If you can call my thinking, "Man, I'd really love to do something fun for the first day of summer,"....plans.
Instead, this was all I came up with. But they're pretty cute, right? :)
1 week ago
Thursday, June 23, 2011
First Second Day of Summer
I had grand plans for the first day of summer.
If you can call my thinking, "Man, I'd really love to do something fun for the first day of summer,"....plans.
Instead, this was all I came up with. But they're pretty cute, right? :)
If you can call my thinking, "Man, I'd really love to do something fun for the first day of summer,"....plans.
Instead, this was all I came up with. But they're pretty cute, right? :)
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Ready or not, here I come!
So last time, I left you hanging as I was on the first leg of my trip, on my way through Dallas to San Antonio. In Dallas I had to change planes, but in SA I had to change airlines. Ugh. I knew I would need help with my almost 150 (!) lbs of luggage, and I spent so much time looking for one of those rent-a-cart thingies that by the time I got to baggage claim, the security guy was scanning the bar code on my luggage tags as "abandoned" luggage! :)
Now here's the really great "mission trip experience" part of my trip. After I trudged up the elevator with all my luggage and lugged them (now I know why it's called LUGGage!) to the counter to re-check in with the new airline, I scanned my ID at the little self-checkin kiosk, and the machine gave me some sort of error. I gave a blank stare to the man behind the desk, who was obviously not planning on moving out of his comfy chair, and he said, "Just scan your ID in the machine."
So I tried it again. Um, nope. Nada.
Sigh. He was actually going to have to do something.
He took my ID and typed something into his computer. Wait....Wait....Wait.... More typing. Wait....Wait.... And then he says, "You don't have a reservation."
Um....EXCUSE ME?!? Oohhhh, yeesssss, I DO have a reservation, Mr. Airline Man, you better check again.
More typing. More waiting.
"Nope, no reservation."
I dug my e-ticket confirmation out of my backpack and handed it to him. He tried again and finally said, "AH! Here it is!" I let out a sigh the size of Texas and melted in a puddle on the counter. Thank goodness!
But the drama wasn't over yet. Oh no.
Mr. Airline Man: "Oh.....hmmm. Wait...." Long, exaggerated silence. "I see your reservation, but there's no money."
Me: "Excuse me?"
M.A.M.: "There's no money. The reservation isn't paid."
Me: "Um....EXCUSE ME?!? Oohhhh, yeesssss, it IS paid, Mr. Airline Man, you better check again." (I only pretended to say it out loud.)
After what felt like an eternity, he finally tried some other number and found the payment. My GOSH! For a minute I thought I might pass out from relief.
Another jaunt through security and I was on my way to Washington DC! The flight was 3 1/2 hours and pretty cramped. We arrived in DC a little after 9 pm and began the long, looong trek to baggage claim. Dulles airport is gigantic! It's like a whole city by itself, complete with its own super-sonic-speed subway.
When I picked up my luggage, I discovered that - having not even really started my trip yet - one of my suitcases was broken! The biggest one, of course. Both of the front legs were broken off and one wheel was broken. Sigh. I strapped one of my smaller suitcases to the front of the broken one, threw my 22 lb. backpack on my back, and started looking for pickup area 2H, where the hotel shuttle would pick me up. I walked back and forth. And back. And forth. And. Back. Dragging the equivalent of a grown man behind me.
After spending $4 in San Antonio to rent a cart for 3 1/2 minutes, I SO did not want to pay for a sky cap. But 150 lbs of luggage and a dead weight suitcase that wouldn't roll finally got the best of me. I broke down and finally asked someone, "Will you help me?" He whipped all my luggage up on his cart lickety split and took me right to 2H in a jiffy. It was far. I never would have made it without his help.
