I am happy to say that with the help of everyone who donated before September 25th, we successfully passed my first goal of raising $4,000!! Woohoo!
I would like to give a huge thank you to each and every one of you who has so generously supported me so far! We are a quarter of the way there!
I wanted to write a blog about my fund raising journey so far. In a word, it has been challenging. In several words, it has been difficult, a test of my faith, and freeing. Allow me to elaborate.
Fundraising any amount of money is always challenging. Money is a hard subject to talk about. But even deeper, it has challenged my faith. I’ve said this before, but because I cannot afford something like this on my own, I have to call on my faith family. And there is something about not being in control of meeting my goals that makes me completely rely on the Lord for Him to provide! It has been freeing knowing that I have to let go of everything to completely let God take control. When I start to doubt or worry about meeting a fundraising goal, the only person I can turn to is God and KNOW that He is completely in control of it. I’ve recently been reminded that just because things don’t go my way doesn’t mean they aren’t going exactly the way He planned them to go.
I’d also like to update you about my gear. I received a couple of gracious donations specifically for gear, and I am happy to say I have everything I’ll be taking on the trip! Some friends and I were able to make a quick trip to Dallas last weekend to visit REI, where I got most of my gear, and the rest I ordered online when I returned home. Thank you, thank you, thank you for everyone who has helped make this happen so far!
So, speaking of goals… My next goal is $6,000 more by December 18th (for a total of $10,000 so far). If you were not able to give before the first goal, that’s perfectly okay! I’ll still be fundraising for a while. I have a few ideas of events to help me reach my next goal, so stay tuned to my blog and Facebook updates for more information!
