A Great Trip

I've been home long enough to deal with the tough question many times over: "So.... how was your trip?" An obvious question in this situation. I just wish I had a better answer. "Great" just never seems to really capture all that I hope to convey.

"Great" doesn't do justice to the amazing community we felt as a team, how we prayed together, for each other and with each other, how we witnessed God at work together in unexplainable ways.

"Great" doesn't communicate the excitement of seeing families again, hugging and kissing them again, spending time in their homes again, and being humbled again by their hospitality and generosity.

"Great" doesn't decribe how amazing it is that people from completely different cultures, from completely different worlds, who speak completely different languages are able to enjoy each other, laugh together and cry together.

"Great" doesn't hold a candle to witnessing a team of Americans who stand out in a Muslim community, who are loved by this community, and who are truly demonstrating the life that Jesus lived.... a life of sacrifice based solely on LOVE.

"Great" doesn't describe the ways that my faith has been challenged, how my ideas of evangelism have been annihilated, and how the Lord is showing me how very little of anything I do is motivated by love.

"Great" doesn't say any of those things... and yet, for some stupid reason, it's the word I find myself using to describe my trip whenever I am asked.

So, if you've asked me about my trip, I'm sorry for my lame response. And, if you see me in the near future and ask about my trip, I apologize in advance for my "great" answer. Forgive me. It's a tough one to put into words.

One thing I brought back

No, this post is not about the illness I brought back with me. I'll spare you those details! :)


I always knew our trip to Iraq would be a positive experience for me. We went to visit our best friends in the whole world-- how could it not be great? And we went with a great group of people from our home church that we were going to get to share this opportunity with. I knew we would all grow closer together during this time. And boy was it great! So great, I wasn't ready to leave on Sunday morning.

But there were some things I didn't anticipate bringing back with me.

In the past, when I would read the PLC blog about kids they were sending or kids who had been to surgery, I would quickly send up a short prayer or praise and go on with my day. But since our trip, on which I got to meet, face-to-face, many of these sweet, precious children and young adults, my outlook, connection, and prayers have changed.

I am connected to the children and their families and to PLC. I have a connection there now that I could have never gained without GOING THERE.

With this new set of four kids going to surgery in Turkey, I have almost obsessively checked the PLC blog and each child's individual twitter feed to find out updates. I have spent more than a minute praying for the children and their families. I have had my stomach turned upside-down and felt tears roll down my cheeks asking the LORD to heal them and bring their families into knowledge and belief of the Truth of Jesus Christ, so that they may have eternal hope.

I know this is the reason JR and I were able to go on this trip. I was not ready to come home, and I will certainly jump at the chance to go again-- to be with my best friends in a place where I have seen God perform miracles and know He will continue to do so.

Thank you Lord for making this connection in my heart.

What I Miss

I didn't get one single solitary second to myself on our trip to Iraq. I miss that.

I am a self-proclaimed introvert. Some argue that fact with me, but I stand by it. When I need alone time, I NEED alone time.

At the same time, I have craved this thing called community since long before I first heard it defined (this is where I would like to pause to sing the praises of Larry Crabb, but I won't). Growing up, I preferred the school year to summer because I was guaranteed time with my friends every single day. The highlights of each summer were the ten days I spent at our small church camp crammed into a cabin with old friends and new. High school doesn't hold an ounce of nostalgia for me EXCEPT for the small group of friends God blessed me with my first year and held together until we graduated. And I don't associate myself with the college I attended to nearly the degree that I associate myself with the Christian organization I was a part of while there. And then, three summers "working" at Kamp (more crammed cabin living), and a year in Branson with Doulos Ministries made my last days as a single woman the most fulfilling of my life to that point. There was no alone time at Doulos. It was community at its finest, in my opinion. The kind that people who don't know any better accuse of being a cult. : )

