Therefore Go...

Heath and I prayerfully decided to answer the call to go. On July 22 we will set out with 8 others from our church to Yei, Sudan in Central Africa. We have partnered with “His Voice for Sudan”, an established ministry led by Vernon and Amber Burger...“We are lovers of God. We are partners with lovers of God all over the globe. Our desire is that God's glory would be made known in all the earth. Our mission is to empower orphans, widows, and Church leaders to make disciples of all nations.”

Amber and Vernon have started two orphanages in the Sudan.

"The first orphanage was built in a village called Morobo, Sudan. It began with 48 orphans, 12 widows (to care for the children), 1 pastor, 1 guard, and 1 farmer. It has grown to 72 orphans, 14 widows, 3 cooks, 1 pastor, 1 guard, and 1 farmer. This is the first time in the lives of these children that they are able to eat 3 meals a day on a consistent basis. On the Orphanage grounds there is a school. Education is a large part of the orphanage. The school is for the orphans and also the local children. This has been such a great outreach. There are currently over 200 children in the school.

Along with the school, there is a Church. The children attend the Church and are overseen throughout the week by a pastor. This has also been a great outreach to the community. During the week the church is a place where people can come from Congo, Uganda and from all over Sudan to be trained in the Bible."

The orphanage that we will be at is in Lura. It is their second orphanage to establish in the Sudan.

Heath and I have been so excited for this trip for many months now. I can't believe we leave in 11 days! This is so exciting for so many reasons.

One of which is, my husband has never been overseas on a mission trip. In fact, he just got his very first passport one month ago. I feel so blessed to be able to share this experience with the love of my life. For the first time, we will be able to minister side by side in another country! I am thrilled beyond my ability to express.

There are 3 women going, myself, my friend Corey and our pastor's wife Jennifer. While there, the 3 of us will spend the majority of our time with the widows who run the orphanage. Through fellowship and Bible studies, it is our prayer that we can convey to these widows that they are beautifully and wonderfully made, and each of them are loved and valued.

There are 7 men going. They will spend their time with the children of the orphanage playing games with them and listening to their stories. It is our prayer that seeds of hope and truth are planted in the hearts of the children here as we strive to build relationships with them. They will also spend part of their time painting the orphanage.

I just feel so blessed and am in such awe that God has given Heath and I this opportunity. As you can imagine, I have many reservations about a trip of this magnitude and distance, but God has already proven Himself over and over that He is in control and that He has directed our paths for this journey.

I will outline many prayer requests over the next 11 days.

Y'all are the sweetest for already voicing so many prays on our behalf and asking about the trip. I can not tell you how much it means to me and how much those prayers are needed.