Term One. Check.

6/10/12 (starting to write the date like an Indonesian)

“The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is NOW”

Hanging out with some fellow teachers on the weekend.

Am I a “grown-up”? Am I really getting paid to teach, instead of paying to teach? Am I actually teaching in Indonesia? Am I not going back to school as a student this year? It still astounds me that I am a “real” teacher now. I have been struggling with having the time of my life, but having to work. (Unlike previous overseas experiences)

I am learning who I am as a teacher. I have learned I am great at improvising. Everyday seems to go by so fast. My teaching day is full of prepping, planning, teaching, meetings and coaching. Days fly by and that is why I love what I do. I am still continuing to master the balance of laughing with my class and disciplining my class. They make me laugh so hard, but then they make me so disappointed sometimes. Teaching is parenting 101.

My girls! (5th-6th grade Basketball)

I have a lot of freedom in my classroom for lessons because there is no set curriculum to use at the school. It takes twice as long to plan lessons, but I have come to love creating my own lessons. Lets just say pinterest is my new best friend. Sticky notes are also my new best friend since teaching. I am learning so much everyday. With my students I have figured out their “brains are like parachutes”, it’s not about how much you can pack in, but to make sure it opens at the right time.

Love spending time with these kiddos at the  local dump

Tears fell down my cheeks a couple weeks ago in class. I was on the carpet with my students and they were asking questions about Heaven. I was describing what Heaven was going to be like and they got so excited and started to cheer and dance out of excitement for Heaven. I started to cry because I had never seen people get so excited about Heaven before. Third graders showed me what it looked like to be excited about for Heaven. They asked, “Ms. Sarah, why are you crying?” and I replied, “Out of happiness!” Now I know why God calls us to have child-like faith. (we get so focused on the theology part, we forget the excitement part!)

Wonderful Sisters God put in my life.

I have found a great church body to be part of called, IES South. I am learning so much about God and am enjoying the grace-filled fellowship with my church  family. I have also joined a Pilates group and swimming group with ladies from the church. On Saturdays, I also tutor at an orphanage or volunteer and minister to the people at the local dump. Thursdays, I have joined a small group with a family from Africa, which is the highlight of my week. Many things continue to remind me of Africa! During the week, I coach girls’ basketball and help with leading worship for chapel. I am staying busy for sure, but my prayer request would be: strength and wisdom to do the things I am supposed to do, but discernment to say no to things I don’t need to do. (I tend to do too much for those of you who know me well)

Best Friends Wedding

Over the past few months, I have learned the overseas way of life (becoming very crafty): cooking with minimal supplies and fixing things without tools. For example, goo-gone does not exist over here. In order to take a sticky tag off a bottle, I asked one of my Indonesian friends what to do. She said to put it in hot water and it will come right off…and it did. Amazing. I asked myself, what did people do before goo-gone, now I knowJ Same with technology, what did people do without skype? I am so blessed with technology overseas. I was so sad to miss my best friends' wedding, but I was still able to be there via skype. I love all my skype dates with people and am thankful for technology! It makes the world feel smallerJ

My Indonesians from Corban

Random things:

Time over here is called “Rubber-Time”, because nothing ever starts on timeJ

I was able to see/hear fireworks for a month outside of my window (because of Idul Fitri).

Prayed for deeper relationships and the Lord has blessed me with some very great sisters.

Had a corban reunion last week and it was great to see Corban Alum who are all ministering around Indonesia! I also got to see my Indonesians from Corban too! What a blessing!

PS. I AM OFFICIALLY GOING TO THAILAND FOR CHRISTMAS!!!

“Busyness is a great enemy of relationships. We become preoccupied with making a living, doing our work, paying bills and accomplishing goals as if these tasks are the point to life. They are not. The point of life is learning to love-God and people. Life minus love equals nothing”

Sayang Kamu!

Ps. Here is a video that explains more about Corban’s connection to Indonesia.

P-town to J-town

I wake up around 5:30am…I teach from 6:45-3:45…and then I go to bed around 8:30pm.

That is a regular work day for me!

Where do I begin? So much has happened since I last updated you on my life.

