I know Africa... ♥

I know that I will not be seeing you this summer. I know that this is not the trip for us to meet and unite. But I find myself coming to tears and staring at Emirates flight prices. Getting all excited and praying that this was just a test of obedience and that God will send me somehow, someway to you. I know that I shouldn't get my hopes up. I know that I shouldn't regret speaking and pulling out of the trip. I know that GOD has a mighty plan and a great purpose in this all. But I cant help but cry over you. I can't help but want you. Whether I go or not my hearts desire for you will not flee. I shall pray without ceasing for the right door to open. For God to make a way...To make HIS way. You are beautiful and cherished in my heart. Thank you for listening.


♥CheChe♥

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thank you. (♥)

For listening.
With your eyes.
And still sticking around.
I'm not going to AFRICA.
I have the most humiliating peace about it all.
Che wants to go and is willing and ready.
This trip however is not the one. And it hurts.
I invested so much of my own works into it all.
The Lord revealed so much about Himself in the last
three months that have been devoted to this trip. However,
I will not be on that plane with my sisters. It hurts but GOD
is sovereign and I would rather be in a bit of pain in His will
than feeding my own desires outside of His.
Thank you. That is all. For now. I will, HOWEVER, be going to AFRICA.
I will. :).

This weekend I attended my first ever wedding. I had a 20 dollar dress on. A pair of 18 dollar shoes. And quite frankly I forgot to take any "beauty" shots or decent pictures of my own. I was so tired that day as I have been for most of this year that I really didn't put too much time and investment into getting ready. God worked it all out for me and boy was that A BLESSINGG.

The wedding was small and intimate. I was so happy to have been able to go dressed in semi decent clothes. I will probably be wearing this same dress to my next wedding which happens to be this Saturday. I think that I am probably breaking a few hundred fashion rules by doing so but I really don't have the time or cash to care. Boy HAVE I come a lonngggg way.

I have a confession.
I don't enjoy posting pictures of myself! HAH~!
I would rather post pictures of things I think are beautiful.
Of my face only in perfect lighting. OF my friends and family.
But posting pictures of myself in the raw. It is quite intimidating
and uncomfortable. I don't know how some of you ladies do it.
You guys are so courageous (not to mention BEAUTIFUL) and I just
have so much respect for your boldness. Tis beautiful to see
beautiful women being beautiful online. If that makes any sense.

Today was my only day of work until next Thursday. I don't have any set plans.
But I will definitely be sneeking off with my King and doing some reading and
PRAYING. Cuz I need it!






 
How do you guys feel about posting pictures of yourself verses non-yourself posts?







btw. I love posting ♥'s . Seriously. I may have an addiction or something. Even when I write on paper I have to put hearts instead of DOTS... It has become a bit.... scaryy...?

♥CheChe

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Bleh. Monday. ♥

So much is going on and happening all too quickly.

This weekend I had the lovely privilege of attending my first ever WEDDING!

A dear sister of mine, Laura is now married to an amazing example of a godly man and they are probably in Hawaii as we speak enjoying the beginnings of their married life. It was such a blessing to laugh, eat, pray and dance the day/night away in celebration of a true holy matrimony. Everything from the wedding vows to the cake brought everyones focus back to the cross and what Jesus did in dieing and raising again for us crazy children of His. What an amazing testimony they share through their union as one.

The group of ladies I am going to Africa with this coming summer are ticketing by the end of this week! Once tickets are bought there is no turning back. I must tell you God really checked me yesterday and I started praying and calling out for His help because I am beginning to wonder if this trip is the one. If this is the trip that He desires me to go on for Him. I was just tripped up yesterday and it really left me wondering about my motives for going and wanting desperately to hear what exactly God has to say about it all. I want to go to Africa y'all. Seriously. Che. wants. to. go! I know God is calling, I know GOD will get me there and now I am stuck in intense prayer over whether or not He wants me on this trip. 

I don't have the money. I haven't been capable of contributing much of anything at all to the trip. I haven't been capable of saving like all of the other girls. I am just really starting to wonder how I could be called to go when I am so incapable financially. 

This whole time I have known that in the area of Africa we are staying we are expected to eat all of our food. They literally watch you and make sure you finish your plate and it is considered rude to not finish your food. I have known this and known GOD would give me the strength to get through it but I have also battled with wondering how crazy I could go being stuffed and feeling fat. I know it is a vain thought but it is something my flesh desperately tries to believe is enough to not be capable of lasting in Africa. 

I'm going to just stop rambling and ask for you guys, once again to PRAY, for God to make His ways known and clear because I truthfully do not want to be outside of His will and in the process hinder these girls from doing the Lords work to the fullest. I know that I truly want this trip to be the trip and I believe that God has brought me this far to break me of the things that I may have overlooked out of pride in the beginning. I know God is with me in this all and I have faith that no matter how impossible or inadequate of a servant I may be He will receive all glory either way. Pray for wisdom and for His voice to be made known in all of this.

I have another wedding this Saturday and I may be attending alone. Which would be awkward but I wouldn't miss it for the world. I also have one day of work, which is tomorrow, and then I'm getting paid to not work for the rest of the week. VACATION time :). Lol. More like, do all of the stuff you never have time to do time :).

Thank you for making it this far in the bleh post. I know you are all confused and praying for me. ha ha. Trust me I need it.

