just keepin it real & completing my ethiopian experience.

let me just start by saying it was a really great week. it flew by, its hard to believe its already october and that i've been here for 8 weeks already.

this weekend has been, well.. not what i expected. I had lots of big fun plans that i so wish i could be telling you about, but unfortunately i've been very sick this weekend. saturday i ended up having to go to the hospital to have some tests run, which revealed, i am NOT, in fact, dying (as i may have thought). i have had three amazing friends (kat, dave, and vicky) at my side throughout the entire weekend taking care of me and a steady stream of visitors and phone calls. i am so blessed. it is hard to be here, a million miles from home, and feel so horrible. but i have felt so loved and encouraged. hopefully in the next couple of days i'll be back to normal... just completing the ethiopian experience, i mean what fun would it be if i didn't end up at the hospital at some point during my time here.

its funny, because on friday in my quiet time i was reading about how the mountain tops are measured by the valleys. and here i am, been having this mountain top experience, everyday in awe of God's faithfulness, so full of joy and having such an amazing time. but sometimes we need these valleys to remind us of our desperate need for the Lord. and to show us his unbelievable strength and faithfulness.

pray for continued strengthening of health, spirit, & energy so that i can quickly get back to my kids & just feel better.

salam.

selam-neow.

it appears that the rainy season is over! we have had a gorgeous week of sunshine. everything is green & life in addis is beautiful. what a great week this has been. definitely my best week here so far. :) how sweet is the Lord, that each week just seems to get better and better. lots of fun with my kids, our class is really growing together and it is such a blessing to see the growth in each of them.
my tennis and basketball teams are both going great. the kids seem to be having lots of fun & are really making improvements.

my language tutoring is going really well. its hard only having a couple of lessons a week and trying to balance practicing and studying with school and preparation, but i am learning some & doing pretty well. i've learned a good foundation of basics for speaking and have learned 3 forms of fidel (which is the amharic writing) i've had several people tell me that i sound like an habasha (an ethiopian) when i speak amharic. watch out. i do realize however, they were probably just being nice. but i'll let it boost my confidence anyway.

this weekend was great. played softball on saturday with some families that live on compound, it was a really nice taste of home. and it was a lot of fun to teach our british and australian friends the concept of the game.
saturday afternoon i went over to my dear friend Lidya's and spent the rest of the day with her family, learning to cook traditional ethiopian food and of course eating lots of it. it was so lovely to spend the day with them, they have made me part of their family and i am so blessed to know such beautiful people. & its quite nice to have a family here in Addis :)

another great morning of worship at Beza. & lunch with some new friends from church. what a beautiful way to start the week, filled with excitement, thanking the Lord for another great week and praising him for the blessing of each day to come. & challenged to seek Him even more.

the Lord continues to amaze me each day. and my heart continues to overflow. i'm definitely receiving far more than i am giving here and pray that the Lord is working in each of your lives and blessing ya'll as much as he is me. pray for my kids, that each day the Lord would become more and more real to them and that they wouldn't see me, but ONLY Him and his great love. pray for my language learning. that i would have time and opportunities to study and practice. pray for continued peace, rest & joy. and that when the hard days come, i will be reminded of the great blessing that it is to be here.

much peace & lots of ethiopian love.
lb

his joy comes with the morning.

i wish there was a way to truly capture how beautiful it has been in addis this weekend and share it with you all. the sun has been shining so brilliantly, the skies so blue, & the colorful birds are singing such beautiful songs. this week has been so much fun. with the gorgeous weather, comes lots of fun outside during the school day. me & my kids have had a blast this week and have really grown together as a class. i am continually building relationships within the community and feel so blessed to be able to share in the lives of these people. tomorrow we have the day off of school so a group of us are going up to the mountains for a picnic & a hike :)

this morning at church, we talked about what it means to be in the presence of God and in 2 Samuel, when David was carrying the Arc of the Covenant into the city, and he stopped and just began to worship because it really hit him how very blessed he was, and he became undignified before the Lord... so this morning, we had an awesome celebration, it was incredible. i am so very blessed to be here. my heart is bursting with joy. i have the silliest grin on my face. what a mighty God we serve.

