2018

Well, 2018 didn’t quite look like I had planned, but here is what God decided that this year would look like for me:
January – March – I lived and worked among My People of My Country, learning language and culture and building relationships. I was learning how My People live and joining in. In January I also had training on how to make apps – for a dictionary in My Language, for books in My Language (one day when they’ll have a written language), and for Scripture in My Language (once it’s been translated). Super cool!
April – May – I returned to the US on home assignment, planning on being here April to October. In April and May I spent time with people in WI, and also traveled to Arizona, Ohio, Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, and Illinois visiting friends, family, and supporters. It was also during this time that I found out that little Rachida, the girl with eye cancer, passed away. Sometimes God’s answers aren’t the ones we were hoping for.
June – July – I spent these two months in North Dakota at grad school, learning language and translation “stuff.” It was while I was here that I learned that the family on our team in My Country had decided to leave the team. Not good news!
August – September – As I prepared to return to My Country, I continued visiting friends, family, and supporters. I also had meetings and found time for some fun. 😊 Colorado, Arizona, and Florida were on the docket for these months, besides more concentrated time in Wisconsin. The last Friday of September I found out that I would not be returning to My Country in October as planned, though.
October – December – Since I couldn’t return to My Country as planned, I saw God open wide the door for me to continue my studies at a grad school in Texas, learning more language “stuff.” Lots of good learning, but now I want to be able to put it into practice! However, I found out earlier this month that I still cannot return to My Country quite yet, though maybe later in 2019. We’ll see what God has in store!
Thank you for your prayers, friendship, encouragement, and everything else over this past year. For those of you whom I met this last year, I’m so glad we did! For those I got to see again, hooray! For those I didn’t get to see, I’m sad that I missed you. And for my friends in My Country, I miss you, too.
May God continue to lead us each and every day, and may we trust Him even when His plans don’t look like ours.