January 27, 2011-Our Final Evening Prayers and Bedtime

Tonight I was surprised by Fatmata.  She didn't seek me out at evening prayers.  She sat with Uncle Kelvin.  I was very saddened by this but understood that she was separating from me to make our goodbye easier.  I just wasn't prepared for the reaction.  She'd been by my side all week!

Shariff was already in bed asleep, and that left Umaru! :)  He wanted me to hold him, love him, and kiss on him!  I was happy to do so.  It was amazing to have some one-on-one time with him and give him the affection that he needed.  I loved every second of it.

After prayer, I took Umaru to his room, and walked Fatmata to hers.  I stopped on the way to talk with her.  I explained how much I loved her and that I loved her smile.  I asked her to greet me at the farewell ceremony with her big smile that she had on our arrival day.  She promised, we hugged, and I tucked her in.

...and we had a wonderful goodbye!  Although there were tears, I got to see that beautiful smile again!

January 26, 2011-The Children's Hospital

If a trip in Freetown could cause me anxiety, this would've been the day!  The city has no traffic regulations and traffic sits at a stand still for huge blocks of time!We loaded into podas to travel to East Freetown.  The trip took at least an hour or two.  We sat in hot, dusty traffic.  Motorcycles zoom up the middle at all times.  Instead of stopping or yielding at intersections, they speed up and honk as they enter the intersection.  I;m amazed at how God answered my prayers about travel and anxiety on this trip.  Not once have I experienced an issue with it!  From Nashville to Africa and all over Freetown, God comforted and took away my fears so that I could do his work.

The children's hospital was very tough tough to see today, but because of my emotional evening last night, I felt so numb to the shock factor.  Maybe I had prepared myself.  I really wanted to love these women and children while I was there and nnot let emotions get in the way.  Kay Warren's book helped prepare me for this.  She talks about just "being present."  It didn't matter if they spoke English.  I was there to pray with them, ooh and aah over their children, and bring them bread and water.  I couldn't believe how God had placed words of prayer in me.  I don't like to pray out loud, but it was easy to lay a hand on these children and hold hands with these mothers and pray for them.  I usually prayed,

"God, please be with this child and mother.  I pray that you'll ease this child's pain and your will be done.  Please give this mother the strength and patience she needs to be with her child.  Amen."

Patrick--He was a 10 month old.  Although he wasn't thin and boney, he had no strength.  He laid lifeless on his bed.  I sat with him and tried to give his mother a break.  As I leaned over, I noticed him reaching for my necklace.  He couldn't lift his head, but he wanted to play with my necklace, and touch my face and hands.  The entire time, though, his mouth continually moved in the way a hungry baby's does.  I picked him up, held him, made silly faces at him, and made him laugh! :)  He only had so much energy for laughing, though.  When it was time for him to eat, he wouldn't.  He fussed and cried.  Is it possible to be so hungry and malnurished that you can't eat?  I think many of the babies felt this way.  How many would survive?  Would any leave the hospital alive?  What will happen to Patrick?

Evening Prayers

Each evening, we return to the center for evening prayer service with the kids.  I have so much that I can learn from these kids!  They praise God in so many amazing ways!  They praise and thank God for blessings...they sing their praises...they pray standing up and on their knees...they pray for us, their aunties and uncles.  It's such an experience to witness these children who have so little still learning to love God and be thankful for what they have!

After prayers, we get the opportunity to walk the kids to their rooms and tell them good night.  This was very exciting the first few nights, but tonight it broke my heart.  After getting Umaru and Shariff to their room, and working through Shariff's nightly jealousy tantrum :(, I took Fatmata to her room.  We stopped in a quiet corner on the way, I told her how proud I was of her and what a great role model she is.  We continued on.  I took her to her room and watched her climb into her bed...up a ladder to the top bunk...the third level...of a wooden bed...under a mosquito net.  I reached up to her bunk to touch her one more time, and it hit me, this little girl has to sleep under a mosquito net, on a yucky foam mattress, with dingy sheets, on the third bunk.  I touched her hand through the net, and I broke down.

What am I doing here??????

Here I am playing mom to these two children in Africa.  They've been expecting me, they recognized me, and they've grown to love me.  I've grown to love them, too.  But now what?  How does God want me to use this?  How do I continue to have a positive impact on their lives?

They need forever families!!!!!

