OVERWHELMED...

…by GENEROSITY!  Definitely a good kind of overwhelmed.  Just a few examples:

1.    I took the bus out to a church that one of my brothers suggested to me on Sunday.  The bus only runs every 35 minutes on the weekends and I definitely timed it wrong.  I showed up an hour early and ended up sitting on the church steps until people finally came and unlocked the doors.  This would’ve been miserable back home, but it was actually relaxing just to sit there, reading and watching the clouds go by (I promise the sky is SO much prettier and closer here!).  The service was very much like what I’m used to at home and it didn’t hurt that I sat by 4 adorable little boys with bleach blonde hair, all under the age of 6… so cute!  Anyway, after the service I took a chance and went to get “tea and biscuits” in a nearby room.  After aimlessly wandering around for a few minutes, I decided to sit down next to an 80 year old man.  We talked for a few minutes and then he introduced me to a girl around my age.  I guess he either felt sorry that I didn’t have any friends or was tired of talking to me… or he was just very generous and thoughty J  Anyways, I talked to a girl who ended up to be the minister’s daughter and she introduced me to her friend, Lisa.  After I talked to them a bit, I noticed it was POURING outside and I would basically have to swim back to the bus stop.  Lisa was so generous and offered that “Uncle John” drive me back to Uni.  It turned out the Uncle John was “going to have lunch with Mummy” after church, so Lisa said her family would take me to Uni.  Then she changed her mind and asked if I just wanted to come to her house and eat lunch with her family!  Yes please!  Six members of her family and I piled into their van and went back to their house.  We walked in to the smell of homemade cinnamon raisin bread.  HOMEMADE.  You know in animated tv shows when they try to depict the smell of something by putting those swirly little smell lines coming out from the top of something? Well that’s how good it smelled.  If this scene had been animated, those little swirly lines would’ve been there for sure.  After about 3 hours, they took me back to Uni, but not before they gave me their phone number and demanded that I call them for ANYTHING.  Seriously?  How generous to take in some random American girl you’ve never met before… not only take her back (not home, this is not my home) to where she’s staying, get to know her, feed her lunch, make her hot chocolate (aka milo), offer her “anything”, give her your phone number, and show her SO much LOVE?!  Ahhh it was so great!  I think I’ll be going back to Reformed Church of Hamilton next week… and I’ll time the bus ride better.

2.    Today after my HPE class, one of the girls, Kelsi, in my group offered for me to go home with her to Tauranga one weekend.  Yes please!  She calmly asked me what cities I’d been to so far and then told me I was welcome to come with her anytime.  I think I was a little overenthusiastic in my response (lots of excitement mixed in with ‘wait are you serious?!’, ‘you rock!’, ‘I don’t think you understand how awesome that would be!’, ‘I’m totally taking you up on that sometime!’, etc), but it didn’t scare her off too much because I got a text from her this afternoon inviting me over for dinner at her flat!  Sheesh, SO generous!  I’m totally taking her up on the offer and going home with her one weekend, don’t you even worry.  

3.    This Saturday I’m going hiking with Shannon (see an earlier post if you don’t know who Shannon is... hint: Dr. Pepper) and some of her friends!  Shannon is so kind to include me in her outings, want to hang out with me, and want to show me as much of New Zealand as she can.  It’s so nice not having to plan a bus ride or rent a car, but to just go along with kiwi’s when I can!  I’m sure I’ll have plenty to report about the hiking trip!

4.    I came back to my room after dinner to a missed call and a voicemail.  It was Barbara, the looong lost relative that happens to live about an hour from where I am.  She was calling to tell me that she hadn’t forgotten about me and that she and her husband would be glad to come pick me up and take me back to their house anytime.  Again, the generosity, so overwhelming.  Last week I actually talked to a few girls who offered to take me to Barbara’s house on their way home one weekend.  I told Barbara that and asked if it was okay if I spent a weekend with them instead of just a day.  Her response was, “Of course! We would absolutely LOVE that!”

These past few days are just a glimpse of the love and generosity that has been shown to me here.  The Lord is continually revealing Himself to me through little situations like this and showing me that He has indeed placed people here for me.  His faithfulness has been and is awesome to the point of overwhelming as well.  It’s so real that God is watching over everything here, from the conversations to the phone calls to the friendships and even who I sit with at lunch.  How awesome that we have a God that is so loving and merciful when we are so sinful and undeserving! 

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,

For I have put my trust in you.

Show me the way I should go,

For you to lift up my soul.

Psalm 143:8

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

Deuteronomy 31:8

Interesting Observations:

-“allgood(s)”=”that’s ok" Example: "Allgoods, bro!"

-Lots of kiwi’s in Hamilton have never even been to the south island!  Who would’ve thought?!  I guess I don’t have much room to talk though since I’ve never actually been west of god ol’ Tupelo, Mississippi.

-Trucks and SUVs seem to make up about .5% of the car population.