Today is the day. All my to-do lists items are checked off, my goodbyes are said, and my bags are packed. People keep asking me how I feel about leaving and I answer in a wide array of adjectives depending on the day, but always with a follow up of, “but who knows how I’ll be come launch day”. And today is that day. And I cannot explain to you how it feels.
There’s no one word to describe scared, excited, terrified, nervous, eager, sad, and peaceful all at once. But after a long period of prep time, I am ready. A friend recently reminded me about Peter stepping off the boat when Jesus was walking on water. After Jesus called to him in the midst of a huge storm, Peter jumped off the boat and walked on the water with Jesus. But, when Peter noticed the wind and the waves around him, he started to sink and sweet Jesus swiftly reached out His hand and pulled him back up.
Well…I think that’s what a lot of this year is going to look like. This is probably my first of many jumps to make. And again, it’s gonna be scary and weird and not normal. And yes, staying in the boat would be more comfortable, might make more sense, would be the safe thing to do. But man to walk on water – I bet Peter would say that was so ETERNALLY worth it. I’m taking a jump, praying that the Spirit reminds me that He is right beside me to grab my hand when I start to sink and confidently knowing that the Lord has so much MORE in store for me and my squad these next 11 months. SO, here I go. Atlanta, Georgia -> Santiago, Chile -> Calama, Chile
Here’s a few Q&As that people have asked me that I wanted to include in case y’all are interested:
- HOW TO COMMUNICATE: I WILL have WIFI. Unsure how much, but pleeeeeease text me (if you have an iphone this will be the best method of communication) or email me! Can’t promise you when or how long of a response you’ll get, but I promise to try my best. I’ll also be updating this weekly sooooo if you are reading this you are in the right place :–)
- WHAT AM I BRINGING? A 70 L backpack, 28 L daypack, and my Kavu (mixture of a purse & backpack). What’s inside? About 10 days worth of clothes, minimal toiletries, a tent / sleeping bag / sleeping pad / pillow, towel, my CAMERA + accessories, journal and my bible, eno, and a bunch of little things here and there. This was HARD for me. I unpacked and packed my bags like 5 times and had to keep taking things out to make my pack lighter. BUT, it is finally done and the Lord has given me peace about it.
- WHAT COUNTRIES AM I GOING TO? So here’s the list in order, but it could potentially change – Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Cambodia, Thailand, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda
- DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MY SQUAD AND MY TEAM: My SQUAD = 49 people who will be in the same countries as my team (see above) and whom we will see every six(ish) weeks for Debrief. My TEAM = 7 awesome girls (including me) who I’ll be doing ministry with day in and day out. Their blogs are on the left-hand side of the browser. All of them are so wonderful and I cannot wait to serve alongside them!
