Looking ahead

Many family members/ friends have asked that I start this blog in order to give an insight on the time I will be spending in India. We are now 29 days away from departure, and I am beyond words excited. I can not wait to see what God has in store for me in India, and to see how his plan for my life unfolds. As excited as I am, I also have a few worries. Traveling half way around the world all by myself is a little intimidating. Also, within the last few weeks I have realized how much I will actually miss my family. Growing up, I have heard over and over again how one day I will learn to appreciate my family, and my siblings and I never believed that actually could be true. Well, I was wrong and that day has arrived. I have grown to appreciate the little things, like getting lunch with my mom, or playing whiffle ball with my younger siblings and the kids I babysit. Ill miss driving around with the music cranked up to decimals that it shouldn't be, with absolutely no destination in mind with my sisters. Ill miss the dreaded "best and worst" every night at family dinners. Its the little things that I never thought about that I actually will miss so incredibly much. It has become very real to me, that sometimes what we are called to do as followers of Christ will entail missing out on certain things, and although it will be difficult, the joy that will come out of doing what God has called us to will far exceed any of those things. I look forward to just doing life every day in India, and finding out what that looks like. I can not wait to see all those precious little faces and just love on them. As I look ahead to this trip, I ask that you pray for three things for me, brokenness, openness and courage. I often find that I am able to grow the most in my relationship with Christ when I am being stretched, and when I am broken. Pray that this trip will be one that breaks me completely so that I have absolutely nothing to lean on but my Heavenly Father. For openness, pray that I will not only be able to be open with the people I come into contact with, but also that they will be open to me. I feel that so often we relate best with people by knowing that we have all fought with life in some sort of way. Pray that the fact that I am American will not give the the people I meet a preconceived notion of me. Pray that I will be able and willing to share my story with them, and that they will in turn do the same with me. For courage, obviously this is a little bit of an intimidating experience. Packing up and moving half way around the world for 7 months as an 18 year old girl fresh out of high school is scary! Pray that I will be able to have courage in all situations that I find myself in, and that more importantly I will be able to bring glory to my Lord and Savior.