Wednesday, October 18, 2006

She has returned

I am finally back in Denver. I am glad to be back as this traveling for over two weeks has worn me out and made me miss consistency in schedule. Back to routine. There's something comforting in that!

We arrived in Buckley, MI to freezing cold weather and about 8 inches of snow. Target met us head on as we picked up some much needed scarves, hats and gloves. The whole time we were in Michigan we were hearing about how Denver was having 80 degree weather. We were anxious to get back to that. That was short-lived though. We arrived Monday night with it feeling nice. Tuesday morning greeted us with cold weather and by lunch time it was snowing and a mere 30 degrees. This morning I awoke to 25 degree weather and a car covered in ice. It took me forever to pull open my car door:)

The following happened while I was away:

1) Caleb and Jessica Bislow had their little baby boy, Joshua Trace. He is adorable and so tiny!
2) I booked my flight to East Asia scheduled to leave November 8th for a survey trip.
3) The cops broke into our apartment and stormed through it with guns!

And so today...kidding...I'll explain the last one.

Our very interesting neighbors hadn't seen me or my roomate for a while and so they thought to themselves, "Hmmm, maybe their dead in there." So instead of calling the apartment complex they called 911 and told them that something had happened to us and they needed to come over and check it out. So the police come over to our apartment and break in. They opened every door in the apartment and stormed through with guns raised high. (All of this with our front door wide open for our neighbors to gawk and stare. They called our emergency contacts and we had all of these people calling us making sure we weren't dead. What an ordeal!

But hey, at least we know that if something does happen to us someone will notice and do something about it. Life is so crazy!

I had lunch with my friend, Becky, yesterday. Her husband is currently in India so she and I had a little girl time since I had the day off. We went to this restaurant that I've been dying to try called The House of Commons. The address says it's on 15th St. but it's actually located on Platte. It's an English Tea House and it's adorable. Everything is shipped in from England and it's delicious. About 30 different teas are given as choices for hot or iced tea. They have scones and other English desserts and sandwiches that are wonderful. An English woman owns it. They do afternoon tea as well. Anyway, I'm getting side-tracked. Becky and I were there 2 1/2 hours! We talked about when she and Norm were dating at Moody Bible Institute and we talked about what God was doing in our lives and we talked about the future. We laughed a lot and ate good food and watched the snow fall on the streets of Denver.

Yesterday was such a wonderful day for me. I experienced so many little things that really made me want to thank God. I had lunch with a dear friend. I experienced Denver's first snow fall before I left. I got to see a new life brought into the world. I got to pray and be there for a friend whose father just died. I got to laugh and congratulate a friend who just got engaged. Those little things you know. They make life worth living. They make me thankful that God is who He is. He is joy. He is peace. He is comfort. He is life. "Just remember God as much as you can." ~Dave Ward Live life. Love doing it. Remember God has much as you can. What more could I want or need? I'm lovin' life RIGHT NOW!

Monday, October 09, 2006

On the go!

I am currently in Anderson, SC do an assessment for work. It's been fun to see some really close friends while here and today I'm headed to Columbia, SC for some interviews. It's fun but tiring, with all the traveling and eating out and the go, go, go.

Last week was amazing and I did get appointed which means I'm headed out for sure! Right now I'm working on a survey trip in East Asia. It's going to be in less than a month, which is so crazy, but exciting! (Hopefully it all works out!)

Just keeping ya'll posted. I gotta run!

Monday, October 02, 2006

Am I really here?

So I'm here in Orlando, FL at COP for Pioneers. I wouldn't be here without God's provision and faithfulness in my life and I'm only here because He wants me here.

I sat in the session yesterday afternoon watching a video on reaching the world for Christ and why it must be done and why am I going? I thought to myself "Am I really here? Is this possible? Is my dream finally becoming a reality?" Yes, I am here; this is possible; my dream is becoming my reality. It's true. I couldn't believe. I still can't. I feel like pinching myself every a few times each day just to check. Even sitting here, it feels unbelievable.

I have been waiting for this call in my life for years. I've been waiting to be able to "go". This has been my hearts longing and cries.

I would not be happier doing anything else. For so many years I felt out of place here in America and knew that this was not to be my home. God was calling me somewhere else (other than Heaven) to make my home. I am headed there! I couldn't be more excited!

I have spent the last 22 hours talking with people who have all served overseas in places like Bosnia, Papua New Guinea, Nigeria, India, Hungry, Indonesia, etc. Their stories will rock your world! They open your eyes to see that we serve a big God that can do ANYTHING. How often do I doubt? I often do I put God in a box? Holy cow! Look and see what the Lord has done and see that He is good!

I have been praying that God would give me more clarity on where in the country I'm supposed to be heading and He is faithful. I came here with five options that I was considering but has so far narrowed it down to two. So...keep praying!