on Saturday (see below for more info on that.) We also spent some time praying with and for them. In the evening, we did a little more sightseeing in Gamla Stan (the Old City) and had dinner with Tord and Martha.
Saturday
Make Musik Stockholm day! Eric Haney, who is helping with a church in Stockholm, is also a music person and is involved in the Stockholm music scene. One thing that happens every year on Sweden's national day is a music festival where any kind of musician is welcome to come and play music on the streets of Stockholm. One way that we are able to help Eric out is by volunteering at this event. So all day, we were either helping musicians set up and play and keep on time, or wandering around taking pictures of everything (Madeline's job, our excellent photographer.) While the day was super exhausting, it was also thoroughly enjoyable to experience the music of Stockholm!
Sunday
Our last full day in Sweden! This morning we worshipped at Rinkeby International Church (which we had visited earlier in the week to pray with the pastor and a few others.) It definitely lived up to its name, as we worshipped in Swedish, Spanish, Arabic, English, and Italian and heard from a missionary couple who works in Mozambique. Although the congregation was small, they have a zeal and passion for the Lord and it was a sweet time to be with them. We had lunch with Tord and Martha, spent some time praying with them, packed up our stuff, and are now at an airport hotel near Arlanda Airport (Stockholm's airport, about 45 minutes out of the city.) We have an early flight tomorrow morning (thus we are here.) Please pray for a safe and restful journey home. See you all very soon!
~Tait
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Friday, June 5, 2015
Wednesday and Thursday
Greetings once again! The last couple of days we have had a very busy schedule. It's been a whirlwind of meeting people, fellowshipping, and praying. While it's been a very good time and full of energy, it is also somewhat exhausting.
Wednesday
Wednesday morning, we went to the north part of Stockholm to meet with the pastor, Markus Sand, and some members of the church at Rinkeby. Rinkeby is a very diverse and dense section of Stockholm. In one square kilometer, there are around 15,000 people at about 90% from immigrant backgrounds. It has a very high Somali population and so is in many ways similar to parts of Minneapolis. Our team had met with Markus last year, so it was exciting to hear updates of successes and challenges since last year, and to pray together for a fruitful future. After we ate lunch with Markus and the others, it was on to our next stop; a church in south Stockholm at Bredäng. This church is also placed in a very multi-ethnic community and so faces many challenges (and blessings!) similar to those Rinkeby experiences. It was a sweet time to Fika and pray for wisdom and guidance on how to operate in a diverse and secular culture, and for the continued growth of the Church. The evening we spent with Tord and Martha Larsson in their home.
Thursday
On Thursday we visited the University city of Uppsala and spent the day with the Agape (Cru) staff there. In the morning, we had Fika, talked, and prayed with most of the team (six of the eight who are in Uppsala were there.) After a delicious lunch, we split up into four groups. One group (Marci, Kristi, and Karin) went on a prayer walk through Uppsala, visiting some of the historical sites in the city. Another group (Aron and Tait) had a discussion time about God and Science with a couple of students from Uppsala. A third group (Rachel and Madeline) tagged along to a meeting at a coffee shop with a few other Uppsala students. And the last group (Paul and Carol) met with Barrett Harkins (the national campus director for Agape Sweden) to discuss team development and leadership.
I'll update you on what we did today tomorrow :) Thank you for all your prayer support and please continue to pray for health and rest over the last few days of the project. Some of us are beginning to wear out, and we still have much to do!
~Tait
Wednesday
Wednesday morning, we went to the north part of Stockholm to meet with the pastor, Markus Sand, and some members of the church at Rinkeby. Rinkeby is a very diverse and dense section of Stockholm. In one square kilometer, there are around 15,000 people at about 90% from immigrant backgrounds. It has a very high Somali population and so is in many ways similar to parts of Minneapolis. Our team had met with Markus last year, so it was exciting to hear updates of successes and challenges since last year, and to pray together for a fruitful future. After we ate lunch with Markus and the others, it was on to our next stop; a church in south Stockholm at Bredäng. This church is also placed in a very multi-ethnic community and so faces many challenges (and blessings!) similar to those Rinkeby experiences. It was a sweet time to Fika and pray for wisdom and guidance on how to operate in a diverse and secular culture, and for the continued growth of the Church. The evening we spent with Tord and Martha Larsson in their home.
