June 11, 2008

Saying goodbye to my friends and family in Tallahassee is never easy. Though, saying bye to Calyn two days earlier did make the final hugs at the airport a little more bearable. And I must admit that as I boarded the plane this time excitement about the future overshadowed the sadness of saying goodbye yet again.

Toddie let me speak at youth the day before I left and I encouraged the teenagers at Northwoods to just spend time with Him everyday and not worry about the BIG future that now seems so vast…Something I am learning to do myself. Putting myself in their shoes (and remembering what it was like to be in high school), I thought about all the people pressing them to make decisions about where to go to school and what to major in…The questions that adults ask you include: so, what do you want to do? And are you dating anyone? I hated this. And always felt like I was struggling to come up with a good answer…And now, I find myself sometimes asking the very same questions (sorry if you were one of the people subject to such questions from me). Of Christian youth, here is the question we need to be asking, “Have you talked to God today?” If the answer is no, encourage them to do so and if the answer is yes follow up with a “and what are you and God doing today?” Radical? Maybe. Scary? Sure. There are certainly days I have needed to hear this question (though those are also the days I probably didn’t want to hear it.) But, I know that the God of the Universe speaks to ALL His children. And I think that with Him we, as Christians, could be doing so much more than we are currently. And it’s probably not some huge thing that He is calling us to. But if we would diligently seek Him everyday, I think we might be more excited about who He is. And if we were more excited about who He is, I think we would be more willing to share that with others. I think that if we are with Him constantly that we couldn’t help talk about Him…I think it would just come out. I want to be that close to Him. I want Him to be that big a part of me. The Bible says that He must become greater and I must become less. Still something I struggle with, but something I’m working on.

Anyway, I made it safely to Kiev. Rested all day yesterday and am ready for today. I’m excited about what God is doing here and glad to be a part of it…at least until He moves me to Poltava. And I’m not exactly sure when that will be, but I will keep you posted. I’ve decided to wait on Him. And for now, that means one day at a time. I have vision for the future, and as much as I would have loved to have been in Poltava yesterday I know that His timing is perfect so today, I wait.