Kristen Russ

          The last year of school in Norway is especially more exciting than in any other place that I have heard of before. Once you are in your last year you immediately become what they call "Russ". When you are Russ you are allowed to do anything you want because you are young and it's ok for you to do it. Fun usually comes wrapped up in doing as many challenges as you can so you can gain a knot to tie around your hat. The more knots you have, the better. The challenges can go from having to sit underneath your desk during a whole class to running naked in your school campus. However this fun tradition hasn't turned out as great as it sounds. There are a lot of dark things that happen during the festivals that happen during "Russetid". Young people often get drunk, take way too many drugs which ends up being very dangerous for them. Many of the challenges also involve having sex with as many people as you can or kissing all the boys in school. Sadly there are also a lot of girls who end up being raped during festivals.

          In the midst of all this darkness there is a light. Three organizations in Norway decided to form a group for Christian students also called "Kristen Russ" (Christian Russ) or "Kruss" who don't want to be a part of the "dark side" of this celebration. Their motto is "Together and present we will make a difference." Being Kruss is not about separating yourself from everyone but being present and being a light in the darkness so that people will see Jesus. In September my friend Thea and I went around Norway in a Kick-Off tour for Kruss. We went to 17 different cities to gather those who made a decision to make a difference in their group of friends, their schools and their city. We were able to share about all the activities we host that they could take a part of by being Kruss and also encourage them to create their own activities to become a community that shines their light before others. I also had the chance to preach in some places. The message I shared was also being shared by many other preachers in the churches we visited all over Norway. I was so encouraged to see that when God has a message to share, He doesn't just do it in one place but he makes it happen in the whole nation! It was truly amazing to see so many young people with a big desire to stand up for their faith and be an example of love and kindness to their friends.

          Our tour was so great! I learned a lot about bringing God into every situation we encountered and that was thanks to my friend Thea. She is such an amazing and inspiring friend. Her relationship with God and with others really challenged me to become more involved with what God can do when seek Him. When we drove from place to place we talked about what we have learned about God and how He has set us free. This lead us to have prayer times for every Kick-Off event we had. We experienced how God would change the atmosphere of our meetings and the response we got from the youth in every place we went to. Even though it was tiring to travel every day the whole trip was so worth it just to see that God is doing something among the young people in Norway and we get to be a part of it!


Here are some pictures from the trip!

Trondheim

Trondheim

Trondheim

Molde

Ålesund

Bodø

Tromsø