English class - Idioms and paralanguage

I'm not sure I've quite figured out how to do this whole two blog thing. I guess I'll just start posting things on both sites...so from now on, just check your favorite format...and LEAVE A COMMENT, for crying out loud...I KNOW you're out there...lurking in the shadows of the world wide web...leaving behind your cybertrail...okay, I hope that by now you're laughing, and that you know that I'm kidding! I love you all, even if it remains so quiet that you could hear a pin drop...oh, I found another one! [Read on to see what I'm talking about.]


Kyle's post on qualifiers brought to mind my intermediate English class from Tuesday. We talked about idioms and paralanguage. Do you have any to add to the lists?

Idioms
Eat like a horse
Sweat like a pig
Fighting like/Raining cats and dogs
Pulling out my hair
Driving me batty/up the wall
Going out of my mind
It's like pulling teeth
Sleeping like a log
Quiet as a mouse

Paralanguage
mm
hm
um
ah
ah hah
uh oh
uh uh
huh(?)
tsk tsk

Luggage - do not over pack!

So it occurred to me today that although I have let everyone know about the ‘adventure’ of getting my apartment together, I haven’t really said anything about my actual journey over to Germany. So today you get a two-fer.

I left Knoxville (a little behind schedule – I mean, hello, this is ME we’re talking about!) for the Atlanta airport at about 12:30/45 I think, for my flight at 6:15. Three hours to drive there, and still two and a half hours before my flight. Plenty of time.

The drive was great, even though I was exhausted. I didn’t so much sleep the night before, what with getting ready to leave the country for a year. We talked about Jesus on the drive, and it He’s a good thing to get your mind set on.

We got to the airport well before 4pm. I got into line at the British Airways counter. It was a short line, with only, maybe, 8 groups/people between me and the counter. I waited. And waited. And waited. I get to the counter by about 4:30 (I’m guessing). And I find out that BOTH of my bags are overweight. Oh, yes, and they don’t just let you pay for your overweight bags – you have to REPACK them to somehow make them less than the weight limit. [I must not that I should have weighed my bags before I left, and that I should have known better. It was my own fault that I got into this mess.]

I freak. Just on the inside. I do the math in my head, and no matter how I slice it, you can’t take two overweight bags, and make two underweight bags without taking something out of both of them. Straightforward, right? Except that I don’t live in Atlanta, and my ride is LONG gone. So I explain my situation to the nice British man behind the counter, and he tells me I have to go find this store where they sell boxes, and take stuff out of my bags so that they’ll make weight. Ok, I can handle that.

Except that the Atlanta airport is HUGE!!!!! I mean, seriously. I’d never flown out of Atlanta before, just had layovers there. I should have known better. I took my luggage and trekked five miles to the nearest box store, and bought myself a box. It was pretty inexpensive, and I figure that lots of people have been through this before, and so it’s no big deal.

I claim a little spot on the floor, and display all of my things for the passers by to see. I repack my suitcases, and the nice man at the box store tapes up my box for me. I walk the five miles back to the airline counter, and get ushered to the front of the line. At this point, I’m really pushing it to make my flight. I pay for my extra piece of luggage, check my bags, and pray that the rest of the trip is not quite so eventful.

I got to the gate with just enough time to call my family one last time before leaving the country, and then board the plane. Now, I’m excited about the flight, because I’d found out that in the plane I was to be flying on, they had the screen in the backs of the seat in front of you – so you had your own personal screen, and a selection of things to watch and listen to. As much international flying as I’ve done in my life, I’ve never been on a plane like that. It was great, good food (I LOVE airplane food…something about the individual sections, and the personal packets of butter…I know, I’m weird), and good company. I was so exhausted, though, that I passed out before the end of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe was even over. I woke up as we were landing in London.

I don’t have much to tell about London. I changed, freshened up, and read for about eight hours in the chorale where all the passengers wait for their gate number to be announced. The flight to Hanover was fine. I slept again.

