autumn rae

Weekly update 3

2009-05-18T15:22:00.003-10:00

Prayer needs:
- my relationship with God continues to get better
- a camera
- $350 for housing this month
- sex+money promo stuff gets done this week!

Weekly update 2

2009-05-11T08:14:00.003-10:00

So friday turned into monday morning...ill get the hang of this eventually!

Prayer Request this week:

- I need 350 $ for housing this month
- We are trying to fund raise for Sex + Money to hirer a writer so we need about $7,000 this week, pray we get favor from the people that we are approaching!
- Still praying for a camera (cannon EOS 5d mark II)

Thats about it for this week!

A new phase in my life.

2009-04-28T22:09:00.005-10:00

I am about to start a new phase in my life, stepping into some leadership roles and mainly working with Sex+ Money campaign. I have realized that I really suck at writing updates for what's going on with me, so God gave me the brilliant idea of a "video diary" though this isn't really a diary as it is an update. So every week I will give a short clip of me updating all of you about whats been going on for the week. Along with the video clip I will be posting my prayer request and needs that I have. I would like to also put up some photos, but until I get a camera (cannon EOS 5D Mark II, but that will go under needs) I won't be posting any photos. Anyway below is the first of many updates to come!!

Prayer Request:
- direction for the future
- financial provision
- i really want to become a part of a real community while im here
- focus on God and how He wants to use me

NEEDS
- CAMERA cannon EOS 5D mark II
- camera lens
- external hard drive
- financial needs this month
housing/food - 350
insurance - 100
car/gas - 100
credit card debt - 100
travel - 75
toiletries /misc. - 75
phone - 75
TOTAL FOR MAY - $875

2008-10-01T19:47:00.002-10:00

Me and a small group of people are making a book titled Sex and Money The Global Search for Human Worth. It is complied of photos and stories of things that we saw and experienced in our travels...about the injustice we encountered.
Do you know that Sex Trafficking is?
Do you know that it happens in America, in the cities that you live?

PEOPLE ARE BEING ENSLAVED

There are more slaves today than any other time in history...27 million (and that number is 4 years old)

The modern day abolition movement has begun...what are we going to do to help???

I was privileged to see a screening of this movie...it comes out October 10th in select theaters...EVERYONE NEEDS TO SEE THIS MOVIE. If you are in one of these cities where it is showing PLEASE go and see it! Make everone you know go and see it.

It will be showing in these cities:

ATLANTA	DENVER	ORANGE COUNTY	SAN JOSE
AUSTIN	LOS ANGELES	PORTLAND	SEATTLE
BOSTON	MINNEAPOLIS	REDWOOD CITY	WASHINGTON DC
CHICAGO	NASHVILLE	SAN DIEGO
DALLAS	NEW YORK	SAN FRANCISCO

GO TO THE WEB SITE www.callandresponse.com

SEE THIS MOVIE... RESPOND

Discovering…Faith

2008-03-26T02:42:00.009-10:00

Discovering…Faith

My time in Ethiopia has been incredibly impactful! The first week was focused on finding Jesus’ love for me. It was amazing to begin to understand how much Jesus really loves me and how through His love I can love Him back. I began a journey of really discovering Christ love and it is a journey that will only be completed on the day that I stand before Him!

The next week was about African Worldview. It is incredible to begin to understand other cultures perspectives on the World. Africa’s see the world very different from an American like me. The really cool part about the week was finding what parts of an African Worldview match up with a Biblical perspective. I am beginning to see the World in a brand new way! I am really discovering how Christ views the world.

The third week was learning about documentary photography and then at the end of the week we went on a mini-outreach to document an aspect of African life. I chose to do my project on a family where the mother and her seven-year-old son is HIV positive. It was one of the most amazing experiences. God really showed me the love he has for people living with the HIV/AIDS virus. Four of us took lots of pictures and shared two afternoons with the family. They feed us traditional Ethiopian food, literally feed it to us with their hands. Spending that time with the family broadened my view on so many things but the thing that I really found was that through the families testimony I discovered faith.