Glory and hallelujah, I finally arrived at the hotel, accidentally tipped the shuttle driver $10, and met two fellow team members right away in the lobby. Theytook pity on me were so nice, offered to help me with my ridiculously heavy, broken luggage, and invited me to eat dinner with them. God is good to me. :)
I had had not one minute of sleep in over 36 hours. One would think a normal person would have gone straight to bed after dinner, but noooo - crazy ME stayed up until 1:00 a.m. trying to download songs and movies on my (borrowed) iPod. I fell into bed practically asleep before my head hit the pillow, and was amazed that I woke up 10 minutes before my 6:30 alarm. Five hours of sleep, total, between Monday and Thursday (I didn't sleep a wink on the overseas flight, either). Only God.
But now? Now I must sleep. I promise I'll get to the Uganda part soon! :)
To be continued....
Now here's the really great "mission trip experience" part of my trip. After I trudged up the elevator with all my luggage and lugged them (now I know why it's called LUGGage!) to the counter to re-check in with the new airline, I scanned my ID at the little self-checkin kiosk, and the machine gave me some sort of error. I gave a blank stare to the man behind the desk, who was obviously not planning on moving out of his comfy chair, and he said, "Just scan your ID in the machine."
So I tried it again. Um, nope. Nada.
Sigh. He was actually going to have to do something.
He took my ID and typed something into his computer. Wait....Wait....Wait.... More typing. Wait....Wait.... And then he says, "You don't have a reservation."
Um....EXCUSE ME?!? Oohhhh, yeesssss, I DO have a reservation, Mr. Airline Man, you better check again.
More typing. More waiting.
"Nope, no reservation."
I dug my e-ticket confirmation out of my backpack and handed it to him. He tried again and finally said, "AH! Here it is!" I let out a sigh the size of Texas and melted in a puddle on the counter. Thank goodness!
But the drama wasn't over yet. Oh no.
Mr. Airline Man: "Oh.....hmmm. Wait...." Long, exaggerated silence. "I see your reservation, but there's no money."
Me: "Excuse me?"
M.A.M.: "There's no money. The reservation isn't paid."
Me: "Um....EXCUSE ME?!? Oohhhh, yeesssss, it IS paid, Mr. Airline Man, you better check again." (I only pretended to say it out loud.)
After what felt like an eternity, he finally tried some other number and found the payment. My GOSH! For a minute I thought I might pass out from relief.
Another jaunt through security and I was on my way to Washington DC! The flight was 3 1/2 hours and pretty cramped. We arrived in DC a little after 9 pm and began the long, looong trek to baggage claim. Dulles airport is gigantic! It's like a whole city by itself, complete with its own super-sonic-speed subway.
When I picked up my luggage, I discovered that - having not even really started my trip yet - one of my suitcases was broken! The biggest one, of course. Both of the front legs were broken off and one wheel was broken. Sigh. I strapped one of my smaller suitcases to the front of the broken one, threw my 22 lb. backpack on my back, and started looking for pickup area 2H, where the hotel shuttle would pick me up. I walked back and forth. And back. And forth. And. Back. Dragging the equivalent of a grown man behind me.
After spending $4 in San Antonio to rent a cart for 3 1/2 minutes, I SO did not want to pay for a sky cap. But 150 lbs of luggage and a dead weight suitcase that wouldn't roll finally got the best of me. I broke down and finally asked someone, "Will you help me?" He whipped all my luggage up on his cart lickety split and took me right to 2H in a jiffy. It was far. I never would have made it without his help.
Glory and hallelujah, I finally arrived at the hotel, accidentally tipped the shuttle driver $10, and met two fellow team members right away in the lobby. They
I had had not one minute of sleep in over 36 hours. One would think a normal person would have gone straight to bed after dinner, but noooo - crazy ME stayed up until 1:00 a.m. trying to download songs and movies on my (borrowed) iPod. I fell into bed practically asleep before my head hit the pillow, and was amazed that I woke up 10 minutes before my 6:30 alarm. Five hours of sleep, total, between Monday and Thursday (I didn't sleep a wink on the overseas flight, either). Only God.
