1. Pray for our health. Malaria season approaches, and there have already been several cases on campus in the past couple weeks. Also, pray for my allergies. It's really dry here and the wind blows a lot, so everything is dusty all the time. This sometimes creates a problem for me, as I am pretty much mildly allergic to life. I'm fighting off a sinus infection at the moment. bleh. so yeah...pray we stay healthy.
2. Pray for my personal walk with God. This is pretty straightforward. For those of you who think missionaries are super-spiritual or something- moving to Africa has really done nothing for my spiritual life at this point. Except perhaps made it more difficult. But really...I have the same struggles here that I did at home, increased by the fact that I have very little privacy so finding a quiet place alone to be with Jesus is just not convenient. Obviously, though, I need that desperately. I need Him. So pray for me as I struggle to find consistency and depth.
3. Pray for my students and my job. I am a teacher now! woohoo! No really, it's fun. I am enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would, and it's so far turning out to be easier than I expected. However, there are a lot of difficulties in terms of trying to stay organized (this is just tough for me!), trying to find enough copies of a book, trying to adjust things for new students, and trying to accommodate ESL speakers who are struggling. Pray that I teach well and make wise choices, but also pray that I lead my students well and am able to continuously share the gospel with them through my words and actions.
4. Pray for campus life. This is a small campus, where everyone knows everyone and it's nearly impossible not to be in someone's business. Pray for good relationships with other missionaries and for patience as we learn to live with people who look different, act differently, and speak differently. This is a beautiful opportunity to learn so much and meet so many fantastic people, and I don't want to waste it being selfish and proud.
5. Pray for rest. Life just takes a little more effort here. Things take longer, communication requires more thought, and everything seems to require more energy. We need spiritual, emotional, and physical rest. We are a lot more worn out at the end of the day than seems possible, simply because everything takes a little more out of us. It's enjoyable and we love it, but it definitely is tiring!
Okay, I know the first five things all involve prayer. That's deliberate. You have no idea how much that really is a necessity in our lives. We NEED your prayers in a variety of areas. You may only read the second half of this if you really understand that prayer is half the work, for us and for you. The ability to petition God to move on my behalf is the greatest asset you have concerning my missions work. I can't really keep you from reading the next part, but don't just assume that the bottom part of the list is the "real" stuff. The bottom half is the little stuff. The top half is the big stuff. Don't neglect me in your prayers.
6. Send me mail!! Seriously-I have posted my address on the side of this page. You can see it. Look right over that direction. >>> Mail is expensive if you're sending packages, or if you're sending a letter every week or something. But if you took the time to write a card or letter or something small and cute, it would be pretty cheap to send and would really seriously make my day. I got mail earlier this week from a couple of amazing people, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. It's just so encouraging. The more homemade and personal and random, the better. :)
7. Talk to my parents about me. Seriously, though...just go tell them you thought about me or prayed for me or something. Number one, they tell me and it makes me happy. But number two- you make them smile, and that makes me even happier. They need some love, and they need prayers, mmk? Pray for them, encourage them, and realize that it takes a lot to send your daughter to Africa for 2 years. Would you wanna do that? Didn't think so. So go love on my mom and dad. Give them a hug for me.
8. Email, facebook, tweet at me. Comment on my blog. Laugh at my weird and random Africa pictures. Stay involved in my life here and enjoy it. I don't want to be forgotten. I want you to feel like you're a part of this. If you're reading now, you ARE a part of this. So learn with me, laugh with me, cry with me, kill ants back home as part of my ongoing revenge on the entire species of little 6-legged creatures. If you really wanna participate, turn off your AC, replace your indoor furniture with whatever you've got on the patio, sleep on a piece of foam, and start EATING the ants. But if that's just not your cup of ant-flavored tea, just read the blog and look at pics. :)
9. Keep me updated on football and Preds hockey. Okay, this seems silly, but I miss it! I'm working on getting into Aussie rules football, but somehow I just don't think it's going to fill the void in my life left by the lack of ESPN. So send me score updates via twitter, yell extra loudly at games, learn the Preds chants, and pretend that Ole Miss has a chance at winning more than 3 games this season.
10. Give financially. I am getting more and more shameless about asking for things, but I must admit it's still weird to ask for money. You know though, that I am living on the gifts of people like you, so if you're able, give to me monthly or give once in a while, as you are able. I am learning to live simply here, and I don't resent that one bit, but sometimes it's nice to be able to buy cookies or to pay a tailor 10 bucks to make curtains for my windows. If you really can't afford to make a big gift, or if you're a college student not making money either, we are really desperate for music. iTunes gift cards are probably the greatest thing on earth. With that we can buy some new music, purchase a new movie, or even good a good book! If you're tech savvy, you can gift that via iTunes some magical way, or if you're not, give it to my brother and he'll hook me up. Seriously though.....we're hoping for some good new music soon. There are a few albums we've had our eyes on for a while and hope to add to the library soon.
That's the list. Congrats if you made it through! I realize it's long. But thanks for what you're doing, and know that I appreciate every little thing immensely and think often of my friends and family back home. Love you all!
2. Pray for my personal walk with God. This is pretty straightforward. For those of you who think missionaries are super-spiritual or something- moving to Africa has really done nothing for my spiritual life at this point. Except perhaps made it more difficult. But really...I have the same struggles here that I did at home, increased by the fact that I have very little privacy so finding a quiet place alone to be with Jesus is just not convenient. Obviously, though, I need that desperately. I need Him. So pray for me as I struggle to find consistency and depth.
