Dear Family and Friends,
We have arrived safely to NZ! (June 17, 2010). We are eating dinner tonight with the Posthuma family...they have six children! Raymond is the elder at the church who has been our main contact. Their children range in age from 15 to almost 3 ~ 2 boys and 4 girls. We do not have internet at the house that we are staying in, so we are using the computer at their house, so this will be shorter than I'd like!
No we have not moved to NZ, but are here for a job interview for Tim to possibly be a pastor in a church. We are not sure as of yet whether we have been called here by the Lord, but the people seem to really like us. It is a nice place to live~ very English like in many ways. If we do come, Tiffany will probably come with us. Leaving Shannon and Pablo and future grandchildren (in the Lord’s time) would be very hard-but If He wills, we will heed His call.
Our new address in FL (we moved in Feb since our landlords wanted to sell the house we were renting) is:
117 Pintado Dr.
Pensacola, FL 32503
850-432-7078
Hello from Down Under ~New Zealand way,
We are in the midst of winter here, but it is fairly mild. We are layering our clothes to keep warm and that has worked out well. Sometimes we need gloves, but not usually. Yesterday I saw a bit more of the city of Christchurch. It is a wonderful small city, and that is even in this not so great weather! Today we went west from Christchurch to try to find "Edoras" from the movie series of the Lord of the Rings. Well, although it was a grey, damp and cold day in Christchurch we found that the further we went west, the clearer it got and warmer as well. But we saw the most beautiful scenery that I think I have ever seen. Between snow covered mountains and beautiful teal colored water running through the gorges, I can't even describe how beautiful it was. We saw "Helms Deep" from the movie as well. It was quite a journey to get there, but well worth it. Unfortunately we weren't able to go to the top of Edoras, but maybe someday we can. On the way we saw so many sheep, a llama farm, several deer farms as they raise it for venison, cattle of all sorts and goats. We were able to take some pictures, and hopefully Tim will be able to send them to you soon. We will begin our sightseeing journey on Tuesday the 29th of June and then return home to the USA on the 9th of July,
I'm sorry that I hadn't explained to some of you about what we are doing here, but Tim had been asked recently to come to NZ to candidate for a position as a pastor of a Reformed Church here. Many of the members at this particular church are Dutch immigrants who came here after WW2. We met a man the other night who is 96! They are such hard workers, and very serious about their faith in the Lord. Then there are their children and grandchildren. There are two other Reformed churches in Christchurch, and quite a few others throughout New Zealand. As far as lifestyle, it is the way that the US used to be many years ago...but then it also has the modern things of today. It is refreshing to us though. Thankfully the US dollar is stronger than theirs, but it still does not make up for the high price of things. Not much is exported from here besides Kiwi fruit and lamb. The interior of houses is usually more contemporary and almost European-very functional.
I have been drinking a heap of hot tea-you hardly can have a meal without a hot beverage follow-up. My favorite thing to eat here is Pavlova. The people here go by the nickname "Kiwi", but if you are talking about the fruit or the bird you have to specify it by name.
It has all happened so fast that we didn't have time to let many of you know. I think we got the phone call at the beginning of June asking us to come mid June! That took some incredible fast work, but the Lord has made it happen. We do not know what the Lord will have us do, but we are listening for His voice in this whole matter. The older people are weary and desperately want a pastor, and have expressed to us how they approve wholeheartedly of Tim. They have been without a pastor for about 3 years, and even when he was with them it was a bit rocky. Tim would have his work cut out for him if he was called and accepted the call. We shall see! In the meantime we still have a home in Pensacola, FL, but many of you may not have our newest address and phone as we had to move in Feb. to a new place. It is:
117 Pintado Drive
Pensacola FL 32503
850-432-7078
So, please keep us in your prayers as we will be traveling in some snowy areas starting next week, and also regarding the decision if they do call Tim. We do have several other options for a job for Tim if this doesn't work out.
In Christ alone,
Georgie
Dear Family and friends,
We are having a bit of a hard time here in NZ since things are at a much slower pace, thus the reason I haven't been able to email sooner. They weren’t able to get it connected to the house where we are staying as of yet. As it is, I am limited on time since we have some pending appointments for today.
