Click....click....click....click

You know the sound you hear as you head towards the sky on the biggest roller coaster you've ever been on -- as you hear that sound it usually evokes some emotions :-). We leave two weeks from tomorrow. Two more weeks! It's real and it's coming so fast! Here are some of my (Krista) thoughts and feelings at the "two weeks to go" mark:

I feel like I am on that huge roller coaster - each day I experience a plethora of emotions....excitement, anxiety, confusion, frustration, sadness,etc. I feel like I'm on that very slow huge hill of the roller coaster, clicking up and up and up before the real ride begins....the anticipation is killing me!

Of course there is a part of me that is sad to leave family and friends and looking forward to soaking up any time I can get with them in the next two weeks, but a large part of me just wants to be there!! I want to be on the ground in Zimbabwe, getting ready to head out to all the villages we are going to visit in the first few weeks, instead of planning and thinking about what to pack in order to do this. I want to get on the flights that we have been planning for months. I want to use the visas that we have been working on getting for the past few weeks. I want to just jump up and leave our house with a magical finger snap that packs everything up and cleans the whole place. I want to be on the ground seeing what kind of counseling training I can bring to the orphan caregivers instead of putting together training materials that might not be effective. I want to face the challenges we are going to experience head on instead of sitting here getting anxious about the potential problems we might run into.

With all this, however, I know God's timing is perfect and He is preparing us every day even up until that last minute. So despite my feelings, I know His plan is better than mine. Even in the past few days we have done some things we wouldn't have been able to do: we have been able to apply for a secondary passport in order to get our Russian visa processed while we are in Zimbabwe (something we found out we would need to do when our passports and visa applications were denied at the Russian Embassy on Friday because we attempted to get them to early for traveling there in March). We have been able to communicate with our partner in Zimbabwe, Tatenda, and obtain some things for his ministry such as educational books they are in need of for teaching their 5th grade orphans. I get to see my sister this week, who gets back into town from working at a Young Life camp all summer.

So, really as a reminder to myself, I write this. To remind myself that God's plan for this year is perfect and that I need to trust and go along for the ride. He is molding and transforming us into who He wants us to be. It's going to be an awesome roller coaster, much like the Superman at Six Flags Darian Lake that I rode as a high schooler :-), and as we slowly start up that monster hill, the anticipation builds with every click, and it must be embraced, not run from. Join me in praying for strength to embrace the challenges in all of our lives instead of running away from them. Thanks for coming along side of us in this!