Austria

Today's Show Us Your Life is Mission Trips. I was so excited when I saw it because I was able to go find my travel books and look at the pictures from my mission trip to Vienna, Austria in 2003. I was able to go with my church that I attended while in college at SFA - Fredonia Hill Baptist Church. Our pastor had been a missionary in Austria so he had a heart for that area and wanted a group of people to go. God completely blessed the finances that provided me to go - with so many people's support I was able to go and spread His word.

Our big airplane

This was the first time I had flown overseas. We left from George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston and flew to Amsterdam for our layover to Vienna.

The King's Palace in Amsterdam

We had about 8 hours to visit Amsterdam so we packed in everything that we could. Please note in all these photos I am pale white and had short hair. In the Amsterdam pics I look exhausted also b/c we were all jet lagged but didn't want to miss seeing all we could on our layover.

Downtown Amsterdam

Anne Frank's House which is now a Museum

Once we made it Vienna we were ready to work the Baseball Camp. We had a baseball camp for all of the kids to come b/c of course we couldn't say Vacation Bible School or anything because the government would not allow it. While these kids may have heard of God, they only attend church maybe on Easter and Christmas. They do not know what a true relationship with Christ is all about so the missionary in Austria, Lance, who we were coming to help had invited all the kids for a Baseball Camp.

My friend JCole and I were head of a team and we played baseball all week long. I ask my team what they wanted to be called and they all decided to be called the "Stars." It was so fun to play all week long and form relationships with these kids. Most kids knew English but some only spoke German but thankfully there were some older kids there to translate for us.

The Stars playing baseball

Our Team - The Stars :)

Our last day I was able to give my testimony to the kids. LaRissa translated for me - it's hard to talk, let her translate, talk again and regain your train of thought but I'm so glad I was able to do it.

Our Mission Team - The Missionary family, Lance, Carrie, Tyler and Emily and our Mission Team Chris, Steffan, J Cole, LaRissa, Christ and Michelle. The mission team leader, Jeff, was taking the picture

I was in Austria for my 21st birthday. We celebrated by going to a castle in Koernsburg, Austria. It was estroyed in WWI but the owner rebulit it and it was beautiful.

Inside the castle

And the final celebration was to get another stamp on my passport. We drove about 45 minutes to go to the Czech Republic. We stayed for a little while and then headed back. I loved it!

It was so fun going back and looking at these pictures. I hadn't looked at them in along time. I'm so glad that I was able to take advantage of this opportunity. I showed a little of what we did outside of the mission trip b/c I think European architecture is amazing so I wanted to share it. I'm thinking I may have to scan more pictures b/c I have so many of the many things I was able to see in Vienna.

Like I said in my previous post, even if you aren't able to go yourself on a mission trip, when you give to someone going, a part of you is there. I felt I had so many people with me in Austria b/c they had given so I could share the Word of God to these people.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always until the very end of the age."

Matthew 28: 19-20