"That would be God."

Yesterday as I walked across campus, a colleague stopped to talk to me.

"Are you still gung-ho about Africa?" he asked.
"Yep," I said.
"Is your husband still gung-ho about Africa?"
"Yep."
"How did you end up with someone who is so gung-ho as you?"
"You mean so crazy?" I laughed. "I guess that would be God, or fate, depending what you believe."

I believe it is God.

Today I spent the day with a very good friend who has been overseas doing mission work for a good part of the last year. She gave me some great advice that ranged from "find a network for accountability and support" to "bring taco seasoning"! Part of our conversation was about our testimonies, our stories about the journey we are on with God. One of the things she reminded me was that our stories will keep developing. Some examples of things to be added to my story regarding this Kenya experience ...

- That I had experiences growing up that led me to an interest in Kenya, and that Chris has experiences that led him to an interest in global missions, and that we ended up together with our unique strengths. That would be God.

- That I have gone through periods of spiritual doubt, depth, and growth, and ultimately gained new understandings of what it means to be a follower of Christ in ways that will be continually applied overseas. That would be God.

- That my over-researching, over-planning, goal-oriented brain is actually very much at peace with the ambiguity of what we will be doing in Kenya and what we will do when we return. That would be God.

- That I initially avoided any overseas program that would involve support raising/fundraising, but now find that inviting people to partner with us is one of the most exciting things. That would be God.

- That people in the US and Africa have risen up to offer us support, even support we never requested or knew we needed. That these people have become so engaged and involved in what we are doing. That would be God.

There are lots and lots of other examples, not necessarily related to the Kenya trip, and I know Chris and I would love to tell anyone who is interested more about our stories and how we got to where (and who) we are today.