things you can pray for...
-today marked the end of Ramadan, join me in praying over the muslim community here in Addis, that their eyes would be opened to the truth & love of Christ.
-pray over my tutoring as i am learning amharic, so that i can better communicate here in Addis
-pray for my 30 beautiful children, & our bible time each day, that it would be a time where the love of God & the truth of his word become real to them.

igzee-abhair yimesgen.
(praise God!)

lb

langano. & the year 2002.

back from langano & officially living in the year 2002. the weekend was absolutely incredible. it was one of the most beautiful places i've ever been. and it was the most peaceful i've ever felt. just before God in all of his beauty and absolutely amazed by the complexity of his creation. ((i put up pictures be sure to look at them!))
people dream their whole lives of doing and experiencing the things that i am doing and for whatever reason, God is allowing me to live this incredible life. i don't understand why, but i am SO THANKFUL. we camped along the edge of the lake, with a gorgeous view of the lake & the mountains and at night laid underneath the most gorgeous sky, bursting with stars... we were able to go to house of hope, a home that takes care of babies whose mothers have died in child birth.. we just got to love on the babies all afternoon and it was wonderful.
it was so nice to get out of addis & away from school and relax. and it made coming back to addis so great and now addis feels like home. gah, i'm so blessed to be here. i love it here so much, and i walk around with this goofy smile on my face because i'm so overwhelmed by how happy i am to be here and how much i love addis.
missing you all, as always.
lots of ethiopian love,
lb.

this is my life. (9/6)

seriously? i get to live this beautiful life? i live in africa. get to spend my days with 30 wonderful kids. in community with some incredible people from all over the world. pinch me please. can you tell i love it here?

i have been living in addis for a month already! its so hard to believe because it has absolutely flown by.
this week has been quite a roller coaster. had lots of great time with friends. had a blast with my kids. passed my drivers test, which is a huge accomplishment. driving in addis is ridiculous. wednesday, i had a rough day, feeling really homesick and overwhelmed. but received so much encouragement and reminders of how blessed i am to be here. this weekend i've been a little sick, with sinus junk. so hopefully i'll be feeling better before school tomorrow.

we only have a four day week at school this week. friday is the ethiopian new year. so this weekend a bunch of us are going to Langano for the weekend, which is a down-country mission station, so we can see some more of this beautiful country and ring in the new year. (which will be 2002, here in Ethiopia, a little behind...)

i wish i could really explain the incredible things God is doing in my heart. he reveals himself to me in a new way each day. its amazing how stepping away from the distractions of the everyday can allow you to see Him so much more clearly. my heart is so full. and the exciting thing is you don't have to come to ethiopia for Him to do that, He meets us exactly where we are. even though i have so much junk and even though i don't deserve it, He loves me with a love that i can't even fathom. and even in this city, where my heart is broken everyday over the poverty and the sickness and the filth, GOD IS SO PRESENT HERE. and the same God who is here doing such incredible things in my heart, is working in the hearts of people all across this city and in all of your hearts back at home. seriously? what an AWESOME GOD.

i am missing you guys BIG TIME. thanks for all of your sweet messages.. it means more than you know. & makes being so far away so much easier. keep it coming ;)

pray for me, that i will continue to be stretched and challenged. for health and for energy. pray for my kids. pray for Bingham and the staff. & pray for this beautiful city, that the people would give their needs to the Lord, that they would hunger & thirst for Him. and that they would find satisfaction, peace, and joy in Him.

so... i've got this room full of kids... (8/28)

let me just start by saying, today was one of the most gorgeous days i've ever seen. the sky is here is so blue its unreal. i took my kids to read outside today and i looked around and thanked God for bringing me to this gorgeous place... seriously? i get to do this everyday?... ridiculous.

