Travel with Me: 99 to Go!

         We have made it to the double digits. I cannot believe it! Was it not just yesterday that I was in awe of making it to the150 day mark? So, with 99 days until I take off, I thought I would give you all a photo tour of the life I am stepping into--a life that is my dream come true.

Here is just a small peak into Ethiopia. 

This is what my work will look like in Ethiopia. Here, my host Jess is working with the village kids. When I say "teaching the kids of the village" this is a very realistic view of what I mean. 

This is where I'll be living. Welcome to my home!

Here is a peak into the kitchen area. And below..... Bathroom anybody?

For now, this is what we're looking at for water... However, I believe I heard word that there may be a pump that works during the rainy season. 

       

          From what I understand, this is a shot from my back yard (or close to it). Talk about a view! This is the farm I will be living at. The Forsaken Children, the organization I am working with, is working to establish sustainability for their street children mission project. They do this through teaching the people of Ethiopia about agriculture. Between their orchard and chicken hatchery, they've got it going on. 

       These are pictures of the place that holds my heart. I have not yet been there, and all I have shared is what I have gathered from e-mails with my amazing host family... but somehow, in some unexplainable way, I feel like I know this place. Like it is already home.

Please continue to pray for everybody involved as this journey of life continues.


(All pictures are property of J & J Bridges---jrb428@wordpress.com) 

Power in Prayer

Hopefully you`ve been able to check out the prayer tab at the top of the page, but it is my goal to periodically post seperate prayer requests here just to keep things fresh and on your mind. This week, I have quite a few things you can keep on your heart as you go to the Father in prayer...

Pray for my spiritual life: I feel closer to God now more than ever before as He is so evident in my life. I have been blessed by His closeness, but it does not just happen. Please continue to pray that I seek first the Savior and continue to grow closer to Him. Of all the things that need to be in good order before I leave, my continally growing relationship with God needs to be first. After all, how can I passionately share the Gospel if I am not thirsting for it in my everyday life?

Pray for the details: Things are coming together better than I ever could have dreamed of! While on spring break I was able to share at a local church, get my shots, work on finding a flight, and send off the final paperwork necessary to team up with Global Outreach. In the coming weeks I plan to book a flight, head to training in Mississippi for a week, and work on getting my Visa. Oh, and did I mention that we have my brother's wedding and my graduation thrown in that mix, too? :) Please continue to pray that the details come together smoothly. 

Pray for my family: Conversation about Ethiopia has pretty much worked its way into every aspect of my social life. I cannot tell you the last time I had a conversation that did not, at least at some point, work its way back to my trip. I see this especially with my family. Please pray for them as they continue to get used to the idea of being appart for a while. They are incredibly supportive and excited about how real this calling is in my life, but that doesn't make the realities of a year or more appart any easier. 

To those of you that have committed to supporting me through prayer, know that I thank The Lord for you daily! Prayer makes all things possible, and I am ever-so-grateful to have yours. 

Check back in soon for a support update! 

Camels and Kingdoms

     It seems like all aspects of my life recently have pointed my focus towards one thing: my purpose. I have asked myself quite a few times this week, if my life were to end tomorrow, would I have made a difference on this world for Christ? In about 127 days I could quite easily say YES, but what about now? It seems odd that it took until about two weeks ago for me to realize that my ministry doesn't start when I set foot on African soil, but rather, my ministry is now. I have had the opportunity to speak at about four different churches with two more in the near future--that is my mission. As I share with people what God is doing in my life--that is my mission. As I spend my prayer time lifting up the sweet faces I will be in community with in the coming months--that is my mission. When I fly out, I will be continuing the mission that God has placed before me, not beginning it. I have been challenged with the reality that my mission is now.

     In church we are working through the book of Mark, and this past week studied the passage on the rich entering the Kingdom of God. I encourage you to read Mark 10:17-31, but for now I'll give you the abridged version. A man asks Jesus what it would take to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and Jesus responds telling the man that he must sell all he owns and give it to the poor, then turn and follow Jesus. He proceeds to say that it would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom.

     Before I get into what Jesus is saying here, let me first tell you what he is NOT saying. Jesus is not saying that people who are blessed with a good paying job will not get into heaven. Jesus is not saying that if you have a solid savings account you are out of luck when it comes to eternity with Him. Jesus is not saying that if you want to have an hope of getting into the gates of glory you have to drop what you are doing, sell each and every item that you have, and call it a leap of faith. Rather, what I get from this is that Jesus is calling us to put our trust in Him fully, and be willing to make sacrifices to keep our focus and trust in Him alone. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say Jesus didn't want the man to really sell all that he had, but He wanted him to be willing, especially because his wealth was something that he could rest in without needing to put his faith in Jesus.

     One of the questions that we spent time talking about in my small group was, what is God calling us to give up to further His kingdom?

     Think about that... What is holding you back from fulfilling God's purpose for your life?

     This is a time in my life when I can very realistically relate to what Jesus is calling the man to do in Mark 10. God has called me to give up a lot in the name of spreading the gospel, and yet I have been blessed in the ways that God has turned a calling in my life into a dream of mine, a passion. Giving up things doesn't seem like a sacrifice, but rather part of living out my dream.

      As I temporarily leave my family, God opened the doors in Ethiopia and blessed me with a great family to welcome me. He asked me to leave my town, and yet the family that I am living with come from the town I currently call home. He has called me to leave 21st century America, and yet He has given me a joy and excitement in embracing the rustic lifestyle on the other side of the world--7,425 miles away to be exact. I have seen God's faithfulness in peace, and yet He didn't stop there. Right along with the peace is excitement, joy, passion, and purpose. God has been transforming my heart these past few months and I watch in amazement as He continues to pave the way for me. Simply blessed beyond words!