January 25, 2011: Beach Day

Today was amazing!  We got to relax, kick back, and play with the kids on the beach and shop.  I loved shopping at the vendors for handmade gifts.  I'm excited to take the gifts back to my family and friends.  Here are a few of the highlights from the day.

Alone time with Fatmata and Umaru on the beach

Watching them playfully run from the waves

BBQ lobster on the beach in a wooden shack...It was delicious!

Seeing Umaru's sand-covered cheeks in his white undies

Taking Fatmata out into the waves

January 24, 2011: A Day in the Life of West Freetown

This morning was my toughest day yet.  We split into two teams to minister to the community.  Our team of ten, with Kelvin, our guide, took 20 envelopes of 50,000 leones each into the community.  We wanted to spread the word of God, TRS, and distribute money to mothers in need.  It was so emotional to walk through their community, stand on the doorsteps of their homes, embrace them, and spend a moment in their lives.  We prayed with them, gave them money, and "snapped" them (took pictures).  I just couldn't believe the circumstances!  We know that God led us to each of the 20 moms.  We didn't search hard.  It's amazing!  You walk down the main street.  It's a dirt road, shack stores down both sides, people riding motorcycles, dressed in worn clothing.  It looks bad.  Then you begin walking behind the stores and find shacks of homes!  Each home had 2-6 adults and too many children to count.  They have chickens...with no feathers, gardens...that are dry and sparse, clothes hanging, dishes outside, children with no clothes.  Most of them living on less than a dollar a day.

What strikes me, though, is how proud they are.  As you approach, the women want to change clothes, "freshen up,"or fix their hair.  They want you to sit and visit, and they love to have their picture made...and see it!  Their smiles are BEAUTIFUL, but so few.  I don't blame them...not much to smile about.

We saw so many needs today...so many desolate situations.  I don't know why Hannah stands out to me.  I can't say her situation is the worse, or not, but I had a connection with Hannah.  As we walked to a house, our group passed Hannah.  She told me about her four children.  I said, "We'll try to come to you next," which apparently is a promise here. :)  As we approached her house, she beamed!  We did our speech, prayers, and "snap, snap."  As we left, I went to tell her bye, and we embraced...not a little hug...a long, strong, squeezing embrace.  I want to help Hannah...Kelvin can help find her.

Kroo Bay Pictures

Kroo Bay-TRS Feeding Program

Limited sleep and an early start in Kroo Bay...I grabbed a quick shower, which did no good, and loaded in the van for Kroo Bay.  The ride was long, hot, and slow thru town.

When we arrived, we could see trash in the water and bricks on the roofs to hold them down.  We parked on the street, and I was surprised that we were walking into the....town? village? community?  The walkway was about as wide as a sidewalk and closed in by shacks, maybe 7-8 feet tall.  People were sitting outside everywhere.  We meandered through, like a make.  I know now why we wore matching t-shirts.  You had to keep the team in sight around corners.  We arrived at an opening with a larger building, the community center.  There were children everywhere.  The local officials cleared the path for us to enter.  The children treated us like rock stars!  They were reaching out to touch us as we walked through.

In the building were another 300 children.  They were all seated, big and small, awaiting our arrival.  The city officials led us up on the alter/stage, welcomed us, and introduced us.  A group of women had been cooking the food we purchased all morning.  There was rice, fish, and some sort of sauce, maybe beans, too.  As these women filled plates with large portions onto trays, we distributed them to the children.  The plan was to serve 250 children a hot meal.  When we had served the first group of 300 or so, we had plenty left.  We sent the first group out and let another group in.  We served more hot meals, probably around 450 or so total.

"Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them...They all ate and were satisfied."  -Luke 9:10

The next part of the plan was to distribute bags of dry rice to another 2000 children.  This is when things became very chaotic.  As new groups would enter the building, we would attempt to line them up at the door of the kitchen and file them through to get a bag and back out the kitchen door.  However, as they entered, they all would rush to be in the front of the line.  The children would push, shove, hit...whatever it took to get their place.  They were so fearful of getting no food!  As they left with rice, the crowd began to grow, not only children, but adults, too, were coming to be fed.  With the third or fourth group, the door opened and the crowd tried to push their way in.  Most of our team was in the kitchen area, but I was still in the main room, trying to help with the lines.  I watched as the door opened, the crowd pushed, and children fell into the doorway.  The children cried, and the crowd continued to push and trample.  I was so scared for the kids, but I didn't know what to do!  Some of the men helping began gathering us to the kitchen area, and shut the door.  All of the windows, covered in bars, had children reaching in.  It wasn't that all these people wanted food....they NEEDED it!  This one bag of rice might be all they get for days, a week, or more.

