On Christmas Eve we went to another city to help out the salvation army with like a Christmas dinner that they do for refugees and people seeking political asylum (its like people who had to escape from their countries because of war and they cant live with the rest of the population or work, so they like do nothing). Anyways it was one of the most meaningful touching Christmas experiences of my life! I started by just talking to some young men that were there, they were from all over, Africa, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Romania etc…they were so broken and hopeless. No one wanted them, loved them, and now they were stuck in Iceland! It was like prison to them. My heart broke for them because my dad was exactly like them. Here is my dads story: During the Vietnam War my dad was sent to Poland to study ship engineering. While he was studying he fell in love with the west and europe and freedom and he didnt want to go back. So he escaped and fled and spent many years running and hiding from the police. He ended up in a refugee camp in Austria just like these guys in Iceland. Then on Christmas Eve some YWAMers came to the camp and was sharing the Christmas Gospel with him and he gave his heart to God because he was so hopeless. A few weeks later he was accepted to go to Canada and thats why I am here now!

So now here I am, 30 years later talking to guys who were in my dad’s shoes…on Christmas Eve! It was like I went back in time and was looking at my Dad! It was so crazy and I was so moved. Before the dinner I was asked to share the Christmas Gospel with them. When I was sharing it I almost started to cry because I thought that if someone like me didn’t come and share God’s love with my dad I might not be here or living a different kind of life. And then I read a part of the Christmas story that my dad says changed his life forever and I almost couldn’t read it cause my throat was all choked up! It was so so so amazing…remember how we were talking about how God prepares us? Even years before? It was what I was thinking, so amazing! How I was born into a family of an immigrant refugee, and now I can relate to these guys and have power to speak into their situation that others dont have! It was a huge blessing and some of the guys that were there were so encouraged and blessed and felt God’s love on Christmas to me I felt more blessed and God was so good and I felt so close to my father and my parents even though we are so far away.