____________________________________________________________

This is my documentary photo assignment on the family…

Amariche means very beautiful and smart, she is about 36 years old. Born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia she went to Atgabin in the south of the country and stayed there 18 years then came back and joined the army during the Dirk Regime. After her service she went to Asmara, Eritrea for seven years then came back to Addis Ababa. Amariche has six children, five girls, and one son. She became a Christian only two years ago. Along with her older daughters Amarich makes clothes and tablecloths to support her family. Dispite her hard life she holds on to the Love of Jesus and encourages others to do the some, “Since we are the Army of Jesus we need to pray for Ethiopia daily”

Amariche weighed only 32 Kilograms when her CD4 count was 135. Now she weighs 62 Kilograms and her CD4 count is 610. She was very sick but with prayer and Anti-Retroviral Treatment she is now living healthy while being HIV positive.

Yordanos is four years old, not old enough for school yet, she holds her baby sister Debora who is six months old. All of the older children help their mother out by taking care of the younger.

Zarah, the middle child, is nine years olds. Compassion International supports her, her school fees are provided along with some supplementary food. She is one of over 200 children being supported by this organization. Compassion International also supports Amariche and the whole family as much as they can, even if it means only a quick home visit from one of the workers.

Growing up Amariche was not educated as a child, she did not know how HIV and AIDS was transmitted so when she cared for women with HIV, there were no health standards and because of the lack of educated she thinks she got the virus from caring for the HIV positive women. She would wash clothes in poor conditions were she could get scratched and because she did not understand that the virus could be transmitted by blood, took no precautions and could have been infected.

All of Amariche’s children have been tested; all of her daughters are negative. Her son Esubahew shares in her HIV status, he is 7 years old. Esubahew means the will of the Lord, he’s name reflects his mothers attitude towards her only son being HIV positive. Amariche puts her son along with all of her children in the hands of God.

Amariche does not own a house, currently her family lives in a house made out of sticks and tarps in the corner of a hospitals property, they have been living there for six months. Being homeless, if the hospital needs the space then her and her family would have to leave and would be homeless. Her prayer request is that God would provide her a place to stay, “Our God is rich He can give us our needs.” With more faith and trust in God then most people Amariche says, “God will provide”

“If you believe in God when you pray to God, then God will help you and heal you and respond to your prayer, you have to have faith and trust in God because He will help you”
- Amariche

Hello from Ethiopia!

2008-03-26T02:38:00.006-10:00

Hello from Ethiopia!

Yes I made it safely to Ethiopia, and I am having a very relaxing time here! But before I get into that let me tell about the last 2 weeks in Cairo. The first week back from Israel was all about photography teaching on lighting, something that is very essential to photography and learning how to do it properly is so valuable so that I can do what God wants me to do. We learned about night photography, painting with light and even had a make shift studio so that we could dabble in studio lighting as well. It was a very informative week on basic techniques to better my photography.

The following week was a complete shift in subject, as it was the introduction to a new course of Worldview. After being in Palestine for three days my perception on, not only my Worldview, but on Worldview as a subject had already begun to shift. It was the perfect week to begin this subject. It is interesting to begin to understand why I think the way I do and the basis for why other cultures think differently. I think that understanding this is truly vital to reaching the World for God.

So what is to come for me? I am in Ethiopia now and will be studying African Worldview. It is so exciting to me to be here and see it first hand. I think that I will be able to grasp the concepts presented in class much more easier. After that we head off to Amsterdam to study Secularism. Though I enjoy Africa I am very excited to be going to Europe! A road trip down to Spain where we will study Islam is next. There we will also visit Morocco. After that we skip over the big pond and end up in Costa Rica. There we will study Latin Worldview. A month will be spent in each of these four locations. Each one holds new adventures and I am so excited to be learning about different cultures.

Along with the Worldview, we will be integrating photography. The first three weeks will be spent in lecture and the last week in each location will be a field trip into the culture to photograph and put into practice what we have be learning.

This is how my next four months look. This week, however, is different. This is a week devoted to reconnecting with God. I have only been here a few days and the quietness of where we are staying is so incredible. I sit out in to sun and just soak in God’s beauty in the silence of His creation (well mostly in the shade not that I have fried my self…I need to get a big floppy hat). I think that this is the chance to really reconnect with God that I, and the rest of my class, really needs.

I will probably only be getting on the Internet one more time this month, probably in a few weeks. It is a long mini-bus ride to the Sheraton Hotel where the only fast Internet is. If you have anything important to tell me it will have to wait a couple of weeks. Then when we get to Amsterdam there is wireless on the base where we are staying so lots of pictures and a full update of what God has done during my time in Ethiopia will be posted. But for now I am going to enjoy being disconnected with the “outside world” and really dive into what God has for me during this month. I love you all and thank you so much for your continual prayers! See you in a month!