How could our group of 20 possibly feed all these people?  We couldn't!  We were merely a quick fix for the day, and we couldn't even complete the task.  The crowd and the pushing caused us to leave early.  The walk out was safe, but quick.  I think the drive home took forever...traffic and back roads...but I didn't notice, I was so in my thoughts.  As Erica, TRS co-founder, said, "Who will feed them tomorrow?"

January 21-We're in Freetown!

We're in Freetown!  I wish I could've captured the airport experience and drive to our boat taxi on video.  I t was such amazing sights and sounds.  The airport was very chaotic, but our group was expected, and we moved through customs and luggage claim with ease.

We loaded into vans for a short ride to the boat dock.  The scene was unreal!  The roads, including the airport parking lot, were all dirt.  As we left the airport and started down the street, all you saw were small burning lanterns with people sitting everywhere, selling stuff.  Maybe they were stores, some homes, but mostly shacks, if you could even call them that.

The ride to the dock was short, and the small restaurant/bar there looked like something out of a movie.  It was beautiful!  We didn't wait long and soon boarded our boat.  What an experience!  It was a speed boat with two motors.  It flew!  We crossed a piece of the ocean, in the dark, at top speed!  The smell of Africa, wind in my hair, and spray from the boat...amazing...just what I'd imagined! :)

From the boat, we loaded into podas and headed for the guest house.  It's hard to describe driving through the city.  At 10 pm, people were everywhere!  Where were they going, and what kind of business were they doing so late?  Traffic was chaotic!  Mexico doesn't even compare.  Again, God calmed my anxieties, and sitting in hot traffic for an hour didn't bother me.

Arriving at the guest house, I was pleasantly surprised.  The house was nice, furnished, and well ventilated.  Electricity, water, and internet were a different story!  Soon after arriving, the power went out.  I did get to Skype with Chris briefly before bed.  Night one...no air, no fans, no lights....I had a good night's sleep!!!!!!

January 21-We're in Brussels!

We're in Brussels, and we have a four hour layover.  Everyone is very excited to contact family and let them know of our safe arrival.  I posted to Facebook, and I emailed Chris, Mom, and Gwen.  It feels good to be able to contact them.  I actually even got to Skype with Mom!  She seemed very happy about that!  It was the first time she hadn't cried on me in a week! :)

Loading the plane, we are again on an empty plane.  I am spoiled!  This international traveling thing isn't bad when you have three seats to yourself!

We are now about an hour from landing, and excitement, and fear, are coming to me now.  I can't wait to get through customs and ride the speed boat...wind in my hair, water splashing up, and the smell of Africa in the air.  God has comforted me so far in my travels.  I just pray that he gets me thru these last few hours. I feel the anxiety in my stomach now!

"For you have been my hope, O Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.  From birth, I have relied on you;  you brought me forth from my mother's womb.  I will ever praise you."  -Psalm 71:  5-6

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;  in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."  -Proverbs 3:  5-6

January 20th-Today I Leave for Africa

Today I leave for Africa!  I've spent six months preparing for this, and today it's finally here!

The past two weeks have been filled with so many emotions.  I've questioned my choice, been excited, made myself sick over my travel anxiety, and worried about the weather.  Snow is forecasted for four of our five cities, a member of our team has strep throat, and one member's grandfather is dying.

Yesterday, I decided to give it all up to God!  I've been praying about all of it, but, for some reason, God was giving me peace about all of it.

I took both children to school this morning and said my goodbyes.  My anxiety was fine until I got home and waited to leave for the airport.  That's when my nerves set in.  I prayed about it, got Chris in the van, and off we went to the airport.  Once there, the excitement and chaos of the trip began!  My anxieties disappeared!

We checked baggage, went through security, flew to Chicago, and waited for our Brussels connector.  It was during this that we learned, one by one, that all our teams had departed on time and snow was no longer in the forecast for Chicago!