But now? Now I must sleep. I promise I'll get to the Uganda part soon! :)
To be continued....
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Where to begin?
I. Hate. Blogger.
I had just about finished an entire blog post about my trip and Blogger ERASED the whole thing! Oh. My. Gosh. Makes me not even want to try to recreate it. But I know I'll regret it if I don't.
Sigh.
So, here I go. Let me see if I can remember....
*************************************************
Every time I start to consider writing about my trip to Uganda, I get overwhelmed and think maybe I would be a little more coherent after I've had some more rest. But after almost a week back home, I feel neither more coherent nor more rested, so I decided I might as well just jump in, as I know my adoring public awaits. (*wink*) ;)
Let's start at the very beginning....a very good place to start. :) {a little Sound of Music, anyone?}
As the time for my trip got closer and closer, I began to get more and more nervous about going. You know how when something really sad happens, and you wake up in the mornings just fine, but then suddenly you remember and the sadness slams into you again? That’s what would happen to me. Starting a couple of weeks before I left, I would wake up every morning feeling fine, and then suddenly I would remember it was only X number of days until my trip, and I would feel like someone punched me in the stomach, my heart would POUND, and I would cry in my heart, “Oh God, I don’t want to go!”
I know. Crazy. Because I’d been dreaming of Africa for 8 years. (isn’t that a movie?)
Fear. It’s one of the enemy’s greatest tools. I’m so thankful that many months ago my team leader, Kari Gibson, told me to “Do it afraid”. Her words gave me the courage to keep pressing forward.
On the day I left, there was silence in the truck on the way to the airport. All four of us were nervous and worried. When the Mister started to pray for me, I started to cry and couldn’t stop. Since they couldn’t go into the airport with me anyway, the Mister parked in the unloading lane and we said our goodbyes there. Kloe and Jacob helped me pull my luggage inside, and all three of us were crying. As I hugged them goodbye, Kloe was sobbing and clung to me so tightly I literally had to peel her off of me. I said, "Baby, you have to let go. I have to go now." And she sobbed, "I don't want to! I don't want you to go!" It was horrible. Horrible. The two of them walked out of the airport crying. My heart was breaking. It makes me cry again just remembering.
By God's grace I made it through check-in and security without breaking down, and when I got to the gate my flight was already boarding! That turned out to be such a blessing, because there was no time for me to sit and ponder. As the plane started to take off I thought, “I’m going to Africa. I’m going to Africa! I can’t believe I’m actually on my way to Africa.”
I had been reading Kay Warren’s book Dangerous Surrender (which I highly recommend, by the way) in preparation for my trip. In God’s amazing irony, He had it planned that when I opened the book about halfway through that first flight and began reading at the spot where I had previously left off, these were literally some of the first words I read:
********************************************
To be continued.....
I had just about finished an entire blog post about my trip and Blogger ERASED the whole thing! Oh. My. Gosh. Makes me not even want to try to recreate it. But I know I'll regret it if I don't.
Sigh.
So, here I go. Let me see if I can remember....
*************************************************
Every time I start to consider writing about my trip to Uganda, I get overwhelmed and think maybe I would be a little more coherent after I've had some more rest. But after almost a week back home, I feel neither more coherent nor more rested, so I decided I might as well just jump in, as I know my adoring public awaits. (*wink*) ;)
Let's start at the very beginning....a very good place to start. :) {a little Sound of Music, anyone?}
As the time for my trip got closer and closer, I began to get more and more nervous about going. You know how when something really sad happens, and you wake up in the mornings just fine, but then suddenly you remember and the sadness slams into you again? That’s what would happen to me. Starting a couple of weeks before I left, I would wake up every morning feeling fine, and then suddenly I would remember it was only X number of days until my trip, and I would feel like someone punched me in the stomach, my heart would POUND, and I would cry in my heart, “Oh God, I don’t want to go!”
I know. Crazy. Because I’d been dreaming of Africa for 8 years. (isn’t that a movie?)
