4 days

It's SO crazy to think that I really only have 4 days left of Mission Year.

I'm going to be very sad to leave my family here in Philadelphia!! But I'm also excited to go back home to Michigan to my friends and family! I'm excited for new beginnings!

I can't even begin to express how this year has changed my life. I've learned sososo much this past year. I've learned a lot about myself as a person. I've also learned a LOT about God. I've experienced The Lord working in so many ways and have had some great times learning more about Him! I've learned a lot about myself; how strong I am, how independent I can be, learning to face fears, but most importantly, I've learned that God is always with me and He gives me confidence. He is my stronghold!

This past year has helped me grow in my Christian walk TREMENDOUSLY!

I'm so thankful and grateful that I was able to have this oh so beautiful experience. I've been blessed with amazing support back home and even here in Philadelphia! I can't thank all of the people who made this year possible for me enough!!! All you donors, prayer warriors, and encouragers out there, THANK YOU A BUNCH! You're so wonderful! (:

Looking back on the year, the first word that pops in my head is excitement. I'm excited for how far I've come, as a person and in my walk with The Lord! I'm excited for all the new things I've learned this year, the oh so many things! I'm excited that I got to spend the past year with some really amazing roommates/housemates! I'm excited how far God has brought me! And I'm also excited for how far He is going to continue to take me!

Tomorrow we leave for the weekend to go on a retreat. And then we have one last day with our team members before we part our separate ways. I'm looking forward to that sweet, precious time with not only my roommates but also other Mission Year team members. I'm looking forward to growing more within myself and expanding my abilities to share with other my thoughts. I pray that The Lord will give me confidence like He has been all year to be able to open up and share. I'm also looking forward to just being able to sit by the pool and have that valuable down time with all these lovely people I've been blessed with!

I'm super excited to be home in a week and to have a month home before I start college! Although I am excited for college, I'm looking forward to that month break of not doing anything and just having that precious time with my sweet friends and family!

If you happen to see me, anytime, don't be afraid to ask me questions about my year, because I would love to tell you about it! I'm going to challenge myself to answer all questions and not try to get out of any by saying "I don't know" because I'm working on voicing my opinion and being vulnerable. So, please, help me with this challenge of helping me grow as a person and ask! (:

2 weeks.

I officially have 2 weeks left of my Mission Year.

With at being said, I need your help to get me to my goal to raise $12,000!

Please please please help me out by donating to my Mission Year account!

www.missionyear.org/donate (designation = Emily Nichols)

ANY amount helps me!!!

I don't even know how to begin to explain everything about the past 11 months. Some words I think of when I think of my experience in Mission Year are: encouraging, hard, fun, learning, challenging, exciting, slow, fast, tough, lovely...I'm sure I could go on forever. So, to sum it up, I've learned a lot being in Philadelphia for the past year. I've learned that the Lord will always protect me. I've learned that God is my strength. I've learned that I can't live this life without fully depending on God. I've learned how to be venerable. I've learned how much I have grown as a person. I've learned how much I've grown with the Lord and also how much more I can grow! And again, I could go on forever, but the point is that I've learned a lot here. I'm so thankful and grateful to have had this amazing experience. I couldn't have spent the last year with any more awesome people! My roommates/housemates made this year amazing!

I am really excited to go home to Michigan! I'm excited to start new things to Spring Arbor University! I'm excited to see all my friends and family again! Although I only have 1 month from the time I get home until I leave for college, it is still going to be amazing! I'm aware that I will get asked a lot of questions about my Mission Year that I might not be ready to answer, but I am excited to share what God has been doing in my life! I'm also excited to see how God is working in the lives of all my friends at home!

I wrote a blog about being fearless at the start of Mission Year around October. I can tell you that I've come a long way since then. I used to tremble at the thought of ever leaving the building I live in or even talking to the girls who came to bible study at Teen Haven. I used to hate the thought of walking to the mailbox down the street by myself and the thought of ever riding SEPTA (public transportation) alone. When I think back about how scared I was about everything, I realize how far God has brought me. I also mentioned in another blog that I talked in front of the middle school youth group at my church back home. Before I couldn't imagine myself doing that for the sake of being scared. I think I've come along way since August and it feels really awesome!

Please pray that these last 2 weeks are eye opening and that I continue to grow with God! Also, keep it in your prayers that I continue to grow in what I've had during Mission Year with God and myself. He has brought me so far!