Dear praying friends,

Wow - it is hard to believe that we have been back for a little over a week already! We were able to spend most of last week getting our apartment set up and getting over jetlag. We met with our team for lunch, and I got my desk back in our office space set up again.

This week, on Monday, we came back into the office, and it feels like it has been a sprint since then! There has been a lot to catch up on and we needed to do some reallocation of tasks now that we are back to help with some of the on-site load. We also have new teammates landing next week, so we are preparing for them to arrive! We are navigating some challenging situations related to the challenge of getting appointments at the visa offices in Berlin.

Coming back to a familiar place is always a bit of a challenge. You know things have changed in the time you have been gone, but you don't always know what those things are. Some are easy to see - like the Asian grocery store where there used to be a bike shop. Others are harder to discover, like whether the people you used to see on your morning walks are on vacation, have moved, or are no longer living. Some things are discovered at surprising times - like when people reference events that you were not a part of. We are experiencing all of that as we return.

Here are some prayer requests:

1. Please pray for us to get some solutions to the visa challenges we are facing as a site. The primary problem is that the Visa office in Berlin is understaffed and overtaxed. It's a horrible combination, which results in people not getting responses to their visa applications for months (and months and MONTHS.) The "automatic extension" that comes with the visa application has caused some stress for interns as they try to travel. It is an untenable situation, and we need to find a solution.
2. We knew returning would bring some stressful adjustments. It has been a lot right away. Please pray for us to find a rhythm in the middle of the craziness of the coming weeks.
3. Pray for safe arrival of our new teammates!

Thanks for your prayers!

mike