I’m writing this from Higher Grounds, the coffee shop at IHOPKC. It feels good to visit the place that was home for so long! It’s so much fun to see familiar faces and drive familiar streets… right after I post this I’m going to go spend some time in the prayer room before I go meet up with a few friends today.

On Sunday I recived blessings and prayers from my church, and finished packing my car. That in itself was a miracle. I actually asked on Facebook for prayers for a “bigger on the inside” anointing. I’ve road tripped many times, but this is the first time I’ve actually tried to fit everything I own in one vehicle. It wasn’t easy! As I wrote about a few months ago,  I’ve been working on lessening the amount of stuff I own, and if I hadn’t already done so much minimalising I wouldn’t have been able to see out my car windows at all.

On Monday, I drove 11 hours to a hotel in Albuquerque, then Tuesday I drove 12 hours to a friend’s apartment next to IHOPKC. I was worried about the roads, but shockingly enough it’s 19 degrees F and not a bit of snow or ice to be found (though I did drive through some flurries in Arizona, ironically). I’ll stay here for 5 days to spend time in the prayer room and celebrate a dear friend’s wedding, then I’ll take a train into Wisconsin to visit another dear friend who recently got married, then I’ll take the train back to KC and drive down to Dallas on January 18. Whew! It’s a lot of travel, but it’s a huge blessing that I’m able to take this time to get refocussed and re-envisioned for the ministry I’m going into, and to spend so much time with good friends with whom I used to do life so closely.

Leaving California and my family definitely provokes a lot of mixed emotions, but mostly I’m just so grateful for the time I’ve been able to spend with the people I love.

• I’ve been able to live at home with my family for eight months and spend major family holidays such as Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas with them, plus four family birthdays.
• I’ve been able to celebrate four weddings of dear friends this year.
• I’ve gotten involved with my new California home church, Church Two42 (including prayer group, Bible study, and the occasional worship team) and have been SO supported and blessed by them as I leave for my Texas adventure. It means the world to me to have a small church love me personally and send me off. I’ll always have a California church home who has my back.
• I’ve had the opportunity to teach at a women’s retreat weekend, two Thursday night youth services with Church Two42, and one Sunday morning service at The Refuge Community. (Get the recording of my teaching on my resource page or direct link here!)
• I’ve had dozens of coffee meetings with friends sharing about God’s calling into the ministry of 24/7 prayer and worship.

God is indeed good.

I’ll share more as I continue to travel and get settled in Texas, but for now, the 10am intercession set is starting right next door in the prayer room and there’s a grey chair with my name on it.