The first rule that
we always tell EMI volunteers is the rule of flexibility. EMI trips
always have elements that change throughout the course of the trip. Most
everyone is agreeable to the idea and do quite well when things do
change. The volunteers on my current trip have got a crash course in
flexibility and we haven't even left North America yet.
You've probably heard about the impact that winter storm Nemo has had on the Northeast. Unfortunately all of us were scheduled to leave yesterday for Niger. The storm cancelled all of our flights going through New York. Without going into a detailed account how the schedule change unfolded, a decision was made to reroute us through completely different airports and arrive in Niamey, Niger one day later. Let's just say that the travel agent and I became good friends during this process.
This is going to be a unique trip for several reason. First of all, this is my first EMI project trip that I will be leading by myself. Please pray that I would be attentive to the needs of the team members and with the ministry that we are going to serve. Second of all, this is a unique trip for EMI. Our typical trips involve master planning a campus and designing one or two buildings with all of the needed infrastructure. Not so on this project. We are going there to help design flood mitigation solutions. A school campus is located next to the Niger River and the campus frequently floods. We intend to prevent that from happening again. Please pray that I would be wise enough to technically lead the team well and that I would create a good relationship with the ministry that our suggestions and design would be received well.
I've been praying that God would show Himself in an unmistakable way. Some would say that getting all of our plane tickets rerouted in a short amount of time is nothing short of miraculous. I'm excited to see how else God is going to show His presence in the next few days. Thank you for your prayers.
You've probably heard about the impact that winter storm Nemo has had on the Northeast. Unfortunately all of us were scheduled to leave yesterday for Niger. The storm cancelled all of our flights going through New York. Without going into a detailed account how the schedule change unfolded, a decision was made to reroute us through completely different airports and arrive in Niamey, Niger one day later. Let's just say that the travel agent and I became good friends during this process.
This is going to be a unique trip for several reason. First of all, this is my first EMI project trip that I will be leading by myself. Please pray that I would be attentive to the needs of the team members and with the ministry that we are going to serve. Second of all, this is a unique trip for EMI. Our typical trips involve master planning a campus and designing one or two buildings with all of the needed infrastructure. Not so on this project. We are going there to help design flood mitigation solutions. A school campus is located next to the Niger River and the campus frequently floods. We intend to prevent that from happening again. Please pray that I would be wise enough to technically lead the team well and that I would create a good relationship with the ministry that our suggestions and design would be received well.
I've been praying that God would show Himself in an unmistakable way. Some would say that getting all of our plane tickets rerouted in a short amount of time is nothing short of miraculous. I'm excited to see how else God is going to show His presence in the next few days. Thank you for your prayers.