The past three weeks...

Someone once said that a lot can change in a week. He was right...

Since my last blog, quite a few fun things have happened in my life. Work continues to stretch and challenge me... We continue to get new applications, mostly from Ethiopia, which is funny. I keep threatening to put a stop to Tefera's work. I don't really mean it, though. God is moving in the nations! 1 Chronicles 16:8 Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name; make known among the nations what He has done.

God continues to call me into deeper places of intercession, which I don't fully understand, but will continue to obey. I am realizing more and more the power of prayer, and the discipline it takes. I am blessed that He desires me to go deeper.

Our trip to Louisiana/Mississippi went really well (yes, I survived being a girl among lots of boys, and there were quite a few girls once we got there. However, I think some of the guys, who shall remain nameless had a bit too much fun harassing me...) and I was blessed to be there. We (Nate, Luke, Jon, and myself) started out our day with a very early morning airport run to Baltimore, leaving Nate's house at 3:00 in the morning. Our flights went really well, we had easy connections, and some time to rest (kind of). I also got to experience a new airport. For those of you who follow my time in airplanes/airports, I think this makes close to 190 hours in a year. I think I might stop flying until January when I head out to Ethiopia/India. Anyway.... Once we arrived at the airport, we met up with two of Nate's friends who flew in from a different city, Jeremy and Brandon. We had some time to tour the French Quarter of New Orleans, eat some lunch at Bubba Gump's Shrimp, tour Bourbon Street (I think we lasted one block there, it wasn't the purest of places to be...), then spent some time down by the mighty Mississippi River, and on to tour the Ninth Ward, the area in New Orleans where the levee broke. It was a bit surreal to be there. Most of the debris was gone, but there were sidewalks and foundations and you could just imagine that children used to play games on the streets and in the neighborhoods and now it's like a ghost town, it was quite sad.

We left Louisiana for our drive to Pass Christian, Mississippi, which was about 1.5 hours I believe. The area was hit by the actual hurricane, not just a levee breaking. Most of the town was demolished either by the wind or a 30 foot storm surge. I struggled to stay awake so I could take in my surroundings. We arrived at the base and put our things away, met some people, and went to our first meal in Mississippi... Burger King! We met a few hilarious southerners there, where Jon got his wish for some deep southern accents. They explained how to go "Flounder Giggin'", which was hilarious. Giggin' for those of you not familiar with the south, is basically the same as spear hunting/fishing, I think.... Anyway, they also let us know we needed to be careful of the sting rays. Thanks, but no thanks to flounder giggin'!

I actually got about eight hours of sleep on Sunday night, which I was incredibly grateful for... Monday morning, I woke up and went on a prayer pace. I say pace because they told us not to walk too far alone, so I paced in the area where I could be seen by the MDS camp. We packed our lunches, ate breakfast, shared a devotional, and then got our work assignment for the day. I got to be on a work crew with Nate and Luke, which was cool, since I knew them the best. Nate has a lot of experience in construction, and Luke has a super hilarious wit, so we enjoyed our time and got things accomplished! We also got our truck assignment, which was a Dodge Hemi with some sort of loud exhaust pack on it, so it made you want to grunt to hear it. I think Nate enjoyed driving it :) Our first stop was the jobsite, where we measured and planned for the lumber yard run. We were responsible for finishing a deck, placing rails on the deck, and building stairs off the back of the house. We worked on that project pretty much from Monday through Thursday, finishing at the end of the day on Thursday, just in the knick of time, with a brief time away on Tuesday to install closet doors, do some trim work, painting, etc. at a house that was dedicated while we were there. I think they said it was 110 degrees with the heat index, but it

