The Blog is back!!!!

Yes, I am headed back out to the mission fields of Africa! In about a month and a half I will be on my way!!!! Lots and lots to do before then. I am attempting to prioritize my time, not get stressed and still be "present" in my life and responsibilities here.

Here's my heart and what is next (this is my support letter I have sent to most of you)...

December 31, 2007

As I reflect on the last 12 months of my life I am in awe. Just a year ago I was writing you asking for your prayers and support as I was preparing to take off on a dream come true on Mercy Ships in West Africa. Well, that blessed time came and went all too quickly. In addition to the incredible time on the ship (where I saw lives transformed and physical deformities reversed), I also had the opportunity to spend a month in a rural village being a teacher. Both experiences were far more incredible than I ever imagined they would be. As I returned to the States I continued to see how deeply my experiences had touched my life…and changed me. I have been very restless after returning back to “normalcy” here. I have waited, prayed, and waited some more. I have been longing to feel settled back down her in my life in Scottsdale. Well, through a number of events I finally realized that I was no longer living on the mountain top of an incredible experience but I was being stirred deeply by something greater than myself. God has been calling me back to Africa. So, I write this to share with you that I will be returning to Africa. This time I will be working through an organization called Hands at Work. It is a South African based ministry that has a year long internship program called Footprints. I will be arriving in Johannesburg, South Africa on February 23. I will then spend 10 weeks in South Africa going through Hands at Work training. Through this time I will develop a deeper understanding of the needs of the people of Africa in order to be better prepared to serve them. From there I will go on to do 9 months of Outreach in one of the countries where Hands at Work has active projects in need of nurses (Mozambique, Zambia or the Democratic Republic of the Congo). During the Outreach portion I will be doing a number of nursing things with the primary focused being to care for the poorest of the poor through home-based care. After the 9 months of Outreach I will then return back to South Africa for a week or so of debriefing before returning to the States.
I am humbled by the fact that the Lord thinks I am cut out for this. My greatest needs right now are your prayers! Please be praying for this opportunity. Specifically pray for me to be wise in the planning process- to mange and obtain the needed finances, make flight arrangements, and sell/store and get rid of my things in my apartment here. Also pray I will have a heart eager to serve and for strength in leaving behind the comforts of life, family and friends here. Also pray that I will catch on to the local language in Africa. That would be a great help in building relationships and functioning as a nurse in assessing and caring for patients. 
Among one of the many blessings in all of this is that I will be going with a friend, Laura. We worked together on Mercy Ships. We went our separate ways after the time on the ship but a couple months ago I heard from a mutual friend that Laura was also looking into Hands at Work. So, as you pray, please pray for Laura and me as we go serve together. It is amazing how God has things planned for us long before we have the understanding.
I anticipate being able to use and update my blog as often as possible before and during my time. Please keep up on my experience as you desire- www.thereforego.blogspot.com . Also, to learn more about Hands at Work please visit www.handsatwork.org . I also want to continue to be involved in your life here, so please email me- darajean15@hotmail.com
Thank you for being part of this journey. Thank you for praying, thank you for encouraging me and loving me. We are all in this together…

May God richly bless you,

Dara