We were asked to write a blog on how we felt before leaving on this mission trip. Here is what I'm expecting...

Of course I expect the usual. I expect to have enough food to keep me alive, a place to live, some form of clean water and an opportunity to share the gospel. But besides that, there are a few other things. They're not just from AIM or the trip, but from God as well.

First, I expect a strong team. No, not a perfect, flawless, always loving and happy team, but a strong team. I expect to be surrounded by "a great cloud of witnesses" who have a desire to proclaim the name of Jesus Christ and won't let anything stand in there way. I expect a team that is supportive and encouraging and stays strong and united. And a team that desires to glorify God more than anything else in the world. This is probably my hardest expectation to be met but I do expect it. This is kind of an expectation of God and AIM since they are the ones putting the teams together and of my team members since they are the ones that form the team.

Secondly, I expect God to show up and do some amazing things. I guess I have this expectation because He's done some crazy things on every mission trip I've been on in the past. I've seen crippled people walk, gang members ask to start a Bible study and some crazy prophesies come to pass. I expect Him to do things like these and so much more in the nine months we'll be in Nicaragua and I'm ready to be blown away.

Most of all, I expect God to let Himself be glorified. I expect God to come through and let His "name be great among the nations, from the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun," as it says in Malachi 1:11. After all, this is the reason I'm going on this mission trip and I was commissioned to be a missionary for this purpose.