missionaryMAC

He sends e-mails. For those of you who haven't already heard, I am officially staying at the mission through December of 2011. There were a variety of factors involved in my decision (look back a couple entries for the full list), but when you add them all up it's a pretty clear indication that my calling to YLM isn't over yet. One of the weightiest factors, or perhaps just the final straw that cemented what I had been leaning towards for awhile, was an e-mail I received from my LCMS placement counselor, Erin. I referred to it in the same aforementioned entry that also contains my full list of pros and cons, but wanted to explain the whole story of my "e-mail from God:" So I was in the middle of writing the entry that I keep mentioning (the one called "To Translate or Not To Translate" ...go read it if you haven't) 2 weeks ago Wednesday (9/16), when the Yahoo tab that I ALWAYS have open when I'm doing anything else on the internet all of a sudden...

So I have had this thing in the back of my mind for a couple of months now; I've come to refer to it as "my decision." When I told LCMS I was going to volunteer at YLM, I committed to a year and a half, which puts me in June of 2010, although I'd probably stay a little longer anyhow b/c that's a horrible time to leave. I can choose to extend my term at anytime; I just have to tell them and they'll give me a new fundraising goal. I've also wanted to work for Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT) for several years now. I'm the nerd who took Greek and Hebrew for fun in college so it's pretty much my dream job. SO, I basically have to decide whether to stay here doing what I'm doing for another year or more, or if and when to apply for LBT. I had been wanting to talk to a recruiter, who actually randomly found about my interest a few weeks ago via a friend of a friend who works for LBT, for several weeks now, and I finally did today. Here is a recap--I ...

As many of you have probably heard by now, the mission has been struggling financially as of late. So, at our last staff meeting we decided to host a gordita fundraiser 2 weeks from Sunday, October 4. Starting at 12:30 we will have Rita's gorditas by the dozen, pints of rice and beans, and cups of salsa available for carryout purchase. I realize that most of you reading this live thousands of miles away, but if you'd like to donate towards the cause anyway, you can send a contribution designated towards "gordita fundraiser." The best part is, if we raise: $3,000: Pastor Heimer is going to dye his hair blue; $5,000: Pastor Astorga is going to paint his skin green and dress up like Shrek; $7,000: Chris is going to shave his head! And apparently if we raise $10,000 Chris thinks I am shaving my head??? We'll see about that ;) Until next time, blessings!

Below is an e-mail that I sent to all the YLM staff members and also all previous servant event leaders, but I thought I would put it on here too in case anyone has other suggestion. Turns out I will need a lot more than I originally thought because we are going to try and get a bulk postage rate...aka 200!!! Hi everybody-- Part of my job here is to work on filling out the servant event calendar, particularly in the off-season months (aka NOT June, July, and August). My first idea was to spam every Lutheran church in America with an SE brochure, but that's not very feasible, so I am asking all of you for churches/organizations you may know of that would potentially be interested in sending a group. I'll send each one a personalized letter telling them who gave me their name/why they are getting mail from me along with a brochure. Think along the lines of churches that your friends/relatives belong to (not necessarily Lutheran), churches where former pastors/DCE's/teachers/m...

AAAAAHHHHH!!! My best friend from highschool, Marie, is married!!! It's crazy to think about sometimes, but that's beside the point. I am so incredibly happy for her and her husband, Philip, and, as you will see below, they had a beautiful ceremony which took place on Saturday, August 29 in Columbia, MO. I was priveleged to be Marie's maid of honor. I flew home on Monday the 24th, and after having some friends from church over for dinner and getting my dress altered that evening, I hitched a ride to CoMo with Marie's mom on Tuesday afternoon. Up until a couple weeks ago when I stayed at Chris's parents' house the week before his sister's wedding, I wasn't sure what we were going to do all week...that quickly changed! Stef kept the whole household busy, and Marie was no different. We spent the week shopping for thank-you gifts (Marie had a LOT of people to thank), WRAPPING all of the gifts we bought, packing (Marie and Philip are moving to California on S...