Well lets be honest, I have never been a flexible person. I like schedules and organization and when plans change I get frustrated at the lack of control I have. I knew going into this mission trip that I would have to be flexible to some degree but I never realized how much control I was going to lose. Three weeks ago I gave up my right to control when I arrived at training camp. We never knew what was next and never had a say in what we were doing. This was the best preperation I could have had for the Philippines. Every day is different and the plans never seem to pan out. I will make a...

11: I landed in the Philippines eleven days ago.  The community we serve starts just a few steps outside of our gate.  The houses literally line the streets.  What I mean by 'houses' are tiny little shacks made from tarps and scrap wood.    11: I get to serve alongside eleven amazing team members daily.  We eat together, pray together, praise together, laugh together, and get the chance to build eachother up.  I can;t wait to see how God uses us to teach and influence eachothers lives in the next few months....

(Just so you are aware: the names I use in this blog have been changed to protect the children) Sometimes I feel completely useless. Ok, so that probably was not the best way to start out a blog, but it's true. Everyday I spend 3-7 hours in the nursery at the children's home, which is across the street from our "house." There are 11 adorable kids in the nursery who, most of the time, are wild & crazy (as most 1-4 year olds are). At one point I was holding a crying child, pulling one of the little boys out of the sink (when Kendra & I are not watching the sink area...

                As we started our second week in the Philippines, I couldn’t believe it was only a week ago that we were loading on a plane and flying out here. It feels like we have been doing this for a month or two, but it’s awesome to know that we still have three months here. Our team has decided that we were all handpicked by God to be together, and the fact that we’ve all gotten so close so quickly definitely proves that....

(Just so you are aware: the names I use in this blog have been changed to protect the children) Sometimes I feel completely useless. Ok, so that probably was not the best way to start out a blog, but it's true. Everyday I spend 3-7 hours in the nursery at the children's home, which is across the street from our "house." There are 11 adorable kids in the nursery who, most of the time, are wild & crazy (as most 1-4 year olds are). At one point I was holding a crying child, pulling one of the little boys out of the sink (when Kendra & I are not watching the sink area...

                As we started our second week in the Philippines, I couldn’t believe it was only a week ago that we were loading on a plane and flying out here. It feels like we have been doing this for a month or two, but it’s awesome to know that we still have three months here. Our team has decided that we were all handpicked by God to be together, and the fact that we’ve all gotten so close so quickly definitely proves that....