Here I go!!

Right now I am sitting in the airport in Washington D.C., waiting to board my plane to South Africa. I will spend the night there tonight and then fly to Botswana tomorrow! I should arrive about 4:00 a.m. Texas time Sunday morning. Thank you so much for all of your prayers, amazing encouragement, phone calls, text messages, e-mails, letters, etc. I feel totally loved and covered in prayer, and I feel so blessed to get to share this with you!

I am unsure when I will have internet access again, but promise to post an entry as soon as I can to let you know that I have arrived and that everything went smoothly with traveling. If you would like to join with me in prayer the next few days, these are some things I am praying:
1) That I would follow God's Word to Joshua to "Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9
2) As I travel and feel any anxiety, that I would constantly remember all of the reasons why I love Botswana so much and how much joy I experience from being with the people there.
3) That God would comfort and strengthen my family during this time as they send me off to another country. I pray that He will give them an amazing peace that I am in His protective hands and He is taking care of me completely.
4) I am praying for my health to be perfect and praying against any sickness or injury of any kind.
5) For relationships to be formed right away and that I would feel an incredible sense of community where I am living. Also, that I would be able to easily keep in touch with my friends and family in the States. (Internet there can be somewhat unreliable at times.)
6) That God would equip and annoint me daily to minister to His people in Botswana: to be a light for Him while teaching or spending time with my teenage girls at the dorms, while out in the community interacting with people, at church working in the children's ministry, or any other situation He places me in while there. May I be His hands and feet, and a tangible expression of His love for the beautiful people of Botswana.

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and wish you a wonderful and blessed 2008. Thank you again for your partnership in prayer. I can't wait to write to you again...from Africa!!