For starters, I am officially a teacher now. I have 17 third graders and I love them so much. I have 10 boys and 7 girls. Some of them are Korean, some are Indonesian and some are Canadian and Australian. I love all the cultures my classroom holds.

The first day of teaching was over-whelming, but so amazing! Thank you for your prayers, I had so much peace in my heart and it was a success! My principal had two others and myself stand up at our staff meeting after the first day of school and every one applauded for us because it was our 1^st day of school as teachers. I even got my first Indonesian cake from Bali from one of my students the first week of school. I am learning…EVERYTHING I CAN DO IS NOT EVERYTHING I SHOULD DO as a teacher. As a first year teacher, there is so much I want to do…but I need to realize I can’t do everything my first year or I will drive myself crazy.

My I-phone is working now! Thanks to my Big Sis Aubs, I have an I-phone in Indonesia! After much prayer and help from others I was able to get internet on it. It still doesn’t seem real being able to get on facebook while walking down dirt roads. Feel free to Skype me whenever, I have been loving all my Skype dates while being in Indonesia so far! My name is sarah.seibert on Skype and I would love to see you! Also, if you want my Indonesian phone number…just message me and I will make sure to get it to you!

I love Indonesians. They put their hand over their heart every time they greet you or say thank you. Also,  the women are called Ibu over here, but for short, everyone calls me bu and I love it! They have so many great churches here…last Sunday the pastor talked about how, “the one we deserve least is the one we need the most.” It is so true. We don’t deserve Jesus, yet He loves us no matter what we do. One thing I have been teaching my students is that God doesn’t have grandchildren. Every person is a child of God and talking about how if your parents are Christians doesn’t mean you are; you must have Jesus in YOUR heart. It has been a great time to talk and get to know my students spiritually.

Thank you so much for all your prayers! I have for sure felt all your prayers of peace while I have been here and started teaching. I have also been blessed with living next to amazing and godly women. It has been fun to do dinners every night with them and I even got them addicted to the TV shows “Lie To Me” and “Vampire Diaries.” I have been meeting so many great people and Ibu Daisy said, “I am so glad our paths met on this side of Heaven.” That is exactly what I feel like every time I meet someone new here. Also, I never knew Jakarta was going to be so similar to home…went to a movie theatre and watched Batman the other night, went to a Hillsong Concert at the beach last night and went to Starbucks this morning before church. Jakarta is the 11^th largest city in the world, so I guess it makes since why it is so westernized. Kemang Village, where I live, is a very growing expatriate community as well. But there is still so much contrast…

I have been struggling a lot with the contrast around me. To live in such a nice apartment, but then see people who live across the street in nothing. To teach at such a nice school, but then see children who have nothing but a dirt floor for their classroom. This past weekend I attended an outreach to bring food to people living in a garbage dump. It was such an amazing/difficult experience to laugh and love on people who were living on top of trash. My heart has always been for the less fortunate, but God has me teaching at a very wealthy private school. I have been struggling with that, but then God touched my heart this past week and showed me why I am teaching at SPH. 

One of my students had their father leave them this past week and the mom came in and talked to me and started to cry and I was able to pray with her. She said thank you for being a mom to her daughter during school and then I started to cry. That is exactly why I am here. To love on the children God has put into my class, because even though they have money, some of them do not have love at home.  I am strict with my students, but I love them each so much. God put me here to love the rich and to show them they have the opportunity to show Gods love to the less privileged. I am teaching leaders, who will make a difference someday. The highlight of my week was during prayer journaling a couple of boys said, “Ms. Sarah I feel like I’m at home,” it put so much joy in my heart to know they felt like home in my classroom and I was creating a safe learning environment for my students.

Here is a picture of my class and Ibu Lina. She is an Indonesian teacher who comes in twice a week to lead my students in devotions. 

Please pray I would continue to shine the light of Christ to my students so they would begin to do the same as they grow up. SPH stands for Sekolah, which means School, Pelita, which means light and Harapan, which means hope. I teach at a “school of light and hope.” I want my classroom to be filled with Gods light and hope! Thank you for your prayers and I love you all so much!

Unworthy of God's Providence

I have been in Indonesia for exactly one week, yet it seems like I have been here my whole life. Indonesia is very similar to Africa in many ways…same dirty streets, same contrast between wealth and poverty and the people are just as warm.

