Hello All!
Wow. I'm really doing this!! This has already been the most incredible experience and I'm not even close to leaving yet! God has shown me such provision and guidance– I am truly amazed by His love. I guess I will share a little bit about how this all came about. So here it goes…
Ever since I graduated college (May 2010), I had a tug on my heart that God wanted me to be overseas. For a long time, I thought it was India and actually planned on going this past fall. But because it wasn't right… it didn't happen. When I moved back to the Chicago area in August, I was constantly wondering and praying why God brought me here. I knew I was in the right place for now, but I also knew that it wouldn't be for long. So I began to pray that God would speak through my friends and family to guide me in the right direction. One day I got a bit frustrated, and a little annoyed with God and prayed that he would speak up already…and he did. Within days, I received a text message from a friend saying that I was on his mind and that he had been praying for me and he felt that he should tell me to be patient and that God has great plans for me . A few days later, my dear friend Katie told me to look into Adventures in Missions. Her friend was doing a 4 month trip to Uganda, and she thought maybe I should look into it for India.
I was thrilled by this idea. I jumped on the website and found the four month trips… but they were only for college students. Then I clicked on the link for adult and family trips. These were only for 10-14 days, and I knew in my heart I was supposed to go on a longer trip. This left me with the World Race link. Crap. I knew several people who had done it before, but I never considered it for myself. I always thought "yeah, it sounds great, except it's TONS of money and it's just too long." So when I clicked on the link I just kept thinking " no way, no way, no way…I'm not doing this." But I prayed about it anyway.
At the time, I was doing a study on Peter. The study really focused in on how God was using Peter to start the church. He is often called the rock of the church. About week after I first went on the website, I decided to pick up a book my sister had given me about a girl who became a missionary in Uganda. When I got to a certain journal entry she had written…I knew that it was no coincidence. The entry started with " I am Peter. I am the rock of the Church." Tears immediately filled my eyes, because I knew what I was being called to do. The entry ended with her saying " I am Peter. You are Peter. Jesus demands that we GO and feed his sheep. So go."
And I'm going.
Once we take that first step of faith, everything else just falls into place. I have been SO humbled by the doors that God has opened for me. Once I made the decision to go, my friends and family were more supportive than I could ever imagine. Their words and actions just affirmed my decision ten times over. This entire time, God has just been asking me to trust him, and now that I have I am just amazed and astounded by his grace. I sent out my support letters last Tuesday, and by Friday I got a call saying the rest of my trip is taken care of. I have my full support!!!! GOD IS SO GOOD. And I am so excited to see what he has planned for me in this next year and a half.
