March 14, 2008

Greetings, my adoring fans

I know, I know, I have been terrible with my blogging promises. But since I TALK to most of you on a regular basis, I didn’t think it was as crucial to put pen-to-paper, or fingers-to-keyboard. Nevertheless, here is what is up…

I have just about reached the peak of Mt. Paperwork. My work visa was granted last week – PRAISE GOD! It had been held up by the PNG Government for over 5 weeks, and I was beginning to get nervous about acquiring my visas on time for me to leave in July. I found out on Sunday that there are times when it can take months or even a year to get your visa, so this is a Praise indeed! The final step is to get my Entry Permit Visa. I have all of that paperwork ready to go, I’m just once again waiting on the government over there to proceed. I have all of my vaccinations, my chest x-ray, physical exam, AIDS test, police clearance, and passport all taken care of already. WHEW! What a ride!

I’ve been hearing from other missionaries serving at the Interface campus on a pretty regular basis. It’s pretty cool that they are writing to me just to introduce themselves and ask if I need anything or have questions. I already feel welcome and loved!

Also, some of you know I was supposed to have surgery for my nerve damage/bladder issues a few weeks ago. My insurance company refused to pay for it, and we had to cancel the surgery. At first I was marginally irritated… ok – furious! But already by the end of that day, I had a peace about it that could only have come from God. I had been praying about this surgery for months, and there was no guarantee it was going to help my issues. In fact, there could have been complications for me while I was in New Guinea. I felt totally comforted, that God knows what is best for me, and if He’d wanted it for me, I would have had it. (And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ~ Romans 8:28)

It’s hard to believe that I’ll be leaving in less than 4 months. It’s starting to become "real" now. I’m not sad at the moment because God has just been showing up in tremendous ways the last couple of weeks. People I barely know or haven’t heard from in years have offered to help purchase supplies for my trip, have donated to my ministry, and one guy offered his airline miles to get me to LA. (A group of us are meeting in LA and flying to PNG together). It’s been SO encouraging. I still have a LOT (I do mean a LOT) of money to raise for the year, but it’s a start, and I fully trust that God will provide the rest through a variety of different folks.

So you can see, I’ve been learning lots of huge lessons in trust… but even more lessons on God’s abundant, overflowing, & gracious love for me.