Again, my anxiety stayed under control as we boarded for Brussels.  The huge plane was far from full, and I took a row of three seats to myself.  After dinner, I laid down to rest.  I fell straight to sleep and woke up as breakfast was being served!  Only one hour 'til landing, and I had survived the first long leg of the trip!

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on the completion until the day of Christ Jesus."  -Philippians 1: 6

I Offered Up My Anxieties, and God Took Them Away

It's amazing how smooth travel has been for me so far.  I'm sitting in the Brussels airport with the first long leg of the trip behind me.  I guess my excitement and anticipation this morning exhausted me.  I was able to sleep the majority of the flight from Chicago to Brussels.  I felt so calm and relaxed, and the flight was not crowded.  I had a row of three seats to myself.  I couldn't believe my mind wasn't racing.

We have two more hours in Brussels until we board our flight to Freetown.  We just found out that the usual stop in Dakar isn't happening, and our flight will be two hours shorter.  How exciting!  Once we land and make it out of the airport, we're boarding pelican speed boats, in the dark, and crossing the water to Freetown.  We'll load into podas (sp?), some kind of vehicle, and go to the orphanage.  Once we get there, we'll go to bed. :(  It'll be around midnight!

It's weird.  All the feelings and emotions that I had leading up to the trip these last couple weeks are so peaceful right now.  It's just right!  I know this is where I need to be, and this is the group that I'm meant to be with.

I hope to blog again tomorrow, but I'll probably skip it tonight when we arrive at the center.  Keep us in your prayers!  I can't wait to wrap my arms around Fatmata and Umaru!

Love,
Susan

On My Way to Africa!

Wow!  I can't believe how things have fallen into place today!  This week, our travel team has been faced with many obstacles, all of which seem to have disappeared today!  God is amazing!  We were expecting snow in four out of five cities today.  Somehow, all the flights took off on time, and we're scheduled to leave Chicago in an hour!  So excited!  Things are falling into place.  Keep us in your prayers!

Equipped for His Call-1 Week Until Africa

While reading my study Bible this morning, I came across a short study called, "Equipped for His Call." How fitting! It was just the comfort I needed. We leave for Africa in one week. Because of the snow, I have been home all week, and not working has given me a lot of time to focus on my trip. Good and bad.....this has given me more preparation time and more time with the kids, but it's also given me lots of time to get nervous. There's been nothing to take my mind off of the trip. Here's the study from this morning.

"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."  Philippians 1: 6


"Has God called you to a task for which you feel completely inadequate?  The key to taking on the extraordinary challenge is to worship God, to spend time in his presence meditating on how awesome he is.  When we praise God's holiness and majesty, when we focus on his strength and wisdom, then we are assured of the courage and vigor he makes available to us--the power to go one more mile, to love one more hour, to forgive one more time.  We can face these hard assignments with the confidence that if God has called us, he will equip us."

I then went on to read Philippians 1: 3-30 and reflected and prayed on the following questions.

• In what ways has God sustained you in the past?  With this question, I couldn't help but think about Chris' motorcycle wreck.  God was such a sustaining comfort to me through that time.  Instead of pulling away and questioning why it had happened, I continued to lean on God and pray that Chris and I would be strengthened through the experience.  That experience continues to shape my life and define the person I strive to be.

• What difficult task is God calling you to do now?  This question addresses multiple aspects of this mission trip.  First of all, God is requiring me to go out of my comfort zone with the travel piece.  The flight and in-country road trips will be difficult for me, but I know that with Him, I can handle my anxieties.  Second, God is calling me to work with the orphans of Sierra Leone.  I have no idea how God plans to use this, but I have faith that He will reveal this to me over time.  I need to be present with God and patient through this process.

• What help do you need from God?  I don't know.  I know I need help with my travel anxieties, but other than that, I lift it all up to Him.  I want to surrender myself to God and allow him to open my eyes and heart while on this mission.  I pray that He'll use me and provide me the strength I need.

My word for today is equipped.  I have peace knowing that God will equip me for this challenge.  He would not call me to do this work without first equipping me with the tools I need to tackle it.  


Please continue to pray for my travel team and the work ahead of us.  We leave on Thursday, January 20, 2011.

12 More Days....

It's hard to believe that after all my preparation and anticipation, my trip to Africa is only 12 days away. I'm filled with so many emotions! I'm so excited I can't stand it, but at the same time, I'm anxious about the unknown.

