This past week has been a mixed bag, with stress from work and a few doubts as to whether things will all come together in time for June when I am supposed to do Gateway, the prerequisite training for Mercy Ships long-term crew. Things seemed insurmountable just two days ago.
And yet I am, once again, blown away by God's provision. He has come through in a HUGE way and provided me with the funds to cover my return airfare from Cape Town to Dallas for the Gateway course - and this came through just yesterday! I did not expect it which made it all the more special. It was another confirmation that God is wanting me to return to Mercy Ships. So whilst I still wait for my "official" confirmation and acceptance from Mercy Ships International Operations Centre, I will be purchasing my tickets to the USA. God is so good.
Yesterday was also a great day because I spent the afternoon and evening with a new friend, Jamie Day. She is from Oklahoma City and came to Cape Town this past Wednesday and will be helping pilot a Child Life programme at the Red Cross Children's Hospital here. She is then also heading to do the same Gateway course as me and will make her way to the Mercy Ship in August. She has a really good blog at http://jamie-day.blogspot.com/.We went to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, which is one of the five main tourist attractions of Cape Town. It is also the headquarters of the South African National Botanical Institute. There was a Summer Sunset Concert and so we listened to it while picnicking on the grass. It was great fun! (Albeit maybe a little too noisy at times!)