We have enjoyed our stay here, getting to know the people. Somedays I wonder if I am in NZ or in the Netherlands because at this church there are a lot of older immigrants from Holland, with Dutch names and heavy Dutch accents. They are very kind and loving. We have not been able to do much sightseeing yet since we are going to see many people in the church and having "shared meals" with them. The food here is different, but still very good. Definitely not gourmet! But, overall we like the slower lifestyle. It is just so far away from all of you, and we do miss you all, especially our immediate family, and our church family. If you all haven't heard, we are to be grandparents the beginning of 2011 which makes all of this decision much harder. I am evaluating everything based on "how long will it take me to get home" and "how often can I get there"! No, of course we are listening to the Lord and His will for us. They do seem to like us so far, but last night I was "interviewed" by a small Bible study group and started "spiderwebbing" which I don't think that the KIWIs like very much. I must learn to keep it short and sweet-hard for me if you know me at all. Before coming to the library where I am composing this, I went to the Museum which was very nice and also ducked into the Art Gallery. I must come back as I forgot the camera and they had a wonderful clothing exhibit that my girls would so love. It is strange not to have them at my side, and very sad for me... I miss you two!
I must close this now, but wanted to give you a little update. We are trying to plan for the following week in which we will be "SKI"ing -well, so to say...in Kiwi that means Spending the Kid's Inheritance! The Kiwi sense of humour takes a little getting used to, and I am still trying to work it all out. They are fun to be with!
We love you all and hope to be able to give a little more info soon. We have not run into "Bilbo" as of yet, but there are some very strange looking people here :) For those of you who don’t know who Bilbo is- he is a character from Lord of the Rings by J.R. Tolkien. The movies as well as the CS Lewis movies were filmed in NZ.
In Christ Alone,
Georgie
from Tim and Georgette Rott
June 27th
Pavlova is a dessert made of egg whites mainly, like meringues only in a large circle and covered with whipped cream and strawberries, or here in NZ, slices of Kiwi fruit. YUM! It is one of my favorites! NZ and Australia have an ongoing battle about who really “invented” Pavlova! The Aussies and Kiwis have a friendly rivalry going about many things.
Tim has preached here 4 times, and also delivered a devotion. He was also examined by the local Reformed Church pastors, and asked questions by the congregation on this past Thursday night. One man told one of the elders as he was leaving the church today "You'd better get a rope and tie that man up so he won't get away!" The older people come along side me and tell me that they really love us and hope that we will return. Some younger folks have also said this. Tim has preached some of the best sermons I have ever heard him preach. Time will tell what the Lord's plan is.
Tonight we invited whoever wanted to come to our "house" over after evening church for fellowship. We are staying in a small 1 bedroom retirement house- called Maranantha Homes-specifically built for the older people of this denomination in Christchurch. This one was vacant, so we have been able to stay here. We asked people to bring "finger food" (which is a term they use here as well) and also a mug. I served tea and coffee, and then trusted that God would add to the 5 dishes that I had provided. Well did He ever! There must have been at least 40 people(adults and children) happily crammed into this small dwelling of a small kitchen, living room/dining room combo and a small study. The older people sat while the younger folks were happy to stand and munch! The children were happily playing amongst each other. What a blessing to experience. So many of them said that I was very brave, but I really did not worry because I knew that the Lord would send whoever he wanted to be here as well as the food. Most of the food was eaten, but there were a few leftovers. I had made deviled eggs which they refer to as "filled eggs".
One of the Dutch women had made a loaf of Sultana Bread and gave it to us, which I sliced and put onto a plate. I also put out some cheese cubes and salami rounds, sliced apples, crackers with dip, and carrot slices with a dip. They eat a lot healthier here for the most part. There also seems to be a lot of Gluten intolerance here.
One of the young women who is pregnant with her 3rd child has a little boy of 4 who has named his unborn little brother "Weetbix" which is a strange kind of cereal- a hard rectangular block. When I asked Nathan how "Weetbix was, he said "he is still in Mummy's tummy" of course with the cutest little "Kiwi" accent!