My Nashville travel team met this week to discuss and finalize our details. Our team is responsible for throwing a costume party for the kids and having a penny carnival for them. We have been collecting donations for both, and we're almost ready to pack. Erica talked to us about our feeding program in Kroo Bay and the children's hospital. I think these two experiences will be amazing an heart-wrenching, at the same time. On our first day, we will be providing food to 5000 orphans in Kroo Bay. Kroo Bay is a slum in Freetown where malnutrition and sanitation are affecting the lives of thousands. We will cook and serve hot meals for the first 250 kids, and then we will bag meals for the remaining 4750. I can't even begin to comprehend what this will look like, but I know that God has provided this opportunity for us, and I'm ready to tackle it. Later in the week, we will be visiting a local children's hospital. Although the center is called a nutritional facility, it cannot afford to provide meals to the patients or mothers. The children are dying of malnutrition and simple infections. Hundreds go through the hospital, but only about two a month leave alive. We will be delivering food to these mothers and their children, and we will be providing the funds needed for formula.

Although Kroo Bay and the hospital will challenge me mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically, I think the trip will be balanced with the joy of seeing the kids in the orphanage. I can't wait to meet Fatmata and Umura! I can't wait to spend the week with them worshiping, singing, and playing. These kids have there basic needs met but are in desperate need of love, affection, and attention. A huge part of this mission is to just be present with the kids, to be there rock to lean on for a few days and to strengthen my relationship with my sponsored kids.

I talk as if I have everything figured out! :) I honestly feel that am as ready as I can be for this trip, but there's no way possible to know what to expect on a journey like this! What a challenge for me! My life is so planned and organized, and I'm so ready to just throw it all to God and see how he wants to use me!

This song has been very important to me while preparing for this trip. I hope the lyrics will touch you, too.

"An image flashed across my TV screen
Another broken heart comes in to view
I saw the pain and I turned my back
Why can't I do the things I want to?
I'm willing yet I'm so afraid
You give me strength
When I say

I want to be your hands
I want to be your feet
I'll go where you send me
I'II go where you send me

And I try, yeah I try
To touch the world like
You touched my life
And I find my way
To be your hands

I've abandoned every selfish thought
I've surrendered every thing I've got
You can have everything I am
And perfect everything
I'm not I'm willing,
I'm not afraid
You give me strength When I say

This is the lifetime I turned my back on you
From now on, I'll go so
Send me where You want me to
I finally have a mission
I promise I'll complete
I don't need excuses
When I am your hands and feet"

-Audio Adrenaline

Will this speak to you?

Wow!  This video is powerful and speaks to me.  Will it speak to you?

I Am Aware

So I can definitely feel God working in me.  My life has become one of awareness, compassion, and action.  I have a long way to go, but awareness is something that you can't ignore or turn off, and it leads to compassion and action.  I'm just trying to do the best I can.

I am aware that I when I'm stressed, I become short and impatient with my children.  This awareness is helping me to become a better mom.  I'm aware that the people selling the homeless newspaper on the side of the street are trying to change their lives.  I now support them, even if I'm buying the same issue of the paper for the fifth time.  I'm aware that my friend is struggling with her mom dying of cancer.  I don't know what that's like, but I'm trying to learn and comfort her.  I'm aware that there are families just like mine living in a shelter right now because of something that could happen to us, too.  I want to help those families through serving meals at the shelter and participating in the Hike for the Homeless.  I'm aware that students at my school come with lots of baggage from home, so do people I work with.  I want to help others see the good in these students....and my co-workers.  I'm aware that a co-worker is calling out to me for help.  I don't know how to help, but I will focus on our friendship and pray that God will lead me.  I'm aware that there are 163,000,000 orphans in the world.  I can't save them all, but I can work to create awareness and try to change the world for one or two of them (We just started sponsoring Fatmata's brother, Umaru.)

With this awareness, compassion, and action comes a struggle within me that I wasn't prepared for (I hate putting prepositions at the end of a sentence!).  I guess I thought that as God worked in me, it would be easy to share my excitement, sadness, and other emotions with others.  I thought that it would just radiate from me.  And I thought that others would just get it, but that's not the case.  I actually feel sort of lonely.  I have so much going on inside of me, and I'm desperate to learn so much more about God, the Bible, and how God is working through others.  I'm finding it difficult to share my thoughts, emotions, and desires with others, though.....or when I do try to share, I feel like they don't get it, question it, or don't care.  I think I was naive to think that as God changed my life, I would see him change the lives of people around me, too.  And I know that he's using me for this, and I do see lives around me being affected.  It's just not as easy as I thought it would be.  

