Update on the summer (+ Pizza fundraiser this Wednesday!)

Okay, as you may have noticed, "updating the blog" is not one of my spiritual gifts. The day I got to spend at home last week was spent working out the last details for the pizza fundraiser at Davanni’s this Wednesday, and I didn’t get to write a new blog post as I had hoped. In addition to camp, I’ve spent two short stints in Ohio and Michigan to attend friends’ weddings, which was extremely fun but left me a little short on time. Ah well, such is life. Speaking of which, here is a little update on my past few weeks:

First, A REMINDER:

Only two days left until the long-anticipated pizza fundraiser at Davanni’s! In case you forgot or missed it the first time, here are the deets…

Davanni’s in Richfield (by 64^th and Penn)

Wednesday, July 16^th

5:00-9:00pm

All you need is a special coupon that tell Davanni’s to put a portion of your food purchase towards my trip with Wycliffe. I would absolutely love to see you there and answer any questions you may have about Wycliffe or my trip, so come hungry!

After my week of counseling 2^nd-4^th graders at Camp Ojibway, I was part of the work crew for 5^th-6^th grade week. The work crew does a lot of work behind the scenes that the campers often don’t even notice, and as a result we have a lot less face-to-face interaction with the campers themselves. While it is a bummer to be around the campers less, a lot of staffers agree that work crew offers a valuable time of “mental rest”, and it is an opportunity to humble oneself and work on tasks for the purpose of serving the campers, even if they often won’t notice. One major perk of the camp where I work is that "quiet time" is literally scheduled into the work day. During my time alone with God, I have been especially drawn to the words of Paul, who, despite major adversity, never forgets the joyful reality of his calling--to share the gospel of Christ.

Most of the time, I feel like I have so little in common with Paul, because it feels like my road so far in pursuing my calling in Benin has been so smooth and full of enthusiastic support from friends and family. But all the same, the things that Paul writes are still so pertinent to Christians today that it’s hard to ignore the truth that he speaks. There are times when I feel stretched thin between serving at camp and working through fundraising details. But I am reminded that it is not about my abilities or capabilities (or how much time, attention, and organizational skill I have to devote to the details), or even about any setbacks that I overcome, but about God’s power and goodness. Without him, everything that I am doing is pointless.

Here’s something exciting: I’ll be purchasing my plane ticket in the next few days! I’m excited to have an official departure date nailed down so I can stop saying “sometime in late August…” like a ninny. My hope is that getting that piece of the puzzle will help a few more pieces fall into place as well. I’ll finally be able to apply for a visa, for one thing. :D

I guess I’m not sure what else there is to report. There is just enough craziness in life to keep me on my toes and keep me trusting in God’s power to get through and still have oodles of fun :)

If you have been keeping up with my blog (which I appreciate ENORMOUSLY! Merci beaucoup!!) and still have questions that I have left unanswered in my various writings, please leave a comment or send me an email! Since I am still in the planning stages, it’s hard to know what would be most helpful to write about.

EDIT: I have a few prayer requests to share with you..
1. I was having an annoying case of "runner's knee" earlier in the summer, and had a physical therapy session to learn how to help it heal. While my knee has been bothering me progressively less, I haven't been able to attend my last two follow-up appointments because of changing plans, etc. Please pray for continued healing in my knee! I would not like that problem to follow me to Benin...
2. Please pray that I would continue to find time to rest and reflect.