Tomorrow is a clean up and packing day to get ready for the journey through the South part of the South island. There has not been much time for “touristing” up to this point. We'll begin by going through Arthurs's Pass to the Rainforest, then South to the Glaciers, and on to Queenstown for three nights. While there we will try to go to Milford Sound for a cruise to see the fiords. We then will go to Dunedin (the Scottish settled this area) and back up to Christchurch after a few more stops. I don't think that we will be "Bungee jumping" but we will have a few other exciting things happen I am certain. All of this if the Lord wills of course.
I'd best get some sleep for tomorrow-I want to take Tim to the Museum and Art Center in Christchurch before packing and cleaning. At the museum, I want to take Tim to the exhibit about “Paua Shells” pronounced like power with a NY accent! Please check this website about Fred and Myrtle and Paua shells. http://www.newzealand.org.nz/fred_and_myrtle.html Next, go to this site and view the video. You’ll be able to hear some Kiwis speaking about the house. http://www.3news.co.nz/Paua-shell-house-on-exhibition-in-new-Canterbury-home/tabid/209/articleID/61822/Default.aspx
Then after we go out with a wonderful couple form the church, we will meet with the elders to "debrief". (The couple took us to “Stickyfingers” but not like the restaurant chain in the US. We had delicious food; Tim tried NZ farm raised venison. It is strange to see a field of deer fenced in-a deer hunter’s dream-or maybe nightmare since you would be jailed for shooting one!)
Love in Christ alone.
Tim and Georgie
June 29th, 2010
Today, the first day of our true “holiday” in New Zealand we left Christchurch and traveled west through Arthur's Pass (mountains and snow covered at that, but fortunately none of the snow plows needed to be working today). Then when we reached the West coast, we entered the beach areas-black sand! and incredible waves. We also were in the Rainforest! We followed the coast south with the intent of seeing one of the two Glaciers. Providentially we made it to Fox Glacier by about 3 PM which allowed us to also go to Matheson Lake. As we looked at the Glacier, we also could see Mt Cook which is the tallest mountain in NZ. It is amazing to be standing in the rainforest, or near to it and looking at a glacier! We didn't know where we were going to stay, and God led us to the most wonderful place here at Fox Glacier. It is a "stand alone" Chalet that is a huge room with incredible decor, especially for NZ, and a kitchenette as well as a spa bath! I kidded with Tim and said that finally we were having our "honeymooon" after 37 years of marriage because it so reminds me of the Poconos which was the place to go 37 years ago! We were able to eat here at the chalet, but after a walk to see the Glowworms(an interesting story you should ask us about), we went to a hotel here which had been built in 1929 and shared a dessert of a caramelized banana split. This was not like an American banana split at all. One thing I have learned in NZ is not to expect what you are used to. We were able to see an incredible display of God's creation throughout our whole day, and it ended with seeing such an expanse of stars like I haven't seen since Lochness, Scotland. Tomorrow we are looking forward to opening our curtains to see Mt Cook right out our window. We are so grateful, and so undeserving of this wonderful opportunity to see such beauty all around. We will be staying with a brother and his wife of two of the elders at Christchurch near Queenstown. Queenstown is a ski resort in the winter, so it is very crowded, and evidently very expensive-so we are grateful to be able to stay with Robyn and Tony. He is building a house that is 7,000 Sq ft! We don't plan to ski except as I said before, Spending Kid's Inheritance=SKI. Stay tuned for our next update and thank you for praying for us while we drive on the "wrong" side of the road.
Dear Family and friends,
Kia Ora~ that is the Maori way of saying Hello or welcome,
The Maoris are the people who lived on New Zealand originally. It was Dutch navigator Abel Tasman who came and called it New Zealand (sea land). The Maoris still live here, but there are not any pure Maoris left. There are some problems between some people and the Maoris, but what is new! There is always an underdog.
