Day one reflections

Since we are in China, I suppose it is time to resurrect the blog.

Here are some of my initial thoughts:

Traveling across the world and dealing with jet lag really bites.  Everyone is impacted in different ways and you just can't predict how your body will respond.  We are all tired but everyone has been a trouper at fighting off jet lag.

Your guide becomes your BFF.  Our guide, Julie, has never helped on a trip like this.  She's never been inside in an orphanage and she hasn't been to the city where we are traveling.  But she's already proven to be a vital member of our team.  I pray her heart is moved as we set about our work for the week.

God knits together the perfect teams.  Our team is really doing well.  The personalities compliment each other so well.  Everyone has been a flexible and considerate team member and we are all enjoying time spent together.  We miss our two team members who had to drop out but I know has a plan for that.  We miss them but they are still with us in spirit.

Teens are AWESOME travelers!  I really wasn't sure how my own 13 year old would handle the travel and experiences being in a country so different from ours.  But she's doing great.  We have a 14 year team member and the two girls really seem to enjoy each other.

HARD beds are actually pretty comfy when you are exhausted.  But my cranky body refuses to sleep so I've laid in bed reflecting on how comfortably I could be sleeping if I could just sleep.  Maybe tonight....

As Americans, we have a need to know details up front.  The Chinese way is to just tell what you need to know right before you need to know.  That's a little hard for this control freak.

God really answers prayers.  That was evident on the day we left the U.S. and ran into some travel complications.  God managed to do what we thought was impossible.  He even reminded us of that when we were seriously doubting the arrival of our luggage.  Our group's luggage were some of the very last unloaded from the plain.  I think every one of us was mentally working out how to manage an extra day with just our carry on supplies.  I kept praying for just one bag to appear....just let one arrive so we don't have to deal with all of our bags arriving late.  When God finally delivered that one bag I had pleaded for, he delivered in a big way as all the bags came out one after another.  Thank you!!!!

We've run into two other teams in our hotel.  One is heading to a different area of the country tomorrow and one is on the journey home.  It felt like talking to family members.  It was a good reminder that God has a bigger plan then just the work any individual team does.

We have a very late flight to our orphanage city tomorrow and won't arrive until 11:30pm.  We start working in the orphanage Monday morning.  Please keep us in your prayers that we might arrive and get checked into our hotel quickly and with no hiccups.