What's Up Next?

Since December, I have been asked the question "What are you going to do after the end of the internship?" This is a question that I have actually been asking myself for a while now, since before the internship actually began. Before I moved to Tallahassee, I was offered two different options after the internship to pray over. My campus pastors at Longwood knew that God was calling them to re-locate and begin a new Chi Alpha on the campus of the University of Connecticut. They suggested two options for me to pray over: I could either take over as the campus director for XA at Longwood or I could go with them to Connecticut and help them pioneer.

I decided prior to moving to Tallahassee that I was going to focus only on the internship for the first few months and not worry about what to do after. It was a difficult decision because I wanted to know what the next step was going to be. At first, I thought going back to Longwood was the direction I was supposed to work towards. I began talking with my internship director and staff, asking for their advice and prayers, but the more I prayed and talked with them about going back to Longwood, I felt that, for many different reasons, it wasn't the direction I was supposed to move in. I felt that I wasn't prepared to take over and be the director of Longwood XA right out of my internship by myself.

I talked with Gil, Lindsay, Mario, and Rhia a lot during the weeks when I was unsure of what to do next. All of them were very supportive of whatever I decided, prayed with me, and left the decision up to me. I knew that God had given me two different options, neither of which were harmful to me, but one would be more beneficial than the other. After a lot of prayer, I decided to go with Gil and Lindsay to UConn. I called Gil to talk with him about my decision. He told me they were happy to have me on board, but wouldn't be ready for me in August. There wouldn't be enough work for me to do because they would be raising support, getting their family established, and getting connected with people on UConn's campus. I talked with Mario next and asked if it was possible for me to stay at FSU for another year. He said yes, they would be happy to have me here for another year.

So, to answer the question, I will be here at Florida State University for another year! I'm very happy and excited for the opportunity to learn more from the staff here and to continue working with the students here. As of right now, the plan is to move to Connecticut next fall (2012) and work with Gil and Lindsay to pioneer and build a Chi Alpha there. As always, I'm leaving the door open for God to change my plans :)

Nicaragua Bound!!

This time tomorrow, the FSU Nicaragua Mission Team will be about an hour away from landing in Managua, Nicaragua!! So exciting!!!

I can't believe it's time for the trip already; it has been in the works for several months now. Each of the team members have spent a lot of time raising the financial support to pay for the trip and each of the staff members have spent a lot of time contacting local businesses regarding fund raising opportunities. We had a car wash throughout the month of April at Super Suds, held a yard sale, and a fundraiser at Rita's Italian Ice.

This week, we spent 30 minutes Tues-Thurs mornings bathing our trip in prayer. We prayed for the students that are traveling with us, for the students we will meet there, for the ministry we will be doing, as well as for traveling mercies, health, and much more.

Today was spent doing laundry, packing, cleaning, and other preparation tasks. The team members that are leaving from Tallahassee met at the church to load our suitcases into the rental van and go over a few last minute details. Tomorrow morning, we will leave Tallahassee and drive to Orlando. Once there, we will return the rental van, get our tickets, check our bags, and go through security. We will fly from Orlando to Miami, then from Miami to Managua, Nicaragua. After we get off the plane, grab our bags, go through security, and all that jazz, we will meet the missionary that we will be working with and travel to the house where we will be staying.

Throughout the week, we will start each morning at 6am with team devotions. We will be visiting a local church, ministering to the university students in Managua, painting, cleaning, visiting an orphanage, and sharing what Chi Alpha means to us and how God has used XA to help us grow in our relationship with Him.

I am excited and humbled at the opportunity I have to minister to these people, but I also know they will minister to me as well. There's something powerful about watching people of a different culture worship God. There's also something powerful about seeing the passion of people who, by our standards, have little to nothing, but have such a strong faith in God and a deep love for Him. I'm praying that God ministers to each person on our trip and that all of us are open to Him while we are there, but will also remain open once we return to the U.S.

Please say a prayer for our team :) A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has made this trip possible!!