I can honestly say it is hard to imagine that tomorrow at this time I will be in El Salvador! I have been waiting for this trip for so long, and I can't believe its actually here! God has truly blessed me with not only the opportunity, but also with people who were eager to pray and support me. I am so thankful for that. With God's providence and perfect timing, I know that now is the right time for me to go on this mission trip. I have been wanting to go on one for a while now, but I can see now that it is important for it to be in God's will and in His time. Psalm 37:7 has become exceedingly true in my life as of late when it says, "be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him.
Having said that, I also would say that I probably have not been as focused and trusting as I should be on the Lord. With exams last week, graduation 3 days ago, and packing just today, things have been a little crazy around here. Because of all the things going on, I started to become a little bit nervous and stressed about the trip. What if my spanish isn't good enough? What if I forget to pack something? What if I get exhausted and tired? Those are just a few of the many questions that ran through my mind. Though at times I am doubtful and untrusting, God never fails me. He is always constant and always is with me. On sunday morning at church, we sang "Jesus Paid it All". The opening words of the song just began to soften and touch my heart. "I hear the Savior say, 'thy strength indeed is small. Child of weakness watch and pray, find in Me thine all in all.'" Right then and there, I knew that all the things I worried about had to do with me depending on my own strength. Thankfully, I don't have to. One of my favorite passages is 2 Corinthians 12. Paul is writes this in verse 9-10: "But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that the Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." This is so powerful to me and I know that God will use this verse to remind me to depend solely on His power. The song says it best: "Lord now indeed I find, thine power, and thine alone, can change the leper's spots, and melt the heart of stone."
I am so excited to be going to El Salvador tomorrow! We will be leaving for the airport at 3:30 am! Thank you so much to everyone who supported me and to those of you who have become prayer partners with me in this trip. I will be updating this blog as much as possible, and I can't wait to tell about it and show pictures when I return on the 14th. Thank you so much for praying!