This isn't a pity party for me, just an open, honest example of how I'm feeling.  Through a women's event this week, I'm aware that God wants me to be honest about my feelings, thoughts, and struggles.  I hope that this honesty will bring me closer to God and closer to the ones around me.   

Flight Itinerary

The tickets are purchased and we have our flight itinerary!  I have to say, it was a little disappointing to see how much time will be spent traveling.  We'd hoped to fly from DC to Dakar, Africa.  This pattern would've cut our travel time in half!  Sometimes you have to weigh the cost of time and money, and this time the cheaper flight won.  


"Hey everybody! Below are flight patterns.... Let me know if anything doesn't make sense... Once step closer :) By the way ORD stands for Chicago... BRU stands for Brussels... FNA stands for Freetown..." -Erica

FROM NASHVILLE
AA4197 20JAN BNAORD 1220P 155P
AA 088 20JAN ORDBRU 500P 805A
SN 237 21JAN BRUFNA 1120A 705P
SN 238 28JAN FNABRU 805P 520A 
AA 089 29JAN BRUORD 1045A 100P
AA4055 29JAN ORDBNA 445P 615P 

FROM OMAHA
AA4371 20JAN OMAORD 120P 255P
AA 088 20JAN ORDBRU 500P 805A 
SN 237 21JAN BRUFNA 1120A 705P
SN 238 28JAN FNABRU 805P 520A
AA 089 29JAN BRUORD 1045A 100P
AA4204 29JAN ORDOMA 310P 445P

FROM SPRINGFIELD
AA3932 20JAN SGFORD 805A 940A
AA 088 20JAN ORDBRU 500P 805A
SN 237 21JAN BRUFNA 1120A 705P 
SN 238 28JAN FNABRU 805P 520A 
AA 089 29JAN BRUORD 1045A 100P
AA4061 29JAN ORDSGF 600P 740P

FROM KANSAS CITY
AA3941 20JAN MCIORD 110P 245P 20JAN 
AA 088 20JAN ORDBRU 500P 805A 21JAN 
SN 237 21JAN BRUFNA 1120A 705P 21JAN 
SN 238 28JAN FNABRU 805P 520A 29JAN 
AA 089 29JAN BRUORD 1045A 100P 29JAN 
AA2423 29JAN ORDMCI 230P 400P 29JAN


How exciting, though!  I haven't traveled much, and the thought of traveling over the ocean, to Belgium, and then to Africa is pretty cool.  I'm sure I'll think differently on the trip home! :)

It's Real!-Deposits and Shots are Paid

As quick as the money came in, it goes back out!  Yesterday was both exciting and nerve-racking!  I wrote my first check towards my trip, and our plane tickets are being booked next week.  I can't wait to see an actual flight itinerary!

We continue to fundraise, but I'm comfortable that God will provide for the expenses of our travel.  Our Kroger Cards are being used (thanks to everyone using them!), and we should receive our first check from them sometime this month.  What touches me the most, though, is the number of personal donations that I've received.  I'm amazed at the generosity of my friends, family, and complete strangers who support my mission!  My life experiences continue to reveal my "real" friends, and I'm blessed to be surrounded by such genuine people.  I am loved!

Another big event yesterday was receiving my travel vaccines.  I'm still sore!  It's scary to think that a person needs so much protection just to enter another country.  It's also scary to think that the people living don't get this protection.  A simple shot could save so many lives!  We take so many things for granted!  Our medical access is such a miracle, and it's not being shared around the world!

I continue to pray that what hurts God will hurt me and the ones around me!  I pray that my travel, and the travel and efforts of others, will create awareness and open eyes and hearts.  We have so much to share with those less fortunate (less fortunate seems like an understatement!).  I prayer that we will all start looking at our own lives and what we can each do to change the life of another.  I have a LONG way to go on this journey.  I'm the first to admit that I struggle with material things and committing my life to service.  It's so easy to sit back and be comfortable.  But I pray that God will continue to show me how to make a difference, and that I will continue to push myself out of comfort.  I want to make a difference!