On Wednesday we drove to our present location of Queenstown. We had been invited to stay with some more people from the Reformed Church (an elder and his wife who are here for two years while he builds a house for a very wealthy man). They have been so gracious to the point of giving us their bedroom to sleep in. We insisted not, but they would not have it any other way. They are renting this house. It is in a very nice area, in fact you look out of their lounge or dining room picture windows and see snow covered mountains. One of the mountain ranges is called the"The Remarkables" and boy are they.
Thursday morning we went on a bus/boat tour of the Milford Sound- the Fiordlands. It was another incredible day with indescribable beauty all from the Lord's creation. Waterfalls all over and some rainbows too; some seals "sunbathing" on some rocks.
Today (Friday the 2nd of July-Tiffany's birthday) we went on a Lord of the Rings Tour. It was just Tim, myself and a 17 year old girl from Poland who were taken to many different locations where the film was filmed. There is nothing left there now as far as movie props, but our guide describes himself as a LOTR "geek" and he really gets into the whole thing giving many behind the scenes details. It was very enjoyable, and we would recommend it for anyone who is coming and is a real LOTR fan-ask us about how to get Bob as your guide. Please pray for Bob as he told us that he is an atheist, and Tim was given the opportunity to share the gospel with him. Tonight we took Robyn and Tony out for dinner as a thank you and a birthday dinner for Tony. What a precious couple. They have a 28 year old daughter who works with ELIC (English Language in China) in Tibet, a 26yr old son married and he and his wife are expecting their first baby in a month, another son,24 and another daughter, 21.
Tomorrow, Saturday we leave for Dunedin, and Tim will be preaching there on Sunday morning. On Sunday night we will go to Omaru to be at their Sunday night service and then stay with the pastor and his wife who are originally from the US but have lived here for 25 years. We hope to be able to email you again on Monday or Tuesday...but til then, please stay sweet and know that we are appreciating your prayers.
Love,
Tim and Georgie
PS I am adding this since I am just getting to send this out and we are now in Dunedin. We saw the only castle in New Zealand-Larnach Castle www.larnachcastle.co.nz/page.pasp?which is on the Otago peninsula overlooking Dunedin. We are staying at the manse of the church where Tim will be preaching tomorrow. It is interesting how differently NZ people live. For instance, they do not have central heat (brrrrr)-usually only a "heat pump"(a localized elctric heater) in the lounge. Then they put an electric blanket on the bed, turn it on right before you climb in, and switch it off when you go to bed. We really don't want to take showers because it is so cold in the bathrooms( but we have, don't worry :). Also, the neighborhoods here just don't compare to most American nicer neighborhoods. We in the USA are so spoiled.
Dinner was at an elder's house and Connie, his wife, made a delicious meal for us. We brought dessert so that she wouldn't have to bother. After dinner, again we were thrilled that one of the children brought the Bible to the father and then a passage was read and questions concerning the passage were asked.
Tomorrow Tim is preaching from Habakkuk and I can hardly wait to be fed with The Word!
