It is way overdue to write here in my blog. I can’t believe I’ve left it the whole summer to write. It’s been on my mind, but time just flies. It’s been a really good, activity filled summer. Being present with family, yet my thoughts often wandering off to Fortaleza, Brazil and my soon journey back there for a few months. In two days I leave. Two days! How did it come some quickly? When I decided on making this trip it seemed so far off, but now it’s suddenly here. But even with my travels only a few days out, I feel very relaxed and peaceful. My heart and soul are at peace, and I feel pretty much in control of packing. At least I have a mental list of what I need to bring.
But back to the summer. I know I’m not the only one who reads this (and to be honest, once I’ve written I rarely go back to re-read it, which means that I am not really a reader of my blog, just a writer of it), but as always I write mostly for myself. So that the things that happen in my life that I want to remember are written down somewhere accessible. But I suppose the added benefit is that it gives those who want a glimpse into my life and the journey I’m on.
Summer... yes, good and filled. Yesterday we celebrated my mum’s 60th birthday which is today, but we celebrated yesterday. We were out at our lovely little cottage on the beach and had 50 guests. It was successful! A lot of work ahead of time and before it started yesterday, and although it didn’t rain it was pretty windy, so the 25 sat outside were pretty cold when it was time for coffee and cake and every one came inside. Having 50 people sitting down inside the cottage brought new meaning to the Norwegian saying “sild i tønne”, which literally translated means ”herring in a barrel”- the gist of it being: it was very cramped! Good conversation, funny speeches, and a fun song written by my brother and performed by my brothers and I in honour of our mum filled the celebration and it was good!
Saturday my wee niece Julie turned one and she was celebrated well with a princess party and lots of people who love her. I baked a chocolate cake and decorated it as a butterfly. I think she enjoyed her party, although at 1 I doubt she fully comprehended the purpose of all the people in her house doting over her and eating cake. One exciting occurrence during was that we spotted a few dolphins in the fjord which is a few hundred meters from the house. We couldn’t see them very clearly, but we could spot movement in the water and see them jump. Not bad to have a dolphin show as entertainment, eh.
End of June our whole family (my parents, brothers and their families, and me) went to Portugal for a couple of weeks on holiday. We rented a house on the Algarve and everyone came and we have some wonderful days together. It was a really lovely time. Lots of delicious food (cooked by my dad), lazy days by the pool and on the beach (when it wasn’t too windy). Sightseeing and getting a glimpse of history and culture in Sagres, Vila do Bispo, Portimão, Silves and Lagos, and even going on a boat trip which was supposed to give us a glimpse of underwater beauty (it had this window in the bottom of the boat, but the sea was very grimy so we only saw about 2 fish on our hour and a bit long trip), but ended up giving us a beautiful view of the Algarve from the sea which was great too. And never a Håmsø family holiday without a bit of “action”. The day we were leaving our rental car ended up (for reasons I won’t go into) having to get towed and we had to take a taxi an hours drive to pick up another rental car. From not having used my Portuguese much in the two weeks we were there (people would automatically speak English to me, which is understandable as I don’t exactly look like a local, and if I’d speak to them in Portuguese, they seemed to either be so shocked that I spoke their language they were caught off guard, or they didn’t understand my Brazilian accent), I ended up talking a lot to towing guys and taxi people on the phone trying to understand exactly what was happening. So that we fun and a bit of “action” on our last day.
22nd of July my country was shaken by the terror attacks that happened in the centre of Oslo and on Utøya. I remember having the TV on and being shocked by a bombing in the centre of Oslo, it was unbelievable. But then the reports came in of a guy massacring people at a youth camp on an idyllic island a bit further north and it just became unreal. The weekend went by and although I wasn’t personally affected in the sense that I someone I knew was involved, I think every Norwegian was shocked and shaken by the events. Safe and secure Norway doesn’t feel quite as safe and secure anymore. But the way the media, politicians, and other people have responded to this terrible tragedy has been admirable and I love that as a people we are not responding with hatred and anger. As someone said: “If one man can commit such an act of evil, imagine how much love many can show”. And I think it really reflects part of what is at the core of us as a people, we want to respond in love and forgiveness.
Fortaleza... preparing for the months ahead. Of course my mind has often been on Fortaleza and going there and spending some quality time there. I leave Wednesday. These months I’ve been praying a lot for the team there and my time there. I want to use my time well. I want to be all that God wants me to be while I’m there. I am very aware that it will be quite different from when I used to live there. Some of the people are different, the ministry isn’t exactly the same, and I won’t be living in my lovely flat which was such a good home for me for the 6 years I was in it (well, technically the time was divided between two flats, but it felt like one flat since they were just across the hall from each other and I didn’t have to go outside when I moved). I have been thinking about what I could share about prayer, what I’ve learnt the years at IHOP which would be encouraging and strengthening to those who are serving Him so faithfully in partnering with His heart for justice in Brazil. And I want to see how I can live a life of balance between sitting before God in prayer and doing works of justice. What can it look like, and how can it be lived?
I am excited and I feel so full of peace. Peace that this is the path I’m to walk on. And that these 3 months are the right “route” to what comes next.
So if you pray, pray for me.
Pray for the peace to continue and that I remember all I need to remember before leaving (the other week my mum asked me if I needed any vaccinations. I hadn’t thought of that and when I checked my vaccination card found that most of my vaccinations were very much out of date and I needed to re-take them).
Pray for a good journey Wednesday (I leave 6:30 am my time and arrive almost midnight Fortaleza time.... so it’s going to be a long journey!)
Pray for my time there- that He would put everything in order and I can be a blessing and encouragement to the team and those they minister to.
I might write again before I go, but then again I might not. But I am sure I’ll sneak in a little update when I’m “on the road”. Airports always seem like good places to blog.
And I will make sure to blog as much as I can while in Brazil. I want to record my time there, but also give those of you who read this a chance to experience a bit of what I’m experiencing. So watch this space...