Week 1 @ BFA!

Here we are... we have made it through our first week at Black Forest Academy - and what an amazing week it was! 

(Unfortunately it was a busy one so I have not been able to take many pictures at school yet. You can expect to see some of those in the next few weeks!)

Tuesday (24) we had opening ceremonies where the teaching faculty walked in to an uproar of applause; followed by the graduating class of 2011 walking in with the country flags represented at our school. There are a total of 52 nations represented at Black Forest Academy! It was amazing to watch as they did the role call of the nations and see how our student body comes from so many different places. 

I can't even begin to explain the utter joy I felt as I watched the BFA campus fill with students this week. This place totally changed. There are kids in what were empty classrooms, and chatter filled the hallways! To watch returning students show new students around and to see friends embrace each other after being apart was not something that can easily be described with words. Those moments truly brought tears to my eyes. God is in this place and is moving in this place, and that is evident in every day.

I knew I was going to love the office, but each day I am renewed with a deep passion and love for the work God has called me to. Last week I was informed that not only will I be working in the Front Office... I will be overseeing it all! The Front Office Manager, Tim, and his family are returning to Australia in November for 6 months and I will be the one to step into that role. It was scary to hear at first but God has been preparing me and I am very excited for this. It has been a week of learning and adjusting to a different office setting and just learning what my role entails. It is a blessing to have Tim around for the next few weeks to help in the "newness" of it all. 

Tomorrow (30) is the start of a new week, a week that a lot of our school programs begin in. I have been accepted to work in the dorm "Storchenblick," (also known as "Storch") which is a high school girls dorm. The dorm parents there are really great and I look forward to getting to know them better and serving alongside them. (They are also fellow Canadians! :)) We have a meeting tomorrow evening in regards to what is expected from us and the following Monday evening I will be in the dorm! I am SOO looking forward to meeting the girls and being able to spend time with them each week. 

There are also music and sports teams starting up this week in addition to Resident Life subbing. I will be on a worship team at the church (Black Forest Christian Fellowship) that meets in the BFA auditorium each Sunday. It's a great community and I have loved attending there for the few Sundays I have been here.

It is amazing to see the school in action and really see first hand what an amazing ministry opportunity we have here in the Black Forest.

Thank you so much for your support and prayers! 

There is no other place I would rather be than in Germany loving on these missionary kids right now. God is good! 

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

Galatians 6:9

Praise:

-The other 2 ladies who work in the office speak German!!

-Providing a Christian educational facility in a safe place where so many students of so many nations can meet

Prayer:

-Please pray for the staff/students who have not arrived yet due to visa complications/support raising

-Please pray that we would have continual opportunities to invest into these kids, to love on them, and to make Jesus known in real ways

The school bell is about to ring...

Hello!

I wanted to write a quick post about what is happening in and around Kandern this week:

Today (22) and tomorrow (23):
New students will be arriving and moving into their dorms and attending new student orientation tomorrow!

Tuesday (24):
All returning students will be back! The whole school will meet on Tuesday morning for opening ceremonies (where we will have a flag for each country represented). After our morning celebrations, students will say last goodbyes to their parents and will be off to their first day of classes.

This week is going to be a busy one filled with lots of learning and meeting new people (both for staff and students)!

Please pray for:
Black Forest Academy as we start off the new school year
Students and their families as they are saying goodbyes
New staff who are in the midst of preparation and learning how to function in a new school and country

May it be a year that is pleasing to our God!

I will try and write a more detailed post once school has started!

Blessings on you as you continue to walk with Him,

Brittany

All part of the "abenteuer" (adventure)!

Greetings from Germany!
It’s hard to believe I have been here for almost a week now! Let me give you a glimpse of what my first week in Germany has looked like:

Saturday – Departure/Arrival Day! I arrived safely in Basel, Switzerland at 10pm. There was a couple who was waiting with a sign that read “ Herzlich Willkommen, Brittany." My roommate Heather had made it and it was quite helpful as I had no idea who would be picking me up. The Basel airport is actually in France (Switzerland didn’t have enough room) so within a few minutes I had been in 3 countries. We drove across the Rhine River as we were heading to Riedlingen (my home!). I wish I had been ready with my camera because as we were going over the bridge there was a single firework that went off. It was one of those moments where your heart smiles.

