Christmas break reflections... :)

With Christmas break here, I’ve been able to allow myself to stop and just breathe and think about what is to come in the next semester.  I have recently found out that not only am I teaching 4^th grade in Tanzania from March to May, I’m teaching 8^th grade Language Arts in a public school in Jackson, TN from Mid January to early March. I can’t decide at this point which one intimidates me more! Don’t get me wrong, both placements are PERFECT and EXACTLY where I would have idealized myself being placed. However, I enjoy them because they are certainly going to grow me and push me as a person, as well as an educator, and not because they sound like such comfortable experiences. They certainly fall on two sides of the spectrum. One is in a 1^st world country in West Tennessee in a public school with  a predominantly African American population and the other one is in a 3^rd world East African city with 32 different countries represented! I’ll probably be writing a bit about my time teaching the 8^th grade in the states on this blog as well so that I can compare and contrast the experiences and YOU (my reader J ) can join along in the comparisons and admirations of what God’s sovereignty really looks like!

            As far as where I am at right now in the preparation stages for Tanzania…. Money is still coming in slowly but surely. This entire fund raising process has been one huge lesson in faith and PATIENCE. It certainly hasn’t played out how I thought it might, but its ok, it’s still coming in. At this point, I’m about $1000 short of where I would like to be before I leave the country. I’m trying to work and save so that that amount can shrink a bit, but I still find myself begging the Lord to do a miracle. I’ve always been told and taught that we only receive if we are bold enough and have large enough faith to ask….so I’m asking! Haha! 

       I’ve gotten all the vaccinations and all the prescriptions that I need in order to legally get into the country and not get completely ill and unable to function. J Watching my mom’s face as my amazing Doctor (who is a world traveler himself) wrote and explained all the prescriptions was quite entertaining as she tried to hide her shock and concern about what I’m doing. Don’t get me wrong, she’s supportive, but this is a whole new world and experience for all my family and myself. I appreciate more than anything how supportive and amazing my family has been through this whole process, even if it makes them a little nervous. It’s been a faith walk for them too, I think.

            I can hear the question already from my best friends… “How are you really? Mentally? Spiritually? Emotionally?”  What a blessing they are to care so much! J J This opportunity has already revealed to me how small my faith actually is. I always thought of myself as someone who had a pretty strong Christian walk and relationship with the Father. However, this time has already pushed me to discover that my faith has grown so comfortable in the last couple years that I hadn’t even realized just how much it had shrunk and become more about what I could do instead of what HE can do THROUGH me. Therefore, I’ve been asking the Lord to increase my faith. I remember an adult I met with regularly in High School that I respected SOOO much was always asking God for the same thing and I never understood why someone as godly as she was would ever ask for that. Now I think I understand. Mentally, I feel like I’ve just reached a point where I feel like I can do this alright! In the past few month or 2, I’ve felt overwhelmed and stressed about the whole leaving-the-country-by-myself-and-student-teaching-in-Africa-thing and began to wonder if I was making a huge mistake. However, the Lord has been so gracious to remind me that He is not going to leave me hanging and He does want me to do this. Therefore, I’m feeling much much much better about the whole thing these days.

Thanks for asking.J

Prayer requests:

1)money…. Please pray that God does a financial miracle in the next couple monthes so that trip can be totally and completely paid for before I leave! That would be amazing, but I know that He is gonna do it the way He wants to!

2)Faith… Pray that God would grow my faith and grow our relationship to the BRIM between now and the time I leave. Now more than ever, I long to see His face because I know it would be foolish to do ANY student teaching (states or abroad) that would reflect His glory if I am not on the best page with Him that I can be.

Some details about the trip...so you aren't confused? :)

I never thought that I would actually find myself preparing to go to Africa. Had someone told me this fact about 5 years ago, I would have laughed at them or cried and said, "o PLEASE be wrong." Yet, here I am... staring at plane tickets that will send me to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania for 10 weeks. I'm walking proof that God can change your heart towards what He wants for your life.

So here's how this trip is supposed to go down.
I'm an Education major at Union University. Therefore, I have to do student teaching my last semester of college. I also feel called to international missions and 5 years ago, God started pointing my heart towards Africa. He never said specifically where.... just asked me to be willing.
As it turns out, Union has a program where I get to do my student teaching overseas.... in... Africa. I entered to program, went through training, and now all the details are trying to come together.

I'll be student teaching a 4th grade class at a school called Haven of Peace Academy. I love just the name of the school. (http://www.hopac.net/) The school is located really close to the Indian ocean in the capital city of Tanzania. In this one school of about 300 children (K-12), there are 34+ countries represented. CRAZY right? 40% are MKs but the rest are international business children or Tanzanians that go there on scholarship or are wealthy enough to pay for it. It is a Christian International School.

I'll be living in a house on a compound with the teachers at HOPAC.

this is the house. :)



this is the view from the roof of the house that I'm going to be in. :) Can you say.... quiet time spot?

I don't really know anything else other than that! I've been researching the country and the city, but I'm well aware that I'm going to be clueless up until I actually have spent a couple weeks there... and even then,... I'm sure I'll still be pretty lost! Haha!

I just wanted to update you guys and fill you in with what's going on! Please keep praying specifically that the Lord would provide the funds. I sent out my support letters last week and the money is starting to come in, but I still have a long way to go! I know that my God is greater and will provide all my needs, but when you are in the midst of the need, it gets harder! Therefore, pray also that the Lord would increase my faith. I've become so aware lately of how small it actually is!

My first post...

So I haven't had a blog since high school that I kept up with regularly, but due to the nature of what my life is going to look like over the next 9 monthes, I felt it was necessary to start one up. This blog will be a go-to site for my friends, family, and supporters to come and see what is happening in preparation for and living in Tanzania.

For those who don't know, I'm going to be moving to Tanzania in March 2011 and will be there until May 2011. More details to come.

I cannot wait to see what this year has for me.