What is your legacy?

I leave for Hamburg May 28th. I still need a lot of money, not to mention I have no idea how we'll pay for my 2nd ticket to Hannover for October 1st (when I have to arrive there). I'm not worried but at the same time, I have yet to see the light at the end of the tunnel. So i guess i'm still in the tunnel. Currently I'm working on getting insurance and raising money for necessary things i'll need while there. It can be frustrating but exciting at the same time.

I answered a few questions for C. Meek at the igo headquarters last week, and I want to share them here.

So as past JSIs, I would love for you to impart some wisdom to this years' students. If you would each answer the following questions and send them to me, I would appreciate it. The quicker the better!

1. Tell me a funny story that happened to you while in country
2. What is one thing that you wish you would have known before you went overseas?
3. What is the most significant thing you learned?Thanks guys! If you know any other past JSIs pass this on so I can get their response as well.

here are my answers:

1. A funny story. One morning I was instructed to sleep in, and not show up to the hostel until after 12:00. I apparently had been getting their too early, leaving too late and not getting enough sleep and i'm sure it was apparant. I slept as long as I could sleep in and it was only 10. Instead of twiddling my thumbs and waiting around at an empty apartment, I decided to grab my bible and go to starbucks. After I had gotten a drink, and read for awhile, i went to the train stop and sat next to a turkish lady. Usually I was yearning for conversations to happen, for divine appointments, but on that day I was hoping no one would talk to me. The turkish lady looked like she wouldn't say much so there I sat right next to her. It was about 20 minutes until my train arrived, so I sat down and simply watched people. A few minutes later, a Turkish wedding went by... which means there were many cars, and bells and whistles and yelling. The Turkish lady began to chuckle and I could hear the merriment in her laugh...she turned to me and started speaking to me (in German). She was speaking about celebrations and weddings and marriage. I would respond with laughter and the few German words I know. I can understand, but it's hard for me to respond. Eventually, I surprisingly heard her asking me to date her son... and she invited me over for dinner. I was stunned! Luckily, a week earlier, I had a conversation with Steph a missy in Hamburg, who has Turkish men hitting on her all the time-- she said, "the only way they will leave you alone is to tell them your father won't approve." So I looked at the lady and I said, "I'm so sorry, my Father wouldn't approve." - in broken German. Luckily my train had arrived, right as I said that. :-D

2. It's always nice to have the goal laid out for you before going. It's easy to adapt and flexibility is definitely a key, but this past summer especially I wish roles had been a little more defined. I wish I had gone into the summer realizing this would be the case, and I think my flexibility would have been even better. There are many things I would have changed about what I knew and how i reacted, on a personal level-- nothing anyone but myself could help with. ♥(i'm unsure if that answers the question)

3. It's always hard to answer this question, because you learn so many things while overseas. One thing to remember is God is always going to interrupt your plans and show you his. He'll eventually line up your heart with his, and when he does, it's simply divine. Father truly showed me overseas (While in Japan and Germany) that we are in a war. We hear this, over and over-- but there is nothing like seeing it unfold before your eyes. He's taught me that things aren't about myself but about others and simply speaking his name to others. Going to Germany for two years, I have met some contacts that have been pretty consistant, that I've prayed for through out the year. One of those contacts, I was unable to even meet with-- I only longed to give her a bible, but I would always miss her, she would leave before i was able to get there, or she wouldn't be at the school that day... I questioned why. I didn't understand... but God knows what he's doing. It was near the end, that I felt God tell me, "She had the chance to hear... the seed was watered, let me grow her." We hear it over and over, "it's God who does the growing." And we say we believe it, but it's not until things like this happen that we begin to understand it. God does the impossible, he does more than we can ask or imagine. He divinely directs us and calls us to areas we thought impossible. Sometimes we don't realize it until looking back, sometimes we realize it in the moment-- but God is always there, always guiding, always teaching. He taught me what engaging him is versus believing in him. Donald Miller, the author of Blue Like Jazz, says one of the greatest tricks of the Devil is causing believers to become "too religious" that they forget to engage God. Before going overseas, this was a trap I fell in to.... My life was definitely ruined from going to Germany, it'll never be the same as it was, and God is only showing me more of himself each day, using each experience i've ever had to help me for today. He's never going to put me in a situation he knows I can't handle. He knows what he's doing.

Thank you everyone for your prayers <3
Lara

March 21

4:51 PM

Hey everyone, I want to thank those of you who knew about the apparent "falling out" of my summer, I thank you for your prayers, your concerns, and your encouragement. This past week has been so up and down and my emotions really cannot take much more. After I sent an email to those of you in my prayer list email (if you'd like to be a part of that email and don't get my monthly updates-- let me know; i'm not really sure if they are as exciting as they are wordy--) I spent most of my day in tears wondering what exactly God was trying to teach me through all this. I felt so sure that Hamburg was were I was supposed to spend my summer. Part of the day, I actually convinced myself that God doesn't need me, nor does he want me. Eventually, I found myself through my tears and mixed feelings realizing I was succombing to the devil's lies he constantly whispers in my ears. After journaling and reading some I finally became content with the idea of staying home for the summer; after all-- I will be back in Germany in October for schooling. Yesterday, my dad told me he bought me a round trip plane ticket for this summer.He was able to get it for $80 with frequent flier miles. (:-D) May 28th-August 28th. I am still going to Hamburg for the summer. The money raising is not over however. I still need to earn money to pay for things while i'm there- such as food and train tickets, insurance and some other necessary things I will be doing. Because the school year doesn't start until October, the German government won't allow me to have my residential permit; i.e. visa until then. Also- for the flier miles we had to buy a round trip ticket. Therefore August 28th-September 31 I will be back in America, hopefully earning/raising money for my second ticket to Germany. It's complicated and frustrating, but I know things are as they should be. The interruption into all my plans for this summer was one that was definitely needed. Wondering why this was happening, it made me realize what exactly "going" means and consists of. The divine interruption allowed me to re-evaluate myself and my intentions and why i'm going and even if I should be going. I'm growing and learning through all this; i've learned to simply trust God-- and that interruptions in our lives are truly divine. :)