whewwww!!!!

Finally! I have finally been home (Durham) for a full week!!! I slept in my own bed 8 times between May 17th and August 2nd but I am so blessed to have had the summer that I had. I really enjoyed sharing Christ with others and traveling all over Europe for 8 weeks! I just wanted to take a second to share some of the amazing things I experienced this summer. My favorite thing I learned in Rome was how to discern the voice of my Father from the voice of the evil one. It's something I will never forget and obviously will need to use on a daily basis. Some of you may be think...why didn't you already know how to discern the voice of the Lord from Satan...and I don't know why. I know I have never been attacked the way I was in Italy before so I guess the Lord was waiting for this opportunity to really teach me some awesome stuff. Another thing that I want to share is how incredibly bad the entire continent of Europe needs to hear the message of Jesus. Now, I know that the whole world needs to know Jesus Christ but the Lord really opened my eyes to this specific need this summer. There are many places in the world where the people live in need of food, water, and shelter on a regular basis. We often think of these places first when we hear "mission trip" but I would like to open your eyes to a place where the people seem "fine" on the outside. They have food, shelter, and even nice clothes. Their countries are well off financially and can stand on their own. People seem to be fine in Europe. They have what they need, or so it seems. This is a lie. Europe is one of the darkest places in the world. Missionaries in this part of the world see the least amount of fruit from their labor (not that their isn't any-but to our eyes) Europeans have everything...at least they think so. They don't feel the need for a Savior. They can be the god of themselves. I did not encounter 1 student this summer on campus while in Italy that had a personal relationship with Jesus. I shared the Gospel with many students...none of them had ever even heard of having a personal relationship. It made many of them curious but they needs to hear in many more times. There are believers...but not many. I just want to encourage you to remember Europe when you pray for missions around the world. These people are so lost but believe they have everything. We want them to know Christ!