Father, Thank You!

Psalm 30:11-12 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.

Hello, friends!

I promise I am still alive, contrary to all appearances. :) The last few weeks have been a crazy whirlwind of activity, most all of it good, but still...not too much free time to blog lately. ;)

November is a month of thanksgiving. A month of praising God for His grace, mercy, and bountiful goodness to us. Today, I would like to give thanks to Him for the many things he has done for me just in the past couple of weeks, and the opportunities to come in the next few.

In October, some friends from Alaska came to Wenatchee for several days for a family conference. The services were so good, and the fellowship was sweet. I was able to go to Leavenworth with some of the lovely Humphrey ladies (missed you, Aimee and Krista!! :'(. The fall colors were in full swing as we walked the gorgeous trails in the area, drank some awesome coffee, and ate Bavarian pastries. ;) No matter how many times I've been to Leavenworth, it never gets old. :)

After that, Bro. Doug Hammet and his wife came for a visit. Bro. Doug has been a good friend and mentor to our family and church for a long time, but I didn't remember meeting him in person. (Although apparently I met him at 4 or 5 years old? ;) Anyway, it was a blessing having them stay in our home and being able to talk with them about their amazing ministry to southern Africa. 

This past week, we went over to Oak Harbor for our annual missions conference. As always, it was an absolute highlight of the year! Convicting messages each night, and special missions forums every afternoon were a great challenge to me, especially in the area of personal evangelism. This is one area I very much tend to fail in unless I am actively seeking ways to build good habits. I want to be so much more faithful and bold in this area! I also got to practice tons of music with the group that is going to Fiji. There are 11 of us total, 10 who are singing, so it was really special to sing with them and get ready to minister to the brethren we will meet on the trip. 

One area of this year's conference was difficult, in that my great grandma went home to be with The Lord. She was 97, and had been a faithful Christian for many years. My mom was not able to make it to most of the conference due to being there with her, but I am so glad she was able to! I think it was truly important that she be there. I am deeply thankful to The Lord for making a way through His blood for me to see her again! Even though it hurts and there are tears now, I know that this is not a final separation. In a week and a half, we will be heading up to Canada for her memorial service, and I'll be heading straight from there to Oak Harbor in preparation for the Fiji trip!!

That means I have 11 days from right now to get ready for three weeks overseas. 10, if you are reading this on email. I can NOT believe it's so close!! I'm so excited for this incredible opportunity to return to the South Pacific and be a blessing in every way I am able! We will be attending a 4 day conference, as well as going to a couple of different churches for the guys to preach in different areas. We will be singing a lot as a group and in smaller duets and trios. It will be interesting seeing how everything works out, as many details can't be planned out until we are there. If then. ;) I think a lot of more minor things will just be done on the fly. Which is cool with me! International travel is unpredictable and just a bit scary anyway, a few more little unknowns aren't going to make a difference. ;P I will be away for 3 full weeks, (Thanksgiving Day through December 14th), so the blog may be neglected unless I can get some good Samaritans to send me a guest post. Ahem. Any volunteers? ;) 

A few more things I am super thankful for this month...

Hot soup on cold days. Huge sweaters and steaming coffee. My new job at a Sew and Vac store!! Long late night phone calls. Snail mail letters that make me laugh. My new tangerine clove candle that smells like Christmas. My Peaceful Guitar playlist on Spotify (so nice to fall asleep to!). Autumn colors blazing on the trees. Driving through the Cascades and being blown away by the majesty of them for the thousandth time. Cozy socks. Folding fat quarters at work. :) Christmas coming up. Siblings' birthdays. 

What are you grateful for? <3 Have a blessed Thanksgiving if I'm unable to post again before then!! Love,

Mykaela