My flight got in on time, and I proceeded through passport control without any problems, and went to the baggage carousel. My suitcases made it through fine. But the box. Oh, the box. A more accurate description than ‘box’ would be the 'pieces of cardboard loosely held together by tape.' It was absolutely demolished! I’m really very surprised that my things were actually still inside it. My bottle of shampoo (we later determined that’s what it was) had popped open and gotten on some things, so it smelled nice, but I was worried my books were going to be damaged. [They ended up being fine.] I probably shouldn’t have packed the two together, but I when I was repacking, I was (in my panic) just trying to get the heaviest things out of my bags and into the box. I figured that liquid and books were probably the heaviest, so I put them in the box. Whatever, you try to pack everything you’ll need for one year, and then come talk to me!

I’ll try to wrap this story up. The Brubakers picked me up at the airport. The traffic wasn’t too bad back to Chemnitz (while the Autobahn is famous for it’s lack of a speed limit in sections, it is also notorious for traffic jams). We stopped at Burger King for dinner (yup, my first meal in Germany – a Whopper Value Meal – but with an Apfelschorle!), and made it to Chemnitz within five hours. All that to say that it was a long trip and quite eventful!

Englisch Klasse

English classes in Germany are going great! I realize that I say that every time I talk about them...I'm not sure what it would take for a 'bad' English class. God works through all things, no?

Yesterday, there were five students for the beginner class. Two from last week didn't come (don't know why) and there was one new girl. One of my neighbors asked if it would be ok to bring another girl next week (yes, yes, yes! Bring ‘em all!). So I guess that's a good sign - that they want to bring more people. The boy, Christian (!), is 13, almost 14, and in Chemistry, so I might have something to offer there. And I got a chance to share a little more about myself and what I'm doing here in Chemnitz.

We (me and I think also the Brubakers) see the English classes as an opportunity to offer a service to the community, and to get to know people. However, we are not advertising them as having anything to do with church. We are honest, and explain at the beginning why we're here, and who we're 'employed' by, but it would almost be like tricking them if we used the classes as a way to lure them in, and then bop them on the head with Jesus. If we get together outside of class (like me and Ute), or if they ask more questions about why we're doing what we're doing - which they do; they don't understand why anyone would offer anything for free without a catch - THEN all bets are off.

So, the intermediate class is good, too. There were only three there today (Ute couldn't come, she had a guest, but we're going to get together on Friday), and they were all guys...could have been a little awkward, but it was fine. We got into some good discussions about emotions and friends - the German concept of friend is different than in America. A German does not take friendship lightly, so it was pretty thought-provoking for me to ask them what qualities a good friend would have. One of my students, is giving a speech in English in Slovenia on the October 10th on his job as a social worker. I'm going to help him go over his speech, and I'm glad that we're going to get to talk about things outside of class...but I'm still not so sure how I feel about the whole male/female interaction thing...especially since Germans and Americans have very different social norms (not that I'm afraid he'll try anything, but I feel more comfortable meeting with a woman).

So there you go. That's how the classes are going. On a different topic, I'm going to speak at the Landesjugendtag on Saturday. The Landesjugendtag is a state-youth-day (Christian thing). The theme of the day (sounds like it's a sort of youth conference - except they're probably going to be 17-19/20 years old) is "Who(ever) believes, stand up - being light and salt in our community." I'll be speaking about what I'm doing here for the year, why I'm doing it, etc. I will be speaking during the workshop times, and the theme of the workshops is "where and how can I stand up during my volunteer year for Jesus" (as I understand it, they have a year after graduation, or before their last year of high school, during which they volunteer their time, or do some sort of service project, or something (I'm not really sure I understand it!). SOOO...I'll be getting an opportunity to meet some of the youth in Chemnitz, a full day of German (woo hoo!), and a chance to share about what I'm doing! I'm excited and nervous. My German has been getting better - I think that the rust is finally coming off - but there's a difference between casually speaking, and speaking in front of a crowd. We'll see. I've been praying about it - would you, too? Thanks!