So, clearly, there is room to argue my introvertedness (introversion?). Although...my Doulos friends would be the first to tell you that no one shot out the door faster or trudged back in more hesitantly on their day off than me. I lived for those days. : )

But back to Iraq. Like I said, I didn't get a second to myself. I wondered if that might be a problem. I hoped I could handle it for ten days. After eight years of being home with small children and basically letting my need for community dry up and wither away, I completely forgot to LOOK FORWARD to it. Fortunately, God didn't waste any time reminding me that I love being with a group of like-minded people who are sharing an experience, leaning on each other, praying together, laughing together, crying together, fighting and forgiving together, and SERVING together. At the end of our first full day there, I realized the rest of our time there was going to be more than just purposeful, trying, and worth it. It was going to be fun. And relational. So I soaked every bit of it up for the rest of the week.

Now I'm back home. And just like I missed my family terribly while I was away but also fully enjoyed my time immersed in relationships there, I am now fully enjoying being back with my family but very much missing my little Iraq community. And community in general. It's harder to come by here. It has to be scheduled. And honestly, I'm not sure what else it takes to make it happen. But now that I've been reminded just how much I need it, I'm sure the Lord will help me figure that out.

Our team of five is getting together Saturday night with our families, and I CAN'T WAIT. I won't be clinging to any of them for dear life while I wait for our plane to crash, or crammed so tightly into a car with them that none of us can breathe, or sitting with them on a Kurdish family's rug wondering how on earth we're going to fit more fruit and tea into our stomachs, or manning a craft table with them while fifty kids threaten to pin us to the wall in their enthusiasm over foam picture frames, or praying with them well after midnight to close the day. But we've done those things together, and that's what makes us a community. I plan on soaking it up as long as it lasts. And in the meantime, I hope I've learned to be a little less protective of my time. I hope I'll see potential in every new relationship. And I hope I'll make the most of the ones I already have.

We're Home!

Thank you for praying us home. We didn't have any flight delays, we all managed to get at least a little bit of sleep, and those of us who aren't feeling well miraculously enjoyed a reprieve from our symptoms while in the air (for the most part). We were all greeted by loved ones at the airport, and now I'm positive that every single one of us are on our way to bed. : ) More soon. We all have a lot more to share! Thank you Jeremy and Jess (and Erin, Jeff, Ruth, Scott, Abby, and you eight wonderful interns!) for hosting us and for letting us "participate in the gospel" with you this week. We will be praying you guys through lots of transitions over the next few months! And thank you to all of you who supported us on this trip! God heard your prayers and answered them in tangible ways daily.

It's over.

We're leaving in 15 minutes to drive to the airport here. (yeah, it's quarter to midnight) I can't believe it's over. It went by so fast!

*Pray for health. Many of us are feeling puny.

*Pray for quick-ness in security and customs procedures.

*Pray that we would all be able to sleep on the plane. We all really need it!

*Pray that He would allow us to begin processing our time here well on this return trip.

Thank you for all your prayers! Don't quit now!

Titled, Mistitled & Untitled

Our day today has been full and fulfilling. The banquet this afternoon was great! Thank you so much for praying toward that end. We will have more details and pics later...

As our time here is winding up, it is a bittersweet thing for our team. While we are looking forward to being reunited with our families, we have realized that this experience has been so amazing partly due to the fact that our team ROCKS!! Truly, we have really grown to know and love each other and will miss our time together.

So... while I would love to write even more tonight, I can't! We are spending our last FULL night in Iraq together as a team playing cards and enjoying each other.

Thank you for continuing to pray... don't quit now! We still have things to do tomorrow, and then we will leave around midnight to start our journey home. Stay tuned... there is still WAY more to come...

What did you expect?

When you picture Iraq in your mind, you probably think this, right?

But you probably don't think this.

Or this.

Oh my. It's beautiful here. Not just the land... (Don't get me wrong, that first picture is a real one, too!) The people are beautiful, too. God is amazing. He is always changing my view and my expectations of life and of HIM.