Things I'm Excited About

I just returned from a glorious week in the Swiss Alps!!! If you were to ask me about this in person, I would spew forth excitement. I can't even describe how breathtakingly beautiful it was and how much it meant to me, but I would try! It was beyond anything I've ever dreamed of. The perfect fantasy vacation and definitely my future honeymoon spot (no, there's no guy yet).

Some people love the ocean. I do not. I should say I love it in that God created it, but the mountains are my passion. It's love at first sight. I breathe deeply of the mountain air. I worship. I experience awe and wonder. To me, the Alps specifically are the closest I'll get this side of heaven to true majesty. I can't say enough about my first-ever view of the Swiss Alps. Here is a picture to give you a taste. (The rest are on Facebook.) Yes, I took this. This was my view out of my bedroom window!!!

The rest of this post is going to include a list of things I'm excited about. Excitement has been difficult for me this year. My passion and zeal for life have slipped at times. I admit it. The reasons are personal, but I think that the week in Switzerland restored my excitement. I'm thankful for that. Here are some things I'm excited about:

1. So far in 2010: 10 teenagers, 4 adults and several children have come to Christ through the ministries of CrossWay Church in Berlin!!!! (I could write pages about all that God is doing in Berlin, but I'll save that for the prayer letters.)

2. Summer is ending and fall is just around the corner!!!

3. My cousin, Mandy Bartling, is arriving on September 1st to stay with me for 2 months!!

4. We are kicking off our fall youth program on September 3rd and 4th.

5. My sending church, Heritage Baptist Church, is sending a team to Berlin Sept. 13-20. The team includes: Bill & Joanna Arp, Jeanne Arp, Meredith Jackson, Josh Workman, and the Patella family.

6. The Heritage team is bringing me gifts from my family! :-)

7. We are launching "See You at the Pole" in Berlin, for the first time ever (that I am aware of), on September 22!

8. Ken & Jinner Rudolph will be with us again at the end of September. (They're bringing with them my new winter Keens shoes!)

9. I am furloughing a month earlier this year which means I leave for the States on November 1st (returning January 10th).

10. I will be in the States for Thanksgiving for the first year since I moved to Berlin in 2004.

And this is just the "Top 10" list! There are many other things I could mention. It feels good to be excited. What are you excited about right now?