Well, I'll let you go. Tschussi!

Janine

(Not so) culture shocked

So, you want to know what’s going on in Chemnitz? Well, I'm glad you asked…

I don’t think I mentioned it in my post last week, but the weather definitely took a turn for the wurst, I mean worst last week. (Not really – I just wanted an excuse to use that CORNY joke! It’s the simple things, really…) It really just got cooler (and a little wetter) last week. The temperatures had been in the 80’s since I got to Chemnitz, with just one rainy day till last Monday (9/12). Then the temperatures plummeted to the 50’s, with rain for three days or so last week. Things have cleared up (get it, cleared up?!), and it’s warmed up to the mid-60’s this week, with the forecast looking good for the weekend – a high of 21 degrees is predicted for the next three days, so it’ll be a nice weekend. Oh, you don’t know Celsius yet? You crazy Americans! That’s 70 degrees for those of you who can’t (or, more likely, choose not to) multiply by 9/5 and add 32. [21 degrees C actually converts to 69.8 degrees F for those of you, ahem, mechanical engineers out there who like their decimals.]

What else (besides the weather) is different about Chemnitz? Now that you mention it…

Well, for one thing, I’m a little thrown off when I see kids – yes, I said kids – of about 15 drinking Bier out on the street in broad daylight. I mean, they can’t even drive yet (you have to be 18 to drive) which is good, I suppose. Sometimes I want to walk up to them and ask them, “Do your parents know what you’re doing?!” but then their parents were probably drinking (legally) at that age, too, so I’m not sure it would make any difference.

On a lighter note, I’ve been enjoying the bakeries A LOT! The pastries, cakes – yum! And you can buy a fresh roll for a quarter! Where can you buy anything for a quarter anymore? I’ll tell you where - at your neighbor hood bakery…or the one two doors down…or the one around the corner…or down the street…you get the point. I’m exaggerating (slightly), but there is one spot downtown where you can stand inside one bakery, and see two others in the same square. And a Subway right down the street. I’ve been able to resist so far, but if I ever get really homesick, I may splurge.

Now, you may wonder how I’m going to maintain my girlish figure with this high carb diet. Well, I think that elevators have been outlawed here. Not really, but I do get lots of exercise from walking around all the time. And up and down the two flights of stairs to my apartment. Luckily, there is a grocery store just a block away, so I don’t have to walk too far to get there.

The grocery store is a whole adventure in itself. If you want to use a shopping cart (that means buggy to you Tennesseans) you have to make sure you have a one Euro coin. They have a little slot in the handle that you have to push the coin into, to unlatch its chain from the row of carts. You get your Euro back when you return your cart. It sure keeps the parking lots clear! Things are pretty normal inside the grocery store – German food is pretty normal – except for a few things. You have to pay a 25-cent deposit on almost any bottled drink. Soda, or mineral water (Germans love their Mineralwasser – club soda with some minerals added, basically) usually comes in 1.5 liter bottles. That’s the largest you’ll see. (A bottle of store brand Mineralwasser costs less than the deposit. And you can choose from no bubbles on up to very bubbly.) Juice is mostly found in 1 L boxes. That’s right. Boxes. So’s the milk, for that matter. You can buy your boxed milk from the non-refrigerated section. They super-pasteurize it, or something, so that it has a long shelf life. I have some milk in my cabinet that is good until New Year’s Eve. Now about the boxes, the Germans are just good about keeping things condensed, because they don’t have much refrigerator space. They are so energy conscious, and utilities costs so much, that they tend to have mini-fridges, so they have to watch how they use their space.

