Antsirabe, Madagascar!!!!

I am so excited! Yesterday Stephanie contacted me and told me Madagascar would love for me to come and serve for a year with them! She said due to a change in leadership in Chad it is not a viable option at this point. So I am laying that dream down for now and embracing this assignment in Madagascar! :) Here is a description of my assignment.

ECA is a long-established, Malagasy-run school with a clear vision for reaching youth in the highlands town of Antsirabe. Volunteers are involved in facilitating English conversation clubs, drama clubs, games/sports, and film discussions with the intent of building relationships with youth and finding opportunities to share the Gospel message with them. There are also opportunities to train the ECA staff and teachers (computers and English), help with library work and lead worship. Stephanie informed me that there is currently a AIM couple and a single already serving there so I will have some great built in fellowship! So exciting!

We are nailing down the dates, but it looks like I will be leaving early June! Yikes...that is just 4 1/2 short months away! There is so much to do! Please keep me in your prayers! In the next week or so they will work out my individualized budget and then I will begin support raising (gulp). While fluency in French is not required for this position it is encouraged so I will also be attempting to bolster up my vocab in the coming months.

Now that I have my assignment it suddenly feels so much more real. This is really happening....I get to go to Africa and share the Gospel! Wow! What a privilege! God is so gracious to use imperfect, flawed people to share the wonderful news of salvation!

My posts will be most likely be more frequent in the coming weeks as I will be updating you on the status of my trip, my French, and support.

I am so so grateful for you prayers!

I thought I would include a map of where I will be living for the next year. In the middle of the map there are three green dots the bottom green dot is Antsirabe. =)

So after a lot of waiting I finally heard back in regards to my assignment. Unfortunately the position is no longer available due to the fact the the women I would have been serving with will not be returning after her home assignment.

This assignment would have been working with vulnerable women in N'djamena Chad for one year. I really really wanted this assignment. In the morning before I received the email in my quiet time I was praying about Africa and I felt like God really gave me the grace to hand over all my desires etc to Him. So when I received Stephanie's email I felt very at peace with this turn of events. And I am proud to say no tears. :) Definitely God at work in me....not a Lauren response at all.

Stephanie included several different assignment options for me to pray about. Two stood out to me.

One would have me teaching English as a second language in a cultural center in Chad to Muslim women with the hope of creating friendships and sharing the Gospel with them. This may seem odd as teaching is not something I have ever considered...or desired, but I really felt and still feel drawn to this option. In part because I still feel called/drawn to Chad. I love the idea of bonding with these women while teaching them my language and subsequently growing in my knowledge of theirs in order to tell them the most glorious news that could ever be shared.

The other option would be serving as a youth worker in the highlands of Madagascar in the city of Antisirabe. I would help with the drama club, sports, help lead worship and mentoring the children there. This is another wonderful opportunity, to be able to invest in these children and teach them about Jesus...what a privilege.

I know this may seem like the obvious choice, seeing as I have a lot of experience working with kids. Definitely more up my alley than teaching...right. But it does not feel so obvious to me. While I am definitely interested in this assignment, it is not number 1 on my list.

A couple of days ago I went on a long prayer walk seeking the Lord for wisdom on which assignment to pursue. At one point I tried to quiet my mind and heart completely and listen for the Lord's leading. Have you tried this? It is very hard! Hard to determine what thoughts are simply your own desires, feelings etc and to discern what is the Lord's prompting.

I want to go where God can use me most effectively and bring Him the most glory. Perhaps He would get more glory if I stepped out of my comfort zone and relied wholly on Him to work through me. Or maybe that is just my own desire to go to Chad coming through. So hard to know!

Of course it is a very real possibility that Chad may not be a viable option for me and then my decision would be made. Which I confess is what I have been praying for. Not that Chad would be taken off the table, but that is it is not where God wants me He would make it abundantly clear by making it a non-factor. That would definitely make it simpler.

Please be praying the God would grant me, Stephanie and every one involved wisdom and direction. Since my departure date is either July or August the sooner we lock down an assignment the better. If I do go with Chad I have to complete an online TESOL certification and take a French course and raise support for a year all before July. Wow! That is slightly overwhelming. I suppose that is another point in favor of Madagascar as French is not required, nor TESOL. however the departure time would be similar.

The last couple of days it has really hit me, that in 6 months Lord willing I will be packing up, saying goodbye to everyone and everything I know and moving to a third world country to live for a year. I am unbelievably excited to be used by the Lord in this way, but in all honesty it is a little daunting, and not knowing where exactly I will be is difficult.

But God is so faithful! My times in the word have been so good lately and I am so aware of His hand on my life. Isn't wonderful to worship a God who cares for His children! I am so grateful for His undeserved affection. So while my future may seem uncertain to me, I can trust that my loving heavenly Father is working out His sovereign plan for my life and that is a very comforting thought.

I know I am rambling....and I apologize. But it seems help to write your thoughts down. Thanks for bearing with me :)


"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."