Blessed to be a Blessing!

it's amazing how fast you can begin a new life in a new place. we've only been in New Zealand for just over a month but because of how quickly God has integrated us it feels like it could be much longer! God's been so faithful to prepare a place for us to connect here! over the past few weeks we've been connecting more with our new church family and have really come to the understanding of us how ordained and prayed for our presence here is. all glory be to God for his marvelous works because this is not something we could've planned even if we tried. multiple people have told us that the church has been praying for a couple to come and partner with them in ministry, new friendships have been a blessing to those here feeling alone, an artist i met from the church said she's been praying to connect with a christian female photographer. all of these things were prayers entrusted to God who through his faithfulness began to stir our hearts for something new...challenging...even scary...and through these things he brought us all the way from Boston to Otaki, New Zealand, to show a group of people that he had heard them and that they were not forgotten. God is so awesome friends! God is calling all of us to be someone's answer to prayer. we are so humbled and truly in awe of how God can use a willing and surrendered life.

A few new interesting "New Zeland" facts (i have to start taking notes because i see something or hear something and think i'll remember...but i don't):

• i think i forgot to mention this when we last talked about "New Zealand" foods. other than fish-n-chips, MEAT PIES are the favorite around here! Love them! the most talked about meat pie is the "steak and cheese" pie but today i had a beef curry pie with potato in it and it was pretty great!
• Kiwi's seem to be pretty interested in what things are like in America and in President Obama. one of the men from church has even read Obama's book.
• from what i can tell, the youth here are really into hip-hop and acting/talking "gangsta" like. we saw a dance team from the church in wellington on sunday night and they were very good.
• much to my amazement there seems to be a MULLET trend here. :/ yeah...i know...i have no idea. sigh.
  

we met a couple a few weeks ago at Levin City Church and they let me come to their farm on Friday to take pictures of the baby cows! the youngest is just 10 days old and she's a cutie! *PICS COMING SOON!

i've got a few things to catch you up on but this will have to do for now. off to clean our new rental! moving in tomorrow! woot!

*don't forget to scroll down and check out 'Talk Like a Kiwi' at the bottom of our page!

Being Found

I was thinking today about what it means to be FOUND. I guess you'd first have to realize or admit that you are lost to see that you need to be found, because this can occur in any number of ways. Here are just a couple of examples:

You can be FOUND by seeking after God -

1 Chronicles 28:9

"And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever."

You can be FOUND by God seeking after you - 

Luke 19:10

"For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost."

Luke 15:3-7

"Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn't he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulder and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."

You can be FOUND by choosing to participate in your family & church community -

Luke 15:24

"For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.

1 Peter 4:7-10

"The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms."

Whenever I've moved to a new place I've realized the loss I feel having left loved one behind, and like most of us I'm sure, that feeling of "loss" or of being lost doesn't really go away until I find myself connecting once more with a new community of friends who are like minded. It's definitely not a replacement for the family and church communities I've been so blessed to be apart of in the past. God has shown me that it's more of an "addition" to the beautiful list of people he has used to play significant roles in making me feel found. 

We are so excited to have a new church community in Otaki to be connecting with! They are a beautiful community of people who love God and desire to see everyone's lives around them filled with the Holy Spirit, freed by God's free gift of grace and saved by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. We both believe that this is the community God has for us to grow with and minister along side of, so we are very excited for the time we have with them. :) I was kind of lost, not having a church community to fellowship with and serve in because I believe that those are vital elements to each of our relationships with God, but now I'm found. God's faithful friends! :)

Everyday New Zealand - Coffee Talk!

If you've ever thought that coffee talk in the states was a bit over whelming, think again! 
As you read the names of the different coffee beverages in bold, test yourself to see if you know what it's components are. Have fun and let me know how you did! :)


NZ Coffee Guide:


Zest Food Tours explain New Zealand coffee terms

• espresso / short black - basis for all coffee styles, espresso is full-flavoured, fragrant, with a velvety body and lingering after-taste; single serving in a demi-tasse (small cup)
• macchiato - a single or double espresso shot, just stained with frothed milk
• long black - single serving of espresso, with the same amount of hot water added; served in large cup filled to just under the top, or sometimes with the water provided separately
• flat white - one third espresso, two thirds steamed milk with a touch of swirled froth
• cappuccino - regular espresso with equal parts steamed milk and foam, sprinkled with chocolate or cinnamon
• caffe latte - regular espresso, topped with hot milk and little or no froth
• mochaccino - one third each of espresso, steamed milk, cocoa
• ristretto - (‘restricted’) is 15-20ml of espresso, the essence of coffee
• piccolo latte - miniature latte made with ristretto and 70ml of steamed milk; delicate flavoursome drink
• affogato - espresso served over ice-cream
• espresso Romano - espresso served with a twist of lemon
• latte macchiato - steamed milk with espresso on the side
• espresso con panna - espresso topped with a dash of whipped cream
• cortado - Spanish version of the piccolo served in a 60ml demitasse cup
• fluffy - for kids, a demi-tasse filled with foamed milk, sprinkled with chocolate and served with marshmallow on the side and a small chocolate fish.

