there's no place like home.

It is so true...there really is no place like home.  This past week I traveled back to Michigan to mark, what would have been the end of my time in Costa Rica.  It was when I was "supposed" to be "done".  Haha, but we all know that that is not the case.  Although I am so excited about spending two more years here, it was a breath of fresh air to be home.

It was great timing.  We all left...pretty much.  So for my head and my heart, it was what I needed.  To wrap up my internship and have some closure with that, and then come back to Costa Rica on my own terms, knowing that it would be different (some of my closest friends, gone).  It gave me an interesting perspective into the lives and realities of our kids...dealing with transition over and over again.  It's hard!  It's good but it's hard!  And I'm so glad I had the opportunity to go home for a week.

I spent some great time with my family.  My parents were home some.  My mom and I did some shopping, stocking up of some things you can't get in CR.  We also starting making some scarfs that I will be selling as a fundraiser -- let me know if you want one!  $25!!

This could be yours...for $25!
And you're helping kids meet Jesus...win, win!

I was hoping to meet with some folks face-to-face to share the ministry vision for these next two years, but that unfortunately didn't really happen.  Just too quick of trip.  But that is one huge challenge of fundraising from Costa Rica...that I can't really meet with people.  Most people going on staff take a good 6-12 months to meet with people face-to-face and invite them to partner in their ministry.  That is not a reality for me.  Not at this point yet.  I'm here, and most of my supporters are there (in the States).  My anticipated start date is September 1st, which means all funds for the next two years need to be at least pledged before then.  (If they're not, I'll be sent back to the States until they are.)  So it can be a scary reality if I let it get the best of me.  But I have to trust. I have to trust in what the Lord has put on my heart.  These kids.  This ministry to international school students in San Jose.  I can't be distracted by what look like limitations and I must focus on the promises and faithfulness of the Lord I serve, and that He is a provider.  The Provider.

I also had the chance to spend the day at Timber Wolf Lake, the Young Life camp in Michigan.  Some close friends who are on staff with YL in the States were up there serving for the month of June.  It was great to be face-to-face and catch up.  To share.  To be encouraged.  To celebrate.  And I LOVE Young Life camp!!!  I went on Day 1, so I got to witness all of the welcomes!  So exciting to see the faces of hundreds of kids who were about to have the best week of their lives and leave changed because of it!  It was another reminder of why I do what I do and how faithful the Lord I serve is.

On the way home was able to spend the night with a great friend from high school now living in Grand Rapids.  She's an all-star and just landed her dream job at DeVos Children's Hospital.  Great to catch up with her and see what her life looks like.  Great to share the "realities of adulthood" and that life is sometimes just messy and hard, but that there is beauty in the mess.

All in all, it was a great trip.  A gift for sure.  To be able to stop.  To be out of the routine of Costa Rican life.  To drive a car.  To be rejuvenated.  To hit "pause" for a tiny second before going back full-speed to a life of language school, fundraising, and preparing for new interns and a new year of ministry.

Thanks Mom and Dad for always letting me come home!  Love you guys!