The first night in Amsterdam, my bed broke. My roommate had the worst headache imaginable, and the nightlife was just getting started outside our window. This sounds like smooth start to our Launch, right? Actually it was. It set our team up to be dependent on God from the very beginning.
One of the assignments the team was given was to help move this older woman out of her apartment and into another because her current foundation was starting to sink. Joey, Jess, Erin, Sarah, David, Robert, and I were chosen for this task. We loaded and unloaded her mini library one box at a time. Well, it was more like one alphabetized shelf at a time. Eventually we needed to move the lady's unloaded bookshelves down her narrow, steep, winding staircase. The bookshelves ended up being too big, so we decided to drop them out the second story window. That was a sight to behold as part of the team was leaning halfway out the window, and other half stood on their tip -toes trying to give support underneath. The couch had to have been at least twice as a light as one bookshelf.
Erin, Sarah, and I loaded more books into boxes and listened to the lady we were helping repeat, "Oh, Gott. Ver are de cats?" as she worried if they had run out the door. Meanwhile, the other half of the team bicycled the couch and bookshelf on a cart and dolly a few streets over to the new apartment.
Soon after, we were able to leave and head over to the new apartment in an attempt to reassemble one of the bookshelves and reload the books (hopefully) in order.
Even in the midst of hard work and fellowship, I think our group has still been challenged spiritually and personally. The culture, sights, and sounds have affected our perspectives and how we feel about it. For me, one of the observations that has been driven home a couple of times is the idea of blindness- blindness to what can be done around me at home, in another city, state, and country. It really is amazing when you realize what can be done through Christ. I believe God is driving this idea, concept, and passion home this week in me on this launch. This is a learning and growing experience I will never forget!
Rebecca Eppler
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