a box full of love.

Today was a rough day.I was sort of down in the dumps. I needed to get out of my cabin, so I went to the dinning room to see my friend John Benn. On the way I stopped to get my work clothes. I had to pass by the mail room and every time I do, i peek my head in to see if I have any mail. And there it was, a big blue box. When I saw it I knew it was for me. My frown turned into a huge smile and that very second my day was brighter than ever. I was so excited. I raced to the dinning room to show my friend John Benn that I had got my package I had been waiting for. I sat down and began to open it. I was so overwhelmed with happiness and excitement I was shaking. John Benn had to help me open it. (by the way, this package was from my parents and it was my very first time getting a package on the ship) So I got it open and I started rummaging through what was in it. (mind you, it was a pretty big box) I had asked my mom to send me a few things and they were all in there but there was so much more then I had asked for. My mother knows me so well. She sent me things that I love. I could see how much effort and love she had put into this package and it made me so happy It was so awesome to get this package today, and it came in perfect timing. It reminded me of home and made me miss home and my parents so much.


I love my mommy and daddy!

check out the ship.

They have just made a new video of the ship. It shows the different areas on the ship and what they are used for. It gives you a chance to see my home! click on the link and check it out.

p.s i am in the video! look for me :)

http://www.mvlogoshope.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=371&Itemid=319&resourceid=2008-10-Ship_Tour&wmvsize=&movsize=&mp4size=45#Content

update.

I am sure a lot of you are wondering when we will sail, where we will go next, and whats going on on the ship. Well the ship is still being finished and there is still a lot to be done, although a lot has been finished. The Logos Lounge was just finished last week and was one of our big projects. The lounge will be used for Sunday services, prayer nights, worship nights and other gatherings and conferences. The picture on the right shows the Logos Lounge on opening night, it was an exciting night! So as you know we are currently docked in Koge, Denmark and will be staying here till most of the work is done. We have to get certain certificates to be able to sail with 400 passengers on board, so we cant sail till we receive those certificates. Everyone on the ship is working so hard to finish the ship and we are making progress but there is still a lot to be done. We don't know when we will be leaving Koge and rumors are always going around about when we are leaving but no one knows for sure. We should be leaving in the beginning of the next year. If you want to know more about the Logos Hope project you can check out the website at http://www.mvlogoshope.org/. The website is always updated with stories of what is going on on the ship.



Please pray that the ships crew wont get discouraged that we aren't sailing for a little while.

Pray for finances to finish major projects, as we are very low on money.

Please pray for more workers to help finish the ship.

it wasn't the end.

Saturday Oct. 4th
Some people from the youth group at the church I did the program at came to the ship for a tour. It was so exciting to see them again and have further contact with them. I meet the group on deck 5 and then took them of a tour of the ship. After the tour we went to the dinning room to have something to drink and just talk. My friend Sam (was part of the program at the youth group) was talking to one of the youth leaders Camille about the church. Basically the church doesn't like OM for some reason and it was a huge step for the church to let us come and do the program at the youth group. Also it was an even bigger step for them to bring kids to the ship, one boys father wouldn't let him come. I know God sent us to that youth group to show them God love, share about missions and build relationships but I am also finding that he wants us to help mend the relationship between the church and OM. God sent us to that church to give them a fresh taste of who OM is and I just pray that we changed their mind about OM.
My time with this group on Saturday was great. They invited us to come to their church on a Sunday and to a concert. I also invited them back to the ship to come to our prayer night or worship night.

Monday Oct. 6th
Two girls from the youth group Irene and Miriam came to the ship to come to worship night. I was so excited to spend more time with them and maybe get the chance to further build the relationship that I had with them. We went to worship night and praised God together, it was awesome. There was a speaker that night and he came up to the mic and said that he felt like God was telling him that there was someone there that had divorced parents and they were still hurting from this. I knew that one of the girls parents were divorced and so I looked over at her and I could see the hurt in her eyes. I had a feeling that God was speaking to her, so i quietly prayed for her. I didn't get the chance to talk to her about it but I am praying an opportunity will arise.
It is so exciting that I have continued to meet with them because I have really been praying to God about this. Since the ship will be in Køge for a couple of months I really wanted to get the chance to build relationships with local people. I have prayed about this a lot and I am so thankful that God has given me this opportunity.

Please pray that my relationship with these girls will grow stronger and that I will continue to get opportunities to spend time with them.

An open door.