Thursday
On Thursday we visited the University city of Uppsala and spent the day with the Agape (Cru) staff there. In the morning, we had Fika, talked, and prayed with most of the team (six of the eight who are in Uppsala were there.) After a delicious lunch, we split up into four groups. One group (Marci, Kristi, and Karin) went on a prayer walk through Uppsala, visiting some of the historical sites in the city. Another group (Aron and Tait) had a discussion time about God and Science with a couple of students from Uppsala. A third group (Rachel and Madeline) tagged along to a meeting at a coffee shop with a few other Uppsala students. And the last group (Paul and Carol) met with Barrett Harkins (the national campus director for Agape Sweden) to discuss team development and leadership.
I'll update you on what we did today tomorrow :) Thank you for all your prayer support and please continue to pray for health and rest over the last few days of the project. Some of us are beginning to wear out, and we still have much to do!
~Tait
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
May 31 - June 3
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
The last few days...
Hello there! Apologies for the lack of communication the last few days. I neglected to give an update our final night in Gothenburg, and our Internet connection at our last stay was somewhat shaky. Hopefully I can sufficiently catch you up on what we've been up to.
Saturday
On Saturday we took a trip to Vallersvik, about an hour south of Gothenburg. Vallersvik was the location of the first immersion baptism in Sweden in 1848. In a local church, we heard about the history of Vallersvik and the Swedish baptist movement. We also got to travel out to the point where the actual baptism took place right on the ocean shore. It was a beautiful place with a rich history and it was quite special to learn more about it. Later on Saturday, we prayer-walked through Gothenburg at various busy locations throughout the city. It was a privilege to see some of the culture and history of Gothenburg, and to be able to pray for its people, that they may come to know Christ.
Sunday
Sunday morning we worshipped in Tabernaklet. It is a true pleasure and honor to worship beside brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world. After our post-service fika (click here if you've never heard of fika), we bid farewell to our hotel in Gothenburg and began driving in our van to our next destination, the Torchbearers school/retreat camp at Holsbybrunn. Torchbearers is an international Bible school that focuses on teaching students to live Christ-like lives with 26 centers around the world. (more info here) Sunday night, we settled in to our dorms and took a brief tour of the facility.
Monday
After breakfast Monday morning, we had a time of learning and praying with many of the staff at Holsby. It was a very sweet interaction hearing each other's stories, praying for a fruitful future for the ministries at Holsby, and for any personal requests that people had. In the afternoon, we got to experience some of the things the school has to offer, such as the giant swing and beautiful forest walking area. In the evening, our photographer Madeline provided a family photo shoot for several of the staff families at Holsby. We also got to watch a video about the history of the Torchbearers schools and the incredible string of events that took place to lead to their existence.
Tuesday
Today was mostly a travel day. We left Holsby in the morning, had lunch and shopped in the candy-producing city of Gränna, and arrived in Stockholm this evening to settle into our hotel and have supper with Tord and Martha Larsson and one of their children, Victoria. The Larsson's are with Agape/Cru here in Stockholm, and we'll have many interactions with them throughout this week.
Apologies for the extremely long catchup post! Hopefully you made it this far reading :) We really appreciate your prayers thus far, and please continue to pray for health and rest so that we may be a blessing to those we come in contact with.
~Tait
Saturday
On Saturday we took a trip to Vallersvik, about an hour south of Gothenburg. Vallersvik was the location of the first immersion baptism in Sweden in 1848. In a local church, we heard about the history of Vallersvik and the Swedish baptist movement. We also got to travel out to the point where the actual baptism took place right on the ocean shore. It was a beautiful place with a rich history and it was quite special to learn more about it. Later on Saturday, we prayer-walked through Gothenburg at various busy locations throughout the city. It was a privilege to see some of the culture and history of Gothenburg, and to be able to pray for its people, that they may come to know Christ.
Sunday
Sunday morning we worshipped in Tabernaklet. It is a true pleasure and honor to worship beside brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world. After our post-service fika (click here if you've never heard of fika), we bid farewell to our hotel in Gothenburg and began driving in our van to our next destination, the Torchbearers school/retreat camp at Holsbybrunn. Torchbearers is an international Bible school that focuses on teaching students to live Christ-like lives with 26 centers around the world. (more info here) Sunday night, we settled in to our dorms and took a brief tour of the facility.
