Touring and Relaxing
Myvatn
Icelandic horses in Myvatn
Geothermal pool, Myvatn. This water is too hot to swim in!!
The last few days (don't ask what days...we are rather lost in that area!) have been days of touring and relaxing. We spent two days in Myvatn, located in the North Eastern part of the county. there is a beautiful lake there which we really couldn't see because all iced over! There would have been some nice hiking to craters and through lava fields...but it was snowing and Stephany fell on her bum whilst walking on the snow. Bummer! (No worries, she is ok; Just a bit of a bruise).
Jarbodin spa....
We also enjoyed two wonderful meals at the local Cowshed cafe' (Yes, that IS the name of the cafe.) Included with the meal was the local delight: Volcano bread, a bread that is cooked in the hot volcanic/hot spring ground. The food is great and you can sit at the windows overlooking the Lake and the fields where the lambs were hopping around playing gleefully OR...you could sit by the windows and watch the cows in the shed being milked, eating, etc. Both times during our meal a waitress came with samples of milk fresh-from-the-cow. Yummy and warm!Godafoss!!!!
Godafoss, the "Waterfall of the gods". What a place! Another assignment from the Lord to blow the shofar. Godafoss was named in the year 2000 when the Law Speaker of the Icelandic parliment threw his pagan idols into the falls after proclaiming Iceland toi be a Christian nation. Beautiful, Stunning!!
Aqureyri and Varmahlid
After Myvatin we traveled over the snow-laden and beautiful Northern pass to Varmahild via Aqureyri, the second largest city in Iceland. We thought we were going to walk around the town...we thought! The city was very dark--neither of us liked and we couldn't get out there fast enough. we found (finally) a place to have lunch and then we thought we would check the modernistic (1940) church that was close to the restaurant. With the help of the GPS we navigated through the confusing city streets (there were many one-way streets and unfamiliar traffic signs) to the church building. There was absolutely NO PLACE to park. Besides that, the feeling at the church property was demonic and I decided to get outta dodge! Later Fridrik told us that the area of Aqureyri has an abundance of Spiritualist activity (seances, spiritualist healings, etc.) which infiltrated the Icelandic churches a few decades ago (70s-80s). This teaching was, as I recall, brought in by a well-known American Minister who declared that the Spiritualistic (i.e. from evil spirits) was the true supernatural that the church has been seeking.On to Varmahlid
We then continued on to our evening destination of a wonderful cabin at Hestasport. A nice little hot spring fed hot tub awaited us.The God-Connection
The next morning we head to the West Coastal town of Stykkisholmr where we stay in the lovely Sundabakki Guesthouse which is also the home of Gudmundur and his wife Svava . (An interesting note: In Iceland, the wife does NOT take the lastname of the husband but the children do.)
Gudmundur (his name means 'good hands') met us and showed us our room. After we brought in our luggage and began to leave to see the port town Svava came running out to the car to say hello offer to show us the Guesthouse (she had been occupied with the numerous other guests that were leaving when we arrived) and assure us that we could enjoy the upstairs sitting room located on the floor where they stayed and we had our room. We graciously thanked her and assured her that we would enjoy her hospitality upon our return. We enjoy our walk in town and a wonderful meal of seafood soup and then return to the Guesthouse. We are welcomed by Svana and begin a wonderful evening of chatting with Svava and Gudmunder as though we were old friends being reunited. I talk about the wonderful beauty of God's creation as seen here in Iceland and, at one point in the conversation, Svana mentions that she enjoyed watching Joyce Meyer (an American Minister) on TV. This is an obvious opportunity to go deeper in talking about the Lord. We could tell that there was a hunger in Svana's heart for more of God and I recalled the time of prayer at a Leadership meeting for ROLCF where someone stated that people would sense the glory of the Lord upon us. Svava was sensing God and wanted more!
The God-given gift of hospitality is evident in Svava as she offered us tea, coffee, wonderful home-made rhubarb cake-bars and much conversation about America, Iceland, family, a little bit of politics and Christianity. She later told us that we were always welcome at her home, that she loved the time we spent together and was SO Glad we came to her home.
At one point in our evening conversation Stephany mentioned that she was not raised in a Christian home and asked Jesus into her life when she was older. This caught Svava's attention and she later asked Stephany if we would pray for her! Svana knew God as a child and would pray to Jesus every night when she was young (as she spoke this, she was tapping her heart with her hand) and now she wanted us to pray for her. Stephany told her that we would pray for her in the morning.
What a wonderful morning! Breakfast was great (more Rhubarb cakes) and Svava insisted that we make sandwiches for our trip and gave us the remaining Rhubarb cake in a plastic container. YUM!!!
After breakfast we had a time of taking photos or each other and then enter the "upper room" for prayer. We prayed blessings, long life, health, God-encounters and more over Svava and her family (she has 14 grandchildren, 13 boys and 1 girl!). Svava was so blessed by the prayer and she mentioned that she actually felt a warmth all through her body as we prayed. We kissed goodbye and "bless bless"!! Wonderful God!
Stephany and Svana
What breathtaking pictures and what inspiring stories of friendliness and minestry. Keeping you two gals in my thoughts and prayers. I really enjoy your posts.
ReplyDelete-Liz