:: ordinary & extraordinary ::

A wise lady* once told me that life is mostly made up of ordinary days.

there are certainly extraordinary days that accompany a lifetime: births, deaths, weddings, graduations, amazing vacations, memories made with family and friends that just stand out like a bright spotlight would in a dark room…but, primarily, life is lived in the mundane.  Synonyms for “mundane” are:

commonplace/day-to-day/everyday/humdrum/lowly/normal/prosaic/routine/workday.

there is a simple truth about this fact that is very comforting.  my life in Kenya, just as in Gaithersburg, will be made up of mundane, ordinary, commonplace days.  they will not all be spectacular, dazzling, and dreamy.  they will be simple, routine, and repeating.  yes, moving to Kenya IS extraordinary, and I anticipate that it will very much be a supernatural experience.  i am not trying to play it down.  BUT.  in those lowly, humdrum moments that will inevitably come while I’m at RVA, I am cheered by the thought that I have already, and will continue to have the same humdrum moments in the years ahead; and, Mom and Nora and Dad and Peter and Brett and Travis and Kate and Grandma and so many others will be living out those ordinary days, too.  Just in a different time zone and geographic location.

Yet, one thing is certain.  It is the Truth that we choose to believe about God that transforms the mundane into something extraordinary; it is resting in the Beauty of His will that transforms the mundane into something joyful and sovereignly ordained.

I am excited to go.  I am as ready as I ever think I could be.  And, I am grateful to each and everyone of you for the role that you play in this great ordinary & extraordinary adventure.  Whether you have supported me financially, practically, or spiritually, you–my family and friends–go with me.  In fact, I am just walking the road that Christ already took…so, in a way, I am just going along for the ride with Christ.

Please do pray for my travels this weekend.  I depart at 7:05pm EST from DC to London on 8/14, and then get into Heathrow at 7am.  I have a few hours before our next flight leaves at 10:20am, which is a direct flight to Nairobi.  So, at that point in time, I’ll call Mom and Dad with an international calling card and let them know how the first flight went.  Once we get onto the 10:20 flight, we then land in Nairobi, Kenya at 8:55pm that Saturday night.  RVA staff will be waiting to greet and pick us up and take us (and all our luggage) back to the Mayfield Guesthouse in Nairobi.  We will stay the night before journeying onto RVA on Sunday morning, August 16.  Then, Orientation begins on Monday the 17th!  Nothing like jumping head-first into your new role and ministry!

Specifically, please pray for safe travels, protection over our groups’ luggage and that they will not get lost or stolen, that our group will get through Security/Customs at Nairobi with no trouble, that I will be able to sleep on the flights, and that God would help me to be outward-focused and joyful despite being tired and a bit cranky from multiple hours of traveling.

Please also pray that the next 5 days will be filled with joy, peace, and practical wisdom for final packing.

God bless you all!  Looking forward to posting again soon.  Perhaps, from Kenya!

*Thanks, Mom.