Northern Norway recap!

Hello everyone!  

I arrived back in Bergen on Monday evening after a week of ministering with Youth With A Mission in Northern Norway (Finnmark).  It was an incredible week of handing out Bibles, experiencing the Arctic climate, learning, and encouraging the strong community of Christians in this special part of Norway.

Traveling to Finnmark was not in my original Norwegian plans, but God has a way of changing my plans and I'm getting used to it!  I had the week off from my work in Bergen, and my friend Ana invited me to join her YWAM team as they handed out Bibles to every home in Hammerfest.  Below, you can see a map of Norway and how FAR north Hammerfest is located!  The people who live there live half the year with the sun never setting (the famous Norwegian midnight sun), and the other half of the year in almost permanent darkness!  While I was there, the city was just on the brink of entering the very dark part of the year.  The sun was setting around 4:30 every day.

Handing out Bibles to EVERY house in Finnmark is a huge task.  My team in Hammerfest was only a small part of the big initiative.  Bible to All (or "Bibelen til Alle" in Norwegian) is a part of a global goal to offer a free Bible to every house in the world by the year 2029.  In the past few years, the Norwegian people have shown an increasing interest in the Bible.  Even in Norway, one of most secularized and non-religious countries in the world, the Bible is the #1 seller.  For more information, read this Huffinton post article about Bible sales in Norway from June 2013.  Bible in Norway

During the week, we went out in teams of 2 people.  Since my Norwegian language skills are VERY limited, I was thankfully paired with a native Norwegian speaker each night.  :)  I found that most people we talked to spoke English pretty well, but I was still thankful to knock on doors with a Norwegian!  This goes out to you, Henrik og Rebekka!  Tusen takk!

Each night, we walked a specific route organized by the local churches.  It was a very organized system, because we needed to cover a lot of ground, and not accidentally visit houses twice.  We walked around and passed out Bibles for 4-5 hours each night.  Some people said "no" right away, some people weren't home, but at many houses we were greeted with a huge smile or a hug!  Some people even invited us in for conversation and coffee.  Because "Bible to All" had been in the local news, many Hammerfest residents were eagerly awaiting a free Bible and welcomed us with open arms!  What a blessing!

Thursday night in particular was extremely memorable for me.  My partner, Rebekka, and I had been walking around handing out Bibles for almost 4 hours and it was an especially freezing night.  Many people weren't home, so we spent most of the night stuffing mailboxes with information about local church events.  It was slightly discouraging.  However, at the LAST house we visited, an older woman opened the door and when we offered her a free Bible her face lit up and she hugged and kissed each of us!  She then promptly invited us into her home, where she was sitting and talking with her neighbor man.  Rebekka started talking with this woman and translating for me.  The woman opened up immediately to us (a beautiful and rare thing for many Norwegians) and told us she was suffering from an oppressive evil spirit and anxiety.  Rebekka told her about Jesus, and how He offers us freedom from oppression and peace.  She asked the woman if she would like to experience Jesus' peace through prayer, and the woman immediately said yes!  Her friend also wanted prayer so we prayed for him too.  It was a beautiful moment for all of us!  This woman and her friend were completely open to Jesus and his Word.  I am so privileged that the Lord chose to use Rebekka and I in HIS work.  Our simple obedience (handing out a free Bible) turned into something much deeper and more meaningful.

Overall, this past week was challenging and tiring, but SO worth every minute.  God is doing great things in Norway, and I believe he has targeted Finnmark for revival that will spread through the whole country!  Please pray for this part of the country.

If you want more information about Bible to All and how you can be praying, check out this link: Bible to All

Blessings to you all!
Anna

October is here!

Hello everyone!


I kveld, jeg skriver fra Sandvika, utenfor Oslo!  (Tonight I'm writing from Sandvika, near Oslo!)  I am also using a Norwegian computer, so I apologize in advance for any spelling mistakes ;)


Yesterday, I took a very short plane ride from Bergen to Oslo to visit Solveig Bakk and her husband Alf.  Solveig is my great grandfather Otto Bakk's niece.  Even though we are distantly related, we ARE truly family and Solveig has been a wonderful tour guide and hostess!


I had been in Oslo (Norway's capital) very briefly a couple of weeks ago.  However, because Mary Elizabeth and I were heading directly to a church in Mysen, I didn't have a chance to really SEE Oslo.  Compared to Bergen, I had heard that Oslo is quite industrial and less cute, but I really enjoyed my time exploring.


Solveig brought me to several well known tourist destinations yesterday!  I visited:


     ~the Oslo opera house.  It's famous for its massive roof, which allows people to walk on it and see a beautiful 360 degree view of the city!
     ~the Oslo parliment building.  It has been 200 years since Norway has had its own constitution, and yesterday Norwegians celebrated the "Åpning av stortinget" or "the opening of parliment".  Many People gathered on the main street of Oslo near the parliment building, because King Harald was inside giving a speech!  Solveig and I stayed outside for almost an hour waiting for a glimpse of King Harald and his wife Sonja.  Our only entertainment was watching three royal guards faint.  Poor guys...  But, we were finally rewarded for our patience when the King and Queen came out to the street and drove back to their palace.  I saw royalty with my own eyes!! Pretty exciting for a girl who hasn't even seen the U.S. president!
     ~Oslo city hall.  This is where the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony is held, so it's obviously HUGE and gorgeous.  It felt like an art museum because paintings hung on nearly every wall.
     ~The King and Queen's Palace and gardens.  Beautiful.
     ~Vigelandsparken.  This is a gigantic sculpture park in Oslo, filled with sculptures by Gustav Vigeland.  The sculptures are made of granite and bronze, and are simple and beautiful.  I am in awe of Vigeland- he completed over 200 sculptures in his lifetime.