Wednesday Oct. 1st
On this day I was asked to be in a small group that would go to a youth group and put on a program for it. Through a couple of meetings and practicing skits we were ready. We traveled to a town outside of Copenhagen called Hillerød to a church called Grønne Vang Kirke. Going into all of this I was very nervous, i had prepared my testimony to share, I was in a skit and I had to run a game. I was nervous but also ready. We arrived at the church and was welcomed by one of the youth leaders Camille. We unloaded and set up. Then we went to the youth room where all of the teens had prepared dinner, we sat together around a huge table and ate dinner together. Already at this point I felt like a part of this church, a part of their family. They were so friendly and so nice.
My experience with danish people is that they aren't very friendly and they don't want to talk to you, especially about God. But these people were different.
After dinner our program started. It started off kind of shaky and I was nervous that they weren't going to like it and they were going to think we were losers. But once it got going and they played a game it was all good. They were laughing and having fun. Next was the skit I was in and it went so good, I didn't forget my lines and they laughed, it was great. After my game it was my turn to share my testimony. I had gotten my testimony down solid to what I felt like God was calling me to talk about. I walked in front of the mic and just started talking and for the first time I felt like I was speaking with passion, like God was speaking through me and I could feel his presence in me. For the first time I wasn't just reading my testimony, I was sharing what was in my heart. When I finished I felt so filled with Gods love and joy, it felt amazing. I knew that what I said was what God wanted me to say and he was speaking through me. That brought an end to our program and we went back to the youth room to chat and hang out. I ended up talking to one of the girls who sing on the worship team Irene. We immediately connected and ended up talking about our lives and our family. She has three brothers who drink all the time and are always getting into trouble and I have one brother who does the same. We had that connection and we were able to confide in each other and share our feelings towards it. I was able to share with her how I handle it and ultimately tell her that she is a light to them and the most she can do for them is pray. It was so awesome to be able to connect with her, I could feel Gods hand in all of this. Well it was getting late and we needed to head back to the ship, so we said our goodbyes and we were on our way. We stopped just down the road to pray. I was asked to pray, when I opened my mouth thanks to God just poured out. I was so overwhelmed with joy and when I was praying I felt Gods presence more than I have ever before.

God was doing major work.

Cherry Red!

THIS IS A DRILL, THIS IS A DRILL, THIS IS A DRILL, CHERRY RED, CHERRY RED, CHERRY RED.

On the ship safety is very important on the ship and before coming to the ship I had to have training to know all of the safety precautions. I also had to take a test and pass it. On the ship drills are done to practice so that if something does happen we would know what to do. So we had our first drill since I have been on the ship. Cherry red is used when we are in port, when it is said over the PA system the ships company must evacuate the ship. When we leave the ship we go to our muster stations. My muster station is #3, we went to our stations and they took roll to make sure that everyone got off the ship. While we were standing on the keyside the fire team was simulating a fire in the dinning room. They filled the room with smoke and practiced in case of a real fire. It was interesting and nice to practice so that if something does happen then we will know what to do.


SAFETY FIRST :)

i love you mom and dad.

It will soon be 2 months since i left home on August 17 and I have been on the ship for almost 1 month. This is my first time leaving the house and being on my own as an adult and I think I am handling it pretty well but I do miss my parents very very much.

Dear mom and dad,
I just wanted to say that I love you both very much. I pray for you all the time and I care so much about you. I am also missing you very much. It was so good to talk to you guys considering we haven't talked on the phone since August 18th. I hope your days are wonderful. I love you so much! Cant wait to hear from you again.

Love and blessings to you,
krysten

I love my parents :)

Dishes.

At home I hated doing dishes. I would dread it when I was asked to do them. As you know I work in the galley (kitchen), I work in the pantry part of the galley which is where the dishes are washed. Now I love washing dishes. I had no idea that I would ever have so much fun washing dishes. I have an amazing team that I work with, we have a blast together. We always have water fights and dance parties, its great. I get so much joy and happiness out of my work, it is crazy. I would have never expected to have so much fun cleaning tables, washing dishes, scrubbing floors, washing walls and much more. God has blessed me with a great job that i love and great people to work with.

Mom when I come home in two years I promise I will wash the dishes :)

My heart was broken agian.

On Friday September 26 a small group of us went to a rock concert in Koge. I had no desire for the music, I had a desire for the people that would be at this concert. I wanted to take this opportunity to meet some locals and try to build some relationships. I had no idea what would be in store. The venue that the concert was in served alcohol, I am not a fan of alcohol so it was hard for me to see teens drinking. But aside from the loud rock music and beer there was something that really broke my heart. First there were these 3 girls who were dressed in very skimpy outfits and on top of that they were very drunk. Every time I saw them they had a new full glass of beer. During the music they would come in and start dancing very dirty with each other, it was so hard to see. My heart broke for these girls, I could see the emptiness in them. I could see that they were covering up their hurt with alcohol and dressing skimpy. At this concert I could feel God telling me that these are the people he wants me to reach out to. When Jesus came he hung out with the drunkards, prostitutes and tax collectors, God is calling me to do the same. He is calling me to love on these people. God has opened a door for me to meet teens here, i am going to a youth group just outside of Copenhagen with a group of people from the ship, we are putting on the program for the youth group. We will be telling them about the ship, we are doing some funny skits, games and also sharing testimonies and stories about the ship. I will be sharing my salvation testimony with the group. I am hoping that this will give me a chance to meet teens and potentially build a relationship with them that might involve spending time with them outside of the youth group and inviting them to the ship. I know that God has a plan for us when we go to this youth group, we will just have to see what that plan is.

Please pray that God will open up more opportunities for me to hang out and build relationships with people in Koge.