Leavin' On a Jet Plane

 Yodeling Appalachian Vacuums
Young Adult Volunteers

Today (August 19th, 2012), I am a young, inexperienced, idealistic, creative, and compassionate volunteer with the enormous privilege and responsibility of being a missionary for Christ and his church in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Very, very soon, I'll be leaving on an early morning flight for an orientation in Stony Point, New York where I'll reconnect with other Young Adult Volunteers who will be dispersing to the four winds at the end of the week.  Up until 48 hours ago, my brain had still failed to grasp these facts.
These past few months I've had to remind myself: "this is not about me."  It's easy to only think about myself when I repeatedly talk with others about "my preparation, my excitement, my experience." But I am only a small part of a much larger redemption story in Belfast.  There is so much freedom in saying, "It's not about me." Suddenly, your own worldly success and ambition don't matter as much, and you're free to be a vessel for the Holy Spirit, wherever it leads for the glory of God. Your life's measure of success now comes from Christ, who says, "I already love you. You've already won." What joy! Nothing we do is in vain.

With all that said, I'm going to try to update this blog with more pictures and videos than words.  Words are wonderful and indispensable, but I don't want to bore my audience with ramblings about my feelings.  How uninteresting.  I'd rather show you my experience, supplementing with words or ideas when needed.
I really love words, so we'll see how this goes!
Without further ado, please enjoy the relevant and diverting video below! I was ignorant before watching it, and I'm sure many of you are currently ignorant about the definitions of United Kingdom, Great Britain, England, and where Northern Ireland fits into all of it. Educate yourself!

NOW YOU KNOW!