30 Days

(NOTE: This post is in many ways just rambling and me making sure that all is still working with the blog on the iPad. It's also a bit of me trying to get back into the habit of blogging again. Thanks for indulging me.)

In just thirty days I'll be on a plane, headed back to the place I love best. Did I really just type that? Not the "thirty days" bit, but the "place I love best" part? I guess so. In some ways I wonder if it's true or some sort of Freudian slip, maybe in reverse.

I actually don't know. When I'm here at home I don't think there's a day that goes by when I don't think about India in general and Assam in particular. When I'm there, of course, I think of home, and in particular, my loved ones, all the time. I'm of two minds and hearts, evidently. All I really know is that I'm excited to be going back. It's been two years and it seems so much longer.

The training has gone well and this is an almost entirely new team for me. It's been interesting to hear and learn different approaches from our team leaders. I'll be traveling with Matt Waitley again and I have a huge amount of respect for him in his willingness to go to India again. His first trip was truly an adventure for him. In addition to not really caring for the food and experiencing a good deal of culture shock, Matt's family had trials while he was gone and that weighed on his soul pretty heavily. That he would take this adventure again speaks volumes to his love of people and the ministry.

Jeff Lutz will also be going with us and this is his first mission trip. He took a huge leap of faith by signing up for this trip and it will be interesting to see his reaction to being immersed in a completely foriegn culture and people. His enthusiasm and openness is a bit contagious and I'm sure will be a blessing to all of us.

The fundraising has gone well and I want to thank all of you that have contributed. Last night we had dear friends over for dinner and even though they a have been going through their own trials and are soon to be going through more with some major life changes, they donated a sizeable sum to the trip. It stunned me and truly touched my heart that they would do that. Beyond that, I know that they will be praying daily for the trip and all of us on it and that is such an essential part of the ministry. A huge thanks to all of you that will be doing the same.

I'll most likely post again before we take off and hopefully we'll have some decent internet during our travels so I can post daily during the trip and keep you updated. Thanks again for traveling and taking part in this mission with me.