Africa Becomes Personal

I'm amazed at the efforts of The Raining Season to make sponsorship personal!  We sponsor a child, Fatmata, at The Covering in Sierra Leone.  Every few months or so, I receive an update on her with pictures, but the relationship is much more personal than that now.  In September, my family put together a photo album to send to Fatmata with the traveling team, and over the last few weeks, we've been given the opportunity to Skype!

What an amazing experience!  My kids loved it, and I hope that Fatmata did, too.  Between the time delay and limited English, it's hard to have a conversation, but we've managed to make a few connections.  Fatmata and Ella were happy to discover that they both wear uniforms to school, they have recess, and they both like Math.  Fatmata has a little brother, too, just like Ella.  Fatmata asked to see our dog, and next week, Ella wants to play the piano for her.  It was amazing to look into the eyes of this little girl in Africa and tell her that I'm coming to see her!

We can't change THE WORLD alone, but we can each change A WORLD for one (I have to credit Andrew Kirk for this wording!).  Love this idea, and Matthew West does a great job of expressing it this song!


One Less by Matthew West (The Story Behind The Song) from emicmg on Vimeo.


If you've ever wondered how to change the world for one, please consider sponsoring a child at The Covering.  Expenses are growing, and the organization depends on sponsors to support the needs of these orphans.  It's such a rewarding experience.  Just follow this link to sign up!

The Raining Season Sponsorship

Why Africa?.....and more!

Wow!  Things are moving so quickly!  Going back to work full-time makes the months pass like weeks.  I can't believe all that's happened in the last month.  Where do I start?  Spiritual journey or financial journey?  I'll talk business first. :)

We now have a good idea of where we stand with fundraising.  We did well at the Chick-fil-a night, but the consignment sale was definitely God's way of providing for us in a big way.  Out of Betsy's home, so did $7,000 in sales!  Of course 1/2 of that goes back to the consignors, but this fundraiser made a huge dent in the cost of our trips.  We also took the remaining clothes and placed them in our church consignment sale.  Those 120 items should help bring in a little more money.  In addition, TRS has recently moved the orphange to a new location.  This new property includes a guest house and will save us the cost of a hotel on our trip.  This trip seemed like such a stretch when we first discussed it, but I'm amazed at how the finances have appeared.  I have well over half of my trip paid for!  At home, our family has made a conscious decision to cut WAY back on eating out, and I have given up haircuts (and hopefully shopping, my weakness!) to help save money.  Our group still plans to do some fundraising.  We have a "Chili's Gives Back" night planned in October, and we're hoping to host a "Parents' Night Out," as well.  I plan to pick up Kroger Gift Cards today that earn us %4 of sales, too, so let me know if you want one.  The Kroger Cards are free to the shoppers and help us raise money!!!

I feel like my spiritual journey is moving as quickly as the money is appearing!  I'm not sure how to explain it, but I'm definitely growing closer to God.  I also see how this impacts the people around me.  I see my journey positively affecting my interactions with Ella, Andrew, Chris, my extended family, and my co-workers.  I feel that I'm more open to discuss my feelings and faith, and I'm growing more confident in this area of my life.  I've never read the Bible all the way through.  I feel like I never really learned to pray, either.  These two things have always made me feel a little insecure with sharing my faith.  I watch others quote scripture and pray impromptu and want their comfort level.  I'm starting to realize, though, that the comfortable comes with growing faith. 

As for the question, "Why Africa?," I think I finally have my answer.  I was reading the Dangerous Surrender by Kay Warren last night (our travel team is doing a book study), and she used an analogy that completely described my answer.  My journey to Africa is like a polaroid picture.  Right now, it's just printing and is still blurry.  I can't clearly see how it's going to turn out.  As this journey progresses, the picture will become clearer.  I just have to be patient and wait to discover exactly what God has in store for me.  Kay Warren went on to talk about our digital picture world that we now live in, and how we're accustomed to everything be revealed instantly and clear.  That may be how we live life, but that's not how God operates.  I know it's Africa.  I know it's with this travel team.  I know it's TRS and experiencing their orphange, The Covering.  That's all I can see in the blur right now.  I'll keep you updated on how the picture develops.

Please continue to pray for me and my travel team.  Please continue to pray for TRS and the success of their mission.