Monday
After breakfast Monday morning, we had a time of learning and praying with many of the staff at Holsby. It was a very sweet interaction hearing each other's stories, praying for a fruitful future for the ministries at Holsby, and for any personal requests that people had. In the afternoon, we got to experience some of the things the school has to offer, such as the giant swing and beautiful forest walking area. In the evening, our photographer Madeline provided a family photo shoot for several of the staff families at Holsby. We also got to watch a video about the history of the Torchbearers schools and the incredible string of events that took place to lead to their existence.
Tuesday
Today was mostly a travel day. We left Holsby in the morning, had lunch and shopped in the candy-producing city of Gränna, and arrived in Stockholm this evening to settle into our hotel and have supper with Tord and Martha Larsson and one of their children, Victoria. The Larsson's are with Agape/Cru here in Stockholm, and we'll have many interactions with them throughout this week.
Apologies for the extremely long catchup post! Hopefully you made it this far reading :) We really appreciate your prayers thus far, and please continue to pray for health and rest so that we may be a blessing to those we come in contact with.
~Tait
Saturday, May 30, 2015
May30
Carol in her rain poncho that had us all laughing so hard we cried.
Lars-Gunnar shared the history of Vallersvik in Swedish and Paul translated. Vallersvik is the place where the first baptism's in Sweden took place.
The door of F.O. Nielson's prison cell, He was imprisoned for holding a baptist church service.
Vallersvik Kyrkan is planning on building a new church building right next to the site of the first baptisms.
A replica painting of baptisms taking place in Sweden.
Our team minus me ( Madeline)
L to R
Aron, Marci, Tait, Rachel, Kristi, Carol, Karin, Paul
Our team minus Paul and with Lars-Gunnar.
Vallersvik Kyrkan
The monument with the names of the people who were first baptized at Vallersvik.
Tait and Rachel enjoying the food at the "Amazing Thai Restaurant".
Friday, May 29, 2015
May 28-29
Hey There! Madeline here with a few photos from the last two days.
May 28:
The beautiful dining room dessert set up!
Kristi and Karin enjoying the delicious desserts at the party.The Second Day
Day two has been accomplished successfully! We had a full day. This morning and afternoon, we fellowshipped with the Pastor of the church Tabernaklet, Johnny Lithell, and his family at their house. We enjoyed conversation, prayer and a delicious meal together. It was wonderful to hear how God has been working in his Church and to pray for its continued growth and strengthening. The evening was spent preparing and having a birthday party. It was a night of fun, food, and fellowship, and it was exciting to meet, talk, and build relationships with several other members of Tabernaklet who were in attendance. (Bit of background information on Tabernaklet: it has historical connections with our church, Bethlehem Baptist, and is very reformed and Bible-focused which is rather rare in Sweden.) As for prayer requests, praise God that the luggage that was lost has been found, and please continue to pray for health and rest. Thank you so much for your support of our team!
~Tait
~Tait
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Let It Begin!
Hej! We have all successfully made it to Gothenburg! Our flights were fairly smooth with no delays. The bulk of our team met up with our leaders Paul and Karin who have been here since Tuesday. We spent the afternoon settling into our hotel and catching up on some missing sleep. We enjoyed supper at a local pizzeria and had an evening of fellowship and prayer with global partners who have been helping out in a local church called Tabernaklet (Tabernacle). It was a blessing and encouragement to see how God has answered prayers and has been working in their lives over the past year, and to join together in prayer as they continue to seek God's guidance. Thank you for all the prayers for safe travel, and please continue to pray. Specifically, pray that a certain piece of lost luggage would no longer be lost, and that our sleep deprivation (however amusing it can sometimes be) will quickly subside.
~Tait
~Tait
Monday, May 11, 2015
2015 Sweden Prayer Project Team
Thanks for your interest and support!
WOW - I can't believe we're only 2 weeks away from take off! Please keep us in your prayers as we finish our preparations and fundraising.
If you'd like an overview of last year's project, posts are archived to the right. The entire team from last year is going back (as well as two new members).
Did you know that you can receive email updates by adding your email address to the box to the right? Then any new posts will come right to your email!
We'll do our best to keep you updated - thanks for the prayers.
Marci
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