A warm greeting from YWAM Ålesund
Good summer, dear friends!
We are now entering the festive days of summer, and Creative DTS, Outdoor DTS, and School of Worship just had their graduations on June 9 and 15. It is sad to say goodbye to the students, but at the same time we are grateful for what has been and of course excited to see where God will lead them.
January 2022 DTS
Let's go back to cold, stormy January. This year, 35 students came to our base from 12 different nations! This created a lovely atmosphere at base. Even though the beginning was affected by some COVID-19 restrictions, both staff and students got to know each other well. It was three good months with teachings on hearing God's voice, identity in Christ, finding joy reading the Bible, and more! It was touching to see God working in the student's hearts and to see them surrendering everything to God's hands.
The next two months, four teams went out on outreach. Two teams went to Papua New Guinea and two traveled to Mexico. This was the first time since 2020 we have sent teams outside Norway again. The teams in PNG got to live in different villages where they distributed bibles, had house visits to pray for families, and also led church services and big events in the evenings. They also joined a YWAM Medical Ship in Western Province. On the ship they cleaned and cooked food, and out in the villages they helped the medical team and the community engagement team teach the villagers about dental care and some diseases, and of course played games with the children.
The teams in Mexico lived on the YWAM Hola base in Mexico City where they did street evangelism, sports ministry, and practical work, as well as led church services and prayed for healing, etc. It's really amazing to think that we actually had the opportunity to bless so many people in those countries and make a difference for them. We are grateful for that.
In the beginning of June, all the teams came back to Norway. We spent the final week of DTS debriefing the past five months. And then the DTS was officially over, and we had a super big graduation celebration on Thursday, 9th of June!
School of Worship 2022
While DTS students and staff went out into the world, new staff and students came to our School of Worship (SOW). This was our biggest school yet with 13 students! And once more it was a lovely mix of nationalities. Some of the amazing teachings included songwriting, the biblical basis of worship, musicianship, worship, and evangelism. God brought healing and new freedom in worship; He gave them boldness to step out in faith as Holy Spirit led.
One student said: "I'm excited about life again for the first time in a whole." The school shifted the spiritual atmosphere in Ålesund as they poured out their praise. They even went out in the streets for two afternoons and that was truly a special time for the school. The Lord marked all of them, and they grew more in love with Him during this season. Now they are leaving Ålesund with a deeper and more intimate relationship with Jesus. Both staff and students of SOW are now better equipped to make space for people to experience God's presence in times of worship. Thank you to everyone who made this school possible through prayer, financial support, and serving our practical needs!
The boats are ready!
What a blessing it is to have the ships office up and going! We have already seen how it helps individuals and the teams on the ship in Papua New Guinea. And finally something happened this spring we've been dreaming of for a long time: the boats are done and ready to be sent to the Medical Ship! This was celebrated with a boat tour in the cities of Ålesund, Bergen, and Egersund. These boats are very much needed since their present boats are old and weary. We are happy and grateful for this news. And it's extra special that the boats were made here in Ålesund!
The local youth and elders are seen
This spring the ministry team at base had regular visits to three different youth groups. To stand together with the local church to reach the youth in the area is amazing. We can clearly feel their hunger for truth. So, to give them Jesus week after week is a great privilege! At YWAM Ålesund, we are also visiting four local elderly homes regularly. There we do worship and a devotional with them. We can see in their smiles how much this means for them, a smile that grows bigger each time we come, and so do our smiles. We are happy to invest in the older generation!
It is with a grateful heart that we look back on the last half year. And now it will be good to have vacation, even though we are already excited for the fall and for the next thing God has for everyone. Thank you all for your support—whether it is financial support or prayer support, everything is appreciated. God bless you all! Have a wonderful summer from YWAM Ålesund!