3. Pray for my students and my job. I am a teacher now! woohoo! No really, it's fun. I am enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would, and it's so far turning out to be easier than I expected. However, there are a lot of difficulties in terms of trying to stay organized (this is just tough for me!), trying to find enough copies of a book, trying to adjust things for new students, and trying to accommodate ESL speakers who are struggling. Pray that I teach well and make wise choices, but also pray that I lead my students well and am able to continuously share the gospel with them through my words and actions.
4. Pray for campus life. This is a small campus, where everyone knows everyone and it's nearly impossible not to be in someone's business. Pray for good relationships with other missionaries and for patience as we learn to live with people who look different, act differently, and speak differently. This is a beautiful opportunity to learn so much and meet so many fantastic people, and I don't want to waste it being selfish and proud.
5. Pray for rest. Life just takes a little more effort here. Things take longer, communication requires more thought, and everything seems to require more energy. We need spiritual, emotional, and physical rest. We are a lot more worn out at the end of the day than seems possible, simply because everything takes a little more out of us. It's enjoyable and we love it, but it definitely is tiring!
Okay, I know the first five things all involve prayer. That's deliberate. You have no idea how much that really is a necessity in our lives. We NEED your prayers in a variety of areas. You may only read the second half of this if you really understand that prayer is half the work, for us and for you. The ability to petition God to move on my behalf is the greatest asset you have concerning my missions work. I can't really keep you from reading the next part, but don't just assume that the bottom part of the list is the "real" stuff. The bottom half is the little stuff. The top half is the big stuff. Don't neglect me in your prayers.
6. Send me mail!! Seriously-I have posted my address on the side of this page. You can see it. Look right over that direction. >>> Mail is expensive if you're sending packages, or if you're sending a letter every week or something. But if you took the time to write a card or letter or something small and cute, it would be pretty cheap to send and would really seriously make my day. I got mail earlier this week from a couple of amazing people, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. It's just so encouraging. The more homemade and personal and random, the better. :)
7. Talk to my parents about me. Seriously, though...just go tell them you thought about me or prayed for me or something. Number one, they tell me and it makes me happy. But number two- you make them smile, and that makes me even happier. They need some love, and they need prayers, mmk? Pray for them, encourage them, and realize that it takes a lot to send your daughter to Africa for 2 years. Would you wanna do that? Didn't think so. So go love on my mom and dad. Give them a hug for me.
8. Email, facebook, tweet at me. Comment on my blog. Laugh at my weird and random Africa pictures. Stay involved in my life here and enjoy it. I don't want to be forgotten. I want you to feel like you're a part of this. If you're reading now, you ARE a part of this. So learn with me, laugh with me, cry with me, kill ants back home as part of my ongoing revenge on the entire species of little 6-legged creatures. If you really wanna participate, turn off your AC, replace your indoor furniture with whatever you've got on the patio, sleep on a piece of foam, and start EATING the ants. But if that's just not your cup of ant-flavored tea, just read the blog and look at pics. :)
9. Keep me updated on football and Preds hockey. Okay, this seems silly, but I miss it! I'm working on getting into Aussie rules football, but somehow I just don't think it's going to fill the void in my life left by the lack of ESPN. So send me score updates via twitter, yell extra loudly at games, learn the Preds chants, and pretend that Ole Miss has a chance at winning more than 3 games this season.
10. Give financially. I am getting more and more shameless about asking for things, but I must admit it's still weird to ask for money. You know though, that I am living on the gifts of people like you, so if you're able, give to me monthly or give once in a while, as you are able. I am learning to live simply here, and I don't resent that one bit, but sometimes it's nice to be able to buy cookies or to pay a tailor 10 bucks to make curtains for my windows. If you really can't afford to make a big gift, or if you're a college student not making money either, we are really desperate for music. iTunes gift cards are probably the greatest thing on earth. With that we can buy some new music, purchase a new movie, or even good a good book! If you're tech savvy, you can gift that via iTunes some magical way, or if you're not, give it to my brother and he'll hook me up. Seriously though.....we're hoping for some good new music soon. There are a few albums we've had our eyes on for a while and hope to add to the library soon.
That's the list. Congrats if you made it through! I realize it's long. But thanks for what you're doing, and know that I appreciate every little thing immensely and think often of my friends and family back home. Love you all!
Praying for you, friend!! Planning on sending you a letter soon... we'll see how long it takes to get from the Philippines to Africa :)
ReplyDeletePraying specific prayers for you. I have enjoyed looking at your pictures from Malawi. We will keep in touch. God Bless you :)
ReplyDeleteI pray for you every day. Thank you for specifics. We can always pray generally but it helps to know specific needs. The Giants lost today and Peyton is out, probably for the season, so football won't be the same anyway this season
ReplyDeleteLove you, Ms Laura
Allison, I keep up with you through your mom, and I am praying for you as well.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for keeping up updated on your life through the blog.
Love,Donna Manning
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAllison,
ReplyDeleteI'll actually be taking a short term mission trip with Project Take Love through African Bible Colleges this Summer. I'll be coming to Malawi! :-) Your blog has been an incredible source of comfort & insight for me while preparing for this journey. I'm really hoping I get to meet you & get to know you this Summer.
Thank you for all you're doing. I'm praying for you. :-)
Mandi