Can't Wait!

I've got one week left until I go on vacation and I can't wait! Marty and I leave next Thursday afternoon for my parent's house in Jackson and then on July 4 we get on board a beautiful cruise ship and head to Cozumel and Calica - places we've been before but this time we're going with my entire family. A little scarey that my Granny is going to be just a couple of rooms down the hall from me but I don't care - at least this vacation my door will have a lock and only Marty and I will have the key!

Marty will also celebrate his birthday while on the boat and so I'm trying to think of something fun to get him while we're on the ship. Anybody got any ideas?

All I know is I'm ready for a little relaxation. I love my job and I love the part of my job where I get to train and send the mission teams but this year it was extra challenging and I'm ready for a little time off before they return home. One team this year just would not leave the country. It wasn't their fault. They wanted to go more than anything but they were headed to Russia - a country that's difficult to get visas from and then when the visas don't come on time, a country even more difficult to get plane tickets into. So, they were here with me an extra week. We had a good time together though. We went to the Urban Missions Conference here in Atlanta and learned some really important things about living a life of mission and not just leaving the country for mission. It's about living intentionally where you are. That's exciting to me and I'm excited to know that I'm learning how to do that and trying my best to impart that to others.

I hope with all I am that they return home from this summer with a love for mission - mission overseas and a mission for the everyday when they can't be overseas. So, yes, my job this year training short-term missionaries was a little bit more difficult and while I still look longingly toward my vacation, I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. This world needs Christians with a broader picture of God than the one so many North Americans tend to see.

The things I'm looking forward to the most on the cruise? The sun, my family, eating until I'm sick, getting off the boat in exciting new places and just simply being who I am for a few days without any stress. Hallelujah!

Don't forget to send me suggestions about what to get Marty for his birthday - I welcome them - all of them!

Joy