This keeps getting cornier and cornier. And it will get worse before it gets better, trust me ;-)
Alrighty guys, this is it
I am all packed, and as always, I know I am forgetting something. I know I overpacked. Oh well, its not like I can't just head to the store in the next few days.
In all honesty, as the minutes tick by, fear is starting to creep itself in. I am not too fond of change. I am very stuck in my ways. I have basically eaten the same thing for lunch since kindergarten. I tend to date boys named Adam and both of my best friends are named Jessica. I have gone through a half dozen pairs of Rainbows and several pairs of Nike Shox, and thats about all that graces my feet. Just the other day I went swimming and thought it would be fun to try breathing on my left side instead of the right. It wasnt fun. I almost drowned. I have been swimming since I was an infant and I almost drowned in my own backyard, in four feet of water. Change is just not fun sometimes.
So this is crazy for me. I have never done anything like this in my life, it will be my first (but definitely not last) mission trip. I will literally be spending the next nine weeks of my life with 45 total strangers. That is so out of my comfort zone its shocking. I have never been the independent one among my friends, I can only pull off confidence if I have someone next to me to back me up. Ever since I decided to live my life for God and not myself (freshman year of college) I have struggled with finding my confidence in Him and not others. So this is literally a leap of faith for me.
God has really proven himself faithful through this process. I have heard absolute horror stories about raising support. Some of the most Godly people I know have had their faith shaken when support raising efforts failed. So I went in with an attitude that my experience would be the same.
WRONG.
For those of you who don't know, less than 24 hours after I sent my support letters out, my dad was diagnosed with renal and testicular cancer. My dad is my hero and my best friend. My world crashed down around me. Just last summer, my mom almost died from a blockage in her carotid artery caused by a long-undiagnosed genetic condition which makes her liver produce way too much cholesterol even though she weighs like 90 pounds and eats like a rabbit. It was terrifying and I had basically just regained my strength from that when my dads diagnosis tore my heart in two. I spent so many nights in bed basically yelling at God and asking how he could do that to us again. My dad was in and out of the hospital for all of march and april, having surgery after surgery. Complications from each surgery led to several very very scary nights where I basically waited up all night waiting for a phone call.
Instead of God shaking my faith with a lack of support, every time that I would reach a breaking point, a check would come in the mail. It was almost scary- God used this experience to constantly remind me that He was there and He loved me. I unarguably have the best support system in the world. Regardless of religion, my friends are the most encouraging, loving, and supportive friends and I never would have survived without them. (My friends actually made up over half of the money that I was able to raise, which is unexplainable. That never happens. Its crazy.) My dad was declared cancer free a few weeks ago, but he has a long road ahead of him- renal cancer has one of the highest recurrance rates, so prayer is still needed and much appreciated. But God is bigger and more powerful and I know that no matter what, everything will all work out.
So, lets do this thing. I think its almost better for me to go in knowing that I am in no way, shape, or form ready for what God has in store for me. Usually (like 99.999% of the time) when I go in knowing what to expect, I am wrong, and then not only do I have to start over but I have to swallow my pride and deal with being wrong, which is not fun. Yeah, I struggle with pride a lot. I am workin on that.
So heres to one last supporter shoutout:
Thank you so much!
My great aunt Fay (again!)
Sharon Brown
Janice and Paul Libbey
Kristen Marks
And I am so happy to announce I have raised 100% of my support for this summer (my mom gave me the last $24 lol) I literally would not have been able to do anything this semester without you guys, but as always, all the glory goes to God. After all, He put you guys in my life at this time for a reason. Its pretty awesome.
So, I will post often. I cannot wait to post pictures of my new home, my new job, and my new "family." I will send postcards too. I love you all and feel free to write me while I am at project! I will have my computer but come on, who doesnt love mail? My summer address will be:
Mike Ditka Resort
Kelly Wood
Campus Crusade for Christ
3000 Bonfire Beach Drive
Kissimmee, FL 34746
I LOVE YOU ALL SOOOO MUCH!!!
Kelly
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