Karama means Dignity

2008-02-15T06:43:00.014-10:00

Karama Organization in the Deheishe Refugee Camp

This past week as very impactful for me, not in the way that I thought it was going to be. After cutting my toe pretty badly, me and three other girls went out by ourselves to explore. We went up to Tiberius in the Galilee region; it was a wonderful two days. There we stayed close to the Sea of Galilee during that time we went to Nazareth and the Jordan River. It was really amazing seeing biblical sights. We then went to Bethlehem, spent three days there . . . that changed our lives.

15 year old boy killed by Israeli soldiers

Ellie (a Canadian), made plans or us to stay with a Palestinian family. Where we were to work with refugee children at the Karama center. We got through the check point and into West bank. From there we went to Dahashe refugee camp. Down a sketchy ally and into a very run down building, let us to the center. We sat down and where greeted by Laue, one of the two brothers that fun the Karama center. His brother Yassar, soon joined us and we where immediately in a very aggressive conversation about how much they hate Americans. Ellie, who made the plans, had previously told them thatshe was Canadian in her corresponding she failed to mention that all her companions where . . . Americans. So when Yassar asked what part of Canada we where all from, we sheepishly told him that Ellie was Canadian yet the rest of us where Americans. Needless to say when we where all taken aback by the tension that arose with our statement. The rest of the day included much more conversations all out of anger and hate towards Americans. We where than referred to as “the enemy” from than on out.

Palestinian refugee living in Dehishe

It was so interesting to get the Palestinian perspective on the “Israeli occupation.” We felt thrown into a extreme. We later found out that Yassar, one of the brothers had been in jail for five years by Israel and tortured. He was severely depressed and very angry. That first night happened to be Yassar’s birthday. We saw that they had cake but we where confused there the traditional birthday song was not being sung. Later we found out that they normally would sing but didn’t anymore due to fear of the Israeli soldiers hearing them and causing trouble. We sat together that night and prayed for protection and guidance.

Kid in Deheishe Refugee Camp

We found out that the kids at the Karama center where sad and down in spirits because ten days earlier one of their friends, a fifteen year old boy, was shot by one of the Israeli soldiers. The young boy had been walking net to some other Palestinians who where throwing rocks through the separation of the wall. Soldiers started firing and the young boy was caught in the crossfire. This was not a unusual occurrence for them.

Door in Refugee camp

We taught the kids at the center some English and also photography, mostly we just tried to have fun with them. That led to Laue, one of the brothers, taking us out to a water pipe bar, where we talked to him for three hours with him. The conversation consisted of him telling us his hate for America and how he aggress with violence as the answer. He looked at us and told us how happy he was when 9/11 occurred. This whole time we where there Terrorists where referred to as martyrs. That night we tried to talk to them about Christ and we told them that we where Christians. It was difficult to communicate because they kept bringing the conversation back to anti-American violence.

Ellie, Laud, Kate and Morgan looking out at the separation wall

The last day we taught the kids more photography, then we where shown a slideshow of the most horrific mutilated human bodies. After that, Yassar asked us if we still believed in God. What do you say to that? We all said yes! He went on to explain to us that a god who gives land to a people and condones killing “I damn that God” where his exact words. We prayed for them and left.

Boys at the Karama Center performing for us

We are all safe and back with the rest of our group. It was really hard for me to hear there perspective on what is happening in Israel. Palestinians are the descendents of the Canaanites. Israel was suppose to wipe them out when they where coming into the promise land, but they failed to do so. What can you say to these people about God’s love when they are not suppose to be here? For the first time I understand where they are coming from. I don’t agree with it but I really understand why they are so angry. What do you tell them about God’s love? How can a person believe in a god of love when things like that happen. I don’t know many things, but one thing I do know is that God is love! I look at the faces of the kids in the refugee camp and I know how much God loves the people. It was because of his love that Jesus came. I may not understand the Israeli / Palestine conflict. And honest I don’t know what side to take. But I have some thing that both sides don’t . . . hope. I am hopeful that Israel will step under the second covenant that is Jesus blood. And begin to love there enemies. I have hope that the palatines will find Jesus hope and love for them and that they will end the violence and hate, that through Jesus love peace will come. This is the only way these things will be resolved.