Last night after all that walking, I was quite tired.  Norwegians know how to walk for long distances!  :D


Today, Solveig took me on another adventure: seeing the Bakk family farm!  It was such a surreal experience to actually SEE the farm where my great grandfather Otto grew up.  He had 5 brothers and 3 sisters, so you can imagine that space and land must have been hard to come by.  When Otto was 18, he and his older brother Alfred moved to the United States to get a fresh start.  I am so thankful I could visit the Bakk farm here!  It's a beautiful thing to get in touch with my roots and try to imagine what life was like 100 years ago.  I felt at home there, like I could have grown up on a Norwegian farm as well.


Tomorrow, I'm traveling by train to Hamar with my dear friend Ana to visit our mutual friend Lilla at a Youth With a Mission base.  Then on Monday, Ana, her YWAM team and I are flying to Finnmark.  Finnmark is the Northern most region of Norway.  I am STOKED to see this rugged and pristine part of the country.  We will be evangelizing and handing out Bibles while we are there.  Please pray for God to move and guide us, and for Divine appointments.  I am honored to serve God and learn from Ana's team.


Blessings to you all.
Klemmer fra Norge (hugs from Norway),
Anna

First update from Bergen!!

Hello from BERGEN, NORWAY!

Hi everyone!  :)  I am officially in Norway, and have been here for almost a week and a half.  I think I'm finally over my jet lag now, so I'm beginning to fall into a routine!

In this blog post, I'd like to answer some questions about what I'm doing and WHY I'm in Norway (besides the obvious reason that it's the most beautiful country in the world!)

WHY AM I HERE?
I am in Norway for several reasons:

~I am interning with a well known worship leader and song writer, Mary Elizabeth Vorrath.  Mary Elizabeth is an American, but felt God call her to permanently move to Norway several years ago.  She started a worship band/discipleship ministry called Disciples of Worship, and I am here to help her with vision and planning, as well as logistics such as keeping their social media presence active!  Mary Elizabeth is a part of Norkirken (a young church in Bergen) and I will also be playing violin for her worship team while I'm here.

~Mary Elizabeth is the head of the Scandinavian region of Sounds of the Nations.  Sounds of the Nations is a musical missions organization devoted to helping missionaries all over the world incorporate each nation's ethnic "sound" into their Christian worship.  Sounds of the Nations is developing an online course for "musicianaries" in Scandinavia who wish to develop their song writing skills, learn about what God is doing in Scandinavia, and grow closer to their callings and grow in their areas of giftedness.  I am not only taking this course, but am helping tutor it as well.

~Though I am based in Bergen while I'm here, I will have been traveling to other parts of Norway while I'm here and will continue to do so!  This past weekend, Mary Elizabeth and I took a train to Mysen, on the very eastern edge of the country.  While there, we helped lead the congregation of Frikirken in worship at their Sunday service, and also led worship at a house church service and for a small seminar.  Being at Frikirken was a blessing!  I was humbled to be surrounded by people of my grandparents' generation who have deep hearts for Jesus.

Here is a list of upcoming trips/possible trips I'll be taking:
     -October 6th-12th in the northern region of Finnmark, Norway.  I have an opportunity to go with YWAM Kristiansand to this part of Norway and hand out Bibles and reach out to these people.  I am not sure if I can go yet, so please pray for wisdom and God's direction!
     -November 7th-9th I will be in Harstad, Norway with Mary Elizabeth leading worship for a prayer conference.  I am very excited about this trip, because it was in Harstad where Disciples of Worship was birthed.
     -November 14th-16 I will be in Hurdal, Norway (near Oslo).  This weekend is a retreat for everyone in Scandinavia taking the Sounds of the Nations online course.


I am so thankful for your prayers as I continue to invest and learn from this culture!  Please continue to pray and I'll try to be more timely with updates.  :)

Blessings,
Anna

Prelude

Hello everyone!

Welcome to my Great Norwegian Adventure blog!

On September 3rd, I will be traveling to Bergen, Norway to live for 2 1/2 months.  Updates about what I'll actually be doing to come.  :)  The journey God has invited me on is humbling, scary, and SUPER EXCITING.  I am inviting you to journey alongside me!

Why am I blogging?  Besides the obvious need to be "with it" as my students say, I have a few ideas...

1) I want to stay in touch with you!  Great moments are never as beautiful without people to share them!

2) I want to share what God is up to in Norway!  The Norwegian people have a special place in God's heart and in my heart.

3) I need prayer.  I am convinced that this trip is the fruit of many conversations I've had with the Lord about my desire to be involved with worship ministry outside of the USA.  I know I will need prayer as I continue to follow Jesus' voice!

I want to share a few words about the title of this blog: "...all you who live in distant coastlands."  Last summer, I received a verse from the Lord that I like to call my "life" verse.  Kind of cheesy, but ohhhh well.  :D

The verse is Isaiah 42:10: "Sing a new song to the Lord!  Sing his praises from the ends of the earth!  Sing, all you who sail the seas, all you who live in distant coastlands."  Obviously, I don't live in a distant coastland.  Oh hey there, Minnesota!  However, I'm excited that God is calling me out of my comfort zone.  Here I come, distant coastlands!  I am excited to see what will happen as I step out in obedience.

I'll be writing more later!  Until then...

Anna