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I finally broke down and decided two blogs were too much to keep up on. So, please scroll to the bottom and click on the link to my personal blog. You will find there much more of a mixture of random events plus missions news. But that's the real me anyway. Thanks for caring and checking this blog!

TCK-PFO (huh?)

What is a tick-pfo, you may ask. It's where I am right now! (In case you're playing along with the "Where In The World Is Katrina Custer" game.) Actually, it's not about ticks though. This conference's full name is Third Culture Kid Pre-Field Orientation. Any missionaries planning on working with TCK's in the future are required to attend. Okay, but what is it, you may ask.

A TCK is someone who spent a significant part of his or her developmental years in a culture different from that of his or her parents and thus relates to multiple cultures without feeling ownership of any. Basically, if a family from the US, for example, moves to Brazil, their child will feel connected to American and Brazilian culture and yet feel like he belongs to neither. Usually, the mixture of cultures that results in his inner culture is called a "third culture." Observe my fancy graph:

(It didn't quite turn out green in the middle. Oh well.)

Those of you who know me best (or even at all) know that I am a TCK. My parents are American, so I grew up celebrating the 4th of July, eating Tex-Mex food, watching football, and valuing things such as freedom, individualism, and the opportunity to make something of yourself. However, I spent a significant portion of my developmental years (all of them) in the country of Austria. Therefore, I also grew up skiing since I was 4, ringing cowbells at sporting events, eating cured bacon fat, and valuing things such as conservationism, group cohesion, and privacy. What can happen is that these kids end up feeling very confused about issues such as loyalty and belonging, but they also hold great potential for future leadership because of their increased global awareness, appreciation of cultures, and flexibility.

This conference is all about clarifying that for missionaries who are about to spread all over the world and work with these kids. Even for me, though I am a TCK, it's been helpful to hear others' stories and pick up practical tips for me as I prepare to teach these kids. So, thanks for your prayers. I'll be here till next Friday.

Sold my heart for $3

The sun was beating down quite warmly for a May afternoon in the Northwest, and the kids I was babysitting were having a blast running around outside in their bare feet. The twins, Ben and Ellie, had split in opposite directions with Ben setting up his apple stand out front and Ellie making daisy chains in the back. 6-year-old Karissa was trying to touch the ceiling on the porch swing while her younger sister Anna, the one I most needed to keep my eye on, was peddling back and forth with all the speed of a 4-year-old cheetah.

Because of the intensity with which I had to focus on Anna's trek up and down the sidewalk, I hadn't really paid much attention to Ben's sign, not even when he roped Karissa into helping it. So when I heard their sweet, clear voices echo across the street, my heart almost melted: "Apples! 50 cents. Help our missionary!"

Rounding the stand, I found the sign that Ben had written: "By apples. Money for Germiny." (Picture to follow.) I can guarantee in my upcoming year of support raising, no $3 are ever going to be sweeter than the 3 they raised that day. I think I'm leaving my heart in Portland....

Painting Word Pictures

When I landed at the Boise airport last Friday, Gene and Lilas Cooper and Eunice Guerrant were there to greet me with smiling faces and a warm meal. My time at Treasure Valley Baptist Church in Ontario, Oregon, was truly wonderful. What a blessing to meet a generation of faithful believers who have been giving to my parents' ministry for nearly 30 years!

On Saturday, I shared my testimony at a Women's Luncheon besides enjoying the most delicious salads west of the Mississippi. They were very attentive and even played along with my quiz game. Sunday the whole Sunday school hour was mine. My "lesson" was about the 3 Major Life Lessons I'd learned along my journey to becoming a missionary. The pastor jumped right in and quizzed everyone afterwards, which was fun. Then in church, I had 15 minuted to give a brief Introduction on my ministry and give an appeal for partners, both in prayer and in giving.

The surprising element in both of those presentations was that I wasn't able to rely at all on the powerpoint presentations I'd created or the video I'd managed to swipe off of WorldVenture. No computer/projector/set-up whatsoever. But I like what Pastor Chuck said: "She's going to paint some word pictures for us today."

You can all imagine what the potluck was like at a small-town, almost country church: creamy enchiladas, cheezy casseroles, freshly baked buns that practially slid down your throat, not to mention the rich lemon pie with my ever-favorite Cool Whip! There was a short Q&A session, and after that, I rolled back to the Coopers. Once we had recovered from our food comas, we were back at church for a very meaningful prayer time that was extremely encouraging to me, and I didn't even know any of the names I prayed for!

Today, Gene and Lilas drove me back to the Boise airport where I caught my flight to Portland (with a layover in Salt Lake City in the opposite direction - go figure). Tomorrow I pick up a WorldVenture car and have lunch and dinner with some old friends. Thanks for all your prayers so far!

Oregon trip

And so, the ground work begins!

Tomorrow will come bright and early as my wonderful friend, Sarah, takes me to the aiport at 5:30 am. I'm off to Oregon for 2 weeks where I'll share at two churches and hopefully be reunited with a slew of old friends and MK cousins from my past. This first weekend, I'm speaking at a Women's Luncheon on Saturday and in the morning church service on Sunday in a small town church waaaaay out in Eastern Oregon, closer to Boise, Idaho, than any other city. The following weekend, I'll practically be in the Pacific Ocean on the other side of this great state in Newport, where my parents and I will share the podium and misisonary booth in the lobby.

I appreciat any and ALL of your prayers for
- safety in travel
- calmness of nerves as I speak
- good connections and renewal of old relationships
- God's glory to be evident in the misisons work I share and in me
- open ears and hearts
- my contentment in Christ no matter the outcome

I hope to update here throughout my trip of the Oregon adventures God brings my way!

Where the rubber meets the road

Well, it's probably time for a more personal blog here, not that I know of anyone reading it yet. Things are moving forward for the missions side of my life. I have a few churches lined up between the end of April and the beginning of July where I'll be sharing about my ministry and inviting people to join me in it. Powerpoints are being worked on, today I'll finalize my brochure, and I'm wracking my brain trying to come up with nice decorations for a table setting. I'm excited though. Just in the few personal conversations I've had with people, I've surprised myself over and over with how much I can talk about this calling on my life and how passionately I feel about the work I'm going to go do.

It sure is a time of trusting. At church this past Sunday and at bible study yesterday, two different people spoke encouraging words to me, saying God will provide because he owns the cattle on a thousand hills. What are a couple of bucks to him! I told them that I'll need to hear that often, so I hope God keeps sending them. :-) I'm trusting that God will bring the right people to partner in this ministry, and I'm trusting that it will happen in HIS timing, not my own. I'm trusting he'll provide for my in-between needs (as he already is), and I'm trusting that this will be a time of intense personal stretching (as it already it).

Thanks for your prayers and partnership! May he stretch you, too!