(or Hello from Vietnam!)
Sorry for the delayed blog…the past 2 weeks have been a whirlwind! From saying goodbye to our Malawian family (and Africa as a whole), to 3 flights, debrief, team changes, a 20+ hour bus ride, and settling in to a new routine in a new country (and a new continent), I am finally in Da Nang, Vietnam where I will be serving the next few weeks.
Team Overflow’s month in Malawi was bittersweet because it was our last month as a team, as well as our last month in Africa. We served hard and cherished every moment we had together. We LOVED our hosts and helping to pioneer Youth For Christ Malawi. We also got to celebrate Thanksgiving by preparing a meal for 30 people!
As I reflect on my last 4 months, I am filled with pure joy. I went deeper in my walk with the Lord, had lots of laughs, and held allllll the babies! Sure, some days were long and hard, but even in those times, I learned to never give up and how to persevere through the trials (& those times gave me more appreciation for America).
Once our squad arrived in Vietnam, we had a 4-day debrief in Vung Tau with our mentor, alumni squad leaders, and our coaches! During this time, we shared our experiences from Africa plus had team changes!
My new team is Team BiP a.k.a. Bachelorettes in Paradise. So basically, there are 6/7 Bachelorettes + me 🙂 You should visit their blogs: (passwords in parenthesis)
(Top: Me, Averie, Nicole Bottom: Carley, Esther, Brooke)
Esther Pinto – estherpinto.theworldrace.org (xsquad2019)
Nicole Mitchell – nicolemitchell.theworldrace.org (imisschipotle)
Averie Armbrust – averiearmbrust.theworldrace.org (xsquad2019)
Brooke Holt – brookeholt.theworldrace.org (xsquad19)
Carley Travis – carleytravis.theworldrace.org (travis19)
Layne Seyland – layneseland.theworldrace.org
3 of my teammates are still fundraising!!!! If you wish to partner with them for a tax-deductible donation, please visit Brooke’s, Averie’s, and/or Layne’s blog that I posted above! Help keep them on the field with me in Asia!
Also, pray for my teammate, Layne, she had to go back to home at the beginning of month 4 in Malawi due to health issues. Pray for her body to be healed and for her to be able to return to Asia to minister with us!
My team is serving in Da Nang, Vietnam this month. We are partnering with our host, Sherman, by connecting with expats in the city (expats are people who live/are visiting Vietnam) and building relationships with them, as well as locals, so that once the relationship is established we can share the Gospel. In Vietnam, I have religious freedom to worship, however, I cannot openly evangelize local people due to government regulations, so that why building a strong relationship first is so important. We also serve in different English clubs and the local called here.
So far, I love Vietnam. The country itself, as well as the people are beautiful. I can’t wait to see what the Lord does in this country!
Thank you all for the continued support!
Much love, AC