Fear. It’s one of the enemy’s greatest tools. I’m so thankful that many months ago my team leader, Kari Gibson, told me to “Do it afraid”. Her words gave me the courage to keep pressing forward.
On the day I left, there was silence in the truck on the way to the airport. All four of us were nervous and worried. When the Mister started to pray for me, I started to cry and couldn’t stop. Since they couldn’t go into the airport with me anyway, the Mister parked in the unloading lane and we said our goodbyes there. Kloe and Jacob helped me pull my luggage inside, and all three of us were crying. As I hugged them goodbye, Kloe was sobbing and clung to me so tightly I literally had to peel her off of me. I said, "Baby, you have to let go. I have to go now." And she sobbed, "I don't want to! I don't want you to go!" It was horrible. Horrible. The two of them walked out of the airport crying. My heart was breaking. It makes me cry again just remembering.
By God's grace I made it through check-in and security without breaking down, and when I got to the gate my flight was already boarding! That turned out to be such a blessing, because there was no time for me to sit and ponder. As the plane started to take off I thought, “I’m going to Africa. I’m going to Africa! I can’t believe I’m actually on my way to Africa.”
I had been reading Kay Warren’s book Dangerous Surrender (which I highly recommend, by the way) in preparation for my trip. In God’s amazing irony, He had it planned that when I opened the book about halfway through that first flight and began reading at the spot where I had previously left off, these were literally some of the first words I read:
"As I sat in the 747's window seat, looking down at the tarmac, it occurred to me that none of the airport crew members scurrying to finish their tasks had any idea of how momentous this flight was for me in my journey of surrender to God's agenda. I wanted to shout it out to everyone: 'I'm going to Africa!'"Isn't God the coolest? :)
********************************************
To be continued.....
Friday, May 27, 2011
4 days....
This video was created by one of the Visiting Orphans team members from the March 2011 team. These are some of the very same places and very same kids I will be visiting in just a few days!
When I see the beautiful faces of these precious kids, it almost makes me forget about the 18 hours on an airplane that it will take for me to get to them. Almost. :)
Pure Religion: Uganda 2011 with Visiting Orphans from Jennifer Hanson on Vimeo.
When I see the beautiful faces of these precious kids, it almost makes me forget about the 18 hours on an airplane that it will take for me to get to them. Almost. :)
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Can't believe....
Can't believe....another school year is gone. What with being all distracted by my upcoming trip to Uganda, the end of the year totally snuck (sneaked?) up on me. There are 3 days of school left, and I have no childcare plans for the summer (during my trip, yes; the rest of the summer, no), I haven't planned any fun last-day-of-school surprises, I haven't thought about teacher gifts, haven't registered for summer camps. Ugh.
Can't believe....this. Isn't she beautiful? Tears.
Can't believe....after searching and searching and searching I finally found an awesome pair of sunglasses (I have to have prescription ones), and the estimated ready date for them is June 2!
Can't believe....in 7 days I'll be here....
(Ok, not right there, but really close.)
....and the next day after that I'll be here....
Can't. Believe. It.
(Also can't believe my flight schedule got changed, and my 7 hours of sight-seeing-layover in DC on the way home has been changed to 3 hours of staying-in-the-airport-layover. So sad about that.)
Can't believe....this. Isn't she beautiful? Tears.
Can't believe....after searching and searching and searching I finally found an awesome pair of sunglasses (I have to have prescription ones), and the estimated ready date for them is June 2!
Can't believe....in 7 days I'll be here....
(Ok, not right there, but really close.)
....and the next day after that I'll be here....
Can't. Believe. It.
(Also can't believe my flight schedule got changed, and my 7 hours of sight-seeing-layover in DC on the way home has been changed to 3 hours of staying-in-the-airport-layover. So sad about that.)
Sunday, May 15, 2011
What did you do this weekend?
