a new link...

i'm getting married in ONE WEEK!!!

and then leaving 2 days later. Alaska will be our home for the next 5 months, and Homer is our first stop. Matt and I are doing a mission's school together and look forward to sharing Hope, Love, and Faith in Jesus.

i've added a link to a website where Matt and I will keep people updated on our adventures. I will probably continue to journal and share thoughts on this site, too, but the new one will be the main source of info....

http://matt-lindsay.blogspot.com/

ONE WEEK!!!!

Support Efforts to Help Bangladesh Cyclone Victims

Southern Bangladesh is left to rebuild on what little is left 5 days after cyclone Sidr destroys so much life and hope. Latest reports declare more than 3,000 dead, a number officials expect to keep rising. Those who have survived are facing grim realities. Their homes are gone, their crops are washed away, their hope is gone. Among people who already had so little, so much was taken away by Cyclone Sidr.

Want to help???

Here are a list of secure and safe ways to donate to the relief efforts in Bangladesh.

Save the Children: http://www.savethechildren.org/
UNICEF: http://www.unicefusa.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=duLRI8O0H&b=39306&ct=4643317
Christian Aid: http://www.christianaid.org/disasters/BangladeshCyclone.aspx
Salvation Army: http://www.salvationarmy.org/ihq/www_sa.nsf
World Vision: http://www.worldvision.org/news.nsf/news/20071119_cyclone_sidr?Open&lid=11135&lpos=alertbox_txt_readmore

And if your skeptical on any of these organizations, check out this site to make sure your money is going where it should: http://www.charitynavigator.org/?gclid=CJHEvsWC7I8CFQIQFQodZlsNMg

soon to be Mr. and Mrs. . .

a MUCH overdue update

I guess it is DUE time to inform everyone how I’ve been. [Sorry this update got so long, the best news is near the end (in bold) so make sure to catch that!!]

As you know, I came home from Bangladesh Mid-May. It has been such a wonderful time. I moved back in with my parents and have been able to stay involved with family’s lives. We celebrated my two uncle’s 50th birthdays. I’ve been able to hug my grandparents on each of their birthdays. My brother was united in marriage August 17th to a lovely lady. (It was the largest wedding celebration that the local venue had ever had, which is just a testimony to how wonderful a couple they are.) I get to frequent my mom’s office and my grandparent’s house. I got to congratulate my cousin on his beautiful baby boy. I had a close friend’s wedding a few weeks ago, and my cousins wedding this weekend. I LOVE FAMILY.

I’ve also gotten to dance in the joys of worshipping God in my home church and home community. Although worshipping among any group of believers is a powerful experience, worshipping in that cherished place where you grew up to know God is such a wonderful feeling. I’ve gotten to feel like a kid again, so innocently and safely playing in the love that surrounds me.

I’ve returned to the working world…just in a very different context. God has been so faithful. Before I left Bangladesh, I had a desire to work in a coffee shop and also felt that God was pulling me to work among the elderly. Sure enough, I came home and found a part time coffee shop gig allowing me enough time to spend in a local nursing home, volunteering when I could. Shortly later, I was provided with an opportunity to work with elderly by going to their homes and serving them. It’s so fun to see how God leads and provides.

God has been so faithful.

All these things are good news, but now it’s time for some BIG news. I am engaged to be married!! Most of you might know that there has been a special man in my life since I returned to Bangladesh in July of ’06. He is a long-time friend from high school and our friendship started blossoming into something a bit more special shortly before I left. Well, as of August 26th it has become official. Matt and I will be getting married Jan 4th and (a few days later) are hoping to go to Homer, Alaska for 5 months to do a Discipleship Training School (DTS) together. We believe this will be a time set apart for us to grow closer to God, and closer to one another as a result. It is a mission school focused on First Nation people of Alaska. We are sure, God willing, it will be an incredible experience.

Many of our plans are not finalized, so please be praying for us regarding both the wedding planning and post-wedding stuff! . . . and please pray for me as I learn what it means to be a good wife!

Thanks, always, for all your love and support!!

running nowhere

i’ve been running lately….

it wouldn’t seem like it from the outside. i just returned home from the other side of the world, and i don’t have any immediate plans to leave again.

so where am i running? i am NOT running away from God’s direction. i believe God brought me home. i still have peace in that. actually i’m not running anywhere…i’m just running in place. God didn’t bring me home to run.

why can’t i stop? why can’t i just REST in God and enjoy the blessings He has for me? i feel torn by this imbalance surrounding me. on the outside, i’ve slowed down. it appears i’ve learned to ‘let go and let God.’ i’m not chasing a career just for the fat salary. i’ve proven by my actions that i’m satisfied letting God use me HIS way. i’ve shown patience and faith. YET SOMEHOW, i don’t feel it inside. my mind is consumed by doing, by achieving, by having something to show for the work.

God has been telling me to slow down. i hear him, and i want to listen. i want to just stop. i want to just watch the sunset with Him; i want to get up early and have coffee with Him; i want to spend time with Him reading my Bible.

but i haven’t.

i just keep running in place, thinking about how wonderful it would be to stop….