Leaving on a Jet Plane.

We received this email from Kelsie on Saturday. Her hope is to be able to up this blog on the road, but I will also be adding some messages that she sends through me to pass on...

Training in Canada officially ended for me on this past Friday night, it was a bittersweet leaving since I've gotten to know so many of the team members who will be staying in Canada very well, but I am EXTREMELY excited to be flying out to Ireland tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon. I was placed on the traveling team in Ireland, so for the first week we will be in Donegal and shortly after that we will be spending a few days in Northern Ireland, which is technically part of the UK. Training has been an amazing experience for me to grow in my own faith with 60 of my fellow missionaries as well as become equipped for the ministry which we will carry out. On each team all the members are given roles to spread out responsibilities, on my team I was given the role of "entertainment" which simply means I get to choose and cast the funny skits/jokes that we do on each retreat. So it doesn't necessarily mean that they think I'm entertaining, but I like to think it does.

My absolute favorite part of training was bonding together with the women and finding that when we really embrace our identity as women of God and be who we were created to be, our beauty shines. I found that women are called to use their compassion and emotions which are gifts from God, and that men are called to be strong and to protect and fight. Not to say that women cannot fight, I mean honestly think of St. Joan of Arc, but I really enjoyed seeing how when both the men and women embraced how God created us to be our strengths truly complemented each other. God is so smart.

Tomorrow I fly to Ireland with my teammates and start on a whole new chapter of the ministry, the actual carrying out of the mission I have been learning about and preparing for in the past month. I am still nervous, but every morning brings new energy and excitement and new strengths from God that I never knew I had. I am just relying totally on God's gifts and trusting that He will provide for me since He's called me here. Thanks so much for praying for me!

Photos of my team and the rest of the teams are up here! And be sure to check out the rest of my photos from training in Canada.

My contact info for the year is:

Kelsie Grimes
Net Ministries of Ireland
13A Lower Main St.
Letterkenny, Donegal, Ireland