Hello there everyone! I am finally in Tauranga, New Zealand at the Training Centre. Currently it is 1:30 in the afternoon, Sunday the 15th here. I am sitting on a bean bag by the fireplace surrounded by people from all over the world. It's cold and it's raining but what I've seen has been magnificently beautiful. Wow. What a journey. Where do I even begin?!
Last night I arrived at about 8:00, and was greeted by nothing but friendly faces and warm welcomes. Getting here instantly took away (at least some of) my previous anxiety. I got the tour of the base, found my room and unpacked what little I had to unpack, and met my roommates. I am staying in something like a trailer outside the base, with three other girls- one of which has not yet arrived. The two I have met are Alexia and Madelyn- I can already tell that we are going to be friends. I finally got to sleep at about 10:00 New Zealand time, and oh how wonderful it was to sleep in a bed. To sleep at all!
My journey began two days ago. I think. Who can even keep track of all the time changes anymore? I flew from Kansas City to Denver, then Denver to Los Angeles. Both flights and transitions went perfectly smooth and started my trip off on a very positive note. Leaving Kansas City was much more emotional than I had been expecting. Until that point, I had been handling leaving quite well- it hadn't really sunk in. The Lord was so kind to Braxton and I on Thursday the 12th. We both were leaving KCI, him on his way to South Africa and it just so happened that we were flying the same airline, out of the same terminal, our flights only an hour apart. We got to go through security together, and sit inside the terminal to wait for my flight to board. Sitting there, knowing that this would be the last time I would see the man I want to marry for five months, the last time I would see my mom for five months, that was when the tears began. When it was time for me to board, leaving Braxton was one of the hardest things I have had to do. It sounds cheesy, but walking away from the love of my life with the knowledge that 5 months would pass before I could be with him again made my heart hurt. The only thing that got me through it was the grace God gave me in knowing that this was HIS plan and if we put our relationship in His hands, He will protect and nurture it even in this time apart!
Things went well for my first few flights. But in Los Angeles, I had a 6 hour layover in preparation for my long flight from LAX to Sydney, Australia. Everything seemed to be going perfectly, and aside from a few tears I was doing well. 3 hours before my flight was to leave, I got into a line at the customer service desk to print off my boarding pass for my 15 hour flight. I did not anticipate that this would be the longest line in the history of the world, but regardless I thought I had enough time. Yet, after waiting nearly two hours in line I reached the desk and the attendant informed me that I could not print off my boarding pass here. With a little over an hour until my flight to Sydney departed, I immediately panicked (big time) when she told me that I would have to leave the main airport, take a shuttle to an international building to get my boarding pass, and then come all the way back through security and get to my gate in time for my flight. In fact, I kind of freaked out. I called my mom in a panic, tears pouring down my face knowing I would miss my flight and surely never get to New Zealand. By the grace of God (and also probably a little bit because I was a mess running around LAX barefoot sobbing) people were able to direct me to where I needed to be. Once I was at the international airline terminal, the woman at the desk delivered the news that I had already missed my flight. She told me that she would put me on the standby list for the next flight to Sydney which happened to be only two hours later. Panicked and alone I waited for 45 minutes to see if I would have a seat on the new flight. I did!!!! I had to rush through security again, but I made it and got onto the 11:50pm flight to Sydney. The whole experience was extremely flustering and every bone in my body wanted to just give up and go home.
And yet, the Lord is faithful, even when I doubt Him. I am learning more and more to trust that He knows what He's doing! About an hour into the flight, the Australian guy that was sitting next to me leaned over and asked if I was alright. I told him what had been going on. His name was Shane. He was from Sydney, and had been in the USA for his 21st birthday. It had been obvious to him that something was wrong, and praise the Lord- he reached out to me. We spent the next 4 or 5 hours talking and laughing. The more we spoke, the more we both agreed that God had put us on that plane together for a reason. Shane had been suffering with depression for a couple months, and I was able to share my story with him. I shared with him about my two-year struggle with severe depression, the hopelessness that had entangled me. He shared with me his personal struggle, and that he had in fact planned to commit suicide two days earlier, when he was in Las Vegas. We connected in a way that only the Lord could have planned and initiated, and I shared with him the true hope there is in recovery even when it doesn't seem possible. I told him that God loved him and wanted him to be alive- that his life was worth living. By 10 or so hours into the flight, he was thanking me for reminding him there are reasons to live, thanking me for his life. Wow, Jesus. Thank you for Shane's life. Thank you that he didn't kill himself two days ago, and we were able to meet on this flight and encourage one another. I am so amazed at how the Lord had this plan all along, and while I was so upset to miss my flight, if I hadn't I wouldn't have met this man. By the end of our flight, Shane pulled out his wallet and gave me two hundred dollars towards my funds for New Zealand. He had won $700 at a casino in Las Vegas, and insisted that God was telling him to give me $200 of it. Um, wow. I was (and still am) without words. Trust the Lord- HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S DOING.  |
| Before I left! My backpack weighed almost as much as my suitcase. Ouch. |
I arrived at the Tauranga airport and was warmly greeted by Brittany and Ashley- two of the staff here at YWAM. As soon as they hugged me my anxiety decreased exponentially. :)
This morning, my bag was delivered from the airport and I was able to unpack in my room and get things set up. I had breakfast, skyped with my mom, and was able to take a SHOWER!!! Yay. Since then, I have felt so much of the Lord's peace. By the minute I am meeting more and more incredible people and feeling more and more at peace here. I think I'm going to like it here.
As I end this post, it is 3:47pm- I took a couple detours in my blogging as I went on an adventure with the other students and some staff.
Pictures to come. :)
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