committed...

Yesterday I took a deep breath, said a prayer and clicked. In other words, I BOUGHT MY PLANE TICKET!!!  Even though all I really have to show for it at this point is an email in my inbox, I am beginning to feel the gravity of this decision.  It's done.  I'm committed. And by God's grace, I will be on a plane from Pellston, MI to Lima, Peru at 6 a.m. on May 18, 2011!  I typically wouldn't fly out of Pellston because it is usually exponentially more expensive than Detroit, but I was lucky (though I personally think luck had nothing to do with it) to find a rare price on a flight out of Pellston, which will be so much more convenient and might even give me a chance to say goodbye to some of you in the upper Michigan area...if you're a morning person, that is.  This definitive step forward feels so monumental to me; now I just have to keep reminding myself to slow down and make the most of the next 84 days.

28%

I am very excited to let you all know that my support has reached 28%.  Through many one-time gifts, I have enough support to cover all of my up-front costs, including my plane ticket, health insurance and the fees associated with applying for a resident visa.  Monthly support is my biggest need right now (approximately another $600/month), along with your prayers as I endeavor to accomplish all that needs to be done before I leave. You can be specifically praying for me as I will be presenting the ministry of MCS at Glen Memorial Baptist Church in St. Ignace, MI on Sunday, March 6.

looking back...

Just to give a little background, this video is a short glimpse of the summer that started my love for Peru...

With love from Indiana...

This video is a one-minute clip of what my whole weekend looked like.  I drove the 4.5 hour drive from Cedarville, OH to Elkhart, IN in 5.75 hours (thanks to the weather) to reunite with my original roommates from Peru, Cindy, Emily and Julene (we were only missing Heidi!). Combine the amount of junk food we ate with the lack of sleep and our excitement to be together and I'm sure you can imagine.  It was chaos, in the best way possible.

On top of the stomach aches and 3a.m. pillow fights, we just had such a great time of catching up.  Spending time with those girls was such a huge blessing and encouragement to me. I was able to vent all my fears and to receive a mountain of great advice from godly ladies who have been in my exact shoes. Both Cindy and Emily recently returned from serving at MCS and had so many things to say that I needed to hear, everything from ways to motivate my students to how to take a taxi to church. It was the best weekend I've had in a long time and exactly the encouragement I needed to keep me excited about the opportunity God has before me right now.