Posted in Family

Aside from the bloggy birthday party going on, there is something else big going on in our family!

My husband and I are going to ALASKA on a 10 day mission trip at the end of December!! WOW! If you remember any of my posts over the past 6-8 months about my husband and I feeling the Lord calling us out of our comfort zones a little more...well, the time has come!

Actually, I say that, and the truth is, for me this trip will be wonderful! I loved going on mission trips in the past, I just haven't been able to go  on any since becoming a mommy! I don't dread Alaska for the ministering we will be doing, I dread leaving my kiddos though! So, for me, I guess the *hard* part of this trip will be my mommy's heart! I think for David it will be a little more uncomfortable...he is sometimes the introvert, but I know God has exciting plans for us and I can't wait to see all that He is doing to do!

This came about so suddenly, but part of the sudden-ness is actually a part of how we felt this might be from the Lord. Our small group at our new church has been ever-evolving. The couple that led the group just recently took a job elsewhere and is in the process of moving away. So, this left only a few of us together. We were planning on finding a new small group to attend, but another couple in the class asked if we wanted to continue  meeting together. So we did...

This other couple is feeling led to be full time missionaries in Alaska! They have already been accepted from the mission board and are in the process of figuring out all the details. So, when they told us about a short term trip up there, crazy us decided to actually pray about it! It was almost like the Lord dropped this into our laps. I had been praying specifically for the Lord to bring about opportunities for both David and I to serve together...for us to get out of our comfort zones...for the Lord to use us!

So now we're headed to Alaska! While there we will be doing an evening VBS at a church up there that has never had a VBS before! We will be ministering to some boys at a local boys home - possibly taking them to a zoo or on a hike one day. We will also be ministering at a women's shelter and a food bank.

One of the biggest blessings about this trip is my mom willingly offering to keep the kids! What a huge relief! I don't think we would have been able to go without her stepping up to do this for us! She will stay at our house and sleep here for the 10 days we are gone. My wonderful SIL's and MIL will each take the kids for a morning or two to help my mom out. These are all people that my children feel very comfortable with.

I am not worried about my children being ok AT ALL. I'm a little worried about both David and I being on a plane together and all the "what if's" that involve travel far away...what if something happened to both of us. But, when I start thinking those things, I begin praying. Please pray for me that the Lord would not allow me to dwell on those things. Pray that I can meditate on scriptures that I have memorized. Pray for my mommy's heart that I won't go crazy worrying about my children!

Please also keep the entire team in your prayers! We are a small team of 6 adults. We are meeting up with another team from Arkansas that has between 15-20 people going. Pray for God's will to be done in each of our hearts as we prepare and as we arrive in Alaska. Pray for the hearts of those that we will be ministering to as well. God is so good to allow us this opportunity.

I'm sure there will be more details to come! But I at least wanted to share this much with ya'll! I knew some of you would pray for us! And for that I am so grateful!