Skip to main content

What to do when you can’t sleep?

It’s nearing midnight and I just can’t seem to get to sleep. Maybe (just maybe) it has something to do with several very large cups of tea I’ve had this evening. But maybe not. I don’t know why, but I know I am not sleepy at all.

I guess I might as well write a wee update on my blog. Maybe reading my own words will tire me out. And I’ve put on some soaking music which is very soothing also.

Well it’s been a good, though also challenging week. Culture shock is starting to hit and I had several moments of feeling really overwhelmed. It’s challenging to be in a new city. And although I have so many lovely people around me, I still feel very new to this place. So many different details I don’t know that I didn’t know I needed to know. And although I’m living right in the middle of the city and don’t ever need to travel very far, everything seems to take so much longer than I anticipate. But I’ll get used to it. Trying to make good buffers as I plan my time and trying to give myself grace.

But with the challenges there have also been many good moments this week. I walked on the frozen canals, got my bank account and registered in the city (I now officially live in Amsterdam), went to the Dopper market, and had a roast chicken dinner with friends.

On Wednesday evening I did “ladies ministry” which was really good. It’s good to connect with God’s heart and really get a sense of what I’m working unto. Unto seeing women and children knowing who God is and being restored and set free to be all God created them to be.

And I have experienced God’s goodness towards me. The room I’ve moved into is unfurnished, and so far I’ve been sleeping on a travel bed. Well, I was getting quite sad by the prospect of trying to get furniture. It seemed like such a huge task, not just getting the furniture, but also managing to get it transported to where I live. Amsterdam is not a very car-friendly city (bike-friendly, yes. Car-friendly- no). Add that to feeling really insecure and new and missing the familiar, it was a bit hard (all part of transition, and I knew it was mostly that, not the situation in itself). On Saturday morning I was just telling God how I felt and how I was finding it really challenging. I finish praying and go into the kitchen, and there my housemate tells me that some friends of hers have all the furniture I need for my room, and they will bring it here to me. I almost cried. God is so good and I love how He is providing everything I need! I am so grateful.

So as I walk through this season and try to figure out life as it is right now, I try to remember that it’s all about staying close to Jesus. That with Him it’ll all work out. That with Him I have everything I need. And with Him I am able to do everything He has called me to do in this city.

Popular posts from this blog

Taking in the familiar and a heart connected.

Amsterdam. It still has that muggy feeling in Summer, and a constant flow of people which if you stop to think about it, it's quite amazing that there would even be space to accommodate them all. But then I guess they are not all staying. Just passing through on their way to or from somewhere. It's always good for the heart to visit somewhere that was once home. The familiarity of streets and customs makes it easier to embrace what might be new as well as the joy of being reacquainted with old friends. Friends. So many of them to be found in this city, ready with hugs and good words that are uttered when seeing someone who was away again. Friendship. A treasure that cannot be bought. Cobblestones trodden by many, including myself. Sitting on a bench. Praying. Remembering the first time I stumbled upon this area lined with windows with red lights and curtains. An area which has come to represent no longer windows, but people to me. Some still behind a window. Others who have ...
Read more

Getting to know the local culture.

Life is a strange thing. Last week went…not much happened, and then it was over. The weekend was quite calm without too many wild and exciting things happening. Except, of course, a wee outing to watch the National Championship for Veteran Ploughing. Now, like me, you might be sadly lacking an understanding of what this actually means. So I am delighted to be able to enlighten you in this respect. It’s basically (for the “farm-language-illiterate” like myself) a competition where you use old (hence the name “veteran”) tractors and ploughs, and plough up a stretch of field which is then evaluated and the one scoring the highest sum (accuracy, depth, how well the soil is turned is all given points) wins. I must admit that this information I got by eavesdropping on a conversation next to me where a man was explaining to some of my friends how it all works. So that was a fun adventure….although we only stayed for a bit. What is sort of occupying my mind at present is my upcoming travel abr...
Read more

What was your dream?- scraping the surface of the heart of Albania

“What was your dream when you were 20?” That was a question our guide asked us as we were standing outside a huge derelict cement monument in Tirana, the capital of Albania. We’d spent the day touring and hearing a lot about the history and journey of Albania, a young country with more Albanians living in other countries than in Albania itself. A country where tourism has only really been built up the past 30 years. It was eye opening to hear more of the history, and it made me realise that this country is so much more than meets the eye. A country where the beaches and tourist area of Durres Riviera was packed with tourists, mostly from the Balcan area. A country where hospitality is ingrained in the culture, and where the friendliness of the people was noticeable. After a pause to let us reflect over the question of dreams, for some thinking further back than others, our guide told us that for him it had been to own a pair of jeans. That simple fact said so much. Both of what he...
Read more