Dear Family and Friends,
We returned home safely on Friday, the 9th of July at 12:08 AM (central) toNew Orleans, LA where we picked up our van and returned back to Pensacola,FL at about 4:00 AM. Unfortunately, we had looked at the dates wrong whenplanning this trip and I was scheduled to work on that Friday to be there at6:30 AM. Praise God that I was able to get there in time and not "hurt"anyone while cleaning their teeth!To continue the NZ experience I will pick up with Sunday, July 4, 2010 inDunedin, NZ. Tim preached at the Reformed Church in Dunedin, and thefeeding from the Word of God was very good; he preached from the book ofHabakkuk(which they pronounce differently). They are also looking for a
pastor, but have a candidate coming soon from the US. One older mancornered Tim and said "just remember, the Christchurch congregation doesn'thave you yet!" The people there were extremely kind and sociable. While inDunedin, we were able to visit The Olveston House, a beautiful home
http://www.olveston.co.nz/home. I encourage you to take the tour online!Anyway, we made it to the Oamaru church for Sunday evening worship wherethere is an American pastor and his wife, but they have been in NZ for 27years. He is a dynamic preacher and he and his wife have 7 or 8 children,all but one are married and are living in NZ. After spending a restfulnight with them, and having a delicious breakfase, we saw Historic Oamaru
www.historicoamaru.co.nz/ After aMagnum Ice Cream Bar (a favorite we discovered while living in England) for "elevensies" as said by the Hobbits, we started ourjourney to Mt. Cook, the highest mountain in NZ. On our journey on the onlyroad to get to the base of Mt Cook, we had to stop our vehicle for oncomingsheep. They were all the way across the road and then some. What fun tosee them part around our car like the parting of the Red Sea-BAAAA! Theywere followed by their shepherd and at least 3 "sheep" dogs of differentbreeds. Mt Cook is where the famous Sir Edmund Hillary (b 1919 in AucklandNZ) practiced climbing before being the first man to climb Mt Everest in1953. Leaving Mt Cook we saw a beautiful little church called the Church ofthe Good Shepherd and then made it to our final destination of AshfieldHouse
http://www.ashfield.co.nz/Home.html where we would spend the night.They directed us to a wonderful place to eat in the same town calledAlexander's where Tim was able to get his favorite~Ribs! They were donedifferently, but exquisitely. Ashfield House was a wonderful spot on ourway home-a bit pricey, but well worth the cost. Their grounds were aswonderful as the house, eventhough this is the worst time of year to visit.The hosts, Bev and Mike and their two Bichons- Toby and Digby couldn't havebeen more wonderful. What was even more wonderful was that we were theironly guests that night. After a game of Billiards in their very relaxingBilliard room, we headed on to Akaroa, a quaint little fishing town.Although the weather was not perfect, it still allowed for some wonderfulmemories and of course, more pictures.Our last night before returning to Christchurch where we commenced ourjourney was spent with Paul and Sally Davey. Paul owns a Pig farm-only8,000! as well as 2100 merino sheep. Sally is quite the writer and leadswomen's Bible studies as well as writes articles for the Faith in Focusmagazine of the Reformed Churches of New Zealand. The Daveys have been awonderful host and hostess to some very special people within the PCAdenomination like Morton Smith, Joey Pipa, Susan Hunt and probably more thatI am not aware of. After a fun meal of pizza and chocolate chip cookies, wetalked until midnight. The next morning we were treated to the freshest"streaky" bacon you could ever want. Then Paul took us out to see somesheep being sheered. The Bible verse "As a sheep before her shearers isdumb, so he openeth not his mouth."-Isaiah 53:7, is so true. The sheep andram that were being sheared were like they were in a coma as it washappening. Then we set out for the pigs-and did we see quite an assortmentfrom little piglets running and squeeling to the very big ones. We even gota picture of a "dalmation" pig(the name I gave to it). It was time to return to Christchurch and repack our suitcases. We had alovely overnight stay with another church family, more great meals, as wellas "tea", games with their three children and then it was time to leave thisamazing land not knowing what the Lord has planned for our lives for Hishonor and His glory.Thank you for enjoying our trip with us and especially for praying for us while in NZ. We look forward to hearing from you either by phone or email! I will be putting up my blog with pictures from the trip, hopefully tomorrow(Saturday, the 17th of July). Go to:
Joyfulgeorgie.blogspot.com sometime in the afternoon of the 17th!
Lovingly with prayers for you,Tim and GeorgiePS I almost got us in big trouble when we went through customs in LA. I had forgotten that I had bought an orange at the Auckland Airport, intending to eat it on the plane over, but forgot. Bringing fruit or veggies back into a country is a big no-no with a $300 fine attached to it. Praise God that He kept us from having to pay that horrific fine!
PSS-It was so wonderful to be with Pablo, Shannon and baby D (now 16 weeks in Utero) on Saturday. We had many hugs and "I missed you so very muches" trying to make up for 3 weeks of being so far away! Our Tiffany will return on Sunday night (18th)from Masterworks in Indiana, but while Pablo, Shannon and baby D were here we did "Skype" her! It was great to see her joyful face and hear her sweet laughter.
sorry that this has taken so long. but we have been having trouble with recovering from jet lag
