FIRST POST!!!

Today is the second day of the Young Adult Volunteer program orientation in Stony Point, New York. I have to admit, I am slightly disoriented. Leaving my home (Golden, Colorado) yesterday was much harder than I expected it to be and, according to my countdown, I have a mere five days and approximately 16 hours until I arrive in Guatemala. I will spend 5 weeks in Antigua, Guatemala taking Spanish classes. I will then move in with my host family in Comalapa. As of right now, I know very few details and, until this morning, I was consumed by fear of the unknown.  My fear evaporated because of my experience at today's morning worship service. During today's service, we reflected on a passage from Psalm 139, in which the psalmist writes, 

Where can I go from Your spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go to the heavens, You are there. If I make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me; Your right hand will hold me fast.  

In reflecting on Psalm 139 I feel at peace. This might sound silly, but I now feel certain that God will be with me in Guatemala. Most of you are probably thinking, "Well, duh, Rachel!" I know, I know. God is everywhere, and it seems only natural that God be with me in Guatemala, but the past few days I've been worrying myself sick about packing, traveling, and other logistics, and in worrying so much, I unintentionally took God out of the equation. 

I am happy to report that I am no longer fixating on unnecessary worries and I couldn't be more excited to see what God has in store for me in Guatemala. After all, I can't go anywhere or do anything without God, and that alone is enough to quell all of my fears about this upcoming year. 

Look for another update later this week! Thanks for reading and may Christ's peace be with you all! :)