mission for who?

tomorrow morning at 3:45 am (no, i am not a morning person... keep in mind too that that is eastern time, and i am not sure my body has adjusted yet...) i will be at church, pack on my back, piling into a van to drive to the cincinnati airport in kentucky, to bounce all over the country and the caribbean before landing in the dominican republic.

if i sound like i am complaining, i probably am, not an admirable way to start a "mission" trip.

top ten things i think will be challenging about the week:
1. the bugs
2. the heat
3. making friends
4. communicating across a language barrier
5. serving with folks whose theology is different than mine
6. the bugs
7. latrines
8. i am outta shape... physical labor here i come!
9. the bug
10. the bugs

top ten things i am excited about:
1. time with God
2. communicating across a language barrier
3. working with kids (love it!)
4. the heat
5. the company
6. learning to work with folks whose theology is different than mine
7. not being in charge
8. time
9. no internet
10. making friends

the funny thing about these kinds of trips, i am don't think i am alone in this sentiment, is that i get as much and generally more than i give out of the experience. in my quest to learn, live and embody micah 6:8 this summer and in my greater journey, this trip feels like a big step. so though fearful of the unknown and of insects of unusual size, here i go.

though i won't be posting while i am gone (unless i can sneak into an internet cafe when in santo domingo) i imagine there will be a plethora of posts as soon as i get home cataloguing the experience.