so, week one of school. done. check.

and i have fallen head over heels for 30 gorgeous nine-year olds.
we have had a blast this week getting to know each other. i have kids from zimbabwe, finland, us, australia, maritious, germany, ireland, and ethiopia. talk about diversity. the lives these children lead and the things they've been able to experience at just 9 years old is incredible.
i just can't wipe the smile off my face. i get to spend everyday with a room full of children who are eager to learn and are absolutely hilarious and i get to share the love that i have been so blessed to receive and i actually get to get in the Word with them, and tell them about this amazing God who has been so faithful to me. i'm overwhelmed.

i miss you all so very much. but i am so full of joy. i have fallen in love with this city and this school and these people. i am so blessed. seriously.
pray that the kids will not see or hear me, but that I would overflow the love and wisdom of Christ alone and that he would be glorified in our classroom.

i've posted pictures of our room in my most recent album on facebook. check it out.

peace & love.
lb

first day of school. (8/24)

hello sweet family & friends.

all is well in ethiopia. i am loving it here more everyday. we have had gorgeous weather the past couple of days and almost four days straight with water! i've spent most of the past several days getting ready for school.. which starts TOMORROW. i am so excited to meet those precious children i've been praying for!
so starting tomorrow, things are going to get busy and hectic but lots of fun. i'm also going to be coaching the tennis team here at Bingham and maybe a basketball team.. which will be a lot of fun.

just wanted to give a quick update and ask for your prayers over tomorrow. pray for me, in my first day of teaching. pray for those 32 4th graders i have the privilege of spending everyday with. pray that God will open their hearts and minds to learn. that our classroom will be a beautiful community that seeks to honor and glorify God. love ya'll & miss you very much.

peace & love all the way from ethiopia.
lb

so... i'm here! (8/16)

And I love it, so much. It has overcome any and all expectations. Everyone here is so wonderful. The community is an absolute blessing. I now have friends from UK, New Zealand, Switzerland, Australia and Ethiopia of course. There is so much to tell I’m not sure where to start. Bingham is absolutely beautiful. There are beautiful flowers and plants everywhere. My flat is so precious, and very large. We only have electricity every other day and water is in and out. It takes some getting used to, but its really not all that bad. Its kind of nice to be away from the distractions, but sitting in the cold and the dark gets a little old.

I’ve been in language tutoring, it’s a funny language and my tutors are wonderful! Hirut and Lydia. Lydia and I have become very good friends, she is wonderful and we have so much fun together! The food is great, and I’ve had zero problems adjusting. I find myself hungry all the time, but if you know me, then you know that’s nothing unusual, haha.

The sky & the stars are breathtaking. Its so hard to believe I’m here, so far away.

God has been so good, and being removed from the everyday and the distractions has been so nice. And I’m learning so much about relying on God. He really is it. Everything. And that has become so clear to me already. I’ve slept pretty well and almost all through the night since I’ve been here. I usually wake up very hungry so I eat something and go back to bed.
I found out on my first day that I will no longer be teaching art, but I am the new grade 4 teacher. Which means I will have 28 precious 9 & 10 year olds that I get to spend everyday with! I could not be more excited. I love them and am praying for them already. School starts august 25th so I’ve got about a week to figure out what I’m going to do for the first couple weeks of school.