Since I had absolutey nothing else I needed to be doing this weekend and was just sitting around the house being bored - ahem ;) - we decided it might be fun to spend the day on Saturday doing a little bit of this....
And some of this....
And this....(yes, that huge pile is pine needles....from just that ONE tree)....
Even my mom wanted in on the fun....
And look what a great time we had! Eight and a half hours of pure family entertainment....
Twenty-two of those huge hefty bags full of (are you ready for this?)....pine needles! And that was after we had already hauled away one pickup load full of of smaller bags (I didn't count those). Can you believe it?!
From far away the pine trees were beautiful - especially with snow on them! - but up close they were ugly and messy and collected tons of pine needles and tumble weeds and trash underneath. And face it, we hardly ever get that much snow. They look so much better now! (Except for the huge bare spots in our grass where the trees were growing. Boo.)
So, what did YOU do this weekend?
And some of this....
And this....(yes, that huge pile is pine needles....from just that ONE tree)....
Even my mom wanted in on the fun....
And look what a great time we had! Eight and a half hours of pure family entertainment....
Twenty-two of those huge hefty bags full of (are you ready for this?)....pine needles! And that was after we had already hauled away one pickup load full of of smaller bags (I didn't count those). Can you believe it?!
From far away the pine trees were beautiful - especially with snow on them! - but up close they were ugly and messy and collected tons of pine needles and tumble weeds and trash underneath. And face it, we hardly ever get that much snow. They look so much better now! (Except for the huge bare spots in our grass where the trees were growing. Boo.)
So, what did YOU do this weekend?
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
20 days and counting....
Visiting Orphans in Uganda 2011 from Kari Gibson on Vimeo.
(Alex and Graham are two of my fellow team members. They used this video at a fundraising dinner.)
Thank you for your support and prayers for our mission team and for the orphans we will visit, play with, hug, bless, and love for 12 days in Uganda.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Countdown to Uganda
26 Days.
That's how much longer it is until I leave for Uganda. Actually, in 26 days I leave for Washington DC, where I will spend the night (6:30 a.m. breakfast call. AND, they're an hour ahead of me there. ugh.) before leaving for Uganda the next day. It seems that lately my days are consumed with thoughts of immunizations and packing lists and itineraries and fundraisisng and childcare and hours-long flights and donations for the orphanages.
I started taking typhoid pills yesterday. The typhoid vaccine is a series of 4 pills....of LIVE typhoid bacteria. Um, are you sure this is the best way to do this? I started feeling sick immediately after I took it and woke up several times during the night dreaming about choking. Pretty sure it's all in my head. :) I felt fine this morning. I still have one more shot to get before I leave and 2 when I get back. I will start taking oral malaria medicine 2 days before I leave, the entire time I'm there, and 7 days after I get back.
I feel like my grandma with all her lists and schedules of medicines. Start this one 30 days before your trip, take every other day for 8 days. Start this one two weeks before your trip, take for 3 days. Start this one 2 days before your trip, take for 22 days. Whew.
Right now I'm working on gathering donations to take to the orphanages where we will be serving. Each ministry sent us a list of needs they have, and all the team members will stuff our suitcases as full as we can with things to take to them. Children's medication, craft supplies, sports equipment, games, toys, Clorox wipes, school supplies, hygiene items, and lots and lots of clothing for the kids.
Yesterday I found out I will have a SEVEN HOUR layover in Washington DC on the way home. I've never been there, and I'm so hoping I will be able to spend at least a few hours sightseeing. Hoping I still have the energy after 19 hours of flight time from Uganda!
Our itinerary includes four orphanages, as well as one day working with Katie Davis and Amazima Ministries. If you're interested, you can read more about the orphanages we will be visiting here:
Return Ministries
My Father's House and their Royal Hope Academy
Canaan Children's Home
Amani Baby Cottage (babies!!)
But....BUT....the one thing that has slain my heart more than anything else on our agenda are the places we will be serving on our first two days in Uganda. The places I hinted about at the end of this post.
