All I have to say is "Wow! Thank you, God!"

Well, it's a busy weekend right between two busy weeks, but I wanted to give a quick update.

Today my church back home in Virginia (Chestnut Level Baptist Church) had a business meeting, and one of the things that they discussed was having the church help me out with the funding for my trip. As a result, I have reached my funding goal!

The only hurdle left (that I know of at this point) is getting my Visa - I finally got the last of the paperwork for that at the end of this past week, and have sent that in. With how He has seen me through so far, I do not expect God to let me down now; prayers are appreciated, though, that this go through quickly.

Praise be to God, and a great big "Thank you!" to all who have helped in the funding of this trip.

Spring Break

Well, this week is Spring Break at LeTourneau, and I am blessed to be able to spend the week at home with my parents this year!

I flew home on Saturday, and although things didn't go as planned, I did make it in safely. I was originally supposed to land in Raleigh/Durham North Carolina at 7:42 on Saturday evening, with Rebekah landing at 8:10, then my parents driving us back up to Virginia. Well, flights in and out of Chicago were delayed, and I was late enough getting to Chicago that I just barely missed my flight out, and the next one ended up being delayed, too. Eventually I was able to get out of Chicago, but I didn't land until about 1:46 AM - Rebekah had gotten in at about 8:30, so my parents had gone to dinner with her, then they came back and picked me up. By the time we drove the approximately two hours to get home, and then time change while we were on the road, it was 4:30 Sunday morning when we got home. But there were no safety issues, and we were all at church that morning.

My church family here at Chestnut Level Baptist Church, where my father is the pastor, had a spaghetti dinner right after church to help with the funds for my trip this summer. God is so good, and the people here are so loving - this dinner helped tremendously toward my funding, and I am now over half way funded!

Monday evening I had to take Rebekah back to Appalachian Bible College, in West Virginia, where she is attending college. I spent the night in the guys' dorm, had breakfast with Rebekah Tuesday morning, and then came home in time for my physical in preparation for my trip. Thursday I went in and got my shots, so now I am medically ready to go on my trip, too. The only thing I know of that I need to do now is finish up the stuff for my Visa, and I have not received the last form for that yet.

Saturday I will be flying back to Texas and Sunday I will pick up a friend in Dallas after church and then drive back to school, to finish out the last six weeks of my fourth semester.

Please pray that God help me to do well in my last six weeks, and to bring glory to Him in all that I do. Pray that the rest of the paperwork for my Visa come soon, and that everything be processed with that quickly.

Trying to remain focused

Another week has drawn to a close, and God has continued to show me His faithfulness, way beyond what I could have even imagined. I am now over 1/4 of the way funded for my trip this summer! And although not all went as I had hoped, I have completed all but one of my tests from the second round this semester.

Please be praying for me this week that I keep focused. For one, I need to keep the proper emphasis on my school this week; this Saturday I get to fly home for spring break, and Becky will be spending a couple of days with me! But I am having to try to remember that I must first complete this full week of classes and labs before I can allow myself to enjoy a mental break from school. And even more importantly, I must remember to keep my ultimate focus on God; somehow instead of it being easier during breaks, I find it even harder to keep my focus on Him when I am on a break. This week of struggling to stay focused on school will be an extremely difficult week for staying focused on my number one priority, God, as well. Please be praying for me that I be able to keep my priorities as they need to be.

Another week of relying on Him

God has continued to bless me with more support for my trip, including some from unexpected sources. He is so good, and my friends and family are absolutely amazing! To all who have helped me financially or are going to, I say thank you. But to those who are unable to help financially as well as those who are, I still covet your prayers. Financial help is what makes the trip possible, but prayers are what will make it a truly good trip and glorifying to God.

This week has been, and continues to be, very tiring. With various things coming up in school and out of school, God is teaching me to rely more fully on him. Now if only I would be a better learner. Please be praying that I be better at relying on God, while still doing everything that I am supposed to, and that I be able to get everything done that needs to be done.