*Thanks to www.newzealand.com for the great info!

Never Forget

Church was really great today! Pastor Paul spoke on "Significant Seasons" and how to recognize God in the changing seasons of our lives. Before he started preaching he asked the church and his wife to pray for America as we remember the devastation and continued threat of 9/11.  As Americans, we all know how 9/11 affected us but I don't think we realize how 9/11 affected the rest of the world.  The pastor spoke about how New Zealand was never the same after 9/11. The repercussions of that day were world wide. Although the devastation happened in America, we were not the only country grieving and not the only ones wrestling with fear. It was very eye opening to hear these words come from a man I would've at that moment considered a stranger to me personally but also a stranger to my country.

The past few days have been pretty quiet. Torre had his first day at the clinic on Thursday and saw his first patients there on Friday. He said it was really great and that it was nice to work with children again. :) I was invited to tea at a new friends house on Friday and that was really nice. Everyone is very friendly here and those who know what it is like to be away from home and new in town are going out of their way to make us feel welcome. This weekend turned out to be a rainy one. The weather has been mostly sunny and beautiful since we arrived so we don't mind the rain so much. Sunsets are so beautiful here! They remind me of home. Today we visited Levin City Church and went to a BBQ for the Clinic. It was kind of a "going away" for a doctor from Canada who's heading back home in a couple of weeks and a "welcome" for Torre. They served barbecued beef, lamb, Chinese honey sausage, a variety of salads, breads and desserts.

Here are a few new pics to keep you coming back!

Downtown Wellington along the harbor walk way

This was the sun setting on our way home from Wellington!
My camera was hanging out the car window as we were going about 100kl/phr down the express way.

The "Prowler".  I want one! :)

God is SO AMAZING!

Otaki Good News Centre

On Sunday we visited the Otaki Good News Centre in Otaki Beach about 15 minutes south of Levin. The community was rich with hospitality, friendly faces and a sincere heart to see God move and work in the church and throughout their community. Pastor Mike taught on desiring and allowing the Momentum of the Holy Spirit to work in your life. We are continuing to pray about where God has for us to permanently connect and plan on visiting a church in Levin this week. At this point we feel like we'd like to live in the city that we go to church in so we are eager to find a church home to grow with so that we have a better idea of where we want to find our new living space! Please keep details like living arrangements, a vehicle and ministry opportunity for us in your prayers! Thank you! We appreciate it. :)

Wellington

This week Torre had orientation with the NZ Locums agency in Wellington so we had the opportunity to drive south and see more of the island. Wellington is a small city on the southern coast of the North Island and feels about the size of Boston. It's a lot cooler here than in Levin and doesn't have the “small town” feel that Boston does but the views of the homes on the coast looks like what I would imagine the homes on the Greek Islands to look like. Downtown Wellington is packed with high rise offices and apartment building, a cafe on every corner and lots and lots of shopping. Turkish, Sushi and Sandwich shops are the favorites here and the Kiwis love their espresso!

A few Wellington highlights:

One night while strolling down Cuba Street we found Wasabi Sushi. It is a generally normal Sushi restaurant, except we'd never seen service provided with such a spin! The restaurant is pretty long and narrow and has a long, lean oval shaped table in the center of the room that seats about 25 people. Rolling around the top of the table is a conveyor belt filled with all different colored plates of sushi! All you do it sit down and start shopping to your hearts content! At the end of the meal the server comes over, sees how many of which colored plates you have, rings you up and you are out the door. We'll be back. :)

For those of you who have never experience the Magnum Ice Cream bar, I'm sad to say that you've been missing out. From what I can tell they've been available in other countries for years but just started making themselves known in the states recently. Get one! I know you'll love it. :) They have a promotion going right now....1 in 6 people win a FREE Magnum! We got a Honey Suckle Vanilla Magnum the other night our way back to the hotel and wouldn't you know it WE WON!!! I rarely win anything so this was a lovely surprise! Pictured is our prize. :)

Yesterday Torre finished his meetings at 2pm so we went to the Te Papa Museum on the harbor. It's a big beautiful museum that's free to the public. Torre was extremely excited to find that it's the only museum in the world to have on display a Colossal Squid! He had actually watched the documentary on this exact squid not that long ago. It was captured live on a fishing vessel, frozen to be preserved and then slowly thawed so scientist could study it until it began to break down and had to be preserved for display in the museum. A Colossal Squid's eye is the size of a soccer ball, it's tentacles have hooks on them and spin in circles and it has this giant bird like beak that it uses to grab and eat it's prey. Gross.