Sunday – Good morning jet lag! I had a hard time sleeping the first night so I got up at 6am and unpacked EVERYTHING! We went to the Black Forest Christian Fellowship that morning. It is the English church service that meets in the BFA chapel. It was a great morning of meeting people I had been emailing for months, and also meeting new people! After lunch we went to Sonne (boys dorm), where one of the English camps is going on. We were able to have lunch with Jennifer (the third part to our roommate trio). She has stayed at Sonne with the English camps so this was the only day we have seen her thus far. It will be nice when she is able to move back to the apartment.



Monday – Day 1 of German classes “How to conjugate a verb” Nothing like jumping in on day 1! Haha! A couple who work at BFA had graciously given up their week to help us with the basics of the German language as well as taking us on field trips to help us better understand the cultural side of things. That morning we went to the Rathaus (City Hall) and the Volksbank (Bank).

Tuesday- Day 2 of German classes was filled with learning our Ah-Beh-Tseh’s (ABC’s) and going to the Recyclinghof (Recycling depot). The Germans take their recycling very seriously! I think we have about 7 different containers in our kitchen to sort it all. That night Heather and I went to a TeachBeyond supper at the Reed’s house. Every few days they had a dinner for the new staff that had arrived since the last one. It was a great night of reconnecting with other TeachBeyond staff as well as meeting some of the ones who had not been at orientation. They have been very helpful in helping us with our transitions here.

Wednesday – Day 3 of German classes we went over different foods, grocery shopping, money and going to the doctor! After morning tea we went to the post office as well as the grocery store. The businesses around town are very helpful and gracious as we are still trying to learn their language and the culture.

Thursday – Day 4 of German classes consisted of learning how to eat out and order in German! We went to the local bakery (YUM!). Here we ordered anything from cakes to breads to pastries and then some sort of drink. It was a good experience and as I learn more German I look forward to using it around town. Yesterday I was also given then keys to our apartment and signed the papers to become German resident! Yay!!



Friday – Last day of German classes we went over any questions we had and were given tips on how to continue learning German. After class Heather and I went for a beautiful walk through the forest. In one view we could see the golf course, a hay field, a herd of dairy cows, and the edge of town! It was incredible! The cows were right off of our walking path so the smell definitely reminded me of home. When we got back to town we went to the bank and got my bank account set up! I was very thankful that Heather came for both the town registration and getting my account set up. They do speak pretty good English but it was nice having her be able to ask and clarify things in German.

It has been such a good week. It feels so right here, I know this is exactly where I am supposed to be. Things are different here, for sure. God is continually reminding me that the way they do things here compared to Canada is not right or wrong, it is just different. As someone who will not only be living here but working here, I hope and pray that I will be able to learn from the Germans and transition into how they do things.

It’s been really good getting to know the staff at BFA. For those of us who are not in Reslife we have had a lot more free time in the afternoons. This has allowed us to explore and get some things done before it starts to get super crazy at school. It has also been an adventure buying groceries and cooking them as they all are in German. Heather has been our awesome translator and so far our meals have been really good! Haven’t burnt the house down or anything! :) Looking forward to having our third roommate, Jennifer, come back from English camps on Sunday!

Next week we move into new staff orientation within BFA. We will spend more time in our departments and getting ready as students will be arriving in two weeks!

Thank you so much for your prayers and support as I am settling in Germany!

God is at work preparing us physically for this upcoming year, please pray that our hearts would be in preparation also. While we have a lot to accomplish in the next few weeks it is so important we stay focused on Jesus and becoming "Kingdom Builders" in this great adventure He is taking us on. Danke! (Thanks!)

Bring on the jet lag!

Greetings from Germany!

I have been here for about 17 hours now. Just long enough to sleep for a few hours, unpack my 3 suitcases, attend the Black Forest Christian Assembly, eat lunch with my roommates and have a nap!

There is so much to take in -- from the windy roads, the forestry, the animals, all the new people and the chattering German kids outside, it's just so incredible!

This morning at church we sang songs about God's faithfulness and how He can move the mountains. These are not only things that we see throughout the old and new testament, God shows us again and again in our own lives. A few weeks ago I was starting to wonder if Germany was going to become a reality, and it did! Of course it did!  God provided everything I needed as I took the step in faith to follow Him.

In the midst of my jet lag and adjusting to the German  culture I have no doubt in my mind that God will provide my every need as I am here. He is my all in all.

This week we start new staff orientation at BFA. The next few days will be spent in German classes. I am hoping and praying that a lot will stick with me as I really don't know the language.

Looking forward to keeping in touch and hearing how God is at work here and there.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support.

~Brittany