"Welkommen Til Norge!" (Welcome To Norway)

11pm over Oslo (doesn't get much darker than this)

Home only one week, then after 11 hours of flying (and 11 hours of layovers), my plane began its descent at 11pm approaching Oslo. That's when I got my first glimpse of mysterious lakes surrounded by lush green, all in twilight. My jet lagged mind is crowded with thoughts of Nordic gods, vikings, and trolls. It never gets dark, and this twilight only lasts from 11pm-3am when it slowly turns back to daylight. Laken picked me up, and we appropriately got to the YWAM base in Ottestad in the early hours of Father's Day. This ministry hub includes a working farm as well as ministry offices, training classrooms, a missionary-run kindergarten and secondary school, and charming cottages where the staff live. Wow, this is lush green like I have never seen it. It's Colorado weather without the altitude. Flowers abound. Laken and I attended her church in Hamar, a city of 30,000 and it was a great service---it really brought home just how omnipitent God is. At supper I met about 20 of the other staff here--young people from Russia, Eritrea (north of Ethiopa), Finland, Australia, Ukraine, Holland, Denmark and other foreigners :). Laken is planning some excursions for us this next week, so I should have some interesting things to show you. I am really liking Norway.

The Lutheran Free Church in Hamar

View from the main bldg. with Lake Mjosa (Myusa if you can say that! I had to be coached))

Missionaries everywhere

My room

Guest house, my door is open.

YWAM kindergarten 6 mos-6 yrs (Christian and open to the public)

Laken's chalkboard handiwork at the campus cafe.