Friday, April 29, 2011

Godwinks

How God works...

He always wins. Ever since I've agreed to this Zambia trip, I feel like the devil is working (but not hard enough!) It could also be that I'm reading this book about how God "winks" at us with coincidences and so I am noticing more things about how God really does work.

The day after I took the plunge and said I was going to Zambia, there was a random assembly at our school about African folktales. *Godwink confirming the decision*

When we were in Tennessee, we went to Dollywood. It just so happens that the time we were there was called the Festival of Nations. Out of all the nations in the world, Zambia was represented by five guys from Zambia who sang songs. They were so good! *Another Godwink confirming the trip*

How the devil is trying to get to me...but God is overpowering him.

1) Work has been so emotionally exhausting. The worst part is that I have been having dreams (some could say nightmares haha) about my little kiddos. It's like I can't catch a break, even when I'm sleeping! I left work today being (almost) totally caught up!


2) Our chicken fundraiser for the trip took place in the POURING rain and wind the entire time we were outside (about 7 hours). We still made a profit on the chicken sales.


3) Our roof started leaking in water around the chimney on the day of the chicken fundraiser. I'm thinking, "Great...how much is this going to cost?!?!" The roof guy comes, climbs on top of the roof, and sees a nail sticking out. He hammers the nail and puts stuff around the chimney. Charges $10.00. Luther is so excited that he gives him a $5.00 tip. Praise God. 


4) Our basement flooded for the first time ever because of a fluke paving job done by the city. Again, I wonder how much the repairs will cost. Luther goes to buy a pump for 70.00 to get the water out of the basement. By the time he gets home with the pump, the water is gone. We return the pump that is now not needed. Praise God. 


5) Our Mac's hard drive randomly starts acting weird and "failure will be imminent" according to the code we were given (P.S.- I'm still typing right now from my Mac). I'm still able to work from the MAC as long as I don't turn it off. Plus, we found a better hard drive for only $70.


6) School- there are a couple big projects left to do but I have been so exhausted (mentally and physically) that I have really struggled to be motivated and do them. I get an email from my teacher telling me that my initial paper for my project was so good that I am receiving the natural consequence of not having to do a paper for the final project. PRAISE GOD! That saved time and energy. 


God is great, all the time:)








So this is a long post!!!! My total for the trip is now over $2,700!

We're having a fundraiser at my parent's house on May 19 from 5-9 with Tastefully Simple, Pampered Chef, 31 gifts, Silpada, and (hopefully) Scentsy. All the proceeds will benefit the Zambia trip.

Tennessee was awesome!!! (Pictures to come later!) I went horseback riding and on a zip line tour with my dad while Luther and his dad rode go-carts for hours. We all went to Dollywood and even played putt-putt three nights! We went inside a huge Christmas store (those of you who know me well know that I can do some serious damage on buying ornaments!). Stayed in an amazing cabin. Did I mention that we ran into a family from church at a store in Pigeon Forge?!? How random!

24 more days of school! 3 more projects for class! 2 more months until we see Tiffany and Tristan. Lots of things to look forward to!

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Another day in paradise!

My Saturday:

4:40 a.m.- "Bubble" sounds on my phone...time to get up
5:15 a.m.- Arrive at my parents house. There must be SOMETHING left in my old closet that can get trashed. I hear we are about to get really dirty. Found an old UNC sweatshirt. Child size large. Try it on. Perfect, it still fits!
6:00 a.m.- Arrive at the Stuarts Draft Fire House to start on the BBQ chicken in the rain.

The day consisted of getting soaking wet and having the wind blow charcoal dust in our faces. We had to open about 30 bags of charcoal and put them in the pit. Then lighter fluid was poured on top and then the flames came! Chickens went on the rack. They had to be sprayed with sauce that was stirred over a fire that kept blowing out because of the wind. We put boxes together and lined the boxes with foil. After the chickens were cooked (all 631 of them), they went into the lined boxes and were sprayed with more BBQ sauce. After they marinated a little longer, the chickens were wrapped and ready to go. People could pick up the chicken they ordered starting at 11:00. Mind you, the rain never stopped once.

Around 2:30, I decide to take a quick nap. Luther decides to come upstairs and watch TV while I sleep on his chest.
2:45 p.m.- Luther wakes me up. That was a quick nap!

There's water pouring inside our bedroom around the chimney. I run to pull the TV cord out of the wall since the water is coming in directly over the power strip and outlet. We hold a towel to stop the water. Once the rain stops, the water stops coming inside. It poured rain for at least 45 minutes. Luther decides to check the basement. He doesn't think any water went in. Then he opens the door and sees a few inches of water on the floor. Great! Thankfully, Luther had organized the basement so that not much would be ruined if water did ever go into the basement. We talked to some guys from the city because apparently when they repaved the road next to us, they didn't put a bump like in the old road to keep all of the water from coming down the hill and into our basement. We make some phone calls and are very appreciative to all our friends who were giving us advice and referrals for people who work on a metal roof! Luther goes to Lowes to buy something to get the water out of the basement while I stay home and make sure no more water comes in through the roof! By the time he gets home (45 minutes later) the water in the basement was gone. Weird, but thankful.

Sooo, I think I was asleep by 9 because I was so exhausted! I woke up to hear that Draft had a tornado. It looked awful as we drove to church today and saw the damage. I have not heard that anyone was hurt and for that, I am thankful. Many people still need our prayers though as they are going to try to rebuild their houses and farms.


On a different note, I am almost to $2,000 for my Zambia trip! Almost enough to buy the plane ticket and almost half way to the $4,300 total needed. Very thankful for God's blessings and I get chills thinking about who God is asking to support this specific trip of a lifetime. I can't wait to see how we are used and to share with those who donate what a difference they made for the people of Zambia by donating money to this cause.

Until next time...

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Keeping the faith!




I've just passed the $1,000 mark towards my trip! A little over $3,200 left to go! I'm very thankful for those who are not only financially supporting this journey, but also those who are praying for this adventure! I know that God is faithful and provides for our needs and I am excited to see how God works in this situation!


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Saturday was the yard sale for Relay for Life at McSwain. Luther did really well!! He made almost $100 and even though I didn't make near as much in money, I am overly ecstatic about the new shelf that has opened up in our house (from him selling his PS2 and games) and all the new closet space:)

Tomorrow starts week four of the class I'm taking! I'm hoping to get a lot of work done this afternoon so that I can finish up this class early! I only have one more class after this one!!

We are headed to Gatlinburg a week from Wednesday! I am sooo excited and am hoping that the trip meets all my expectations! We booked a cabin with a big front porch and a hot tub and all kinds of amazing things! We are making the trip with both of our parents and are looking forward to some relaxing family time:)

Here is some information about the upcoming fundraisers for the Zambia team!

Saturday, April 16th- Come to the Stuarts Draft Fire House between 11 and 1:30 to buy chicken halves for $4.00.

Sunday, May 1st- Potato bar lunch after church. Donation only.

Friday and Saturday May 12th and 13th- Hot dog stand and car wash in front of Ace hardware in Draft!

Friday May 20th- movie night outside of Greenmonte

Saturday May 21st- Yard Sale

Any support you can provide would definitely be appreciated!