WE'RE HERE!!!! (The good stuff)

A few things we actually know:

• The Swedish Palace- not so impressive... don't tell them I said that!
• The belief in deodorant isn't a universal thing!
• A hot shower and a very long nap sounds AMAZING right now!!

It is just after 8:00 pm here and I feel like it's already midnight! I think the traveling and nonstop walking everywhere has really taken it's toll on all of us! Something that I noticed that God really spoke to me about was on the cruise. As Marie and I were on the deck taking pictures (by the way, Marie is the picture queen!), I was watching as the ship gracefully skipped over the water. It really captivated me how it's almost like the ship is asking the water to gently move out of the way and the water obediently did as it was told, making ripples along the side of the boat. It really reminded me of how gentle and tender God can be to us sometimes. Maybe this is totally out there, but how often do we just ignore the simple requests He has? We always think God ONLY works in HUGE ways, when in reality the smaller things are usually the things that speak volumes to us in the most simple ways and places. A whisper of hope or a spot of light coming into our hearts during our morning showers or our commutes to work. I think so often we over look the small things!

Prayer Requests for today:

• VOLUNTEERS! We have quite a few volunteers for the conference and VBS tomorrow and we're so excited to have them! Be praying for them as they step into this roll of leadership, that God would open their hearts as well and that we could be examples to them
• Jennie's ankle. She hurt it at camp last week and it's still really bothering her. Pray for healing and patience
• Tomorrow is Day 1 of the conference and we have no idea what to expect! Pray for open minds and flexible attitudes among everyone involved
• There is a woman that lives in Tartu that Janice spoke with a few days ago. Valentina was very drunk and said she was too bad of a person to come to church and that she just wishes the evil would come out of her. We have all committed to praying that God brings her to the conference, sober, and that he would break down the walls of her heart. Also, that He would show us how to love her and how to be a light to her.

That's all I've got for today. Pray it up! We're all crossing our fingers for an awesome night's rest and energy for tomorrow!

God is so good! I love you all more than you know!

Forever His,

EmilyJo