felt hotter. You basically dripped with sweat all the time, but looking back, it wasn't that bad and I'm kind of grateful, since it made the experience seem a bit more like we were sacrificing something... It was weird, too, because I think I got a bit overheated and got a bit delusional at times. You know, when everything, whether it's funny or not, seems SO hilarious to you... Other members of our group worked on drywall, sanding, painting, and other various jobs throughout the week. Our evenings were filled with dinner, going to the beach to play volleyball, wading out into the Gulf of Mexico (SCARY, with the warning of sting rays burrowing in the sand to sleep at night), sitting out on piers watching stars, going on walks on the beach, etc. We had a blast. We also forgot to get much sleep... On Friday, we spent the day getting the base ready for a month with no one there. MDS is closing all of it's sites for the month of September, since there is a shortage of volunteers. It would take at least ten years to rebuild at this rate, and it's so sad that they can't find workers. Pray with me, please, for people to go to rebuild. If you want any information on a team, let me know. I would be happy to pass information on to you. We had fun moving vehicles, campers, trailers, equipment to the hurricane vehicle evacuation site. I'm sure we looked like a force to be reckoned with, and one turtle, thanks to Nate and the "Turtle Launcher", aka, the Winnebago, had the ride of it's life as he clipped its shell on a curve and sent it flying (think Super Mario Brothers...). Must have been an extreme sports loving turtle, I hope it had fun. That thing was launched.

OH! To add to my list of "cars" I've driven in weird places, I learned how to drive a high lift in Mississippi. Yah. That was cool. It had orbital tires. That was weird. I had fun, though, playing with all the levers. Hmmm...

Similar to New Orleans, the majority of the debris is gone, but there is so much barrenness there. You can almost sense the hopelessness in the air. On a walk early one morning, after watching the sunrise over the marina, I remarked that it seemed like the people have accepted living in FEMA trailers as their fate and felt compelled to pray for hope to be pressed back into them, so that's what I prayed for during my time there. For hope to return.

Friday night, we traveled back to New Orleans for our early morning Saturday flight (left the base at 3:45 am...)

We arrived home at about 3 in the afternoon and shared some of our experiences with Nate's mom, then made plans to hang out the next day, where the rest of my cool story comes into play... since I know most of you are only still reading this for news on my personal life. Ha.

Some of you have heard stories about this man named Nate, some have not. Well, actually, if you read my blog, you have read about him and have seen some pictures of him... Anyway, we met about seven months ago through some friends of ours, and in the time since then, I have been increasingly amazed at his character, his kindness, and his depth. He is a strong man of faith, a strong leader, and a solid person. He's a good balance to my energy, and is fun, without being overwhelming... On Sunday, Luke's phrase of Nate and I being "unofficially official" became obsolete, when we prayerfully and excitedly took that plunge from "just friends" to being in a relationship while overlooking trees and trails atop the "Money Rocks." I'm excited about this new chapter in our lives for so many reasons, but mostly because I see so many things in our friendship that bring glory to God. I see so many things in Nate that glorify God, and I am so challenged by his faith, his walk with God, and with his desire to remain in His will. He encourages me both by just being himself and by his words to me to be a better person in Christ. Please pray with us to be able to remain in step with God's plan for our lives, for us to remain completely in His will and to honor God in all we do, say, think, feel, and in our actions. I trust Nate as a leader, because I see how submitted he is to Christ, and I trust God in him. I am continually asking God to help me hold this in my open hand, for Him to do with whatever He desires. I have to admit I'm excited, but it's also a little bit weird, because it's new. I think we were both a bit afraid that all the cool aspects of our friendship would be lost when we became more than friends, but I think it's actually made it cooler yet. I think the foundation that was laid as friends is really strong and incredible. A lot of trust, respect, and understanding was gained in that time. I'm very grateful to have gotten to know him so well before we entered this relationship. It's been fun to figure out when we started liking each other. I think we were both intrigued by one another right away, and it grew from there. I remember crying while I was in California at Christine's wedding in June one night, because I was so scared he wouldn't choose to be with me, and I didn't know at the time he liked me, too. I spent the night saying out loud, "Lord, I trust You." This has been an incredible time of trusting and believing God...and will continue to be. I am so thankful for this journey.

On Nate's blog, he wrote the following, which sums it up very well, so if you think to pray for him and for us: "Together we are seeking God to lead us in this new relationship as we ultimately want to honor Him. We are really excited for what God is doing even though it can be scary at times. Please pray for us as we get to know each other better, as we discern God's will, and that I boldly lead as He directs."

You can also pray for me to continue to live. He has a weird way of making me stop breathing, which Allison has assured me is normal and okay. Ha ha.

Nate emailed these verses to me the day after we got together and I like them, too:

2 Corinthians 1:20-22
"For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God. Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. "

Alright, so that's my update from this side of the country/world/universe. Keep me updated on what's new with you! I miss hearing from some of you, but it's been great to hear from some of you, too.

God bless you all and thank you for what you add to my life!

Jenny