Dear Friends and Family,
The September DTS has officially begun! The previous two weeks we were at the YWAM base in Brisbane (about an hour south) for a government assessment training which was a requirement with our visas since YWAM is accredited by the government. It was an intense two week course that trained us to be assessors of the students on the discipleship training school. When we got back to the Sunny Coast on Friday September 4th, the students came that following Monday. We got right back into the swing of things.
On this September school, there are 33 students in total who have come from all over the world including Norway, Germany, Canada, Ireland, Switzerland, Sweden, the United States, and Australia. The first orientation week went really well. Students have come hungry for God and with open hearts. One of the first worship sessions, we as staff washed their feet and prayed over them. Almost all of them came forward and many were touched by what God wanted to say to them. We were touched by their receiving hearts. A few of them even came up and asked to wash our feet and we were blessed in return. We are blessed and humbled to be a part of staffing, and it's great to see the school finally starting up after all the planning we were a part of. There was a lot of work involved, and we have more work to do until we go on outreach in November! (Speaking of which, we know where we are going but are not allowed to make it public for another week or two until the students find out- they might be reading this post!!)
The last couple nights we have gone through testimonies. This is when we all come together and listen to each one’s story, both staff and students. It is amazing to hear some of the horrific struggles that some of these students and staff have gone through, but how faithful and beautiful our God is who draws us out of the darkest pit and into His love and light. Getting vulnerable right away really shapes a family because you know where everyone has been and where they want to go now. We are so excited to see how God works in the lives of the students this school. Many have been hurt, abandoned, and/or abused by their fathers. God brought these students here at the right timing because before we knew their stories our school leader picked the theme of the school, “sonship”, which comes out of Romans 8:15,
“ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[a] And by him we cry,“Abba,[b] Father.”
Pray that students would feel the love of their Father this school and that God would redeem and redefine the thoughts they have of fathers. Pray that he fills that void they may have in their hearts.
The upcoming week is “hearing God’s voice.” We are excited to share with you how God works in the students’ lives. For some of the students, it will be the first time they practice hearing God’s voice.
We feel God providing for us. Thank you to each one of you that is partnering with us! We are so thankful for you. We couldn’t do it without your support. It’s so comforting knowing that we have a team of prayer warriors back home. One way God provided for us, we found out the $200 per week that they were going to charge us, actually ended being lower at $160 per week, which adds up over time. We also have been randomly blessed by one time gifts by either people we hardly know or from those we know have next to nothing. Thank you. We are grateful that God has provided a way when we had no idea how it was going to happen.
We have been living on monthly support as well as one time gifts. We are still looking for monthly support if you are interested in becoming a partner. We have $575 per month as of now. Our original budget goal was $3,200, but we are trusting God for how He wants to provide and whatever that looks like. We don’t doubt His call here.
We are excited to share more stories in letters, pictures, and videos with you as the school progresses! Thank you for making this ministry possible. We love hearing updates from you and your prayer requests. Please let us know how we can bless you and what we can pray for. Email us at: [email protected] or [email protected]
Love and hugs from down under!
Josh and Amanda Hall
To see a really well done video update by one of the students click here: https://www.facebook.com/heihalo/videos/10156019256305263/
Here are just a few pictures from our time here with staff, students, of the car we are renting, Josh hitting up the skate park... etc. Click on the pictures to see the descriptions.
The September DTS has officially begun! The previous two weeks we were at the YWAM base in Brisbane (about an hour south) for a government assessment training which was a requirement with our visas since YWAM is accredited by the government. It was an intense two week course that trained us to be assessors of the students on the discipleship training school. When we got back to the Sunny Coast on Friday September 4th, the students came that following Monday. We got right back into the swing of things.
On this September school, there are 33 students in total who have come from all over the world including Norway, Germany, Canada, Ireland, Switzerland, Sweden, the United States, and Australia. The first orientation week went really well. Students have come hungry for God and with open hearts. One of the first worship sessions, we as staff washed their feet and prayed over them. Almost all of them came forward and many were touched by what God wanted to say to them. We were touched by their receiving hearts. A few of them even came up and asked to wash our feet and we were blessed in return. We are blessed and humbled to be a part of staffing, and it's great to see the school finally starting up after all the planning we were a part of. There was a lot of work involved, and we have more work to do until we go on outreach in November! (Speaking of which, we know where we are going but are not allowed to make it public for another week or two until the students find out- they might be reading this post!!)
The last couple nights we have gone through testimonies. This is when we all come together and listen to each one’s story, both staff and students. It is amazing to hear some of the horrific struggles that some of these students and staff have gone through, but how faithful and beautiful our God is who draws us out of the darkest pit and into His love and light. Getting vulnerable right away really shapes a family because you know where everyone has been and where they want to go now. We are so excited to see how God works in the lives of the students this school. Many have been hurt, abandoned, and/or abused by their fathers. God brought these students here at the right timing because before we knew their stories our school leader picked the theme of the school, “sonship”, which comes out of Romans 8:15,
“ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[a] And by him we cry,“Abba,[b] Father.”
Pray that students would feel the love of their Father this school and that God would redeem and redefine the thoughts they have of fathers. Pray that he fills that void they may have in their hearts.
The upcoming week is “hearing God’s voice.” We are excited to share with you how God works in the students’ lives. For some of the students, it will be the first time they practice hearing God’s voice.
We feel God providing for us. Thank you to each one of you that is partnering with us! We are so thankful for you. We couldn’t do it without your support. It’s so comforting knowing that we have a team of prayer warriors back home. One way God provided for us, we found out the $200 per week that they were going to charge us, actually ended being lower at $160 per week, which adds up over time. We also have been randomly blessed by one time gifts by either people we hardly know or from those we know have next to nothing. Thank you. We are grateful that God has provided a way when we had no idea how it was going to happen.
We have been living on monthly support as well as one time gifts. We are still looking for monthly support if you are interested in becoming a partner. We have $575 per month as of now. Our original budget goal was $3,200, but we are trusting God for how He wants to provide and whatever that looks like. We don’t doubt His call here.
We are excited to share more stories in letters, pictures, and videos with you as the school progresses! Thank you for making this ministry possible. We love hearing updates from you and your prayer requests. Please let us know how we can bless you and what we can pray for. Email us at: [email protected] or [email protected]
Love and hugs from down under!
Josh and Amanda Hall
To see a really well done video update by one of the students click here: https://www.facebook.com/heihalo/videos/10156019256305263/
Here are just a few pictures from our time here with staff, students, of the car we are renting, Josh hitting up the skate park... etc. Click on the pictures to see the descriptions.