Once you have your boxed juice, milk, and some sort of pork products – they have much more pork here than beef – you head to the check out. Now, let me prepare you – get your bags ready, and brace yourself. The customer service mentality is very different here. People who serve you – at the grocery store, post office, bank, restaurant, anywhere – are for the most part not concerned if you had a pleasant shopping (or banking or dining or whatever) experience. Service with a smile can be hard to find. Now, back to your grocery shopping experience. Do you have your bag ready? Cause you’re going to be bagging your own groceries. Oh, you forgot your bag? Well, that’ll be an extra 20 cents for a bag. And for goodness sakes, don’t hold up the line!

Restaurants aren’t too bad, to tell the truth. The waiters take your order, bring you your food, and then leave you alone until you ask for the check. You could take all day if you wanted. Waitresses don’t hover to refill your glass, because ‘free refills’ is a foreign concept here. If you want another drink, you can pay two Euros for another ice-free glass of cool cola. Sometimes Germans won’t even order a drink with their meal.

Since we’re talking about food again, let me tell you why I love Germany. Chocolate. It is the best. I don’t care what you think you know about Swiss or Belgian or whatever chocolate – German chocolate takes the cake (get it? German chocolate cake!). Seriously. It is the best. Another great thing about Germany is the Döner. It’s not a native German food, but it’s all over here. The Döner is a fresh pita shell filled with shaved meat (lamb, I think), sauce, shredded red and white cabbage, cucumber, tomato, goat cheese, and onion. Tasty! I think that it is Turkish. There is a restaurant a block and a half away from my apartment that sells them for two Euros, and they are big enough to eat for lunch and dinner. Ah, a Döner for dinner…yum.

I could go on, but I’ve already taken up too much of your time. If you want to read some more about those Germans and their wacky ways (jk), check out Deanna’s posts, Living Less, and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Martha’s Culture Shock (part 3).

Thank you for reading this far! Kudos to you for you endurance! It must be because you love me! Or something like that :)

See ya on the flip side!

Janine

Waiting

That's what you'll be doing if you want an update...just a little longer!

Cheers!

Janine

Update Email

Hello all!

Today was a beautiful day in Chemnitz, clear skies and about 19 degrees (66 for you Fahrenheit folks out there). I walked downtown (about 15/20 min) and caught the bus there to the Brubakers apartment. They are actually in the States through the end of next week, speaking at churches (Steven), at a prayer advocates meeting (Celeste), and visiting their two oldest kids. So that means - you guessed it - I am teaching their English class, too!

English classes continue to go well, and I am over the first week-jitters. I had five new people at my English class on Monday, and one new person on Tuesday. I continue to be encouraged by the classes, and I am praying that by the end of the classes (in eight weeks) God will give the students a desire to find out more about Jesus, and to join a Bible study or discipleship group. I have had a few chances to get together with Ute, one of my students, already.

The "Kaffee und Kuchen" went well on Saturday. Several of my neighbors came, and one couple even brought their twin baby boys. I was being called Tante (Aunt) before the afternoon was through, and they are trying to convince me to stay for five years, not just one! I was so happy that some people came, as the Brubakers offered a similar sort of invitation to their neighbors before, and only one person came, out of pity!

I had a visit on Tuesday from Martha Moore and Deanna (pronounced Dee-na) Davis, two missionaries in Jena, a nearby city. They work with a (college) student ministry there and in neighboring Weimar. We only had about an hour to talk before my class started that evening, but I am looking forward to picking their brains for ideas for college outreach.

As I mentioned earlier, the Brubakers are out of town this week. The reality of being away from Knoxville hit me last Friday, and I had a minor meltdown. I really did not think that it would be so hard to be away from family, friends, and church (oh, how I love you!!). God, in His perfect plan - I praise Him for it - has brought me to a place where I HAVE to rely on Him. I have had to go through a (albeit short) valley, but I believe that He has brought me through it to a deeper, and more intimate relationship with Him. I have claimed Philippeans 4:6-7 for myself, and He has given me His peace. I have never lived by myself before, but I am learning what a blessing it is to be able to walk around all the time, reciting verses, and praying out loud. (If the walls in my living room could talk they'd tell you that the crazy lady is talking to the arm chair like there's really someone there!) The Holy Spirit has been revealing Himself to me so much this week! I am learning so much about what it means to submit myself to His authority, in all things, great and small.

