The Beginnings

Some background info!
(disclaimer: this may be pretty long!)

For a little over 2 years, I have been attending Newport Mesa Church. Aside from just regularly attending, I have been involved in helping start up a college group, I've been in the choir, I've helped out in the children's ministry, I've played in a church softball league, and I help work the Welcome Center. Now, I know that's a lot but I love it all! One thing I have yet to do though with my church is go on a mission's trip. I've gone on mission trips before, and a lot of you probably know that most recently, I've spent a summer in Hampton Beach, NH.

When I first started at NMC my pastor Rick, told me how I had to go with Africa with him and the church. When he first told me that I honestly thought he was insane. I later found out that they were going to go to Ethopia soon. I was really interested in the trip and I went to the info meeting and all that jazz, but in the end, I felt it wasn't in God's timing for me to go. So I pushed the thought aside for awhile because I knew if God wanted me to go to Africa, He would present me with an opportunity to go.

A couple of months ago they announced in church 2 trips coming up. One of them is Tanzania. The more I toyed with the idea, the more I decided that this was the time for me to go. I mentioned it to my college pastor, Michael and he said that he wanted to go on the trip too. Then one of my really good friends Michelle said she really wanted to go on the trip too! This just made me more and more excited! So I prayed a lot about it and I felt God was really telling me that this was the trip He wanted me to go on. So I went to the information meeting, I heard the details, I remained calm through the knowledge of the shots I'd have to get and the money I'd have to raise, and in the end? Well I'm more excited than ever.

Even though the trip is not until May, I'm starting to write this now because I am preparing for the trip now. There's a long process, and I thought it would be good to keep it documented. My first step is filling out the application. It's a really long application that I'm not exactly enjoying but I know I'll appreciate the trip much more once I finish it and turn it in. Right now I also have just finished making a long list of people who I feel would want to potentially support me. I already did this because when I need to start raising support it will be in the middle of my semester and I don't know if I'll have the time to name storm, so I just did it now while I have time. The next step in the process, once I finish my application, will be the interview. I will have to have an interview with the team leaders and then they will decide if I join their team or not. So in theory, this can be a short-lived blog because I could be wrong in thinking this is the trip for me. However, I honestly don't believe I'm wrong and so if it's God's Will I will make the team!

So that's where I'm at right now. I will try to keep you all updated! Please keep me in your prayers as I go through this whole process of simply making it on the team and then from there, please pray for the team who gets to go to Tanzania and that all the funds will come in!

I love you all so very much!