In the words of a current local sports team slogan….It’s time.
Time to go. Time to be the hands and feet of Jesus to desperate and needy children. Time to share love and hope with children who have suffered unimaginable loss and sorrow. Time to speak words of healing and joy to those who are lost and hurting.
Time to teach. Time to put all those materials we’ve been collecting over the past few weeks to good use. Time to use my God-given skills and abilities into practice. Time to listen, to learn, to anticipate, to react, to adjust, to be creative, to be flexible.
Time to learn. Time to open my heart and mind to what God will teach me. Time to allow Him to speak directly into my soul, showing me what He wants me to know. Time to be still, to meditate, to ponder, to think, to drink Him in deeply in a brand new context.
But most of all, it’s time to give up. Time to give up my “self” and let Him take over. Time to open my hands and release all control. Time to allow Him to be my voice and His words to speak through me. Time to be His hands and feet and let Him serve through me. Time to let “me” be invisible, so that only He shines through.
Yep, it’s time. Time to go back to Africa. Time to love on these precious children who have never been far away in my thoughts. Time to see what God has done in the past 8 months. Time to reconnect and form new friendships as we journey together in a strange land, a completely different culture where WE are the outsiders.  Time to pull myself away from the comforts I’ve grown so accustomed to and live outside that comfort zone in order to more deeply connect to those I seek to minister to. Time to hug my babies, kiss my husband, drink in the moments that have brought me here.
It’s time. And by God’s grace, I’m ready.