Mambo Sawa Sawa

In July of 2007, I had the opportunity to go to Kenya on a mission trip with my youth group. There are no words to describe how amazing it was there. To give a little background, in the summer of 2006, one of my dear friends had a vision from God telling him to raise money to build a well in the desert of Africa. One of the purposes of the trip was to see the site where the well would be built. Having a well in such barren land would not only bring physical life to the area, but allow for incredible opportunities for God to bring spiritual life to the people there. It has been four long years but the well is officially running as of April 24th! God is so faithful to do what he says he is going to do. We got to experience the breathtaking beauty of God's creation and interact with some of God's precious children. It was a once in a lifetime experience. Please pray for the people that will be blessed by the well. Pray that they come to know the sweet love of Jesus

Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." John 4:13-14


Some of the children near the location of the well


One of the sweet kids.


Sunrise on the safari


God's beautiful creation


Giraffe kisses


The Fran Van!

For I Know the Plans I Have For You

The past few days have been an absolute whirlwind. The plans I have made for myself for the next few years have been turned upside down. I am trying so hard to trust that God has it all in control. God's plans for me are much better than what I have planned for myself. Although times are difficult right now, I am not giving up hope. I am still continuing to prepare for my trip to China. Things are starting to sink in. We had our first team meeting tonight and I just can't wait to see what God has in store for our team. Please continue to pray that our support comes in and that God prepares our hearts for what he is going to do.

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11

Many are the plans in a man's heart,
but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.
Proverbs 19:21

I will be glad and rejoice in your love

The past few days have been absolutely nerve wracking. Some tough decisions had to be made about school and it was completely out of my hands. I wish I could say that I gave my worry over to God better than I did. However, God has once again proven faithful. Things with school are ok for now. Satan is doing all he can do to get me down in preparation for this trip but he will not succeed! Thank you to all of my prayer warriors the past few days!

I will be glad and rejoice in your love, because you saw my suffering; you knew my troubles. You have not handed me over to my enemies but have set me in a safe place. Psalm 31:7-8

father to the fatherless

I love Wednesdays because on this day I have OB clinicals. Today, I got to witness the birth of a beautiful little baby. It is so exciting to see a family welcome this new life as a part of their family. My heart is filled with joy when I see the love surrounding the birth of a baby. However, it is also so painful to think about those children who don't have a family to love them with everything they've got. Please continue to pray for me as I prepare for my trip this summer to work with the forgotten orphans of China. Pray that these kids come to know the love of their heavenly father, who never forgets them.

Sing to God, sing praise to his name,
extol him who rides on the clouds—
his name is the LORD—
and rejoice before him.
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
is God in his holy dwelling.
Psalm 68:4-5
你 們 當 向 　 神 唱 詩 ， 歌 頌 他 的 名 ； 為 那 坐 車 行 過 曠 野 的 修 平 大 路 。 他 的 名 是 耶 和 華 ， 要 在 他 面 前 歡 樂
神 在 他 的 聖 所 作 孤 兒 的 父 ， 作 寡 婦 的 伸 冤 者 。

hope

We have troubles all around us, but we are not defeated. We do not know what to do, but we do not give up the hope of living. We are persecuted, but God does not leave us. We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4: 8-10

Jesus paid it all

Today is Good Friday. To be honest, when I woke up this morning, I wasn't really thinking about the importance of this day. The busyness of life has been getting in the way of constantly praising the God who died so that I may live. I went to the Good Friday service put on by Passion City Church tonight and it was truly amazing. The weather was perfect (compared to last year's tornado). Jesus was moving. I was reminded that I don't have to earn my salvation. There is no amount of good deeds that I have to do earn God's approval, which is good because I screw up so often. Jesus, who never sinned died for me, so that I could spend eternity with him. The concept is still so unbelievable to me. God, who is over everything, loves me so much that he would send his son to die. He knows me and loves me. I am so thankful that he is in control of my life.
I want to leave you with these verses. Louie read these tonight and it really comforted me to know that with Christ, I am free:
It happens so regularly that it's predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God's commands, but it's pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge. I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question? The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different. With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.
Romans 7:21-8:2 (The Message)