Christians in Ibiza?!

I was out walking the other day with some friends, when we were approached by a PR. For those who have no idea what I’m talking about, here’s a little Ibiza 101…

In the very touristy areas, pretty much every business will have a PR. They stand outside of that business, and try to get you to come in. As people walk by they may stop you and ask you where you’re headed, and then quickly list off their drink or dinner specials to try to entice you to choose their place. Most PR’s get paid based on how many people they get in the door.

So as we were walking down the sunset strip, a girl tried to PR us into the restaurant she was working for. We declined, and told here we were workers. She asked where, and then we got to tell her about 24-7 Ibiza. We also invited her to our center (which is for workers). The funny bit was that as soon as she heard that we were Christians, she reacted with complete surprise. “Christians? In Ibiza?!”

I found her reaction to be very interesting. Most people don’t expect to find God here. And I also think that most people think Ibiza is beyond help. We don’t believe that’s true! I love getting to shock people with the fact that God is here in Ibiza, and he cares about them! Every night that I get to help someone home, or have a conversation in the West End, or even pray with someone out on the streets, I get to show people that God is alive and well, and MOVING in the place! 

Going to Extremes

May Newsletter Released!




If you're not signed up for my newsletter, your missing out! Sign up by filling out the form on the right side bar of this blog. Here's the LINK to the May edition. Lots of news to share!

Check This Out!



 Check out this GREAT blog post, about a night in the west end written by Brian Heasley. Brian along with his wife Tracy, have led 24-7 Ibiza for 8 years. They're heading back to the UK in July, so it was good to have a night out on the streets with him before they go...

Heal My Heart

I don’t know what it is about being here in Ibiza that makes me feel so introspective. There are times when I feel on the edge of battle…like I’m on the front lines, which has me taking a closer look at myself. Going to war does that. When I think of a solider going to battle, I think of someone who’s taken the time to get their affairs in order. Being here makes me feel like that. Like I want to sort out my stuff, so I can focus on being a better soldier. When you’re worried about all the other stuff, letting that cloud your mind, you lose focus, which causes you to get distracted on the battlefield.

Being here seems to bring to the surface a lot of stuff for me. Even tonight in the prayer room we were singing the song “Hosanna”…there’s a line in the song that says

“Heal my heart and make it clean, open up my eyes to the things unseen. Show me how to love like you have loved me.…”

I just started praying that God would do that in us as 24-7 Ibiza. That God would heal our hearts, allowing us to serve him and this community even better.

When I’m here, I feel that call to healing…that call to let God touch the deepest parts of me. It’s not always easy! There are times when I’m overwhelmed by my own weakness and brokenness. When I see how far I need to go, and it just seems impossible. But then I’m reminded that God can do the impossible! I want God to heal the deepest darkest parts of me. Make me new God so I can serve you better!

First Bible of the Season…

It was an interesting night out on the streets on Thursday night…
When we go out into the west end, we go in pairs. On Thursday night, I was out with Kez, and as we were walking these two guys suddenly approached us. One of them starts talking to me, telling me that he remembers me from a couple of summers ago. The best part is that when we first met in the summer of 2010, I gave him a bible!

When we give out bibles on the street, we try to highlight a specific scripture for that person. I’d done that for him, and as it turns out, it had meant a lot to him. Tonight he asked me for another bible. This was the scripture that I highlighted for him this time…

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.” (John 3:16-18 MSG)

Getting to see him again, and have a chat was really the highlight of my evening. It reminded me that God is in every interaction I have when I’m out in the streets. You just never know what God is going to do with that seed that’s been planted.
I’m praying that I’ll get to see him loads more this season, and that I’ll get even more opportunities to share the LOVE of God with him!

Medieval Fair

I got to go to the Medieval Fair in Ibiza Town this week. There were people dressed in period clothing, and different merchants selling everything from handmade soap and jewelry to spices and chocolate. It was a fun night off!

Messy

It’s 4:47 in the morning, and I just got back to my apartment, took a shower, and then sat down to type out a few thoughts…

Tonight was a good night…

There was lots of praying, and chatting with people in the west end. Plenty of opportunities to share God’s love with people…and…there was also VOMIT!

We were heading home for the night when we came across two guys who needed some help. They’d both been drinking (a lot), and were in no shape to get back to their hotel on their own. So we offered them a ride.