Swan Lake & Tramping

Yesterday we took a drive to Lake Horowhenua in Levin. It was a very chilly day but sunny and beautiful. There were all kinds of wild ducks, geese, seagulls and even a flock or two of black swans! What a treat! Further down the lake we found a pair of black swans and four babies swimming around. Thanks God for the beauty of creation...I'm so honored to be soaking it all in.

We then drove to the other side of town to the end of Queen Street and took a drive through the back roads of the Tararua Range. Gladstone Road was unpaved, narrow and rocky but we found the North Trail Head to The Arapaepae Lookout Track and decided to go "tramping" today making sure we stayed well within our boundaries. :)

Our hike this afternoon was a success! It lasted three hours (there were many stops for pictures along the way) and we covered approximately eight kilometers. There is a mix of foliage in the mountains like pine trees, monster ferns, several kinds of flowers, shrubbery, and more! The landscape below is the city of Levin, with the ocean in the background, from the Arapeapea Lookout Point. You can also see Lake Horowhenua in the middle of the picture between town and the ocean.

The South Trail Head where we started

Spring has arrived in New Zealand!

Wish you were here! XOXOX

Everyday New Zealand

A few people have asked for very specific details about living here so every so often I'll give you an "Everyday New Zealand" update. :)

Housing:

• Rent is by the week, not the month. We've seen 1-3 bedroom houses start at $150 p/wk and go well over $1,000p/wk depending on size, quality and location.
• Structurally, homes here appear to be the same as most other places in the world. They vary in size, age and style but seem to function equally. 
• The living room has a large sliding door that opens from the right and the top half of the left side of the window frame open about 5 inches by pushing out on it.
• Only the Living room/Kitchen and the Master Bedroom in the house we are staying in have heating/cooling units built into the wall. They are similar to a window ac but almost twice the size and not removable. 
• This one's for you Jill! The toilets here are the same as in the US except they have two flush options. One for lighter business and one for heavier business. *See photo

House Wife Stuff:

• It seems that most homes have a washing machine but no dryer. I "hung the wash" for the first time today! There's a very nice laundry rack attached to the side fence that pulls up to use and folds back down to store. *See photo
• I am very happy with the pull out/drawer style stainless steal dish washer this home is equip with, especially since I didn't have a dish washer this past year and a half! Small but sufficient, energy saving and quiet. I really hope wherever we end up has one too!

Perks:

• The kitchen and bathroom floors here are tile and the builder opted to make them heated! They are controlled by a thermostat on the wall. I don't think this is a normal perk to all New Zealand homes but my toes are thankful for the time we have with them. :)

Cars/Driving:

• There are very few American made cars here since New Zealand is so close to Japan. Cars are imported new and used and manufactured for the driver to be on the right side of the car, not the left like in America.
• Driving on the left side of the road isn't so bad. We just keep telling ourselves to keep the closest curb on our left and if we are on the same side of the road as the side of the car we are sitting on something is very wrong! There's only been a couple of times when we turned around or made a turn at a light where we've caught ourselves wanting to drift to the other side of the street, but we're being very careful and taking it slowly. (That was for you moms and dads ;) I feel very comfortable driving on the opposite side of the car, but for some reason I am not too comfortable SITTING on the opposite side of the car as a passenger. I feel completely out of control! 

Food:

• We are finding that New Zealand makes a lot of it's food and beverages here (free range eggs, beef/pork/lamb, milk, orange juice), but prices can be inflated quite a bit depending on where you shop. There is one discount market down the street that is similar to a Market Basket (for all you East Coasters) and perhaps a Food City or a Fry's (for all you West Coasters).

Electricity:

• Voltage and plugs are different here so we do have an adapter for electronics we brought from the US like the computer and ipad. Each socket has it's own individual "on/off" switch which is a nice energy saving option.

Week 1 Catch up

September 1, 2011
Morning! We spent most of today getting our cell phone and bank account setup. Torre had a meeting at the Practice and I finished unpacking at the house. We decided to drive down to Otaki Beach to look at a few rental properties and get some dinner. The real estate office was closed by the time we got there but after dinner we were able to find one of the rentals we saw online. It's definitely an option but it's gonna depend on how much the owner is willing to come down on the rent. Remember how we said we'd be happy with a shack on the beach? This comes very close! Hahaha...
For dinner we got “takeaway” from a local Fish and Chips place. A lot of people have asked us what kinds of food New Zealand is known for and so far it seems that Fish and Chips and Meat Pies are the big NZ treat! The restaurant was takeaway only and run by an Asian family. The deep fryers and large round fry baskets were up front behind the counter so you could see your food being cooked, seasoned and then wrapped up in several layers of butcher paper. We had the Blue Cod with a scoop of fries and a Muscle Fritter. Yum! Granted, this is not a meal you should eat every day, or every week for that matter, but it was the perfect treat to have while sitting in the car watching the sun set on the Tasman Sea! Oops! I almost forgot The Original L&P! This is a Lemon & Paeroa Soda, “World” famous in New Zealand. I'm not really sure how to describe it...it's not that sweet or carbonated...it's flavor it very subtle. I think this is going to need a little more research. :)

