Family

I am devoting the first part of my blog post to my cousin's (2nd or 3rd) ha :) that are about to be on mission in Africa for 4 years! http://www.maf.org/holmes and www.holmesmission.com. Visit these sites to see more about what they are doing!!!

It was so good to get to talk to Dave and JIll about their call to missions, what they are doing, and how they got to this point!

It helped me see that the mission process in life might not be instant, and that God may have different things for me than a single mission opportunity. if that makes sense?

Anywhoo.... go look at their site/sites and learn a little about what they are doing! it sounds great and they are offering a great trade, and I know God is and will do great things with their willing and faithful service!

New thoughts

I don't really have an update, Just thoughts.

We recently all here on the team have been discussing making wise decisions, that edify the body of believers. The more I think about this, and see how making poor decisions effect people who look up to christians, I think it is very important.

We as people in general need consistent friendships. We need honesty, openness, and transparency. We also need to be built up, and encouraged to do good.

So when we are self seeking, and make decisions that aren't necessarily bad, but definitely aren't edifying or wise, we hinder the walk or pursuit of a walk for many. When we try and hide those decisions we make, it even further hinders relationships, because it makes the non believer, or person we are trying to encourage to the Lord, feel we are preaching goodness and a life that pleases the Lord, but we ourselves don't really believe in that life.

Maybe this is taking a life that pleases the Lord to an extreme, but I feel that if we all truly want to live missionally, and a life that does in fact please the Lord, we need to be open, honest, and transparent, and edify the body of believers, and leave the petty self seeking actions aside, for the sake of the gospel, and the sake of the people who are looking at us to find something better. Basically we should all be consistent, honest with our friends, edifying, and not shady. :)

Love you all and miss you!

I want faith ha

So I decided to post on my heart, as well as an update on the trip so far.

Here is what is going on in my heart.

I wish I had faith. Unconditional faith. For instance, some people are able to go on airboat rides and be amazed by God and what he is doing, while I go on airboat rides and and consistently am analyzing everything and questioning. Or we hear a great sermon on the church, and our role in it, and some eagerly agree and it encourages them to go fourth and be the church, while I sit there and analyze everything he says and question his words first, figure out what I think on the issue, and then maybe if I figure all that out, implement my eventually found desire to be what I kind of think the church should be.

Or someone will tell me that they think women shouldn't preach to men, and then my mind is from then on locked deep into itself thinking what I think men and women's roles should be, why I think that, why other people should think that, and then it just leads on from there ha.

Or I find myself questioning all sorts of things, that maybe If we talk I will tell you ha.

I want to learn how to have a balanced life of questioning and skepticism, but that doesn't overpower me serving the Lord. I want to have a faith that serves the Lord and has full confidence. I want other people to see my confidence in the Lord. I want to have firm opinions on issues, not for debate, but for my minds sake.

anywhoo... that is where I am ha.

Hello!
well we've almost completed our second week! This week I got to start at Give kids the world. It is so amazing. It is like a life size candy land. You can just see the joy in the kids faces, and most of their families ha! I have been able to so far work in Katie's kitchen, which is a boston market type place they can order food at all day, and i have also worked in the express breakfast, that is in the ice cream shop where it is fast breakfast so they can get about their day. Jaylan, my partner from GoNow has gotten to work in the gingerbread house, where it is more a sit down place to eat, and you can have conversations with the families. It is so magical! Today I will be in the la ti da spa, and then tonight I will be at Mayor Clayton's birthday celebration, painting faces! Hope they give me easy things to paint ha. Every thursday is Christmas at GKTW. So my partner savannah will be taking pictures of the kids with santa. How fun!

On another note, I got to meet the church I will be working with all summer. It is a Hatian church... (they are from haiti). I will be helping them start up and organize their worship team! It will be a good experience. They already have people together, I will just help them get it more organized, and add a guitar! I love their worship, it is very spirit led. This church has only been going since April, so it is cool to be apart of a new church plant. I am also excited because I get to be a part of international ministry even though I'm in orlando! (There are a lot of international ministry opportunities, because of all the tourists.)

Our supervisor Suzette told us of how we are able to reach some internationals, that missionaries in their actual country wouldn't be able to reach because of their social status. But because they are in america, we can minister to them. I never thought of it that way, but it makes since.

Sorry this is so long :)

Everything is going great. We start kids clubs next week. Im really excited. This place is so great because we are getting a chance to do ALL types of ministry, God is going to do great things. He has provided great spiritual leaders to encourage us this summer, and we are all connecting really well too, so I feel like we will all be able to grow this summer, and have encouragement as we all do our ministries.

Also, I should come back tan, so be ready :) jk ... but really :)

On a fun note, I got to go airboating!! like in water boy. and my team held an alligator, I did not, but I chose not too haha.... not my thing :)

One more thing. Today is My sister Shelly's birthday... sooo HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

miss you all. and I love you all!!

Things to pray for
Satan would stay away... and doubt would stay away.
we would continue to grow as a team
The people at the hatian church,
the people we will be ministering to at GKTW and Kids Clubs.


Thanks for your support!!

Lori