credit where credit is due.

Hey, I made it to Seattle! Right now I'm in downtown Seattle to be exact.

I'm still fundraising. And I'm still wanting to go home.

We are getting closer to our goal of $30,000. Last blog post I wrote that we'd reached the half-way point. We now only have $8,000 left to raise. $8,000! Amazing huh? We received $7,000 in donations over the last three days which brings the total to $22,000 in about two weeks! I feel instead of writing a blog post I should be writing a book. Have you ever felt like you need to give God more credit or maybe more glory for something?

I'm having a hard time stressing to people how amazing this journey has been. Nothing I have physically done through my traveling in the States has affected our fundraising or at least the money coming in. NOTHING. I think this has been an eye opening experience for me. We always say "we give the glory to God" after maybe winning a huge playoff or championship game. I think it's probably fair to say that even though we "gave God the glory" we didn't forget about the touchdown I scored in the last couple seconds, or the penalty kick I scored to win the game, or the amazing catch I made to end it.

When does it become a phrase we don't just throw around but instead save it for when we really truly mean it?

Well this is how I'm feeling. I mean it. I feel as if my heart wants to explode, and I want to shout over Pike's Place.. "yeahhhhhhhhhhhh, Go God!!!" 

*so since I don't have a picture of me screaming and dancing*

One thing has hit me as well. Some people may look at these posts and fundraising goals, and laugh. Maybe to other organizations $30,000 is easy. Maybe it's not a big deal. I LOVE that $30,000 is a big, big deal to us. I love $5,000 being a big deal. Heck, we love your $20 donations. I don't think the amount is what does it for us.

It's the random emails we get from someone that we haven't seen in 4 years wanting to donate. It's our second grade teacher. It's another humanitarian reaching in their pockets for the cause. It's our family members starting to accept that we won't be coming back and doing what they can to help us stay. It's that random person you meet on the bus that gives you $20 like "Hey, go get 'em." It's the kids that walk up to you after church and pull out their coins. This is what it's about. It's about these people. This is what it always as been about for us.

Looks like I've got my preacher hat on today 'cuz here I am wanting to pray.

God, I pray that we do not loose sight of giving you the glory for how much you love us and for how close you are to us, and especially for bringing these people into our lives. I pray that we always make these people feel involved. I pray it never becomes about big donors. I pray that no amount is ever too small. I pray that children continue to come up after church and offer their coins. I pray that our response will always be, "you are making a difference." And God I pray that we will never give anyone else the glory. 

Starbucks, the travellers home away from home.
You can chill from 6 am to 6 pm, WITH suitcases and they still won't kick you out. ;)