New Staff Orientation in Windy Welly!

I got back yesterday afternoon from an absolutely brilliant time of orientation down in Wellington. We were based in the main TSCF office down there and were staying with various lovely people who were willing to put us up.

We did training on so much but all of it was so interesting! We did training on all sorts: immigration to NZ over history; the Treaty of Waitangi (with Val drawing a crowd and deserving some commission from Te Papa); Maori culture; Asians in NZ (Karen introducing us to a brilliant film 'Banana in a Nutshell', well worth checking out to understand something more of Asians living in the West); What it is to be a Kiwi today (with some really helpful stuff on cultural norms here); history of TSCF (amazing overview of the involvement of Howard Guinness, his account of the ministry back in the 1930s and how it has grown from there - what an encouragement as well as such a challenge); What it is to be a staffworker; administrative stuff; vision fundraising (a greatly encouraging session as we shared worries and excitements) and a session on what to expect from the first 8 weeks!

There was a lot when you look at it like that! It was great to also be able to meet up with all the new folk, get to know each other better, pray together, explore more of the book of Acts together, and through that be challenged to think on what persecution we may face and how the Holy Spirit will use us. So much went into organising it as well and it was great to feel part of the TSCF set-up in the office, as well as being welcomed into several of the lovely homes of TSCF staff around Wellington. We were also able to share some lovely Yum Char, you might know it as Dim Sum, for lunch on Tuesday. Included is a wee picture of Karen devouring a chicken foot... I even tried one! Tastes nice - not much meat on it though!

Anyway, a lot to take in. Basically it was such an exciting time to see the potential in the ministry in NZ. All I need is a Visa! Do keep praying...