Ellie playing an English game with the Karama kids

Those three days in Palestine shock me and made me question a lot. But I can honestly say that I walk away from that experience more in love with Jesus, because he gives me hope. Please join me in praying for the Israeli /Palestine conflict and all of the Palestinian refugees. If you have any questions about my time please feel free to ask more questions.

GRAFFITI ON THE SEPARATION WALL

History At A Glance...

2008-01-31T05:49:00.000-10:00

Me on the Mt. of Olives

Greeting from the Holy Land!

It has truly been an amazing couple of weeks. During this time I have been learning about the History of this great Nation. It is very fascinating to learn the history while being here. I think that this hit home for me when reading 1 Kings 2:10 "Then David joined his ancestors. He was buried in the City of David." Then I was thinking, wait a minute the City of David is like a 20 minute walk from where I'm staying. King David and all of his royal family is buried right here. Cool!

View from Mt. of Olives
Looking at the Jerusalem/Palestine boarder

"Those who do not learn history are condemned to repeat it". A common quote that someone forgot to tell the Nation of Israel because man did they make a lot of the same mistakes. I have found a new desire for the Word of God and how important it is to truly know and understand not only the New Testament but how absolutely important the Old Testament really is. Walking around here I am really living out the history of this place.

View from Mt. of Olives
Old City Jerusalem
and the Doom of the Rock

Golden Gate

With learning about the history books of the Bible we also looked at the Wisdom and the Prophetic books. I think to myself; how did I never know that all of this was in the Bible. The poetry, knowledge and God's Word. It is beautiful and historical and wonderful! While looking at the Psalms we wrote our own:

Girl at the Wailing Wall

Oh God, my God I long for Your voice
My Creator, give me Your utterance
Though I sit and I wait for Your direction I hear the silence torment my heart
Though I long to be close and know you I feel the emptiness; the formidable void of abyss
God, draw close to my soul, whisper mysteries to my inner being Father, come alongside my mind, express Your extraordinary nature to my spirit
I know that you speak, and that You are always there
I will sit and wait for your words to be imprinted on me
Though the enemy tires to take me from you
You are my Savior, and my provider and I know that you will never Leave me

Garden of Gethsemane

Learning the Word of God is so vital to living a life for Christ. If I have learned anything this week it is that to live for God, we as believers need to know the Word of God. Having this passion for the understanding of God's Word is something that every person following Jesus needs to find to truly understand and really know God the Father, Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit our Helper!

Statue at the Church at Gethsemane

Inside the Church at Gethsemane

This next week we are traveling around Israel going where Jesus went, we are going to follow Him! I would love to hear from you or if you have any questions, I would love to hear from all of you!

Bath pools at Bethesda

Church where Pilot sentenced Jesus

Path of the Via Dolorosa (The path Jesus walked to be crucified)

Prayers at the Wailing Wall

Wailing at the Wall

Two girls at the Wailing Wall

Prayers

Is it a fast that I have choosen...

2008-01-23T09:07:00.000-10:00

“Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?"

Being here is very surreal, I am in the place where God choose to put His holy temple to place His holy people, His chosen people. There is such division, such a religious spirit here. As I walk through the streets I go from a typical middle eastern place then to a very Jewish place and it's only like 50 feet away. I see the Muslims bowing down to pray many times a day and also Jewish men with Yamikas and tassels.

I have been doing a lot of reading in the Old Testament about God's promised land, and His chosen people. The tension here about Gaza makes me sad. There are more Israeli military walking around here, but don't worry we are safe here in Jerusalem. This has been a week of really re-finding myself and my passions. I felt like I lost my creativity and I was struggling with being here.

Through the teaching this week and what God is teaching me I finally feel like I am starting to get my artistic self back. I am really starting to get excited about communicating through visual aspects.

With finding my creativity I am finding God in a new way, seeing the His Love in the Old Testament for His people is opening up so many new aspects of Him to me. He is my Creator who I get to co-create with, that is so exciting! This week has been one of personal growth.

I did an assignment this week which really put me back into my creativity and also God spoke to me through His scriptures!

This weekend we are seeing the sights around here and then the next two weeks it's back into the Bible, we are learning the early and late history of Israel, so cool to learn about this while being here!

Sinai or Bust...