On our very first and second days in country, we will be visiting, serving and ministering to children from the ages of 1 to 16 in two child prisons. In Uganda they are called "remand centers". Originally, many, many years ago, these institutions were created as what you would think a prison would be - a place for criminals - albeit juvenile ones. Most children were sent there for assault or theft. Most likely, both reasons stemmed from their attempts to simply survive.
But over the years, the prisons have morphed into places where "castoff" children are sent, locked up, and forgotten. Yes, behind bars. Many of them are brought there by family members as a form of punishment for things like rebellion or "stubbornness". Many are street orphans who are rounded up by police and dumped there - and hence the reason children as young as one year old are there. One. One year old. In a prison. With bars.
About a year ago, one single woman who is part of a ministry called Sixty Feet, stumbled upon one of these institutions....and the rest, as they say, is history. If only these places were history.
Our mission team will be the very first outside team (meaning outside of the actual Sixty Feet people) to minister in these prisons. After the team conference call where we learned about Sixty Feet, I went to their website and was immediately sucked in by the desperation and overwhelming situation these children are in.
Remember when I first started hearing God calling me to this trip, way back in October? I wrote this post about Kari's blog (our team leader) that God used to trigger something in my heart. In that post I said:
And in less than a month I will be there. I don't even know what to say about that. "I was in prison and you came to visit me." (Matt. 25:36)
I would love it so much if you, my bloggy friends, would be willing to pray for me and my team - both now and throughout our trip. We need so very much to have unity in our team, to be surrendered to the Holy Spirit, and to have our hearts broken for the things that break God's heart. If God brings me/us to your mind over the next 5 1/2 weeks, would you stop even for just 10 seconds and pray for us? Here are some specific things you can join us in praying for:
That's how much longer it is until I leave for Uganda. Actually, in 26 days I leave for Washington DC, where I will spend the night (6:30 a.m. breakfast call. AND, they're an hour ahead of me there. ugh.) before leaving for Uganda the next day. It seems that lately my days are consumed with thoughts of immunizations and packing lists and itineraries and fundraisisng and childcare and hours-long flights and donations for the orphanages.
I started taking typhoid pills yesterday. The typhoid vaccine is a series of 4 pills....of LIVE typhoid bacteria. Um, are you sure this is the best way to do this? I started feeling sick immediately after I took it and woke up several times during the night dreaming about choking. Pretty sure it's all in my head. :) I felt fine this morning. I still have one more shot to get before I leave and 2 when I get back. I will start taking oral malaria medicine 2 days before I leave, the entire time I'm there, and 7 days after I get back.
I feel like my grandma with all her lists and schedules of medicines. Start this one 30 days before your trip, take every other day for 8 days. Start this one two weeks before your trip, take for 3 days. Start this one 2 days before your trip, take for 22 days. Whew.
Right now I'm working on gathering donations to take to the orphanages where we will be serving. Each ministry sent us a list of needs they have, and all the team members will stuff our suitcases as full as we can with things to take to them. Children's medication, craft supplies, sports equipment, games, toys, Clorox wipes, school supplies, hygiene items, and lots and lots of clothing for the kids.
Yesterday I found out I will have a SEVEN HOUR layover in Washington DC on the way home. I've never been there, and I'm so hoping I will be able to spend at least a few hours sightseeing. Hoping I still have the energy after 19 hours of flight time from Uganda!
Our itinerary includes four orphanages, as well as one day working with Katie Davis and Amazima Ministries. If you're interested, you can read more about the orphanages we will be visiting here:
Return Ministries
My Father's House and their Royal Hope Academy
Canaan Children's Home
Amani Baby Cottage (babies!!)
But....BUT....the one thing that has slain my heart more than anything else on our agenda are the places we will be serving on our first two days in Uganda. The places I hinted about at the end of this post.
