busy work, busy workin'

Today was MADNESS.

Everyone in the office except for myself and Brooke (Jr. High Staff) are leaving for the Dominican Republic tomorrow at 4:30 AM (yes, I will be there to help see them off :). So that means--last minute EVERYTHING. And what I'm learning about this place after my MC-ing experience among others, Eastview is not known for full planning ahead of time. I'm a Wheaton student, so naturally, this drives me a little bonkers. All those fears start coming up when you realize a plan isn't written out for you, most of them centering around sentences such as : "IF I am not prepared for this, I will look so incompetent."

Because OBVIOUSLY the worst thing in the world is to appear as if you don't know everything.
Sheesh, no pressure, right!?

I just have to keep reminding myself, that's not God's voice telling me that. It's mine. And it's ridiculous.
More on this later.

Anyway, Chelsea is spouting off 30 things a minute for me to do, and I'm getting stressed out because I can't hold it all in my brain. My nose is stuffed to the brim and I have a pounding headache within 15 minutes of arrival at work. But the last thing I want is for Chelsea to have to do more than she already does--which is such a crazy amount I'm not sure how she just doesn't collapse or scream at everyone else to do things sometimes. God has given her A LOT of grace and A LOT of patience.

But Chelsea also has a system. She admits early today- "Warning: I am going to be snappy, and it has nothing to do with you. Just so you know."
After a nod to acknowledge understanding, I was off. Alphabetizing passports, copying passports, making lists of kids who still need to sign their passports, putting ten bucks times however many people are in a travel group so that they can get some card when they get to the Miami airport...on, and on...and on. In the midst of this Charlie is asking me if I can send out letters, but in order to do this I have to type 69 student's names into a system on the computer that I don't even know the password for--and this all has to happen like, yesterday.

I send up an arrow prayer for patience. God calms me down and I just keep plugging along.
Amazing what you can do if you just keep moving, I've found out.

As I sat there, frustrated with these kids who for some reason can't figure out how to sign their passports, I take a second to thank God for the fact that I have a good brain and two hands to even do this work, to serve Him in this little way that to me seems pointless (in my bad moments) and in my good moments, remembering that quote about how calling something inconvienient just means it's really an "adventure wrongly considered."

I want God to help me consider things rightly.
Myself, other people, the work of my hands.

All I know is, I'm a servant. It's not hard labor, it's not digging for hours in the hot sun, but it is work- and all work is admirable if it's Kingdom work.