Well, I (Erin) had an amazing time on my mission trip to Rwanda. It is so beautiful there and I loved all of the people that I met during my time there. I heard amazing stories about how God is at work in Rwanda and how He has healed people from a great amount of pain.

I learned so much about myself while in Rwanda. I learned that God can use me in ways that I never imagined as long as I let Him have control of my life. I know that Jeremiah shared on a blog post that I spoke to over 1,000 prisoners while I was in Rwanda. For anyone that knows me well at all you know that would be incredibly difficult for me to do. When I got done I realized that the only way I was able to do it was because God wanted me to and because He wanted me to do it He equipped me to do it. Since speaking at the prison I've also had the opportunity to speak at a church in Kigali, Rwanda as well as at our church here is South Carolina. God continues to teach me what it means to truly follow Him and stop living a safe, fearful life.

I know that Jeremiah also shared that my day at the orphanage didn't go exactly as I had hoped. I was not able to hold and play with the children. Once I spoke with some of the people at the orphanage I learned that it was out of protection for the children as well as for me. They didn't want me to get attached to a child since we really have no say in what child we adopt. They felt that me getting attached to a specific child would only make our process more difficult and painful. Though I didn't get to spend a lot of time with the children I was able to make some really important contacts that day that will hopefully help us in our adoption process.

I must say that I will always cherish the time that I spent in Rwanda. We were able to work with so many different people. From homeless children to prisoners, people affected by AIDS to pastors giving up what they want to serve and love the people of Rwanda, people that took part in the killings during the genocide to people that are choosing to forgive in spite of the loss of their entire families. Such powerful things are happening in Rwanda and I could see the fingerprints of God everywhere. I think that my heart will always feel at home in Rwanda. People keep asking me if I'm happy to be home and even though I am I feel like I left part of myself in Rwanda. I can't wait to share with our child about the amazing country that he's from and the wonderful people that I met during my time there. It's amazing to me that when Jeremiah and I travel to get our child there will be a part of me that feels like I'm going home.