unexpected. part two.

a lot of people use the saying "i left my heart in _____" after going on a mission trip or something similar. i didn't. i've been called to africa for a while now and going there forever changed me. but i didn't leave my heart there. i left with a secure but strange peace. i knew i'd be back and that going back to america was absolutely necessary but also absolutely temporary. but i wasn't sure why.

rewind five months. my last college course required us to have a mock-interview with area principals and administrators. scary. i walked into our class and saw the assignments and stopped uncontrollably sweating when i realized i wasn't first on the list. but that backfired and i didn't have time to ask for tips from the girl before me. so i went in the room. i walked in that room forgetting that my God works all things together for the good of those who love him. i walked in that room expecting absolutely nothing except some awkward questions about my learning philosophy, discipline management and experience. and to all of those questions i would be bs-ing because i didn't really know any of that yet.

and then he shook my hand. i just knew in that moment that Jesus was up to something. somehow in the interview, my heart for africa surfaced. only to find out that my interviewer was the principal of one of the schools in abilene that taught the majority of abilene's african refugees. and that he went to my church. and that his sweet granddaughter was in my kindergarten sunday school class. for real? i left mostly just weirded out because lost of the time when God is that blatant, i either get scared, weirded out, or i just start uncontrollably laughing. i left that interview confident, humbled, and joyful. oh, He loves me. He loves me, He loves me, He loves me.

i went on with student teaching and then graduated. i spent my summer in discipleship school at my church and Jesus was constantly blowing my mind and wrecking my heart only to build it back up again. it was a hard summer. but oh, how it was refreshing and encouraging. but i was kind of ignoring the fact that i graduated and was going to be needing a job very soon. but that reality became more and more real as the summer continued. i applied at places where i had a peace about and i left the others. and about four weeks before school started i went to uganda. the most wonderful place on earth.

but i always remembered that promise. and that sweet blessing of a principal He sent me. they were in my mind and in my heart as the Lord ruined me in uganda.