Washington D.C.

The Team! I've met my team and they're awesome! We're having a ton of fun getting to know each other and getting ready to Namibia. We leave tomorrow for Johanessburg, South Africa and get there Monday evening, then Tuesday we leave for Namibia. Once we get there our team splits into two groups and my group is going to head north to Katima and Rundu. We'll get to do some work in schools and a few orphanges. I don't think I'll have computer access until the 15th or later, but I'll do my best to keep everyone up to date! Thanks again for the prayers and support! :D

Packing

Packing for six weeks has proven to not be an easy task. I've been putting it off until the last minute because I hate deciding what to pack and what to leave. Because of this, I spent the day running errands spending time with my sweet friend, Amy, and making lists. And now I have to get all of this into one suitcase and one carry-on... However, an hour and half later with A LOT of help from Daniel (who I have to say is just fantastic), mission accomplished! With that done, I'm ready for my parents to pick me up at 5 tomorrow morning and take me to the airport where I'll be on my way to Washington D.C. to finally meet my team! I've been able to talk with them a little via e-mail but now I'll get to hang out with them! We'll spend the next couple days getting to know each other and then on Sunday we'll be on our way to Namibia! I'm not sure how often I'll be able to blog (hopefully once a week) and pictures are going to be tricky but I'll do my best! :) Thanks again for all your prayers and support. I can't wait to share all the amazing things I know are going to happen!

And so the countdown begins...

I can't believe how quickly the 25th is coming up. Two weeks from right now, I'll be on a plane headed to Washington D.C. to meet up with the rest of my team and get ready to go to Namibia! It really does feel like just yesterday I had 6 months before I need to "really" be ready to go, but it's upon me. Now is the time where my crazy list-making tendencies show up in full force! Shopping lists, to do lists, packing lists, question lists and on and on. I got to talk with one of my team leaders this last week, which was hugely encouraging as I was getting more and more anxious about leaving. I still know very little about the specific things we'll be doing but will find that out when I get to D.C. and will let everyone know! Thanks again for everyone's prayers and support. It definitely makes me way less nervous to have the kind of support that you all have given me, so thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Shots are not fun

BUT luckily for me instead of the anticipated 10 I only had to get 2! Woo!! I have one pill vaccination I'm taking for the next few days for Typhoid and I have two prescriptions to fill for anti-malaria meds and some infection antibiotics, but other than that I'm set! Thank the Lord that I was up to date on my shots, that saved me from 5 others. The lady who gave me the shots and the information I was looking for on some of what to expect when I get to Namibia was so helpful, and gave me some bugs repelent for my skin and clothes. There should only be about 2 weeks that I'm in the malaria "hotzone" at the beginning of the trip, so hopefully that won't be an issue the whole time we're there. I also found out that I'll be there during their flu season... Eek! That's definitely a prayer request, hopefully no one on our team will get sick with anything while we're there. That's I think the last big milestone before I leave in 7 weeks (can you believe it?!), but I'll keep you all updated on the latest happenings up until I head out. Thanks for your support and prayers, the Lord is definitely providing in ways that I couldn't have imagined!

No more fundraising!

I'm all done with fundraising! Thanks so much to everyone for your prayers and financial gifts! I've raised all of my $6,400 for Namibia and a little extra! Now any more money that comes in will go toward any of my teammates who are struggling to get funds together, so if you were planning on giving it will still be used for the Namibia trip. I'm so excited that the monetary part of the trip is taken care of and that I'm that much closer to Namibia... only eight weeks until I leave! Ah! Being able to raise the money is not only an answer to prayer, but also an affirmation that the this trip is from the Lord and the it's definitely where He wants me to be for part of the summer. It was by the far the most overwhelming part of the preparations process, probably because I've never had to raise money for a trip and certainly never thought I'd have to raise quite this much! My faith is so small in these things but His provision is incredible!

The next step is an appointment at the Travel Center for all the crazy vaccines I need before leaving. I'm set to get them on Tuesday, the 4th. They'll have a list of what I need when I get there so I don't need to find them self (thank goodness), but they said there could be up to 9 or so that I need to get... Ick! Hopefully all will go well with that too and that won't end up being more than what was planned in my budget. Thanks again for everyone's help and support. It's a huge comfort and encouragement to know that I have so many people thinking of me and praying for me, so THANK YOU! :) "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'move from here to there' and it will be done. Nothing will be impossible for you." -Matthew 17:20

Gettin' close...

Wow! What a huge blessing! I'm excited to say that I'm more than half way there on my fundraising at almost $4,300! Thank you all so much for your financial support and your prayers for me in preparing for Namibia. Please continue to pray that I'll be able to raise the rest of the money needed by the middle of May. I also just got an e-mail giving me my travel itinerary so I'll be heading to Washington D.C. on June 25th for an quick orientation with my team and leaders and then we'll all be heading to Namibia on the 28th. We'll be leaving Namibi on August 3rd and I'll be arriving back in Albuquerque August 4th... those are going to be some long plane rides. :) I'm so excited to meet my team, and honestly, a little nervous since I wasn't able to meet any of them earlier this year at a conference preparing us for fundraising and certain specific travel guidelines. I'm sure that the six weeks we spend there are going to be so great, and completely blessed by the Lord. Thank you again for all your prayers and support as the Lord is preparing me and my team to represent Him in Africa. I can't wait to share all the things we'll get to do and experience while we're there!

I'm headed to Namibia!!

Hello! Thanks so much for reading up on my trip for this summer. I'm hoping that through this blog I'll be able to update you from Namibia once I get there, but until then I'm asking for your prayers and support. For now, I'll be able to keep you posted on my fundraising and all the preparations that are being made for my team and my arrival!

If you received a letter from me, you've already read this but just in case... :)

Over the last 6 years, the Lord has given me a heart for Africa and its people. In doing small projects here in Albuquerque with organizations like Invisible Children and Compassion International who work to help the African people, I’ve felt a huge calling on my life to travel there and spend time with the people sharing God’s Word with them and ministering to them. After a lot of prayer and encouragement from Proverbs 3:5-6 (“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths”), I was accepted by the Navigators, along with 10 others, to travels to Namibia for 6 weeks on a mission trip this summer! We will serve in orphanages, teach Biblical abstinence at youth camps, and lead Bible studies on university campuses.

The Lord has been so gracious in opening and closing doors in order to ready me for this trip. I ask that you would pray for as I prepare to leave on June 25^th. Will you also consider financially partnering with me? The total amount I need to raise is $6,400. Donations of $75, $100, and higher would be extremely helpful and an answer to prayer. I need all funds by May 5^th, and ask that you would seriously consider supporting me in this way. Any size donation would be a huge help!

Jeremiah 29:11 says, “’For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” I’m can’t wait to see the Lord work in the plan He’s laying out for me in this trip and for the people my team and I will be working with and serving.

I’m so excited to continue to keep you up to date on how the Lord moves through this trip! I look forward to hearing from you!

** If you’d like to financially support me, you can write a check payable to The Navigators and mail it in the enclosed envelope with a commitment card, or you can go online to www.navigators.org and click donate. There you can enter in my account number (23789605), and donate directly to my missions account. Thank you for your prayers and support as I seek the Lord in this incredible opportunity!