August 31, 2011
Torre walked over to Main Street this morning to get the internet card for the ipad and research cell phone services. After settling in a bit more at home and following up on communication with friends and family from back home we took a long walk at Hokio Beach. It was so beautiful...completely empty and scattered with drift wood and shells. The tied was so low it felt like we could've walked a half a mile into the sea and still only been ankle deep. In the distance is Kapiti Island surrounded by thick low hanging clouds quickly blowing across the evening sky. Deep gray storm clouds are in the distance covering the Tararua Range and the sun is heading for it's end-of-the-day dip into the sea.

August 30, 2011
Today we spent the day exploring the coast but not before going by the Ford dealership to get the break light that was out in the rental replaced! 
As we were driving down Hokio Beach Road we came across a herd of cattle being moved  by herders and cattle dogs! 

We then visited Hokio Beach, 

this is Levin's town beach,
Waitarere Beach,

 

approximately 10 minutes North of Levin, Foxton Beach, less than 20 minutes North of Levin, Waikawa Beach, approximately 10 minutes South of Levin, and Otaki Beach, 

less than 20 minutes South of Levin. We stopped in Foxton for an afternoon snack and shared a delicious bowl of pumpkin soup and toast. It's still the end of winter here so the weather can be very cool and Cafe's are still serving yummy winter favorites. For dinner we tried a local Indian restaurant called Rangoli. 
“Do you know what sounds good?”, I said to Torre. “Ginger Ice Cream?”, he said. “Nope! Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies!” I think at that moment I was thinking it would be something “homey” to do. We found a different grocery store down the street but they didn't stock chocolate chip cookie dough, and it was too late to make it, so we ended up with something even better! New Zealand's sweet and creamy claim to fame, Tip Top's Hokey Pokey ice cream, “A real kiwi favorite”.

We read about this ice cream before we got here and let me tell you the Kiwi's do not disappoint! This is one of the best ice creams we've ever had. Made in NZ since 1936 with fresh milk and cream, the only thing I can think of to describe it's texture is if you've ever had frozen whip cream. It's thick, creamy, sweet and to top it off it has little bits of buttery toffee. :O Yup...it's THAT good!


August 29, 2011

We are finally back in the air coasting along above Auckland. The major metropolis now reminds me of the game board “LIFE” from high above as busy highways slowly become winding back country roads surrounded by sheep...lots of sheep! We will only be in the air for about an hour as we make our way to Palmerston North, but it's amazing how diverse the terrain is as we move along. The land fades back and forth between farming country to national forests and mountain ranges. One mountain particularity stands out, looking at the map it's probably one of the mountains located in the Tongariro National Park, still covered with a heavy blanket of snow. Our friendly flight attendants are quickly providing our inflight service of mineral water, coffee, tea, chocolate biscuits and black gummy plains in honor of the “All Blacks”, New Zealand's Rugby Team. Did I mention the Rugby World Cup starts next week in Wellington? :) “We are now beginning our decent into Palmerston North. Please make sure your seats and tray tables are in the upright position”, one of our flight attendants cheerfully says, “We hope you've enjoyed your flight and welcome to Palmerston North!”.
Upon our arrival we were greeted at a very small airport by the Horowhenua Community Practice Manager and her Husband, Kirsty and Bruce Woolford. Our luggage is quickly unloaded from the plane and as we collect it they comment on how few bags we have compared to others who have come. We laughed and said we wanted to bring as little as possible! :) After signing for the rental car we are finally heading South on State Highway 1 to Levin! Kirsty drove us in the rental and Bruce followed behind in their van. To the East of us lies the Tararua Range and either side of the highway is sprinkled with herds of sheep and cattle...simply beautiful countryside!
After arriving at the house they are putting us up in the next few weeks, and looking through the beautiful welcome basket from the Practice, Torre and I set out in search of a very important piece of machinery...a hair dryer! :) We found a full size hair dryer and travel size flat iron set for 30NZ$'s on Main Street at a local electronics store. Not a bad deal! We then picked up a few groceries at New World Market, which is similar to an Albertsons in the US, and headed back to the house for dinner and early to bed. Night!