Since August….

GO Conference

On the 21 August 2007, around 230 new recruits gathered together at a conference centre in the Netherlands for our second Global Orientation (GO) conference of 2007. Each year we run these conferences, one in January in Mosbach, Germany, and one in the Netherlands to help people in their preparation for going to various OM fields around the world. Some of these recruits have joined our work in places like Kazakhstan, Albania and Germany, while others have joined either the Doulos or the Logos II/Logos Hope ministry.

There was some great teaching covering many different subjects including our relationship with God, ourselves and others, as well as practical training on how to respond if you get challenged by customs and immigration officials when entering the country you are going to work in.

As most of you know, while I have been waiting in Bremen for the Logos Hope to arrive, I have not had too much to keep me occupied, so I decided to go and help out at the GO Conference wherever I could. To begin with I was going to work in the Dining Room, serving and clearing away at meal times, but a few days before the conference began, a good friend of mine, Christine was unable to come and fulfil her role of helping the Programme Team with all their administration. So, I quickly was asked to step into Christine’s shoes!

To be honest, this sort of admin work is much more up my street, and it was a joy to serve using the gifts and skills that God has given me. It was two rather intense weeks, but full of fun and excitement, although it had a few challenges too!

One of the fantastic things about attending such a conference is meeting up with old friends from around the OM World, as well as connecting with some new friends too. I had the opportunity of getting to know many who will serve onboard Logos Hope with me.

Returning to Bremen

On returning to Bremen, I was told that soon the Bremen team would be moving to Kiel, also in Germany to live onboard the Logos II (the ship that Logos Hope will eventually replace). This was a bit difficult for me, as I did not anticipate having to make yet another transition. Having only left Carlisle in May, I was still trying to adjust to my new surroundings and a new country, now I would have to get used to a different crowd of people and rather small living conditions. Logos II is quite a bit smaller than Doulos, and very much smaller than the Logos Hope!

Anyway, after the initial shock and realisation, I began to be a bit excited about this new phrase. Thankfully, through much prayer and pondering, God showed me many positive points about the move.