American Tourister

...is what I have been for the last 48 hours! Bri arrived safely yetserday (thank you for praying!) although she lost her bag (prayers are appreciated!) and we have been going nonstop since she got here. It has been an incredible experience to see the "leftovers" of ancient people that lived here long before we did. Remnants of Byzantium, Constantinople, and the Ottoman Empire are everywhere, some of which are much better off than remnants. I have had a very strange, but deep desire to see, if not stand on and acqueduct from ancient times and today.....I did! Silly, I know but I was way stoked! I will upload pictures when I have the capability. It has been such a blessing to have Bri here and to connect with a close friend again. She had an incredible time in Jerusalem and we are looking forward to the Lord working here as well.

We have seen quite a bit of the city as tourists with our guide Greg and have another day of it tomorrow with the rest of the team from San Diego. Im really looking forward to connecting with these girls as we will be serving with them for the next ten days. We leave for the next city on saturday after orientation friday. We will be doing a service project for the area, picking up garbage, etc. which they definitely need. Please pray for opportunities as we truly long to reach their hearts with the truth. Pray that the language barrier will not be a hindrance to the Lord working. His Spirit is powerful and actively pursuing these people before we even get there. The team is still growing, which is a blessing in so many ways including language as a few of them are mostly fluent in the language. We will have contact with all ages of people, young and old so it will be really neat to meet people our own age from a different culture. I admit to being rather nervous, however, and pray that the Lord will calm my heart with His promise that HE is the one doing the change, not me! I must only rely on His Spirit to lead and have the courage to merely follow. Thank you SO much for praying for the whole team in this. Humility, grace, and truth. We pray to go forward with these and the God of the universe at our side!

Again, thank you so much for your support...you all mean so much to me and you are most definitely impacting me while Im over here by your prayers and thoughts. Thanks as well for taking the time out of your day to read this blog. :) I know days are full and evenings even more so. Blessings!