Please pray for the English classes, that more people would come to them, and that they would desire to know more about Jesus, and ultimately be saved. Please pray for God to give me the opportunity, courage, and the right words to share the truth with my students, especially Ute. Please pray for God to continue to open doors with my neighbors, and for good relationships with them.

For the college outreach, please pray that God will give me the discernment and wisdom to know what His will is, and guidance as to what form the ministry will take. Classes start in the middle of October.

Thank you for your prayers - you are all such a blessing to me!

Love in Christ,

Janine Tessarzik

Clausstr. 110

09126 Chemnitz

Germany

http://photos.yahoo.com/jtessarzik

If this is the first email you have received from me, and you would like a copy of my first update, just reply and let me know!

Chemnitz, Schmemnitz

Things in Chemnitz are going well! English classes have begun, and the Lord is already opening doors! If you want to be added to my prayer email list, just comment on this post, and I’ll be able to add you. For the sake of those of you who are already on the list, and have already read my recent email update, I’ll write about some new things.

I found something interesting last week (or earlier) when I opened up my map of Chemnitz. It turns out that there is a region of the city called Siegmar – which just happens to be my dad’s name! Weird, huh?! I’m going to go to the library and see if there’s any information on how long it’s been called Siegmar, because as the story goes, my uncle (who was seven at the time) made up my dad’s name (in the German tradition of combining words). They were in East Prussia (now Poland) at that time, so my Onkel Jürgen had probably never heard of that part of the city of Chemnitz, and probably thought he did make it up. My dad was absolutely surprised when I told him about the coincidence! He just couldn’t believe that there was a place named after him! (jk – but he was surprised)

My apartment is now finally complete! I have a functioning washer and dryer, microwave, freezer, desk, dining room/kitchen table, and enough chairs for all of my English students! It all came together with much time, effort (and a bit of money, unfortunately). The microwave and freezer were easy enough (especially since I didn’t have to carry them up the flights of stairs to my apartment!). The desk, table, and four chairs came from Ikea – my first time going there! I was so excited! Now, they were pretty inexpensive, and Ikea’s furnishings usually are, but then you get the experience of putting them together. Not a difficult task, as I had a Phillip’s head screwdriver (one of the few useful things ‘furnished’ with the apartment) and the bag of ‘nuts and bolts’ included with each piece had all the rest! It all went together easily enough, but I’m still recovering from the blister I got from screwing the pieces together.

Now the washer and dryer, well, they are almost worth a post in themselves! Keep in mind that the hook-ups for both machines are in the bathroom. They were delivered (on time!) at about 9:30 in the morning on Tuesday. The deliverymen carried them up the flights of stairs and into my kitchen. Into the kitchen, because the door to my bathroom (for no visible reason!) is uncommonly small. They tried to get the washer into the bathroom when they first brought it up, but it was too big by several centimeters. So they asked me what I wanted them to do with it. When I finally figured out that that was what they were asking me (I have discovered that the good citizens of Chemnitz speak Sechsisch – a regional dialect that could be it’s own language!!) and saw that the washer wouldn’t fit in the door, I had a little bit of a personal freak out. Just a little bit. I called up the Brubakers, who had over some German pastors for an American breakfast, to ask what I should do (do we return them, put them in the kitchen, what???), and Steve said to just have them put them in the kitchen for the time being. I guess it was a good thing that I hadn’t yet put together the kitchen table, so there was plenty of room.

Well, later that day, Steve came over with his toolbox, and, after taking off all the hoses from the back of the washer, the washer door, the top of the washer, the door to the bathroom, and the knob from the front of the washer, we were barely able to angle it in. But only just. I had to push in the buttons on the front of the machine one by one as we slid it through the door. Talk about a tight squeeze! Steve managed to get all the parts back together (without having anything left over!) and I washed and dried my first load of laundry that night (before and after English class).