Here’s a little Ibiza 101 for you: If you’re too drunk, the taxi cabs won’t take you anywhere. They’re afraid you’ll vomit in their cab, and they don’t like that!

So we get these two guys in the van, and as we’re driving them back to their hotel, one of them starts to vomit on the floor.

We had another situation with a young lady who was on her own, very drunk and obviously in a lot of emotional pain. She would go from weeping, and talking about how lonely she was to telling us to leave her alone. She didn’t want our help, so we watched her from a distance, as she tried to stumble her way home…

Both situations reminded me that people can be messy. Not just in the physical sense, but also in the spiritual sense as well…But the most awesome thing is that even in the middle of the mess, God is still there!

It’s when we take our mess and surrender it to him that he begins to do miraculous things in us.

Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

The 24-7 Center is Open!

On Wednesday May 2nd, our center officially opened!



The center is open during the summer season primarily for the workers who staff the bars and clubs of the West End. We offer them free internet, table tennis, and we have a Wii. They can also sign up for 30 minute slots on one of the computer’s we have in the center.



It’s a place that we hope they will think of as their home away from home.
All of the services we offer are free, and it’s a great way for us to continue to build relationships with a group of people that we see on an almost daily basis! The center really allows us to serve them in a practical way!

Right now a lot of workers are still arriving, but once it picks up, we see around 150 people each week. We’re open Monday-Friday from 4pm-8pm.

Let’s Go!

…

Last night there were six of us out on the streets. It’s still pretty early on in the season, so there are still some bars and clubs that haven’t opened yet. Each week brings more and more people to the island.
Last night in the prayer room, we started praying about the strip clubs in the west end. There are three of them. The more we prayed for them, the more we asked God to transform them. We love the workers who work in these places, but to be honest, we wish they were out of a job! Mostly because we want those clubs to close down. We don’t want them to move someplace else on the island, so when we pray, we ask God to just shut them completely. If they’re going to stay open, we want them to be right where they are, so that we can be light in the darkness in those places.
It was cool tonight, because while we prayed, something happened to the electricity in one of the strip clubs, and they had to close!
It felt like God was letting us know that he is listening!

Look What I Got!

 

Yesterday, I mentioned that I was thinking about buying a bike…Then today one of my team members stumbled upon this beauty! It’s used, and I got it for a great price. Since I can’t get a Spanish Driver’s license until I get my visa, this will do for now!
What a blessing…

My Ibiza Apartment

Here are some pictures of my apartment!
I live in San Antonio, just “Around the Bay” from the West End. It’s a bit quieter over here, so it’s nice to get a break!
It’s a small apartment, with two bedrooms. I have two roommates who both just arrived on Wednesday. Kate and Kezi, both seem lovely, and I’m excited to get to know them better!
Since I arrived first, and will be here the longest, I snagged the single bedroom!

My Bedroom

(Yes, that’s the washing machine in my closet…welcome to Europe!)

The Kitchen & Living Room

The Bathroom

The Balcony & The View!

I already feel at home!

Why Pray?

24-7 Ibiza is a part of 24-7 Prayer, which is an international prayer movement. This week they released a great video on why we should pray. Have a look...



"Real prayer is a two way conversation with a living God who loves and listens to the things we say..."

Amen!

Let’s Get it Started…

Arriving last week, I kind of jumped right into the middle of things!
During the summer season, we have several short term missions teams that join us in the work we do here in Ibiza. The very first team of the season is the Prayer Team. They come to the island just as it’s waking up. A lot of the bars in the West End are taking down their shutters, cleaning, and stocking up for the summer. This seasons prayer team arrived on Monday, so when I got in on Tuesday, they were already in full swing. They do prayer walks, and several different sessions where they learn about the work we do here, and how they can pray for it...And of course, they pray! 
They also help us in practical ways, like helping us get the center cleaned and ready to be opened. One of the tasks they undertook was removing all of the prayer request that were prayed for last season from the prayer wall. We keep each one of them, but need to make room for the request that will fill the wall this year…

 

The prayer team is near and dear to my heart, because the first time I came to Ibiza to work with 24-7, it was on the prayer team. I remember discovering this place through praying for it.
I think the team not only brings the power of its prayers, but it also brings a sense of focus. I’ve been so wrapped up in the details of trying to get to Ibiza, it was good to be reminded why I’m here…
Soon the streets of the West End will be full of people…
Hurting and Broken people…
People who need to know and experience the unfailing love that God has for them.
My goal is to live it among them, and share it with them…
Let’s Go!

