Life is crazy-busy. Planning to depart for Thailand in six months means there are a lot of things that need to get done so that can be possible! Like LOTS of stuff! It can be overwhelming and it can be exciting. It can be exhausting and it can be refreshing. I just never know where I'll be emotionally each day. Friends ask me if I got a lot accomplished on my designated work days, but I never feel like I do because the list is soooooooo long and I can't see the end some times. Saturday was an exhausting day. I was exhausted over trying to perfect and make my presentation about Thailand flow well so I could feel comfortable doing it. Unfortunately, I had to go to bed that night still feeling uncomfortable with it. But praise God, His mercies are new every morning. I stepped back from the presentation and worked on creating my first newsletter instead. It was a frustrating day as I tried to figure out how it all worked and get it to look like what I wanted, but in the end it was exciting because I was able to send out my first newsletter before going to bed that night! If you didn't get one, it means I do not have your email address so send it to me and I'll add you to the list! I'm happy to do so. It was back to my presentation on Monday and I was refreshed and able to find a rhythm that I was comfortable with. Now, I just need to find people to share it with. Yup. I figure out one step only to replace it with several more steps. That can be the overwhelming part. I realize that this is probably more of a real and authentic post than you expected, but I feel it's important to share where I'm at. Your support is very appreciated as I work through everything! I'm excited about upcoming opportunities to share my story. I get to share a brief presentation with my church mission team tomorrow night. Plus, I get to share a brief presentation at my dad's church on Sunday! Prayers for those two events would be awesome. If you know me any at all, you'll know that talking in front of people is not my favorite thing to do. However, I do enjoy sharing my story with others so I usually relax a bit as I get further into it. As I get closer to my departure date, the steps I need to take are not always easy. In fact, there are many steps that make me uncomfortable. It's those times I have to remind myself that "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)
Ok, before I wrap up this post, I just have to share this one story. Totally a God moment for me. I'm currently at the stage of developing financial partners for my time in Thailand. That requires me to step out of my comfort zone quite a bit by calling people on the phone. I've never been a phone calls person. I like to see people when I talk to them so phone calls make me very nervous. Any way, last Monday was THE day for me to start calling people with the goal of setting up appointments to talk with them and share my story. I was SOOO nervous! Then after the fifth attempt, I don't know what I was so worried about. It's not like anyone ever answers the phone if they don't recognize the number! I do the same thing a lot of times! It's a little different when you're the one doing the calling though. I just wanted someone to answer. I was ready to give up, but decided I'd try one more number. It rang, rang again, and rang again. I was just about to seriously give up without even leaving a message when they answered the phone! Someone actually answered the phone!! I was in shock so it took me a second to gather my thoughts and talk. I'm not going to say that I did a fabulous job on the call because I'm sure I spoke a million words per second, but I actually talked to a person! The best part about the whole ordeal was the fact that he said he usually doesn't answer the phone when he doesn't recognize the number. He said he just had this strange feeling that he needed to answer this time! Now, try to tell me that wasn't a God moment. I won't believe you. Whenever I become discouraged "I lift up my eyes to the mountains--where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." (Psalm 121:1-2) That was God keeping my hope alive!
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