God is good

Sorry I haven't blogged for awhile. This past week of getting settled back at base from camping only to pack everything up all over again has been quite the challenge.

Today I leave on my 3 week minor outreach to Ayr, Australia.  There my team will be doing a lot of children ministry, talking to youth groups, and giving our testimonies in front of churches.  We don't know too much of what we'll be doing because a lot of the time we will be asked to do something last minute.  For example we just got notified we are presenting an Easter program to a group of 130 kids (k-5)tommorow...who have hardly or never heard the gospel before.  Both exciting and freaky.

I'm a little afraid but I know this is going to be a learning experience as much as a teaching experience.

Camping was amazing!
I don't think I've experienced God so powerfully.
Here's some highlights:

• Quiet times with God as the beautiful sunrise shines through the trees of the Outback.
• Challenged to go deeper in my faith.  To read my Bible and actually understand what it's saying.  To look at the history, the context in which it's given, to learn and apply it to my life.  It's amazing!! I hunger and thirst to know more...so satisfying
• God speaking to me so clearly.  Literally would do my quiet time with God, writing down notes on what I was reading in Acts, and jot down some questions.  Then during lectures (this wasn't just one day but every day for a week) the speaker went over the things I had just learned and answered all the questions that had yet to be answered.  It was crazy!
• Started my inductuve Bible study in Acts, told a friend I was reading it.  She started reading Acts as well and we decided we should go over what we were learning. This is the amazing part...we meet out in the field, me and my friend, to read through Acts together and after an hour we end up with 10 other people!  So for a few days we had a huge Bible study group. SO fun
• We also had a little miracle happen for us.  It had been raining A LOT the first few days, and at the end of a lecture our speaker informs us that it had rained so much the bridge to get out of the camping site was flooded big time.  We would need to get out soon or else we'd have to fast for a week; but not only that-it was common for it to flood a couple of feet right where we set up camp.  So all one hundred of us split into groups and started praying.  I think God has a sense of humor because the verse that God gave me in this time was Deuteronomy 8:7-10.  And right as we started praying the rain stopped and didn't rain for the next 5 days! We got across the river the next day.  God is good.
• One other big thing happened during camping.  I'm in the process of praying and talking to my family about it and will tell you all when God says the time is right.

Well I could go on and on but I'll stop there.
I will have my computer in Ayr and hope to update my blog every chance I get.
Miss you all

Amazed.
mariah