Poppy is “Officially” In Ibiza!

After 16 hours of flying, and a lot of waiting, I have finally arrived in Ibiza! I am so excited to finally be here, and I must admit, it feels like I’ve come back home…
The day before I left Las Vegas, I had a fundraiser/farewell party.



I got to share my passion for the work I’ll be doing in Ibiza, and I got to say goodbye to a lot of great people. A special thanks to Sharon Yaris who hosted the party. Thanks Sharon! I was able to raise nearly $800 towards my expenses in Ibiza! A huge thank you goes out to everyone who came out, and donated.
I’m still raising the support I’ll need to stay in Ibiza. Check out my Donate page if you’re interested in helping out.
At the moment, I’m doing my best to get settled in...My biggest obstacle this week has been dealing with jet lag! There’s a 9 hour time difference between Ibiza and Las Vegas, so my body is doing its best to adjust.
More updates to come!

4 Days to Go...

In 4 days I'll be boarding a plane for Ibiza! But I've still got loads to do before that can happen! I'm technically still packing, and sorting. I've got four huge piles on the floor in my bedroom...Take, Donate, Throw Away, and I'm Not Sure!

On Sunday I'm hosting a fundraiser/farewell party. I'm so excited to get to share more about Ibiza with my Las Vegas friends and family. If you're in the area, please feel free to come!

Part of me still can hardly believe that I'm FINALLY going to be leaving...I probably won't be convinced until I'm sitting on the plane and on my way!

Hello California My Old Friend...

If you hadn't guessed from the blog title, I'm in California!

My appointment at the Spanish Consulate is on Tuesday. I've got all my documents, and I'm ready to go! While I wait, luckily I have some great friends who live nearby. Larry and Rhonda, are really like spiritual parents to me, and have blessed me in so many ways! They have a loving, fun and crazy family, and whenever I visit, I find myself warmly welcomed into the rhythm of their lives. 

It's a beautiful thing!

This morning I also got to speak a little about Ibiza, during the services at the church they pastor. Since I'm still in the process of raising money, the opportunity was a huge blessing!

I sang on the worship team this morning, and through the songs and even the message that Larry spoke, I was reminded of so many of the lessons that God's been teaching me while I've been waiting to leave.

I know that no matter what circumstances I find myself in, God walks with me...and when I really get that, I know that there's no reason to fear!

Indiana Jones and the Leap of Faith

I woke up this morning with this thought in my head...

It's called faith, because you can't see where you're going. You can't see the outcome, and you have NO IDEA how things are going to work out

Faith is realizing that you just have to believe, take a step, and GO!

As Christians we have an added bonus...we're putting our faith in a God who keeps his promises!

Remember this scene from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?

Because You're With Me...

I took this picture at a conference I was at on Sunday night...

God has really been encouraging me a lot through the Bible (imagine that!). Earlier that day I was studying Mark 4:35-41. It's the story of Jesus calming the storm...Basically Jesus and the disciples are traveling by boat when a storm comes. The disciples are freaking out, and Jesus is asleep. In verse 38 they wake him up, and say -

"Teacher, don't you care that we're going to drown?!"

So Jesus gets up, and tells the storm to "Be Still", and it listens (Awesome). Then he turns back to the disciples and says to them -

“Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

As I was reading that, I was thinking about my own situation, as I sit here in Las Vegas waiting for my Spanish Visa. In my head I could hear myself having a similar exchange with Jesus ...

"Jesus, don't you care that my visa is going to get denied, and I'm not going to be able to go do what you've called me to do?!"

And Jesus turned to me and said -

"Poppy, why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?"

As I wait to hear the final outcome about my visa, I feel more and more like God is giving me the opportunity to exhibit great faith and trust in him. On Sunday night in the middle of worship at the conference I was attending, we sang a song that says:

Because you're with me
Because you're with me
Because you're with me
I will not fear

As I sang, I stretched my hands high, and surrendered myself, and any fear and anxiousness I have about the situation over to God. As I sang, I felt God reminding me of what I'd read earlier. I felt him reminding me to not be afraid, to trust...

Hope