I like to GIVE. Give hope. Give encouragement. Inspire others. Help others. It’s why I want to go on this trip. On the other hand, I’ve never been the type to accept help well. I like to be independent. I like to be the one who fights over paying the check when friends go out to eat.

Asking for money is hard. I HATE it. I dislike talking on the phone and face to face confrontations. I hate “selling myself”. You may be thinking, as I have thousands of times, “Why put yourself through this misery??” I definitely feel I was called to do this trip and God will help sustain me through this challenge. Thankfully, I’ve been blessed with the ability to write pretty well, so writing the support letters has been the easy part. Following up has been difficult, but I’ve been facing that fear as it comes.

The outpouring of love and support I have been receiving is phenomenal. Just the other day there was an anonymous $600 donation. Who does that? And then there are friends who have donated $25, $100, and re-occurring monthly donations. I have been running into friends from school, tell them about my trip, and they donate. No matter how little or how big, all the gifts have been extraordinary!  

Through all of this, I’ve been learning about the gift of receiving and it’s a pretty cool thing to learn. I have not earned these gifts, but they have been given freely (without expectation of being repaid) just as God offers us the free gift of grace through Jesus’ salvation. We just have to be willing to believe that gift is for us, accept the gift, and then spread the joy of that gift (as I will be sharing the joy of knowing Christ during my 11 month trip!).

“For it is by GRACE you have been SAVED, through faith-and this is not from yourselves, it is the GIFT of GOD-not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9