Greenland

Before I traveled to Greenland I had only heard that the name, “Greenland”, came from the Norse settler (Eric the red) who tried to convince others to follow him back and populate the island. I guess by telling them it was a “green” land captured their interest and made them want to accompany him there. I knew the island was big and cold, but that’s about all I knew. I recently retuned from a trip there in July. I traveled there with two other people from the mission I work with and a man from the Faeroe Islands, who acted as our guide.

I had met Pall Poulsen (our guide from the Faeroe Islands) a few months ago in Torshamn (the capital city of the Faeroe Islands). At that time we talked about the possibilities of Greater Europe Mission and the Brethren Denomination of the Faeroe Islands working together on a project in Greenland. The idea sounded great because Greater Europe Mission in very interested in collaboration. We are interested in assisting national denominations and Christian organizations in Europe with the work that God is calling them to do.

We traveled in Greenland for 7 days and had a good time learning about the island and the Inuit culture. We saw the work that the Faeroe Islands Christian workers were doing on the island and tried to explore ways that our mission could assist. All and all we had a great time. Make sure you check out the pictures from our trip on the right side of my blog under links. The nature of Greenland is really unique and beautiful, the towns are quaint and colorful and people we met were friendly. Greenland has been under home rule since 1979 and at the same time still has very close connections with Denmark.

I hope to return to Greenland soon and have a part in what the Lord is doing there. All the details are not clear and it will take time to find the best ways of assisting the work there. As a regional director for Greater Europe Mission in the Nordic/Baltic countries I continue to learn about the 8 countries in my region and their contact and impact in other places in Europe and abroad. One thing I know for sure, as I travel and visit in my region, is that God is at work! He loves the peoples of Europe and is drawing them into a relationship with Himself.