Back in America!!!

We are officially back in the States!! How crazy that my time overseas is already over! Time truly flew by and looking back, I can’t believe the journey the Lord has taken me on! But it’s still not over and the Lord has so much for me in this last week. Our last few weeks in Swaziland were incredible and we were able to fall into a rhythm after being so busy the first few weeks. Life began to be so simple, going to ministry, having team time, eating dinner, and just hanging out! Playing with the kids began to be such a joy as well! In that, one thing that I had struggled with was having patience with the kids as they grabbed and pulled and tugged and… There was one girl in particular who would grab at my back and not let go the whole time and it was so hard for me to love her and want to be with her. But one thing about most of the kids is that the parents of the kids usually don’t have time to love the kids but are focused on getting food. And some of the kids don’t have parents at home but the grandparents or siblings raise them along with all their cousins. With that knowledge, it was easier to love her and give her the attention she doesn’t get at home, dying to self and laying down what’s easiest to love her better. In all that, I hope that she doesn’t remember me, but the love she felt and through that, know that she’s loved by the king of the world and desired by him.

Another part of the care points that I really enjoyed was being able to talk with the high schoolers who were with us the last few weeks because school was out. Many of them were surprised by the fact that I neither had a boyfriend nor had any children which also broke my heart because it means that most women my age would have kids and boyfriends. And because most of the girls probably aren’t well loved at home, they seek love and validation from men. That’s obviously not where they were meant to find validation and it’s a joy to be able to point them towards the only one who can fulfill that need for validation and satisfy their hunger to be known. They shouldn’t feel the need to settle for a quarter of a heart when there’s a God who has already given them his whole heart. But why would they seek that when all they’ve know is fake love?

And what a joy it was to be able to be love in action to them, to be in the word and let them know that life with the Lord is not just about knowing all the Bible stories, but about walking day by day with Him in relationship! It was so hard for me to leave them, knowing that it would be easy for them to return to that fake love, but in that, I trust that the Lord will continue to place people in their lives who will show them the Lord’s love.

During this past week, we were in North Carolina doing domestic ministry with Adventures Relief doing hurricane relief. During most of the week, my team stayed back on the base doing some work, but one day we got to do landscaping and some outdoor work for a family that had to evacuate during the hurricane in October and had 4 young children. And I enjoyed it so much! I love how in manual labor within missions, we have the opportunity to not only serve people who are in need, but we also get to build relationship with them and hear their stories, putting the relationship over the task. And what was cool for me, was to see how much I have changed over the race. Last summer when I went to Mexico on a trip, my focus was much more on the task, but now, I have a longing to hear the stories of those we are serving and not only help them physically, but also hear their hearts!

With that being said, as I look ahead to next year, I feel the Lord is calling me to Moody Bible Institute in Chicago where I’m planning on majoring in Crisis and Trauma Care! I’m looking forward to all the classes I will get to take and also the hundreds of ministry opportunities in the city! It’s sure going to be a lot different than the race, but the Lord has filled me with an excitement for what He has next for me!

I return home on May 22nd and I know that I know that there were countless people supporting me that I didn’t know about and would love to be able to share in person with all those who have supported me!

I would love to invite you to an evening of fellowship and sharing about the World Race on June 4th! From 6-7pm we’ll have a time to fellowship and at 7 I will begin sharing!

Third Church, Room 101

Again, thank you so much for all the prayers, you have no idea how the Lord has used them and knowing I have a community at home supporting me has been such a blessing!

Prayer Request:

1. That the transition back home would be smooth and that I would not just jump right back into life, but take time to process
2. For the week of debriefing, that I would be fully present still
3. For all those affected by the hurricane back in October that we helped this past week