twelve.

twelve. twelve? really, TWELVE?! yes, i only have 12 days left here.. this time a week from saturday, i'll be 12 hours away from seeing my family... and 5 hours away from the place i've lived in for the past twenty two months. sometimes i think about my time here and i feel like i have been here for as long as i can remember. two years is a long time. you get used to a place, to a culture, to a pattern of life. you adjust to the foods, the language as much as you can, the people. you realize you can make it in this place and if you're lucky you fall in love with the place. i have fallen in love with turkey. it's a beautiful place and every city i go to is uniquely beautiful. although it's a very spiritually dark place, the christian history runs deep here. sometimes the darkness can seem overwhelming. it is easy to lose hope that people will turn away from their egypts and trust in Him. but i have to believe he is at work. i see it in seemingly small ways in the lives of my friends. i see it in the life of a friend who recently believed. i have a hope that he will awaken the souls of people all across this nation. i believe he will do it. it pains me to leave this place but i know i am just a tool and i have no power to bring people to know him apart from His Spirit working through me. and with or without me, he is at work here. knowing that there are so many people without hope here makes it so hard to think about leaving. but, he is moving. i love this place and these people. but, there is a time for everything. and now, it's time for me to go back. time for me to meet my new nephew and spend time with my other nephew. and see my family. and my friends. and my church... and start new things. twelve more days.