Up, up and away!

The day has finally come!! After getting all the loose ends wrapped up, finishing school, and packing, I am flying out today!! I fly to New York, South Africa, then Madagascar. On June 1st (around 12pm their time) I will land in Madagascar and language learning will begin. :) Thank you for praying for me and your faithful support.

Plane Tickets and a Visa

On May 30th I will be heading to Madagascar! It is exciting, and scary, to have plane tickets and my visa. On one hand, I can't wait to be there, jump into the culture, learn the language and work with the Malagasy children and teens. But on the other side, being away from Madagascar for three years makes it easy to forget why I am doing what I am doing and just focus on everything I will be leaving behind. As I pack and tie up loose ends in these last 26 days, I am praying that God will renew my passion for the work he has called me to each day so that when departure day rolls around I will be nothing but excited as I board the plane, looking forward to what is ahead.

                                                      My visa!                                                                  









Missionary Training School

Yesterday I got back from a week at CEF headquarters in Warrenton, MO. It was wonderful to finish all my training and spend time with three friends who are also heading overseas in the next few months. On Wednesday we each got the privilege of raising our country's flag and praying for our country. Each week different flags are raised in the international plaza that represent the countries CEF is in and target countries.



My prayer partner from headquarters and I raised the Malagasy flag.





            

   Ashley is heading to Honduras. Chelsey is going to Burkina Faso. Nadine is going to Taiwan

  





All our flags were flying at the international plaza.

Language Training

The first few weeks in Colorado were filled with learning non English sounds and becoming aware of what my mouth and tongue were doing as we practiced drills. We also spent time listening to sounds and identifying them. After going over the Malagasy phonetics chart with one of the instructors, I realized I have alot to work on since I can't even make some of the sounds...yet. :) We also learned how to work with a language helper. I got to practice doing activities with a German language helper. It was alot of fun and there was plenty to laugh about. I'm really happy I don't have to learn German. :) I can't wait to begin working with Malagasy language helpers when I get to Madagascar!

These are some of the classmates in my drill group. During drills we
spent alot of time looking in little mirror and watching our mouths
and tongues as we imitated the sounds our drill instructors made.

We spent some time exploring Colorado on the weekend. My favorite place so far is Garden of the Gods.

Children's Ministry Conference

Today I will be driving from Spokane to Longview to teach several sessions at a Children's Ministry Conference tomorrow. It is put on by CEF of Longview. I am looking forward to the opportunity to teach. During one of the sessions I will be sharing about CEF of Madagascar. Please pray that I will be able to effectively teach and that God will use this conference to challenge those attending to reach children both in Washington and in Madagascar.

Heart for Missions

One of the Good News Club teachers here in Washington shared a precious story with me. The kids at this club have been praying for me and take an offering each week. The teacher said, "At one of our Good News Clubs in December, during our missionary time, it was time to take the offering. A little girl disappeared briefly and came walking back in with a big smile on her face and a piggy bank in her hands. She walked to the front seat and sat down. Some of her friends gathered around her as she proceeded to empty her piggy bank into the offering plate. Here is a picture." As I pray that the last 5% of my support will come in by the end of the month, I am amazed how God even uses children to answer my prayers. I know God has wonderful plans for this little girl's life. Her heart for missions is humbling.