My Beautiful Family and Friends,
I can’t thank you enough for all of the love and support that you have shown me these last 5 months, it has meant the world to me. Seriously this race and with being away from my home you all have made it so much easier through your encouragement. The prayers coming from all of you is what I feel the most, I can’t fully explain in words the way I have been so moved by feeling your prayers and thus your presence on this race. You all are behind me and going through these things with me and it has made all the difference.
I have just finished debrief in Lilongwe, Malawi which is where our coaches, Selena and Chuck Day, and some staff from the World Race came out to pour into us and encourage us as we have almost hit the half way mark. This last few days has been a HUGE time of unity for our squad and personal growth also. The Lord definitely taught me volumes about stepping into this new season of peace and joy last month and then this week I have literally felt my heart exploding with that joy. Honestly a lot of the time when our whole squad is together I feel overwhelmed and pulled every direction but this week has been phenomenal and I bawled this morning leaving everyone.
Some of you may know, some may not, but one of our teams got in a very bad car accident 2 weeks ago…the tire of the mini bus they were in blew out, the driver over compensated, they slid and then flipped 3 times…Tommy (not the Tommy on my team) the team leader was thrown from the mini bus and the vehicle landed on top of him. As his team climbed out all they could see where Tommy’s legs sticking out from underneath the bus, it did not look good…3 of their teammates with a strength from God lifted the bus off of him and another teammate pulled him out. The story is an amazing story and I would encourage you all to check it out on my friends’ blog at natalieswartzendruber.theworldrace.org. I will tell you, they are a living testimony of God’s healing hands and restoration as they literally saw Tommy being healed as they traveled to 2 different hospitals. Their team is doing great and seeing them this week all walking and out of the hospital was powerful.
God is doing AMAZING things out here around the world. I am seeing the body of Christ and the strength of it around the world, getting to share God’s love with some that have never heard, and getting to come along side ministries to help and encourage them in where God has placed them to serve for His Kingdom. We are all VERY excited to tell you we will be headed to Johannesburg, South Africa to serve at Door of Hope Orphanage for the next 4 weeks with 54 children all under the age of 5! We will be doing Christmas with them and we are SO excited to help out this amazing ministry! I will write more when we fine out more details.
Our team is growing and choosing in to loving each other with a depth, strength, and sincerity that I have not seen before. Seven strangers coming together, serving beside each other, living life together, having tough loving conversations, pushing each other more towards the cross and worshiping our precious Savior together has truly inspired, touched, and changed my life and the way I will forever view friendships and what it means to come alongside people and live life together as the Body of Christ. Our team is at SUCH a good place right now with how we love and challenge each other more and more each day. I can’t tell you how blessed I am to have them as my family out here on the world race…I have seriously been given such a gift from God with each one of them. And we just found out yesterday that these will be the teams that we will spend the next 6 months with!
With that I humbly come to you asking you all to really lift my teammates up in prayer. Two of my seven teammates, Kameron Kissinger and Tommy Shireman, are in danger of going home in 25 days, December 31st. At this point I honestly can’t fathom loosing either of them. This is why I am asking you for your prayers and if God puts it on your heart to come along side them financially. These two boys are a HUGE part of our team and the way the lead our team, fight for people around the world and their team, and they each have their own very special gifts that makes this team whole. At this point this is how much they need by December 31st and here are their blogs:
Tommyshireman.theworldrace.org $4,007
Kameron Kissinger.theworldrace.org $3,554
After this money is raised they will be fully funded for the rest of the race. Yes, over $7,000 in 25 days is a lot of money but I am believing in faith that God will provide for them in full and what God started He will see to completion with the ways He has called them to serve. Please send their blogs to your friends, family, and churches because I have found you just never know, God has used MANY strangers to support me on this mission trip and I believe he can do it again. I don’t know if you all knew this or not but on this squad I serve as the “financial support person” which means I update our squad about their support and what they still need, encourage our squad to rally behind our teammates in need, and in prayer really fight for financial support on this squad. I have been blessed in this position and seen God do AMAZING things! As you have come behind me in everything else please come behind me now this next month to help me fight for my teammates and my squad J
Thank you guys so very much for EVERYTHING you have done for me, I can’t thank you enough for all you do and all you have done. You amaze me. Miss you tons and tons. Love, Emily