The weekend was a lot more relaxing for me than Tuesday, to say the least! There are always soccer games being played on the field across the street from my apartment, and on Saturday, as I was cleaning, I heard the usual noise from games being held. Then it got quiet for a little while, so I peeked out my window. By the row of parked cars next to the field, I saw the next team to play unloading its gear. And I realized that the reason why it had gotten so much quieter was that the players were not speaking or yelling to each other, but signing! I was intrigued, so after the game had started I went over and watched for a while. It turned out that both teams had both hearing and deaf players, and it was the neatest thing to see how the players and coaches all managed to communicate with each other.

Later that day, I went downtown, and window shopped at the mall, got my first treat of ice cream (really it’s gelato), and saw Charlie und die Schokoladenfabrik. I liked the movie, and it was good for me to hear it in German.

If you want to see the pictures I’ve taken up to now (before and after shots of my apartment, the colorful campus of the Technische Universität, the GIANT HEAD!) go check out my Yahoo! photos page (http://photos.yahoo.com/jtessarzik).

That’s enough to bore you with for now. I’ll probably update again next weekend. I’ve got to get to bed now!

That’s a J-9, over and out

Books

Howdy, folks!

I’m getting settled into the apartment. (If you want to read more about that, check out my Xanga site.) I’ve had a lot of time to read lately, and I’ve finished off a book or two. I’ve read Safely Home, by Randy Alcorn, and Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller.

Safely Home reminded me of just how easy we have it in America (and even here in Germany) as Christians. It made me wonder if a little persecution (not that I’m asking for it!) wouldn’t make us a little more passionate about our faith. We have copies (I’ve got a couple with me here) of the Word, and we treat it like just another book on the shelf. We don’t cherish it like the treasure that it truly is.

Now, I’ve edited the rest of this post. One of my dear friends took the time to write me an email about what she read in this post, and I’ve just replaced my post with her email, as it includes the rest of my post. (I’ve put her comments in bold.) I did not want to leave my post up in its condition. I really dislike the idea of perpetuating something that is false! Please read and think about what she has written.

Hi Janine,

Thanks for writing back! I've read some from your sites, so I know more about your world. Whatever did we do before the I-net?

I'm going to copy in part of your blog, so's to comment on your thoughts.

YOU: Reading Blue Like Jazz felt like I was reading the journal of someone of (almost) my own age who has grown up in the same time as me, and who is a Christian, and has come to some of the same conclusions as me, or has searched out the answers to some of the questions I have been asking. (please forgive that run-on sentence) He has had some of the same struggles I have had. I can relate to his writing. He is real.

One of the recurring themes is caring more about yourself than other people. Is this what the post-modern culture has done to us? Even though some of my actions may give the impression that I care about others, I continually catch myself caring more about myself. My prayers can be so selfish. “You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.” Jas 4:3 I want my motives to be right.

As a side note from this literary excursion, I found myself in the first few days after I arrived here feeling sort of listless, and wondering what even to pray about. I think that in all the busy-ness of getting ready to leave, I lost sight of the fact that I’m here to do God’s will, to reach the lost. And I suppose this is not so much of a side note, because one of my favorite quotes from the book about one of Miller’s friends is, “He didn’t really see evangelism, or whatever you want to call it, as a target on a wall in which the goal is to get people to agree with us about the meaning of life. He saw evangelism as reaching a felt need.” (p. 114 emp. mine)

ME: Well, dearest, it seems to me you're stepping onto the slippery footing Mr. Miller offers. You see, the problem with BLJ is that it pulls so strongly away from the foundation of Christianity, which is the revealed nature and plan of God in Scripture. That's what "meaning of life" means.

