Future Me

Can you believe it's been almost six weeks since I updated this blog! Well, my little grandson can't believe it either but it's true.

I've spent a lot of time in those weeks praying for truck deliveries of shoebox items that were coming in our unpredictable winter weather. Because unloading pallets in the middle of a winter snowstorm is just no fun at all.

But by God's grace our prayers were answered and we received three deliveries in the past few weeks with no problems.

First came 149 spools of rope that will allow us to assemble 25,600 jump ropes --

Then we got two more deliveries of assorted shoebox filler items. One of those deliveries went to a local manufacturing plant that donated some much-needed storage space to us. I can't tell you how exciting it was to have them sent directly to a warehouse with a loading dock and not have to hand unload all those pallets. Of course eventually we'll have to get them moved to the packing party site but we can figure that out later.

Speaking of the packing party, we still don't know when the available shipping windows will be so we don't have a date.  And we don't know what size boxes we will be receiving--the older style of GO boxes or the newer corrugated ones--so we don't have a goal. I know people are praying, though, because I have a peace in knowing that God is in control.

I could see the results of that peace today when I received an unexpected email from FutureMe.org.  Five years ago I wrote a letter to myself to be delivered in five years through this site.  I forgot all about it and was surprised to receive it today.  This is what I wrote on March 10, 2014 --

Dear FutureMe,

In 2019 will I still be packing Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes? I just returned from the OCC Connect Conference and have grave doubts about whether I should even be an AC or doing a large packing party. I don't have many items this year yet, which is unusual. And at Connect they made a big push to get $7.00 per box for shipping. I feel like such a failure and that I don't do anything right. Maybe it's God's way of trying to keep my pride at bay, but I seem to be a failure in most areas. It's good I am retiring this year because I'm not successful in school nursing. I'm not successful at leadership. I'm not successful as a wife and mother or with extended family. So many questions. I am just tired.

When I read this today I smiled, because--again by God's grace--I don't feel that angst right now. At least not today.  A lot of things haven't changed. My team is even smaller than it was in 2014. I still struggle with leadership and no, even though I pray for it I have never actually seen the whole $9 per box shipping donation. Still, I know God is in control and I know today He's called me to this place in His body and He will have to be the one to do His work in me.

Still, there's so much more I could and should be doing. And as I think toward the future I know we DO need to prayerfully add more team members, especially some younger ones.

To that end I spent a delightful hour last week with the Kindergarten and Pre-K students at Leadership Christian Academy.  These sweet kids work on projects for OCC every month at their monthly service day. This month they were making bookmarks and bracelets. Then in November they will pack boxes. I presented each of them with an OCC t-shirt and talked about how they could be ambassadors (admittedly a big word for Kindergarteners) for OCC.

Maybe one of them will be my future me.

Meanwhile, our team has adopted a new motto for 2019 that I found in my reading in Numbers one morning:  Numbers 11:23 "Is the LORD'S arm too short?"

We know that His arm is NOT too short and our little team is putting our trust in that this year. So our media support person, Pam, made these magnets for each of us. It features a picture she took on her trip to Israel of the Promised Land as seen from Mt. Nebo.

Like the old song says, I don't know what the future holds but I know WHO holds the future...

**PS--If you'd like to write a letter that will be emailed to you in 1, 3, or 5 years you can do that at FutureMe.org