2008-01-16T09:22:00.000-10:00

After the interesting week of teachings in Cairo we all headed out to the Sinai on a 9-hour van ride. We are staying in Sinai on the shore of the red sea; it is absolutely breath taking here. Yesterday I sat with my classmates on Egyptian couches 20 feet away from the beach. Basking in the sun reading, (I’m reading The Chronicles of Narnia right now) was one of the most peaceful experiences ever. Just sitting there with the sound of waves breaking and the thoughts that this is where God showed His wonders to His people.

Two nights ago was a very trying night for me. We as a class climbed Mount Sinai, though I only had a small backpack on, my back hurt so bad that I thought that I was going to pass out. So Emily offered to take a camel with me, the both of us made most of the way on the back of a camel. I don’t think that I can explain sitting on the camel thinking this could have been the place where Moses met with God. Looking up at the stars it gave new meaning to when God told Abraham that his descendants would be more than the stars, In the desert there are so many stars, I don’t think that I could give it justice in words just how magnificent it was!

We reached the top after 750 steps at about 3:30 A.M. and probably 30 degrees out. It was clod but beautiful. At about 6:20 the sun began to rise and it was amazing, God is so amazing and just the thought that Moses was there talking with God…man this is so cool! A Korean worship song broke out and I sang, “Then Sings my Soul” quietly along in English. One of the coolest things I have ever done! We went down another way then we came up and about 3800 steps later we were down (today my calves are burning). We visited Saint Catharine’s Monastery and inside are the burning bush…or so they say. I touched it and it was neat! The others went on to spend the night in the desert, I was getting sick and I after the Mount Sinai climb it felt like I was going to die so I went back to the camp. I’m sad that I couldn’t go but I’m feeling better
today so that’s good.

Tomorrow we are traveling to Jordan where we are staying for 2 nights and visiting other Biblical sites. Then it’s on to The Holy Land where we will be for one month. I will write again after we all get settled! Miss you guys but I am having the time of my life!

"Out of Egypt I called My Son" (Hosea 11)

2008-01-08T06:15:00.002-10:00

The New Year comes with new resolutions, one of many resolutions that made my list for 2008 was to keep in touch with everyone who supports me so much. Though at times it is difficult due to lack of internet access and honestly not knowing how to make an international call, it was made clear to me that a blog is an easy way to not only share with you my experiences but also my pictures which are a very big part of what I am doing during my travels.

I am currently in Cairo, Egypt where one of the 7 wonders of the world lay, the great pyramids! We went to visit them on the 5 of January. They were swarming with tourist in January, which in reality is very understandable because the weather has been amazingly beautiful! Along with the masses of foreigners many locals we mounted on camels trying to sell a ride and a photo. It was so amazing to just be standing in a places where so many important occurrences from the Bible took place. It was very sobering to stand and just look across the miles and miles of sand stretching out eventually breaking at the Red Sea, the pyramids at my back. Walking along, a local man gave a vigorous complement directed at my eyes and followed it with an offer of marriage in exchange for 2 million camels, though I was tempted my better senses gave in and I declined.

Later that same day we went to a place called Garbage City. It was literally a dumb where trash lined the streets and crept its way into the locals homes. Everyone who lives in Garbage City works by sorting the trash into similar piles to be recycled in someway. Women sat alongside men in the rubbish and sorted, the children ran around playing with dirty faces and most of the time without shoes. Being a 6 foot white girl, along with a very lively blond Danish girl we were notice right away. The people would stand proudly asking to us to snap a picture of them. Though the women were harder to convince, kids swarmed to us in such a loving and playful manor. It was a little overwhelming, not only the very pungent smell but all the eyes looking upon me. A truly amazing experience and an honor to take pictures of these people.

As, the week begun so did classes that included a trip to the Museum of Egypt. Where I got to see lots of mummies (the animal mummies were my favorite). Lectures now fill my mornings and photo assignments and reading the Bible fills my afternoon. On Sunday the 13th we are going to be driving across the desert to Mount Sinai. Then we will be traveling to the Red Sea and will be staying along the coast until we eventually make our way up to Jerusalem.

This is such an amazing experience and I want to make all of you as much a part of this as me. I will be updating this blog as often as the access to internet allows, most likely every week! Please continue to pray for me during my travels, also if you can e-mail anytime (I would love that) if you have any questions or just want to say hi!

armase42@yahoo.com
armase42@gmail.com
(or you can just comment on this blog)