I miss everyone a lot, but I am having the most amazing time. The Lord is so present in this city, he is doing great things and I feel so blessed to be a part of it and be in the company of some of the most incredible people I’ve ever met.
I love you all and hope to be hearing from you!
laurakboyd@hotmail.com

the final countdown.

it is hard to believe that it is already august 8th. the summer flew by so quickly, but it was absolutely perfect. i have been anticipating these next three days for so long, it is going to be a whirlwind of fun, excitement, and emotions. this week at home has been great, relaxing, packing, eating lots of my favorite foods, and lots of hang out time with my family and the lakeside kids that i love so much.
packing was an undertaking for sure.

i had to fit all of this...














into this...


and somehow i managed to do it.
it only took 4 days and 4 people staying up way too late.

tomorrow is my commissioning service at Lakeside.
monday i graduate from Auburn.
tuesday i fly out of atlanta.

its going to be a crazy next couple of days. but that also means in just 3 days i will be in Addis! please be praying for me over the next 3 days and they days that follow. that i will quickly adjust and get settled in.

i am excited because my next post will be filled with great details about my new life. :)
love & peace.
lb

sweet summertime.

summer is here.

finishing up a few classes.

the summer holds: 

being in auburn. 

spending time with good friends. 

weekend trips. 

new adventures.

meeting new people. 

graduating in august.

just 2 & 1/2 months until i am in africa.

i'm just holding on with 2 hands & letting God.

much peace & love.

surreal.

tomorrow is may 1st. seriously? 

it is hard to believe that this semester is already over and i am just 3 short months away from moving to addis. i know i've not been a very good blogger but my now things are slowing down and there is much more to report, so hopefully the updates will be much more frequent & exciting as well.

so lets get caught up on my life & journey.

- this semester has been absolutely incredible. while it has

 been difficult trying to balance internship, family and friends, the Lord has taught me so much & is really moving in my life. my internship was better than i could have ever imagined. over the past 4 months, i have fallen absolutely in love with 28 of the most incredible kids i know. i've never been so sure of something, as i am that this is exactly what i need to be doing. these kids have taught me more & touched my heart, every single day. i have been so very blessed and am so thankful for such an incredible student teaching experience.

- i have officially become an ACF hasbeen. it is so hard to see this chapter in my life closing & my time at acf coming to an end. these past 3 years have been the best of my life. the Lord has truly blessed me with the MOST incredible friends and memories. i h

ave grown more in the Lord in the past 3 years and that is greatly due to love, accountability, and encouragement that i have found in acf. 

- and the final major update to report is the most exciting.

i have officially been promised 100% of my support. the Lord is so very faithful. he always provides, despite our lack of trust and confidence in his abilities. the generosity that i have received has been overwhelming and i am so very loved. it is so exciting to know that i am not going alone, but that all of the people that i love so dearly will be joining me through prayer, financial support and encouraging words. 

now i am in the process of filling out the great stacks of paperwork that required of me in order to work, live, travel to, & stay healthy in ethiopia.

pray for me:

-as i struggle with saying goodbye to some of my closest friends as they graduate & move away to begin their careers or leave for the summer

-that the Lord would continue to use me here in auburn for the remainder of the 3 months in the states

-in this time of transition as i am no longer in my internship & with my kids, moving into summer school, and preparing my heart for the next major steps in my journey.

-bingham academy, the cmf urban poor team, addis ababa

6 months.

so this week is 6 months & counting until i leave for Addis. its crazy how quickly time is flying by me. my senior year has been so incredible. i am so blessed, & have had the most amazing college experience. the Lord has continued to be faithful throughout my fundraising. a few weeks ago, i was feeling pretty discouraged about the amount of support coming in. i was receiving support, but definitely not as quickly as i had imagined. feeling overwhelmed and trying to balance everything, with internship, school, acf, friends, & family. so i gathered my prayer team i've assembled here in auburn & shared my heart with them & asked for prayer. & wow, what a powerful tool the Lord has given us. days later, the support began pouring in & the Lord flooded my heart with peace, reassurance & encouragement. 

HE IS SO GOOD.

things are going great & my heart is so full of joy and excitement. 

6 months.

-- 6 more months to enjoy this beautiful city, spend time with my amazing friends & soak up the ending of my college career.

-- 6 months until i take the biggest leap of my life & jump into the lives of some beautiful people & share some of this love i am so overwhelmingly blessed with.

thank you for all the prayers.

keep em' coming.