Indonesia is growing on me.

I was at the mall the other day and a bunch of guys got up and started dancing to techno music and at another mall (there are malls everywhere) a guy was watching Vampire Diaries. Techno music and Vampire Diaries: I love Indonesia.

Like most of you know, my travel to Indonesia couldn’t have been any better! No lost luggage, etc…Once I arrived to Indonesia…I could feel the humidity…it actually isn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. I was shown the school and my apartment. Words cannot describe SPH. It is nicer than any public/private school in the States…there is a workout room, outside basketball courts, inside swimming pool, etc… Not to mention, my apartment is amazing. I am living on site, which means I am an elevator down from my classroom! It is so nice to live on campus…especially since the work day starts at 6:45A.M. I have a little studio apartment and it totally fits me. It is still surreal; having my own studio apartment in the “big city.”

Kemang Village is such a contrasting community. You will see a fully covered Muslim woman walking next to a teenage Indonesian girl with mini shorts and a tank-top. The contrast is followed by the architecture. I live in a very nice, modern apartment complex, but right across the street is an area of tin and tarped houses. It is crazy to be in between two worlds…listening to my iTunes in my apartment, while listening to the Muslim call to prayer from my window from the neighboring Mosque.

God is for sure teaching me patience. To run an errand here takes an average of three hours…I am on Indonesia time now.

 Food is crazy here. They put the most random things together. For example, I saw a chocolate cheese cake the other day. After looking at it more closely, it legitimately had chocolate and cheese on a cake. Who would of ever though cheese and chocolate would go together? Sure they don’t have Butterfinger here, but they got some pretty legit stuff I would have never eaten before.

Love brushing my teeth using a water bottle. Scariest thing in Jakarta: crossing the street. (Besides that, I feel even safer than home;)

Every day I am: Making my classroom my own, making my apartment my home and making new friendships.

Please message me when you want to send me something in the mail because I have found out I will most likely not get any packages because the post office makes a lot of their money from bribery. You can buy everything in Indonesia, including corruption. There are many people from Corban, such as Janine Allen, who come to Indonesia multiple times a year and would love to bring anything you want to give me!

Ps. Please pray for the preparation of my curriculum…it is hard enough being in a new school with a new culture…but being a 1st year teacher has its challenges as well. Pray for my future students and that I would continue to love my class and the culture. Thank you! Love you!


Here is a picture of Ibu Daisy (Administrative Principal at SPH) and I enjoying my first Indonesian meal!

Here We Go

The day has finally come. To say good-bye to the life I have known for the past four years and begin the next adventure the Lord has sovereignly guided me to- to Indonesia. It is 3:08 a.m. and there is still so much to do…phone calls to make…errands to run...laundry to wash, but everything will come together…it always does. Thank you so much for all your prayers, love and support. I would not be bold enough to take on this next adventure if it wasn’t for the encouragement of you and the trust my parents have shown me in the Lord. It is my last night in America…I already ate my “last supper” at Olive Garden and even made Oreo milkshakes tonight. They might not have Olive Garden in Indonesia, but I am excited to find new things and food I have never experienced before. What an adventure! It will be hard leaving all of the things I take for granted in America, especially people like you. It is not good-bye. It is I’ll see you later. As I remember the past, I realize it has made me who I am today. I am excited to see how Indonesia will shape my character as well. I just want to be the hands and feet of Jesus. Please pray for travel safety and adjustment to a new way of life and living. Oregon City has been my home for 16 years and now I have packed everything up and am moving to the next season of life. Home is wherever I am with Jesus. Thank you so much. I hope to keep you all updated on everything the Lord is doing in my life in Indonesia! Here is the exact school website I will be teaching at if you are at all interested. http://www.sph.edu/sphi/index.php/our-campus-kv.html Love&Prayers

FB Official.

