Quick update from Ghana

Hey there everyone! I'm sitting at an internet cafe on a rainy day in Tamale, Ghana. The trip has been AMAZING. God's presence is so clear here. We've done so much already and I wish I could describe the amazing things that have gone on. Here's a brief update...

I've sat in a village in the middle of nowhere surrounded by mud huts, pitch black skies, precious Ghanaians and under the most amazing view of the stars while listening to God's word be proclaimed in unreached villages. Simply amazing. I've seen Jesus in the face of lonely orphans. I've seen children dying of Malaria. I've experienced some of the most heartbreaking sights I've ever seen. I've been blessed to share Christ's love with a Muslim man at the market and tell him/debate with him that my God is the true God who has immeasurable love for him. I've ridden on bumpy roads over miles of African fields to the most remote villages to witness to those who have never heard. Our God is amazing.

Please continue to keep our team in your prayers.
-Pray for strength and energy. Yesterday we all hit a wall of exhaustian from late nights, early mornings and nonstop work. A few of us were sick today (including me) but we're all better now.
-Pray for the villages of Fandu where we've held crusades the last two nights and for the village of Zandu who where we'll be tonight.
-Pray for Hanan, the VERY Islamic man I've made friends with and have been talking with at the Market. He told me that next time I come back he wants to talk about the Bible with me. I should see him next week.
-Pray for the orphans, widows, starving children and deathly sick people we've seen and will see. Pray that God's hope and love would be seen through us.

Thanks so much!!

Almost there..

"The LORD your God, who is going before you,
will fight for you."
Deuteronomy 1:30

I love the truth in this verse. Even as we are packing and getting ready to leave, God is already before us and making a way for us..at the airport, on the plane, in Ghana..I'm so glad that I have a Savior who's planning, fighting, and preparing on my behalf.

It's hard to believe that in less than 24 hours we'll be flying over the Atlantic on our way to Ghana. I'm so, so excited. Today has been filled with non stop packing, running around, last minute errands, etc. Right now I'm trying to fight our "one 44 lb luggage" policy...not easy. AHH. Packing is definitely not enjoyable for me, and I'll be so happy once we're just in Ghana.

I can't believe this trip has come so soon. I know that God has big plans for our team and I'm so blessed and excited that I get to take part in them. Please continue to pray for our team as we prepare to leave and as we depart!

Two weeks..

"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?"
Romans 10:14

Two weeks from this moment I'll be Africa bound on our first flight. I simply cannot wait. I'm so excited to see what God will do and can't wait to get back on African soil. Just thinking about those dirt roads, gorgeous Ghanian smiles, bumpy bus rides, long hot days, and the sights and smells of mud hut villages makes my heart beat faster and I seriously can't help but smile.

Today I got all my meds and one last shot at the doctor. Now all that's left to do is pack...not my favorite. Here's what I've got so far...
Looks like I've still got a ways to go..ahhhh can't wait. :)

21 days, 10 hours 30 minutes...

..until I leave for Africa. Not that I'm counting or anything..

Can you tell Ghana's on the mind? Yep. Saying that I'm excited is an understatement. I absolutely cannot wait to be walking through mud hut villages, sitting with precious African smiles around me, holding a sweet little child and sharing a Love these people have never heard of.

I'll be leaving on July 1st with a team of mostly youth. We'll be flying to Atlanta and then straight to Ghana. (Flying directly into Africa will be amazing..usually we have to go all the way up to London or Frankfurt first.) While there, we'll spend a couple of days in the capital city and surrounding villages, then head up to the northern region, a much more rural and poverty stircken (and HOT) portion of Ghana. There, we'll be doing a lot of open evangelism, presentations in the schools, relief work, and orphan care. I'm so pumped to see how God will use our team.

Please begin praying with us for this trip. Pray for preparation, safety, health, the people we will minister to and for the chief's of the villages to be open to our team. Prayer is critical on any mission trip and truly has a huge impact. To visit our team's blog and see more about the area we will go to and the work we'll be doing, go to www.ghanamission10.blogspot.com .

The Way Of The Game

Driving back and forth. Being with awesome teammates. Sweating. Running. Shooting. Guarding. Bruising. = my weekend, also known as a basketball tournament.

I started thinking today about how basketball really does have so many similarities to everyday life. Yesterday we had games at 10am and then at 12pm. I remember thinking before the second game how I wasn't really in the mood to play anymore. I was icing my knee from the game before, I was tired from lack of sleep and I didn't really feel like working. But then I started thinking to myself...What good is it going to do for me to play with this mindset? I'm going to play the game no matter what. The coaches and teammates count on each of their players to be there and do their part- that's what being on a team is about. Playing with the mindset of "'I'd rather do something else', 'I'll let my team do the work', or 'I'm bruised, tired and don't feel like putting in the effort'" wasn't going to do me or my team any good at all, and I knew I needed to change my thinking.

I think this applies to so many of the things we do in life. There are times when we're sore, tired, grumpy, and just don't want to do what we need to accomplish. It'd be easy to sit back and pout or have a bad attitude about it, but either way we're still going to have to do that certain thing. That's the way of the game, and it's unavoidable. Having a poor, hateful, or angry mindset going into a task is never going to help us succeed- pessimist attitudes are only going to bring us and those around us down. Sometimes our outlook on things can transform results and have a greater effect then we know of. Stepping up to the plate and doing what our team needs us to do is part of life. We can do this with sighs, huffs, and puffs, or we can choose to take the higher road and play our part as a blessing, not as an annoyance or a stumbling block. Our Coach and teammates need us.

"A joyful heart makes a cheerful face, but when the heart is sad, the spirit is broken."
Proverbs 15:13

In All Circumstances

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I remember how easy this verse seemed singing it as a song in vacation Bible school in 3rd grade. Why not be joyful? Why not give thanks in all circumstances? Life was easy and my hardest obstacle was tackling my new bar routine in gymnastics. But now, things aren't so easy and care-free. It'd be much simpler to translate the verse into "be joyful when there's something to be joyful about, pray when things don't go you're way, and give thanks whenever they do." But, we would fail to remember that last, and possibly most important section.."For this is GOD'S WILL for you in Christ Jesus." Not just His idea of what could be best, not His scheme to ruin our lives, not His plan to give us anything we could ever want...His "good, pleasing, and perfect will" (Roman's 12:2). God has a plan greater than any of us could ever imagine, and when we let go and realize it's all up to Him, our worries become so much simpler. We can't always control what's going on around us, but we can (and are told to) choose to be joyful, pray, and give thanks in all of our circumstances.

A year in recap and a summer to come..

Wow..it has definitely been awhile since I've been on here. So much has happened in the last year since I've posted...definitely too much to tell at once. Since my last post God has sent me to Mexico twice, China once, I've finished my sophmore and junior year of high school (I'm an official senior now..heck yesss!), I've gone through a million ups and downs and have learned a ton in the process. In short, the last year has been crazy, emotional, life-changing, horrible at times and amazing at others. And now, I'm writing this sitting on the verge of another summer that's just starting. I don't know exactly what it'll hold..I know it will include 3 weeks to Ghana (July 1-22), working in vbs at church, and a lot of good times with friends and family. I think if I could marry summer, I might just do it. I love summer. For real, I have been addicted to "Summer Nights" by Rascal Flatts since the week before school let out. And now, summer's here at last and I'm beyond happy. Now that I'm free of school and have more spare time, I plan to write on here these next few weeks before Ghana and hopefully (if we have an internet connection) post updates throughout my trip, so check back if ya want. :)