"Reaching a felt need" starts with the questioner, not the answerer, and moves the responsibility for (and the substance of) the exchange to the wrong person. Evangelism is not "reaching the lost." It's preaching the gospel. It has to be. The lost then get to respond or not. Of course, part of our preaching is the demonstration of God's compassionate nature. But compassion without a true and healing answer is meaningless.

It's much like tossing a rope to a drowning person. You can't make them grab on. Your responsibility is to toss the rope (go where they are and share what you know to be true), and then to make very sure your own footing is solid enough that the rope will be of use in their rescue. You mention a concern with selfishness. Many of our needs are real and must be met before we can offer something to others. The problem with self-seeking isn't that it exists, it's that we seek what we need from something or someone other than God.

YOU: I think that what so many (lost) people need is not another religious person telling them that they are going to hell, and they need to repent, but they need love. “I loved the fact that it wasn’t my responsibility to change somebody, that it was God’s, that my part was just to communicate love and approval.” (p. 221) I (regretfully) found myself identifying with Miller’s sentiment about using love like a commodity – like withholding it will get someone to change. When Jesus talks about being the vine, and us as His followers being the branches, He says (in John 15:10) “’If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Fathers commandments, and abide in His love.’” And just two verses later (v. 12) He says, “’This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.’” And as Miller quotes one of his friends, “’…to be in a relationship with God is to be loved purely and furiously.’” (p 146) It is my prayer that I would be able to communicate that kind of love to the people around me. I know that I have failed so many times in this mission, but praise God for His grace and mercy, He still lets me try, again and again.

ME: It's interesting that Jesus had no problem telling people they were going to hell unless they repented. He also spent zero time telling folks He approved of them. For example, we are told that Jesus loved the rich young ruler (Matt. 19:21). However, He didn't accept him without the condition that this young man give up everything he owned. When the ruler was unwilling to meet that condition, Jesus sadly but deliberately let him go on his way (Luke 18:24).

It's true that we aren't responsible to change anyone. But that's a LOT different than communicating to them they don't need to be changed. God's love never leaves us as we are, and we shouldn't extend any other kind of love to others, especially in His name.

YOU: On a slightly different note, one of my favorite lines from the book is about (I believe) Joshua Harris. I found it so funny because it seemed like when I Kissed Dating Goodbye came out, so many of the guys in the college group (specifically the He-Man Woman Haters Club!) absolutely loved the book, and as a result ended up not dating/courting or anything! Anyway, I’m going to include the whole paragraph in which the line is found, italicizing my favorite line.

“When I first moved to Oregon I was befriended by this vibrant kid who read a lot of the Bible. Josh was good-looking and obsessed with dating, philosophies of dating, social rituals, and that sort of thing. He was home schooled and raised to believe traditional dating was a bad idea. I traveled with him around the country and introduced him at seminars he would conduct on the pitfalls of dating. He wrote a book about it, and it hit the bestseller list. No kidding. A couple years later he moved to Baltimore and got married. I called him after the wedding and asked him how he got to know his wife without dating. He said they courted, which I understood to mean he had become Amish. But he explained courting is a lot like dating without the head games. He and his wife are also very happy.” (pp 139-140)

ME: You're right, it was Josh Harris he was talking about. His comments here are one of the reasons I believe Don Miller has had no real contact with God. To travel at length with Josh and still not see (and desire) the source of his "vibrancy" and happiness spoke to me of Don's spiritual deadness.

I'm not trying to be hard on you, Janine, or even on DM, but these are exactly the kinds of confusions that has made the modern church so impotent. The lost world so desperately needs the full-strength combination of TRUTH and LOVE. Have you ever mixed epoxy glue? It takes equal portions of both to have any effect. Most hellfire preachers lack love, most "felt-need reachers" lack truth. Somehow, my dear, you've got to find and cling to both...and, of course, they're both very available through the scripture and God's Spirit.

Love and prayers,

Diane

In the apartment!

