Missions Trip Is Approaching!

I get to go to Europe next week! You wouldn't know it by looking at me but I am jumping up and down inside. I'm not the kind of person to go around blabbing about it to everyone all the time; I don't want to make people envious, jealous, or hate me because of this opportunity. But, at the same time, I want to let people know how giddy I am about this because this may be a once in a lifetime opportunity for me--it might never happen again. I want people to be rejoicing with me and praying for me. I want to dance and sing about it. I want to shout at the highest mountain top how grateful I am that I feel God telling me this is something He wants me to do. So, I guess writing about it in my blog is my way of dealing with my excitement rather than ceaselessly talking about it to everyone I come in contact with. Not as many people will read this post, so I won't feel bad like I'm flaunting this trip in front of everyone, although that in no way would be what I am doing, but I don't even want to take the chance that anybody might start feeling or thinking that is what I am doing, so I think it would be better to be quiet. Does any of this make sense to you who are reading this blog because it makes perfect sense in my mind LOL.

This is not a leisure trip, it is a working trip. A group of people from my church are going to work on helping to convert a store into a church. Depending on what the groups who have gone to help before us have gotten done, we will either be doing some inside demolition work, or helping to rebuild walls, and paint, or a combination of the above. We won't know for sure until we get there. I think there are 13 of us going, and I am the only female. However, once we get to Europe we have an American missionary couple who lives in Belgium who will be joining us, so I may have another woman I can get to know.

Hubby went on the missions trip last year to El Salvador. I had no desire to go there. But, once I heard this year would be Europe, my spirit started soaring. I think there are parts of the world that some people are drawn to go to like Africa, China, India, etc. and for me it has always been Europe, and possibly Russia. Several months ago when I kept being informed that no women were signing up to go, I spent a week praying and wondering if I was really supposed to go or not, or if it was just my own wanting to go and not the Lord's desire. However, the Sunday of my week of wondering, one of the respected older men of these missions trips approached me and talked to me about this. You can read about that here. It was the confirmation I needed to hear and the matter was settled.

I don't know if I will get a chance to blog during the trip or not, but I would really like to if possible so you can keep updated on everything that I'm doing. Otherwise, it'll all have to wait until the end of the trip. In the meantime, would you please pray for me and Hubby, our children, the grandparents who will be taking care of them while we're gone, the other members of the trip and their families, and all of the flying involved? I would so appreciate it. My kids are very excited because they get to fly by themselves to one set of grandparents house for a week, and then fly back by themselves and the other grandparents will take care of them at home until Hubby and I return. I think all of this flying is what makes me nervous because although I'm not dwelling on it, there are those awful, unpleasant thoughts in the back of my head of something bad happening, and I do not want to orphan my children, or come home childless. There! I hate saying what I said, but it's the truth, and it's out, and now that it's out in the open it means I have you all praying for safety for all of us. Thank you so much for your prayers!