Well, here it is, in just 24 hours I will be landing in Belize City. After going through customs & paying a few duties for the supplies I brought in, I'll take a taxi over to the bus station where I'll wait 3 hours to catch the "express bus" to Punta Gorda (cause the regular bus is not air conditioned and is a longer, more miserable ride). After 16 hours of travel, I should arrive safely in Punta Gorda. As you can imagine, Saturday is my least favorite day of the trip.
I've done this trip solo once before and after living there, I feel pretty comfortable in Belize. However, there are naturally some anxieties that come with such a lengthy amount of travel.
But, there's a twist: several weeks ago when we found an extraordinary deal on airfare to Belize, God laid it on someone's heart to cover the cost of a plane ticket. Since my ticket had already been purchased, and the situation seemed to be right, we moved forward with purchasing airfare for my husband. Andy will have to travel a day after me and return a day sooner but beyond that, we felt this was a great opportunity for us and more importantly, for the work we do in Belize.
While I know this will be a good thing for our work, it also inevitably adds a new layer to the picture. 3 kids have to be delivered to 2 different camps while 2 kids need childcare for 10 days and all 5 need childcare at the beginning and the end of the trip (from 2 different family members). Oh and did I mention that currently 1 child is feeling ill?
There are so many things to worry about. Will my children be healthy, safe, and get where they need to go in my absence? I still have packing to finish, am I remembering the essentials, the things I must have that can't be purchased in country? Travelling to Belize and running a camp can be costly and we currently do not have enough cash in our bank account to cover all the costs of camp & travel. How are we going to pull this off? The more I ask these questions, the more anxious I feel.
The solution: stop asking questions!
It sounds crazy right? Of course it does but then I am reminded to trust. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." Prov. 3: 5-6. A good friend of mine shared this with me last week and although I try to make this my life's mantra, I still needed to be reminded of it--often. There are a lot of times in my life that I've chosen the 'least desirable' path by doing not what I want to do, but what I feel called to do. Things may not have even turned out the way I'd hoped. Yet in spite of that, God has always worked out the details and goodness and peace have always come from it.
This situation is no different. I know that, I just have to remember to listen to that.
I like to think I'm getting better at that. I haven't asked those 'worry' questions nearly as much this time & (no shocker here) I feel a lot less anxious this time. One way or another, it will work out because I'm not in charge.
In the mean time, we would really appreciate your thoughts and prayers as our entire family makes sacrifices to have our work in Belize be a success this year.
We look forward to keeping you updated this week as time, and internet access, allow.
p.s. as a shameless plug--we are holding a Thirty One products online fundraiser. 20% of the sales will go towards making Camp Creative a success. Here's the link if you are interested but the fundraiser sale ends TODAY (6/26): www.mythirtyone.com/651239/shop/Party/EventDetail/8369176
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