Funny Confirmation

In March of 2009, I went on a spring break missions trip to Panama City Beach, FL with Campus Crusade for Christ. One evening two friends from Tech and I spent a long time talking and walking around with a young Irish man who had seemed to be taking full advantage of all that American spring breaks have to offer. He was very friendly though, and wanted to talk and pray with us. It seems like we were together for at least a couple of hours.

I had forgotten a lot of the specifics of what we did and discussed, but that evening has been crossing my mind once in a while lately. Today I've been sorting through a huge bin full of papers that's been adding up for way too long. Amongst the havoc I found an old journal. I leafed through it to see when it ended, and found that I finished it during Big Break. I did (and do) not have the time or energy to read through much of this journal today, but one paragraph I'd written caught my eye and rocked my world a little bit. Here it is.

"Lord! Can I go do missions in Europe?! I need to start paying attention to what's going on in the rest of the world. Stop being the drunk person (country - USA) in the middle of the room who sees nobody but who everybody sees. (Colin, a guy from Ireland I spoke with w/ Mike N. & John last night used this illustration about the USA.)"

I shared this with my sisters when I found it. Melissa got it right when she said, "You asked for this." God hears us, even when we forget. His timing is not ours, but He hears and He doesn't forget.

Unexpected Favor

Late Thursday afternoon I gave my notice at work. I will continue working as a product development engineer until September 30th, and then this life chapter will come to a close. (That's not to say for certain that I will never be an engineer again... God knows and I don't have to.) Giving my resignation makes it feel more like this trip is really happening. 

I was nervous about quitting my job. I'm not sure what I expected or feared, but I'd never quit a job before and am at times overly concerned about disappointing people. God is incredibly faithful though. My boss was incredibly kind about my resignation, and has reinforced at least a couple of times that I don't need to be bashful about my decision. I have support that I never expected.

As I walked in to the plant on Friday morning, some members of the management team were standing between me (in the parking lot) and the door. I hoped that they didn't know about my resignation yet because I did not feel prepared to talk with them about it. They knew though, and were also incredibly supportive. They even seemed excited for me! One thanked me for my work with the company and for giving me so much notice, one told me I had a lot of courage, and another told me that he's going to give me a contact at a giant missionary church somewhere that he says I'll need if I decide to do missions work full-time after this DTS. I was so surprised and so blessed. The Lord has given me so much favor in my time working here... I never expected this. 

Once I made it to my desk, I told my office-mates so they wouldn't hear "through the grapevine." They were also supportive and encouraging - even celebratory with me. Throughout the day I got to talk with quite a few more coworkers about my upcoming adventure. Everyone is so encouraging! I'm blown away... God is good. I'm really excited about my time remaining here, and pray that it will be a season of blessing for my coworkers as I'm wrapping up/handing off projects and tying up loose ends. 

If you make a habit of talking with Jesus, please ask Him to help me finish well. To Him be the glory! :) 

Blogging! Something New and Kind of Exciting

Hello my dear family and friends! I'm excited that you've found my blog! I hope this will be an effective and fun way of keeping in touch with all of you as I prepare for and embark on the adventure that will be the next several months of my life.

I'm new to this blogging business, so please be patient with me, and help a sister out if you're a pro. 

I'm excited to see what God does as I travel to the land of (some of) my ancestors, and then on to places in need of deeper compassion than I normally see. There will be more information to come as time progresses, but if you're looking for more information about Youth With A Mission or what I'll be up to in the coming months, check out these links.

Youth With A Mission - Ireland

Compassion and Justice Discipleship Training School

My Hope:

“Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Mark 12:28b-31 (ESV)

My goal and hope for this season is that God would teach me to love Him more than anything else, with everything I have. Please pray for me, and for the ones I'll be privileged to spend time with, especially the ones who think God has forgotten them. He hasn't. :)