Orientation and Hearing the Voice of God

I'm here, I'm learning, I'm loving it, and I'm SWEATING...

I've been in Orlando for a week and a half, but it seems like I've been here for a month. So many things have happened since I arrived, and it's been a blast. I'd better start from the beginning...

Getting to Orlando was an adventure in itself - not like that should be a surprise, though! By the end of my life, I'm sure I'll be able to write a large novel about my traveling adventures. When my parents arrived at the Toronto Airport, they asked me if it was okay if they just dropped me off so that they could continue on to the cottage. I assured them that I'd be fine - I've done the airport thing hundreds of times and I was capable of finding my way around. We said our goodbyes and I love yous, and I was on my own again. All went smoothly until I got to customs. The asian man behind the desk looked a little confused when I told him I was doing a missionary training program. He gave me a yellow folder and told me to go through a set of doors to see someone else. I approached the desk where two african-american men sat. One of them took the folder from me and asked me to place my left index finger on the scanner; then my right index finger. That's right, people. I had my fingerprints taken. It was around this point in time that I realized that going through customs wasn't going to be as easy as I had anticipated. One of the men asked me a few questions and told me to take a seat. I looked at my watch - it was 3pm. I thought, "Great, I have an hour and a half before my plane leaves. I'll be out of here in no time." I prayed a lot -- "God, I trust You, I know that You'll get me to Orlando if You want me to be there. God, help me to stay calm." So I sat, and I waited... and waited. I was called up to the desk three separate times, and each time asked the same questions. "What are you doing in the U.S.? What denomination are you affiliated with? Are you a missionary in Canada?" They were utterly confused. I waited some more. At 4:00 I was on the verge of tears and confident that either they would reject me, or I would have to rebook my flight. I kept praying, though -- "God, I trust You -- I know that I should praise You in every situation, so praise You for this time. You're bigger than I am. Please give me strength." At 4:25, as my mind wandered through the possibility of booking a flight to the Yukon, I was called up again. The angrier of the two men told me that he was going to give me his "break of the day." I was going to be allowed into the States. The only problem was that my flight was scheduled to leave literally at that moment. I asked him if he thought there was any way I could catch my flight, and he told me to get out of there. So I rushed through security, dropped off my luggage, ran to my gate and praised God for getting me out of that room! I reached my gate in plenty of time, since the flight had been delayed by about twenty minutes. When I finally arrived in Orlando, I looked around the airport for a people with a "YWAM" sign. There was no such sign. So I sort of wandered around, looking at people, and at one point I made awkward eye contact with a girl, who then asked me if I was waiting for someone specific. I said that I was looking for someone from YWAM, and a huge smile broke out on her face as she stretched out her arms and exclaimed, "Yaaay!" I went with her and another staff member and they took me to my house in Jon Jon Court.

I was greeted warmly by Michelle and Randal, my house supervisors. I was the first one to arrive, so we had a nice time chatting about the DTS program and how they ended up in YWAM. I was so happy to be there!


I could write so much about what has happened in the last week and a half, but I only have 13 minutes left on this computer. I'll try to give you some highlights.

We had an orientation week, which was really fun. Mostly we learned about what life would be like at YWAM, and spent time playing games and getting to know each other. On Friday, we spent a day at a beautiful park with natural cool springs that we swam in(we were careful to avoid the gators). I also spent a lot of time with my housemates - besides Michelle, Randal and I, there's Sarah, Jessica, and April(the four of us share a room together), another April, Danae, Katie, and Christina, who are all a lot of fun. Most of them are 18, which makes me feel a little old, but it's not bothering me. The April in my room is 29, from North Carolina, and is hilarious. I used to find the southern accents super annoying(my apologies to you YWAMers reading this!) but I have just fallen in love with April and the way she talks. She is so funny. It is wonderful to live with other passionate Christians. Last night we had a "bonding time" - we just shared things that we've been learning about this week - things that God has been putting on our hearts. It was a really encouraging time. Here we are together(minus Michelle and Randal):


So this week we've started classes. We have a new teacher and a new subject every week. This week we're being taught on hearing the voice of God and intercession by a man named John Bills. This man is incredible. He has so many amazing stories and I'm always enthralled with whatever he's talking about. This is precisely what I've been wanting to learn about for so long! I'm learning to ask God questions, and wait for longer than thirty seconds for an answer. I'm learning about different ways God speaks to us, and how to discern between God's voice and my own thoughts. It's awesome. Tomorrow we're doing intercession for the first time, and I'm pretty excited. If you don't know what intercession is or want to learn about it, ask me, I'll be happy to tell you!

A typical day goes is something like this: We wake up around 6:30am, get ready(it's a challenge sharing a bathroom with seven other girls), and have a quiet time from 7:00-7:45am. This is probably one of my favourite times during the day. It's just a time to talk to God, read the Bible, worship, and get focused. I found it challenging to make myself do it at home, even in the Yukon... but now that it's required, I'm really enjoying it. We get picked up in a van at 8:10 by our neighbour Marni, who is one of our DTS staff people. Marni is from the Faroe Islands and speaks seven languages. Yeah. He's pretty awesome. We arrive at the church(it's called Evangel) where we spend most of the day having classes, eating and doing community responsibilities(CRs).
This is the church we "live" at:

We spend our mornings in class, and on certain days we have time for worship and intercession. Today we had "Worship and Warfare," which is a pretty intense time. We all eat lunch together(when I say "all", I mean the DTS students and staff, SOME(School of Ministry and Evangelism) students and staff, and other YWAM staff that work in the office). There are about 70 people in all, I'd say. After lunch we have another "class" -- on Mondays we have "Recreation"(apparently it's like a gym class. We haven't had it yet), Tuesdays we have Geography, Thursdays we have small group, and on Fridays we have reflections and evaluations. Wednesdays are different because it's the only day during the week that we don't have supper at the church. We have community responsibilities right after lunch on Wednesdays, and right after the "post-lunch class". Community responsibilities vary from helping with supper prep to washing vehicles to cutting lawns to childcare to setting up electronic equipment. No one really likes CRs but I'm glad that we have to do them. It's a good way to grow as a community and get to know people. After supper we head home and have free time. Typically during these times I've been spending time with my roommates, hanging out at another DTS house, reading, and playing Dutch Blitz. We also have weekends free, and last weekend I went with some of my housemates to the mall and to Target(my first time ever... they all looked at me in disbelief when I told them I'd never been to Target before and didn't really know what it was).

So that's my life in a nutshell, people. It is awesome. Everyone is super nice and enthusiastic and welcoming. My friends and I have all commented on how much we've learned in just the first couple of days in class. I can feel myself changing and I can feel our group changing. It will be interesting to see where we're all at at the end of February! We haven't discussed our outreach too much, but we'll probably know where we're going for sure in a few weeks. I'll definitely keep you posted!

*Dear Jesus, I am falling more and more in love with You every day. I am so happy that You lead me here, and that You're working in my life and in the lives of the other DTS students. Please help us to be totally open to whatever You have for us. Please bless and be with my friends at family at my various "homes" -- in Ontario, Sackville, Dawson. Thank You for who You are. In Jesus' name, Amen.*

p.s. I love real mail! Please write me at:

Youth With A Mission
Lindsay Hay
c/o Training Department
P.O. Box 620487
Orlando, FL
32862-0487