Right now I sit on the floor of a Turkish airport, surrounded by 25 utterly exhausted people. It’s just past midnight and we have taken up quite a bit of space with our mats, sleeping bags, and whatever else we carried with us to make this night of sleep as comfortable as possible before our 7am flight to Greece in the morning. This whole thing is making me smile, because I would’ve never imagined I’d be here right now, but I am so filled with joy. 

In the past 36 hours I have:

• packed up all my things into two backpacks (again but somehow this time was even harder)

• left base camp in Gainesville Georgia, saying goodbye to US soil for the next 8 months 

• traveled 11 hours by plane to Istanbul, Turkey 

• ate two (surprisingly tasty) meals in the air 

• used a squatty potty (a form of toilet which is best described as a glorified hole in the floor)

• brushed my teeth a total of 4 times in different airport bathrooms  

• took an unexpected free layover boat tour where I saw many (beautiful) mosques and heard an Islamic call to prayer for the first time  

• ate some traditional Turkish food including lamb, tomatoes, and some oddly textured, peanut flavored, ball things

Other than my interestingly new forms of physical hygiene and other random excursions, I have also had some really good conversations getting to know my squad during these crazy moments traveling. I’ve heard some of their testimonies, what they have planned after this trip, and we have explored questions about the spiritual gifts, different religions, and what christianity might look like in the different cultures we encounter. 

Regardless of where I end up going and what I end up doing, whether it’s trying weird foods or sleeping on airport floors or whatever other wild experiences the Lord has in store this year, I am so thankful to be doing it with these people. 

So to conclude this brief update, here is a link to a photo album I’ve made, and will continue adding to, of some of our adventures! 

https://join.photocircleapp.com/WCBCMYXT70

And if you want to follow our squad on Instagram you can do that here:

https://www.instagram.com/rsquad.worldrace?stkn=czU2dHMwZHdzczM5&utm_source=qr

I am also officially fully funded!!! This is such an answer to prayer, in only about two months God provided $20,000 to me through supporters (YOU). Thank you immensely for your prayers and support that has gotten me this far! Please continue to pray for our squad as we arrive to Greece and settle in this week, and for the evangelism ministry we will start doing there!