As my post title indicates, I've moved into the apartment. On Friday, we got the keys, and although the apartment was not as newly furnished as the rental agent had indicated it would be, it is now home. We spent all day Saturday fixing it up (putting in light fixture, shower curtain, minor things like that!), and I spent Saturday night there. (I'll upload some pictures later.)

On Sunday, I got to go to a Baptist church in Chemnitz. Much different from Calvary. I understood some of what the preacher said, but he spoke with a pretty strong accent. Sunday, we passed out flyers for the English class the Brubakers will be teaching. Here, unless there is a sticker on the mailbox saying "no advertisements" you can put in any kind of flyers. Then, that evening, we had an English evening at the Brubaker's apartment. There were five Germans who came. Our topic of discussion was food. It was a good time, but turns out that one of the women's husband is a preacher, one of the men is good friends with him, and another woman goes to an international church. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but the ESL classes are to be an avenue to reach unsaved people. Ah, well, maybe there'll be a different response to the classes we're offering out of my apartment. The classes that I'm leading will be Mondays and Tuesdays, September 12/13 - November 21/22 (ten weeks). Please pray that there will be response to the flyers, and that I'll be able to develop relationships with many of my neighbors.

Today, I walked to the university, which is about a 15 minute walk from my apartment. I saw a couple of student apartment buildings, but not to many students. Hopefully I'll get to know many of them when classes start up again in October.

I guess that's all for now.

Janine

Steve and Celeste

DSCN1000
Originally uploaded by jtessarzik.

These are the missionaries I'm working with in Chemnitz. Click on the photo to link to Flickr to check out some of the other photos I took!

Well, I'm here!

So, folks, I've finally arrived in beautiful Germany! It is beautiful today. It's pretty hot out (especially for Germany at this time of year - keep in mind that air conditioning is not a common thing around here!) and sunny.

I'll give you all a run down of how my last few days have gone.

I rode to Atlanta with Tim Kolody who was kind enough to give up his day to drive me down there. He was a great conversationalist, which was great, but I was still pretty tired from getting about four hours of sleep each of the previous four nights from final preparations, so I'm not sure I was able to keep up with him.

In Atlanta, things started to get a little interesting. I was over the weight limit with both of my checked bags, so despite my efforts to keep costs down by shipping stuff on Monday (sorry Em) I ended up still needing to pay to send over an extra box. So for those of you who are at my level of ability of reading between the lines, this meant that I had to hoof it to find a box shop, and in the middle of ATL, repack my bags/box, then hoof it back to the British Airways counter to finish checking in, just at the one hour mark. I sure am glad that we left early enough to have a cushion of time.

So, needless to say, I made it to the gate just before they started boarding the flight. I ended up sitting in the middle row of several rows of this English high school/university age pops orchestra (complete with instruments and matching shirts). That was pretty neat. They really like the US, and one of the guys I talked to wants to move there.

On the plane to London, I stayed awake for dinner, and most of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe. Then I pretty much slept until we landed in London. Then, a short seven hours later, I flew to Hanover, where Steve and Celeste Brubaker met me. You may be wondering if all my luggage made it in one piece. Well, it all made it. But the box looked like it had been beaten up and torn apart (that may just be part of the new safety procedures, I don't know) but the only thing holding it together was the tape that had been wrapped around it. I'm pretty sure all the books that were in it are still there, but I haven't had a good chance to go through it yet.

We left the airport, and drove on the Autobahn for about four hours to Chemnitz, and on the way, stopped for my first German meal - Burger King. I spent last night (tonight, probably, too) at the Brubaker's, since we still don't have a key to my apartment. (The agent was in a car accident, and they haven't been able to get a hold of her yet.) I actually kind of like it. It's nice to be with people when you're in a new country/city.

Today the Brubakers took me through the city of Chemnitz, and I took some pictures. It is a very quintessentially East German City. I'll post some pictures in a bit. Till then, Tschuss!