Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Steady Rock.

Need: to go pack. First road trip of the summer: VA Beach!

As I begin to move through the steps of this process (like writing my first prayer letter... yikes), it's hard to not get overwhelmed at times. It seems like there is just so much to do and accomplish in such a short amount of time- not to mention the myriad of decisions that seem to come my way.
This is not to say that I am not ecstatic to be going- believe I am. This is my dream job and I'm getting to do it right out of college?! How much more excited can I be?! But the fear that seems to creep in at times does have a way of tempering that excitement.
But it's in moments like these that I am reminded of God and his faithfulness. He's not scared by the to-do lists, the decisions, or the reality that I am soon leaving to move halfway around the world by myself. He's the steady rock, unchanging even as the winds of life begin to blow. And that is why I can just keep going (thank you Lord... and Dory).

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Ethiopia, here I come!

Currently reading: Funding Your Ministry by Scott Morton
Feeling: hungry. Second day of post-wisdom teeth and I have only had things I can slurp down at this point. 

I am so blessed and excited to announce that I am officially a member of SIM and looking to serve as an English teacher at Bingham Academy in the fall!! 

Some of you have been a part of this journey with me and some are joining now, but I want to provide the full story on this blog for those that don't know itFor now: a brief snapshot of my life right now.

This spring consisted of a fabulous and learning-filled semester of student teaching at Lower Dauphin High School and all the joys that come with it. Once, I finished that at the beginning of May- it was a whirlwind of fun senior week activities that culminated in a toasty, and thankfully breezy, commencement ceremony at Messiah College on May 12. I walked across the stage, shook Kimmy P's hand, and received my diploma (cover). This meant that I graduated with a degree in English with Teaching Certification, which I have always hoped to use overseas.

My dreams have come true as I head to teach overseas in the fall! To make this happen, I have now officially become a member of  SIM (an inter-denominational mission based out of Charlotte, NC). This is the same mission that my parents served with in the 80s and my brother and I joined the tradition when we all went to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2001-2004. I have been appointed after a long weekend in Charlotte, attending SIMStart. This was a blessed weekend as I saw the motto "By Prayer" being lived out in all that we did- such an affirmation from the Lord that I was in the right place and moving forward in his will. But more on that later...

After this past weekend and other steps in the process, I have been approved to serve as an English teacher at Bingham Academy! This is the school that we served at when we were in Ethiopia previously, and I am STOKED to be going back! I know it will be very different from the last time I was there (um, hello? I was 11.) but I'm excited to see the changes there and how I've changed since I was there before as well. As far as I know, I will have a couple middle school and a couple high school classes to teach- then again, things always change once on the field :) 

What does this mean right now? I am now moving forward through the next steps- raising support, going through training(s), and trusting God that he has it all figured out :) I plan to use this blog to not only keep people updated on the process, but also share thoughts I've had about this new time in my life as well as all the goings-on once I get to Ethiopia!