"so...God has always given me a heart to go overseas and He has called me to be a teacher. This July those things get to happen. I am officially a teacher at SPH International school in Indonesia for the next 2 years. ahhhhh!! ♥"

Those are the exact words I posted as my status update yesterday. I still can't believe the Lord has opened the door for me to teach in Indonesia...
I am so excited to go, but it is so hard to say goodbye and close the Corban chapter of my life. Corban has been the place of growth for me. So many memories. The past four years of my life have grown me to be able to share Christ with others around the world. I am confident the Lord will lead me back to Corban someday, but for now, He has guided me to a place 8,428.97 miles away.

My heart will always be in Africa, my heart will always be in America, but now the Lord wants to use my heart in Indonesia! Lord, use me. That is all I have ever asked. You have opened the door, and I am walking through it and trusting you every step of the way. Here I go. 2 more months to go until I graduate. Lord, let me continue to live in the presence of every moment I get with all of those I love before I have to say good bye. Amen.

i. dont. wanna. grow. up.

I graduate in less than six months.
What am I going to do after I graduate?
Indonesia? Africa? America? I don't know!
I guess I am finally an "adult"...kinda weird, but so is life.
I haven't written a blog in awhile, but wanted to write this now, and look back when I am finally about to take another journey after graduation.
I don't know where that is at the moment, but God does. And that makes me so happy.
God I pray you would guide me please...

Life is full of Hellos and Goodbyes.

Is it already April?

“Happiness is not about what you can get, but it’s about what you can give.”

Oh Africa. How I will miss thee. I cannot begin to comprehend what a blessing this semester has been to me abroad. It has truly been the “Best Semester”. Love, presence, community, joy, trust, sacrifice, and simplicity are just a few words that come into my mind when thinking about the past four months. These words have all been redefined in my mind and how I live my life.

I made no-bake cookies the other day and it is the big hit around Honors College. My friends are beginning to become family now. Even my students at my practicum sites have become my teachers in life. I have had so many fun times out with friends these past months…there are too many to mention but some highlights are: going to the law dinner (tiffany it was so fun), having frequent porage and tea dates with friends, watching movies outside (watched Blindside and loved it), rolling almost every night, watching the African stars and the sky light up with lightning at night, field trips around Uganda...living life in Africa.

Some other highlights…
I went to my first African introduction and wore a traditional Gomesi. An “Introduction” it the marriage tradition in African culture of having the bride introduce her groom to her family and friends. It is also to display the bride price. It was so fun. Got a boyfriend for April Fools day…and I was able to meet my German relative on Good Friday. I love how out of all places to meet my German relative, I met her in Africa. Oh, The Unity of Christ. Easter in Uganda was amazing…spent the weekend at an orphanage and then Easter Sunday with my host family. It was so fun to spend Easter with my family in Africa.

From my family home stays to teaching at two schools and orphanages…from playing on the girls futball team to spending time with my friends in my dorm…there has been too many good times to recall…I have so many pictures to post too, but the African net has not been working lately (T.I.A.). But don’t worry you will all get to see them!

All good times must come to an end…

I just completed all my courses for this semester and I did my final exams for this semester abroad. What an experience exams were in Africa…3 hours+15pages of Essays=My History Exam. The Lord gave me the wisdom I needed though. Exams are taken very seriously here, worth 50% or more for the overall grade.
Besides finishing up classes, I am also beginning to say my good-byes…I leave for Rwanda in 5 days and then I will go to Nairobi, Kenya for two weeks to visit my Kenyan family. And then home to Oregon on the 20th of May. Just thinking of how fast this semester had gone by, I am sure the next month will feel like a week.

I love you all and miss you so much. Again, thank you so much for all your prayers…this semester abroad wouldn’t have been the same without them. I have learned so much spiritually…for one of my classes, Faith and Action, we have to write a paper about things we are learning almost every week. There is so much I want to tell you about what I have questioned, realized and thought about this semester. We will just have to meet when I return, so I can read you all my faith and action thoughts of this semester.
The power of presence, the trueness of time, the importance of discipleship, the act of humility, and how to live simply are just a few things I have grown to realize this semester in Uganda.

Thank you Jesus.

Please pray for continual provision, especially while traveling this last month in Africa.
Also, be praying for these next two weeks in Rwanda, it will be a very difficult time while learning about the genocide, but also pray that instead of focusing on the negativity about the past, focus would be around the power of reconciliation in the present.