The Halvorsons | Personal blog
The Halvorsons
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25.01.2022 This morning in Sidara..... Thank you God for the new water tank. Thank you God for the beautiful and refreshing rain that fell on Friday night.... in dry season.
24.01.2022 We discovered a lovely spot in Dili to have a romantic dinner out! #oldmarriedcouple
23.01.2022 Don't forget! This Saturday morning, 10am, come and meet the Truccos and hear about Projeto Montanha. Don't miss it!
23.01.2022 I was getting ready to leave for a trip to Kenya a couple of years ago, when a church emailed and asked if Mercy House had any specific needs. I quickly respond...ed and told them I wanted to give Maureen, our Kenyan Director, an iPhone, so we could communicate during (almost weekly) power outages. I told them if they would buy one instead, we could use the money for other needed items. On the churchs Facebook feed a few days later, I saw an appeal that said something like, We want to support a ministry with a used iPhone. If you have an old one you can donate, please let us know. I was given an older iPhone a week later. On the ground in Kenya, I realized it wouldnt hold a charge for more than 10 minutes. The phone was junk. So, when I left Kenya, I gave Maureen my used one that worked. The church contacted me after the trip and asked how Maureen liked her new phone? I told them it was useless and said, Dont worry about it. I gave her mine. Oh, we feel badly, please let us replace your phone! We want to buy you a brand new one, an upgrade. You deserve it, I told them I used my husbands upgrade and already had a replacement phone. Ok. Instead we would like to write you a $500 check for the inconvenience. Give it to Maureen, I said. And they did. While the church tried to make it right, I was bothered by the fact they were more than willing to buy me a new phone I didnt need. I have noticed this mentality permeates the Church as a whole: The poor will be happy with our leftovers. They dont know any better. They live in Africa or Honduras, they dont need the latest technology or the best brands like we do. They will appreciate anything we give because something is more than nothing. Why do we give others-often those in service to the poor or the poor themselves-something we wouldnt keep or give ourselves?
20.01.2022 So, we started a blog! If you're interested, head here.... www.halvorsons.com.au
16.01.2022 Just a village over from where we are is a place called Sidara. Sidara church is where we call home while we're here, and where Branca is the "Pastora". Next to the church, and part of the Sidara community is a beautiful market garden. The fruit & veg from this garden has not only sustained it's community members but is also being sold at market and providing the funds for Sidara church family to assist their wider community and their sister church in Lebutun. It is dry seas...on here at the moment and due to other issues with water pipes etc, Sidara has no water. For the last week water has been carted in with our truck and other church members trucks very slowly, taking a whole day to supply just 1 days worth of water. There's the possibility of digging a well, which would solve this ongoing problem permanently, but at a high cost, and doesn't solve the immediate issue of the garden drying up and dying. On Sunday after church we all joined together and prayed for God's provision and trusted Him with the solution. Stay tuned and tomorrow we'll share the good news. See more
16.01.2022 Well it's been a crazy few weeks. We've returned 20 Blue Mountains residents and students safely and mostly undamaged to Australia after a 2 week trip here in Timor Leste where they helped to build a community centre for the people of Sidara. We've attended a very official Medical Clinic opening in Lebutun. We've participated in a water filter project headed by Yooralla Youth Ministries, and we've spent a week here at Kids Ark just being a part of the community here and learning heaps. Perry has fixed more things than I can count and I have dutifully handed him the tools that he needed to do so.
16.01.2022 Today's life lesson:
15.01.2022 Ramos Horta just said "botarde" to us!
14.01.2022 So, to continue on from the water disaster in Sidara...... Most times that we head over to Timor, there's a couple of people that often hand us a donation with no specific destination, just "you'll know where to use it". The same happened before we left for this trip, We'll leave the people anonymous as we're sure they'll prefer it that way. In conversations with Branca, the information was brought to light, that water can be carted from Dili at a reasonable cost, it's just t...hat there wasn't enough tank space to make it worth it. If only we had enough money to buy a 5000 litre tank, that would make all the difference. And we remembered the money put aside for such a time as this. And within 24 hours water has been restored. This is still an interim fix, the well would still be the long term approach, but for now the roofs will be fitted with guttering to collect the rain water and connected to the new tank. It takes a whole bunch of like minded and loving people working together to make a difference and this story is the perfect example. See more
13.01.2022 With just 1 week before we head back to Timor, I thought I'd re-share this blog post from Sarita Hartz. She is my go to for all things cross cultural mission, having been in full time mission for many years and also short term trips. We re-read this blog post over and over, before we go, and again when we return, it's that good! Please, please give it a read, and if you're coming with us next week or if a short term mission trip is in your plans... it's a must.
09.01.2022 If you're interested in finding out a little bit more about the Halvorsons, head here. http://www.halvorsons.com.au/about/
09.01.2022 We don't know what this week will bring, so today was a day to celebrate with friends, and to laugh, have fun and give thanks for everything we've been blessed with. (Including a skit from Lucas and Joaninha pretending to be us.....)
08.01.2022 Hi friends. I know this is a busy and expensive time of year, but please consider supporting this really important work.
04.01.2022 160kg of cement over the back wheels to give the little truck some traction in the back as we climb up the mountain to Aileu. That Perry .... he's an ideas man.
04.01.2022 Ready. Steady. Go.
01.01.2022 Our new family photo