On our very first and second days in country, we will be visiting, serving and ministering to children from the ages of 1 to 16 in two child prisons. In Uganda they are called "remand centers". Originally, many, many years ago, these institutions were created as what you would think a prison would be - a place for criminals - albeit juvenile ones. Most children were sent there for assault or theft. Most likely, both reasons stemmed from their attempts to simply survive.
But over the years, the prisons have morphed into places where "castoff" children are sent, locked up, and forgotten. Yes, behind bars. Many of them are brought there by family members as a form of punishment for things like rebellion or "stubbornness". Many are street orphans who are rounded up by police and dumped there - and hence the reason children as young as one year old are there. One. One year old. In a prison. With bars.
About a year ago, one single woman who is part of a ministry called Sixty Feet, stumbled upon one of these institutions....and the rest, as they say, is history. If only these places were history.
Our mission team will be the very first outside team (meaning outside of the actual Sixty Feet people) to minister in these prisons. After the team conference call where we learned about Sixty Feet, I went to their website and was immediately sucked in by the desperation and overwhelming situation these children are in.
Remember when I first started hearing God calling me to this trip, way back in October? I wrote this post about Kari's blog (our team leader) that God used to trigger something in my heart. In that post I said:
I ran across this post today over at My Crazy Adoption, and I felt like I'd fallen into a breach in the space-time continuum, where time stood still and I sat frozen to my chair, unable to breathe or move or speak. I sat there for what seemed like hours, reading all of her mission trip posts, following links to the blogs of people who've been on her teams in the past, looking at pictures, reading testimonials.That's exactly what happened to me with the Sixty Feet Website. I cannot even begin to find the words to describe how wrecked....destroyed....torn apart my heart was as I read story after story, looked at one horrifying picture after another, and watched the devastating videos. It was the exact same feeling I had reading Kari's blog that first day. I stayed up until 1:00 in the morning reading their blog posts over and over again. Gaping in astonishment at the photos. Whispering, "Jesus. Jesus. Oh, Jesus." over and over and over.
And in less than a month I will be there. I don't even know what to say about that. "I was in prison and you came to visit me." (Matt. 25:36)
I would love it so much if you, my bloggy friends, would be willing to pray for me and my team - both now and throughout our trip. We need so very much to have unity in our team, to be surrendered to the Holy Spirit, and to have our hearts broken for the things that break God's heart. If God brings me/us to your mind over the next 5 1/2 weeks, would you stop even for just 10 seconds and pray for us? Here are some specific things you can join us in praying for:
- Safety/protection while traveling and while in-country.
- Peace in the country of Uganda itself.
- Unity amongst all our team members.
- That all our luggage would make it there with us. All our luggage will be filled with donations and gifts for the ministries.
- No problems with passports, visas, or other travel/immunization documentation.
- Wisdom for our team leaders.
- Health, safety, peace for our families back home.
- For each of our hearts to be completely surrendered to God and molded in the ways He has planned.
- That I/we would be conformed to the image of Jesus and allow Him to use us as His hands and feet in ministering to these beautiful kids.
- That our lives will be forever changed.
- Oh yeah, and have I mentioned that I don't like to fly?
Happy 200!
I just realized that Tuesday's Tiny Talk post was my 200th post! Wow, I can't believe it! :)
I would love to do one of those "200 things about me" posts to celebrate, but I know y'all don't really care about knowing 200 random bits of miscellaneous stuff about my life (and honestly, I don't know if I could come up with 200), so let's just celebrate by saying Happy 200, shall we?
And, as a great 200-gift....I think Blogger's spacing problems have been fixed! (crossing fingers and holding breath) YAY!
I would love to do one of those "200 things about me" posts to celebrate, but I know y'all don't really care about knowing 200 random bits of miscellaneous stuff about my life (and honestly, I don't know if I could come up with 200), so let's just celebrate by saying Happy 200, shall we?
And, as a great 200-gift....I think Blogger's spacing problems have been fixed! (crossing fingers and holding breath) YAY!
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