Hello everyone!
It has been a while since my last update and a lot has happened! My summer has been very full of vacations, mission trips, working and opportunities to share what I will be doing next year! Since my last blog, I also reached my fundraising goal and cannot express how grateful I am for all of those who are supporting me, not only financially, but also through prayer, and subscribing to this blog! I has been incredible to not have to worry about funding as I prepare my heart for next year and again, am overly thankful for all those walking with me! God’s hand has been so evident in the fundraising process and also in the opportunities that have come. In June, I had the opportunity of going down to La Mision in Baja, Mexico with my church to build two houses! It was an incredible experience and also a good test run for seeing how lightly I could pack :). It was such a blessing to get to know the families who we built the houses for and see the joy on their faces as the week went on, it was also great to step out of the fast speed of culture and live for a week on Mexico time, a little more relaxed and focused on relationship. I imagine this is how many of the places we are going to operate. In school this past year, we learned about the difference between warm and cool cultures, it isn’t hard to guess which one the US is, more goal oriented and focused on being on time, keeping things brief and without emotion. But as we learned about many of the other cultures, they seem to have a more relationship based culture where time doesn’t matter as much as talking and relationships are more important than the task at hand. Making the switch from a cool to warm culture may be a bit hard for me, as I am very goal oriented and my culture has affirmed this behavior, not always bad, but sometimes a bit harmful. And while I look forward to a more relaxed culture, I wonder how much I will struggle to sit and talk when I could be doing something important. This reminds me of the story of Mary and Martha. Martha seeks to serve the Lord through her actions while Mary sees the importance of sitting in the presence of the Lord and serving him that way. Am I amble to decipher between the moments that work needs to be done and when I really just need to sit? Or am I just so focused on getting things done that I miss out on the moment? I really feel this tension right now as I feel I have so much to do in the 5 weeks before I leave, but in reality, I need to spend more time sitting with the Lord, preparing my heart for the journey that is so close!
Your Gramma and I have thankfully had a front row seat watching you grow into the young lady you are today. We find comfort in the fact that you are clearly being led by the Lord down this path. You may find as your address changes, the Lord may change “your goals” . As you prepare for this incredible journey, rest assured there will be many highs with ” God” moments that we will be anxious to hear about. As with life, you may encounter some “lows” also. Through it all, just know that you have a family that loves you very, very much and will miss you while you are gone. This may be hard to imagine but you have a Heavenly Father who loves you even more !! So Emerson, go and have an impact on the world you come in contact with but please know, we will always be here anxiously waiting your return !!
Love, Grandpa Buck
Emerson, I am so incredibly excited to be on this journey with you!! Even with the little bit of time I have known you, I’ve seen firsthand your passion + love for Jesus!! You are an incredible light for the Lord + I am beyond blessed to be on squad L with you + more than that, I’m blessed to have you as a friend! I love you + I am proud of you! I can’t wait to see what God has in store!! Let’s go do this girl!!!
I am so excited for you. I feel your pain. I am a doer and task oriented. Prayers as you go on this journey. You are a beautiful person. Praying for you.