G'day from Australia!

It's official... We fly out a week from today! These past few days have held a LOT of excitement.
On Thursday, the team went with AFJ (Australia for Jesus) to Noosa River to do some evangelizing. It was difficult for some of them, but such a good opportunity to grow more confident in the Lord. Some of the team members expressed the difficulty in sharing the Gospel in this culture. Australian culture is much like American culture -- that is, many people feel too busy/too good to listen to someone share the Gospel. However, the team felt encouraged for the opportunity to participate with AFJ, and they definitely felt like the hands and feet of Jesus.
Friday night, our team had the privilege of going to Anthem Church to help the youth program there. It was so much fun, and such a good opportunity for the team members to step outside their comfort zones and make some new friends. The youth group called Friday night, "Teen Missions Takeover." We introduced them to a game (led by Elliot, who did a great job projecting his voice and explaining the game!), and had fun with the rowdy Aussie teens. We had some pastries, and then spent some time in worship. This was led by our team, and it sounded so beautiful! Gabe (ukulele), Judson (guitar), Stephen (keys), Jacob (drums), and Rebekah (vocals) did an awesome job, and I can say I truly was lost in worship as they led us. We enjoyed watching them use their talents for the Lord, but we were especially surprised by Jacob's talent on the drum set -- no one knew he played:) After worship, Tia (a staff member at Teen Missions) hosted a panel with questions for us about Teen Missions and our programs/experiences. Those on the panel were Chase, Navie, Jed (a young man from the youth group, who has gone on a TMIA team), Pat, and myself (Mari). It was lots of fun answering questions, and Navie and Chase did a great job.
Saturday was the bush dance!! This was lots and lots of fun. After a long morning/afternoon of preparations, we kicked it off at 6 pm. The entire team helped serve the meal (rice bowls with lots of toppings, and apple crumble), and then ate after everyone else went through the food line. After dinner, we started dancing in the pole barn. There were all kinds of line dances; some with one partner, some with groups of nine, or groups of fourteen. The whole team danced, got a little sweaty, laughed a whole lot, and learned lots of new dances. We finished with the Hokey Pokey, and then headed out to the giant bonfire, which was prepared by our team members. The night wrapped up around 11 pm, finishing with evening devos as a team under the pole barn.
Sunday morning, we had the chance to head back to Anthem Church! This time, we helped with the children's programs, and sat in the service. Half the team sat through the first service, while the other half served in the children's ministry. The teams switched during the second service, so we all had the chance to sit in on the sermon and worship time. It was a great time getting to see some of our newly made friends again! As we were driving home from church, the driver stopped the bus, and we all filed out to take a picture by a "Koala Crossing" sign. Though unexpected, that made a fun memory!
Field time is almost over. Monday and Tuesday will be full of cleanup and pickup to leave the base neat. Wednesday we leave for Bundaberg, Friday and Saturday will be our sightseeing days at Hervey Bay, and then Saturday we'll come back to base. We will spend the night at the base, and head to Brisbane airport Sunday morning.
We are continually amazed at the sweetness of the team members!