♥ Chetreanna ♥

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Support Mission: UGANDA

Okay, I know... I have been doing an awful lot of Uganda talk. Well, just so you know I am absolutely thrilled about my Ugandan post for today. It is my support letter. I know that times are tough but I figured who better to ask than the worldwide-web via BLOGGER.COM? God has great plans and I am only utilizing the resources I have just in case... I hope you don't take offense or think I'm trying to use you. I seriously am at a place of peace in where I can care less about the financial aspect of everything. I'm going to AFRICA THIS SUMMER! :) I'm just excited to board that plane... so here is my letter and I hope most of all it ministers to someone!
Love,
Chetreanna
                                                                                                 

Hey! thank you for taking the time to read this. Know that there is no pressure and more than anything we just need your prayer and support. Now onto the letter :)


To my Friends and Family:
This coming summer I, along with four other young women, will be venturing out of southern California to south-central Africa. Although not the idea of the average twenty-something year olds summer vacation this is where God has called me to be for two months! I am excited, scared, overjoyed and completely in awe of how God has worked everything out so far. A year ago I was praying for Africa and for God to get me there somehow and today I am a part of a team of five women all under 25, who seek to be used by God in Africa!

In 2010, the Lord put a burden for the African people upon my heart. All of a sudden, my thoughts and my desires were all centered around Africa and getting to Africa. My heart felt the need for the gospel to be engraved upon the African people’s hearts, that they may be empowered knowing Jesus. God was breaking me of myself and giving me the compassion I had lacked for so many years towards other people.

I began to pray for God to send me there. I desperately needed to be in African soil somehow, someway. The more I learned about getting to Africa the more I realized just how impossible of a mission that would be for me. I was discouraged but I still prayed, knowing that God had given me this desire, and that ultimately it belonged to Him. In my human mind, I was certain God would send me. I was positive that this was what He wanted me to do. Yet I had begun to shape His plans so that they would make sense. I put together an idea that God was going to get me to Africa once I had done certain things. Thankfully, works do not earn us blessings and I can say that there is nothing I have done, apart from prayer, to open this door! All glory is to Him.

I have shared this all with you that you might first pray for Gods ultimate provision upon our trip and for our trip overall. He is the one who is going to get us there no matter what amount of money we receive along the way. Asking for money is not something that I find comfortable but I know that God has laid this step out for me wanting more to see my obedience played out rather than my insistent pride I tend to use to cover any humility that may be unmasked. So here I am, writing you this letter admitting that I am in need of financial support. Christ loves the faithful and it is in complete faith in Him that I send this to you knowing that He plans to get me to Africa whether or not it looks possible from where I stand. I also pray that this letter has sparked a flame and that you may catch that vision He has placed on your heart and be in prayer for His will to be done! That you may act when the door opens and take that first step of faith in responding to the call with “Yes, I am willing!”

We have an account through Calvary Chapel now in which you may donate through check or cash. The checks are to be made payable to Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and in the memo field Mission Uganda. Then, on a sticky note or other paper that is firmly attached to the check, write “Mission Uganda/ Lena Smith/ Chetreanna White”. You can mail it to me at [ask for my address]. Or contact me at savedthrulove@aol.com if you have other questions regarding the mission and needs. All donations can also be used as tax write offs!

Thank you so much for reading this and please be in prayer for us throughout this time. We are so thankful for this opportunity to be used and to witness to Gods people.


Be blessed :)!

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AFRICA! ♥

Pro 16:9	A man's heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.

Pro 16:9

A man's heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.

I have never stepped foot outside of this country. The closest I've been outside of California was Las Vegas family trips to Circus Circus. I lived in North Carolina around the age of 2 but that doesn't count because we were there for a year and I have no idea what anything in that state looked like.


THIS SUMMER... I will be leaving the comfort of cozy California to go somewhere that God has placed on my heart. Somewhere I don't know how I would ever possibly have desired to visit apart from Christ. I will be leaving behind a world that doesn't know persecution and a culture so wrapped up into Christianity you can barely tell us from the non-believers. The Lord has called me to UGANDA!! To AFRICA.


We will not be staying in a hotel. We will be setting up shop in a tent. Within a school building. We will be there for 2 months helping out with the school, village and church there.


I wanted to share it with you all because today I realized that it is HAPPENING. Last year around this time I was in personal prayer about going to Africa. 5 months ago I was surrendering it to God, assuming He wouldn't send me until I was done with school and capable of affording the trip. The first Wednesday of this January I was being told that "the doors to Africa have opened. be in prayer."


God is so amazing and so faithful to give us the desires of our hearts and today at our 4th bake sale I witnessed the love of others and just the provision of God. We are 5 girls who seriously have no idea what we are doing other than the simple fact that God is calling all of us individually to go and be of service to Him to His beautiful people.

I guess. I really am just in need of PRAYER. This is a lot. A lot to take in and a lot to handle amidst the daily routine and grind. I will be needing 2 months off from work and still haven't told my boss about my leave of absence. We will not have the dates until we get the tickets at the end of next month so until I get the dates there is no point because the dates may be subject to change. WE also need prayer just as a group for God to bond all 5 of us ladies together in a knit that is not easily broken. God has great plans for us and I would hate to see any of us allowing the enemy to break us of His vision.


I'm so excited y'all and I just really wanted to share this with you. I know that many of you are prayer warriors so I am seeking it! We are doing bake sales in which donations are given and thus far the Lord has been blessing our Bake Sales but we still will need much more to get all five of us ladies on the plane. Please pray for more provision both financially and in prayer because that is what TRULY is funding this trip. The prayers of our hearts and those around us.


Thank you for reading and enjoy your FUNKY SUNDAY. 
Yeah. I know it doesn't rhyme but you know it's true. :)
GET FUNKAAYY..
                                                 

♥Chetreanna

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