The Prep and Purpose

We are 3 days away from departing from the US and meeting the people of Sierra Leone face-to-face!! Our bags are packed, our inoculations have been administered, our visas have been approved......WE ARE READY!
As I sit and ponder what our time will be like in Sierra Leone my feelings of fear, anxiety, pinch me - is this real?, did I pack enough mosquito spray?, and general worry over our safety and well-being have been replaced with peace, joy, and the confidence that Jesus has gone before us and is joyfully waiting our arrival.
So, we thought you might enjoy a few odd and silly things that missionaries do to get ready to serve in the bush:
1. We hang our clothes outside and spray them with insect repellent (ALL of our clothes). Our backyard looks like our dryer is on-the-fritz a few days prior to leaving.

2. We pray!

3. We bring food items to sustain us for 2 weeks like beef jerky, granola and Gatorade mix, in-case we don’t have enough food in-country.

4. We bring small gifts for our in-country hosts like American Hershey's chocolate and blow-pops.

5. We buy the best water filter on the market to make sure we have clean water, even in the most unhealthy conditions. And we leave this filter with our host as a gift of thanks.

6. We pray! And we ask other folks to pray for us.

7. We pack medicines for nausea, diarrhea and vomiting - oh my!

8. We purchase military-grade mosquito nets to hang over our beds to protect us from things like Malaria, Dengue Fever and Chikungunya Infection.

9. We get vaccinations that most people have never heard of like Japanese Encephalitis and Typhoid.

10. Did we mention that we pray.......a lot?!?

11. We leave love notes for the people watching our home, our pets and checking on our family while we are away.

12. Lastly, we make sure someone pick us up at the airport when we land in Africa! But, from there, our journey is an open book and mostly unplanned. Did we mention that we pray?!?

We are honored and extremely blessed that we are beginning this journey again to serve our Brothers and Sisters in Africa! Thank you for believing in our calling to Sierra Leone, for supporting us through prayer and financial assistance, and most importantly, for knowing that Jesus Christ will find a way to make His name known across the ocean.