its become so real

These days, it seems like the Portland international airport is the hub of my social life. I have been there more times this last week than i have this entire last year. This week, i said goodbye to my norwegian friend as she heads home for the summer, said "nee-how" to danielles fiancee's (krispin) family as they flew in from china, said goodbye to my german friend as he heads home, and goodbye to mel, my friend from kansas. The worst, however, was saying goodbye to Lindsay, my oldest sibling whom i have adored and looked up to my whole life. She left for Uganda yesterday, and i only wish i could be there with her. However, that same day, my parents flew in from alaska where they had amazing adventures with God and the natives in the the alaskan bush.

My life is a blur of goodbye and hello.

And i am still not used to it. i don't think i ever will be. I knew when i chose this lifestyle, that it would be crazy, but still, nothing can fully prepare you for saying goodbye to the people who have become your family, over and over. I will see them all again, but it seems like and eternity away. but really, its just until the fall.

What makes it a little more bearable is the fact that i am LEAVING FOR AFRICA IN 2 1/2 WEEKS! its for sure. the tickets are bought, ministries planned, itinerary sorted out, and team assembled. and i am really really excited. so, i am going to tell you kind of what we are doing...

first, Minju and I fly out of Portland on july 9th and catch our connecting flight to Uganda in Amsterdam. the cool part is, we are meeting up with two boys there, who will be joining us in our adventures in Uganda and Sudan. their names are David and Darrel and they really love Jesus. Then we fly into Entebbe Uganda. A friend of mine and Minju's is already in Uganda working with AIDS orphans (Annie from Corban College), and she is sending a taxi down to Entebbe to take us to Kampala where she will be waiting. From Kampala we are traveling by bus up to northern Uganda to a city called Arua, where we will be staying at a base there, helping out with local needs and learning more about how we can get connected. From Arua, we will border hop to South Sudan to a town called Yei, for ten days, helping another base in ministry wherever it is needed. Mostly in IDP (internally Displaced Peoples) camps. We might be digging wells, building huts, working with children, teaching english or whatever else we can do. We just want to serve while learning more about the situation over there. one of my major goals is to obtain enough information as i can and bring it back to my church and to the base. The more info we have, the more responsible we become, and the more responsible we become, the more passionate we are for bringing change.

From Yei, we travel southeast to Gulu and will be there for around 8 days. This is an area that has been ravaged by war. The infamous LRA (Lords Resistance Army) in previous years has been known to completely ransack this area, destroying villages, kidnapping children to become child soldiers, and killing anyone and everyone in their path. Gulu is packed with IDP camps. Camps where entire generations have grown up never knowing a land of their own. never knowing a life without war.
Here, we will be going to different villages (camps) and making friends with these beautiful people. Some villages in this area have never heard the gospel, they are an unreached people group, and we have the honor and privilege to be the first to share it with them. We actually have to hike into some of these villages because they are so unreached. there are no roads! it's a good thing i have a strong back, but im still going to pack light. this is going to be fantastically out of my comfort zone! hooray!

From Gulu, we travel south to Soroti for a few days to drop off our friend Annie where she will spend the remainder of her time working in a clinic for AIDS patients. Minju, David, Darrel and I will then head to Entebbe where we will catch a flight to Kenya where we have a short layover, then on to Khartoum, Sudan. We will be there for 25 days doing a variety of things. i can specify later on those details...

but anyhow, then we fly home to good ol PDX on the 29th of August. you guys, i am so thankful. so excited. so not ready (but am i ever?) and so in love with jesus that i will follow him to the ends of the earth. I simply cannot wait to share all of my adventures, stories, experiences, pictures and information when i return. I will be different, there is no avoiding that. I have a strange feeling that during this trip, i will learn more about my identity and my destiny. Who i am in christ, how i am going to use my gifts, and how i am going to live out my passion.
I am counting down the days.

the crazy part is, i fly into Uganda the day Lindsay flies out. life is so strange sometimes. but so beautiful.

the african summer

where have the days gone?
honestly, did the california mobile trip really end more than three weeks ago? The days have been a frantic blur, amidst which i am making the hardest decisions i have ever had to make in my life.
California was incredible. We got over 150 contacts who are interested in missions, and now our job has been to keep in touch by calling and emailing, encouraging them to do something with their lives. encouraging them to change the world. encouraging them to come do a DTS!
After we returned to Salem, I was told by the leadership that I was not going to be able to go to Africa this summer. I dont know if i told everyone, but my plan for this summer was that i would go to Uganda/ Sudan with my friend and colleague, Minju. After India and Australia fell through, i desperately wanted this chance. I have wanted to work in Africa for so long, this seemed like the perfect opportunity. I had so many questions, and so many reservations. But i decided to try. So, as you can imagine, being told "no" right after california was a bit heart-wrenching. But something told me to try again. Minju and i sat down and decided to re-submit a preposal to the leadership. But something was holding me back. After having thought that i was supposed to go to India and Australia, i was doubting the fact that God had said to go to Africa. I thought maybe this was simply me just wanting to go. Minju and I decided right then and there to pray, and ask God for a clear answer. I hate being this bold with God, because i am afraid His answer will be something i am uncomfortable with.
So i sat there, and told God i was OK with anything He wanted for me. I was honestly OK with staying here in Salem. I would serve, i would be the best registrar/hospitality preson they have ever had! I would mobilize and recruit, and most importantly, i would have joy, because i serve and amazing God. And then i told him i was also pretty cool with going to Africa, too. I told him i know it didnt make much sense, what with visas and plane tickets and all, but I would go if he still told me.
and then i waited. and in the silence, all i heard was "Go." over and over. and then i felt peace. for the first time in months, i felt real peace. peace that passes ALL understanding. It didnt make sense. Honestly, it would be easier to stay and serve on the base. it would be easy to explain to people why i wasn't going, why i had to stay. logically, it was simple not to go. but that is not what i heard.
my fear disappeared. my questions were quieted. And so we finished the proposal form, and turned it into the leadership. They had already said no, but now i knew what God has said. After a weekend of prayer and consideration, they cleared me to go to Uganda and Sudan. that was a week ago. Since then, Minju and i have sent in our visa apps, bought plane tickets, researched ministries, gotten yellow fever/ spinal meningitis shots and have prayed like crazy for these amazing nations. I am still in shock. God is good.
We leave july 9th, and will return august 28th. I am in for the adventure of a lifetime. my only regret is that i will not be spending any time with my family this summer. the first summer in my life that i will not spend with them. I love my family so dearly. the thing is, i know they are all in support of this. they could not be happier for me, and this gives me more joy than anything.