Looking back to see what is going to lie ahead may not be such a bad thing. Tonight I was thinking about this Tanzania team. We lost one member of our team due to God calling him to other things this summer...which could have been completely discouraging for us, except for this utter peace I feel about that situation. :) So I was pondering back to where this team started and seeing how God has raised up two great guys who will be joining us on this adventure...two guys that we prayed for...one being the leader of this ragamuffin bunch and the other stepping out of his box into a new world of overseas missions. I was just encouraged by looking back and it made me really excited for what lies ahead.

This afternoon I was reading about Paul and Barnabas in Acts. And I was really struck with the fact that these two guys were threatened and Paul was even stoned nearly to death...yet they kept on preaching the Word of God because they loved God and wanted His name to be praised...and because of their love for God, they loved people deeply. Even knowing the cost of their sharing Christ with these people (nearly their lives), they kept going...they could not stop. And I asked myself, "Sara, is it worth it? Is this Christ worth dying for? Even more so, is this Christ worth living for?" Sometimes I think its "easy" (granted, I use that term lightly here) to die for something...but living for it is the real struggle. Does my life reflect Christ? Am I willing to do whatever it is He calls me to? But more importantly...am I willing to just love Him fully? And the Bible tells us that we know we love God if we obey Him. So do I obey Him? These are all questions that came to my mind...I know I have a lot of growing yet to do...and I know that there will be many hardships...but the point is, it's all worth it. All of it.

On a lighter note...if you have been keeping up with the Tanzania Team section of my site, be sure to check out the "Ongoing Prayer Points" in that section. I cannot tell you how thankful I am to have an editor as a housemate...I couldn't think of a word earlier and not only did she come up with it, but also pointed out a mistake I had made. :) Anyhow, check that out if you get time...it will not change much...if at all. :)