Over the past couple of months, I have spent a lot of time reflecting on the Lord’s hand in my life, especially in the time before I was a Christian. I am amazed how when I was not pursuing Him, seeking to know Him, or serve Him; He was pursuing me and working in my heart. In this time of reflection, I realized the Lord started to give me a heart for missions at the age of seventeen. At seventeen, I wanted to join the Peace Corps or go to the “mission field” and do humanitarian work. Later, that desire turned into wanting to use the Elementary Education degree, that I was planning on getting, to teach English overseas. Fast forward a few years, I came to know Jesus as my Lord and Savior, this was the first semester of my Senior year of college. That year I would graduate with a degree in Elementary Education and Mild Intervention. I would go on to teach a fourth and fifth grade split classroom for two years.
In my second year of teaching, I was presented with the opportunity to go on my first short-term mission trip. In the Summer of 2017, I served on a team that went to Banská Bystrica, Slovakia to serve with Josiah Venture at a Fusion Camp that offered sports, music, and English. I taught an English workshop, built relationships with local Slovak teens, and shared Jesus with these teens. I fell in love with these people and with missions. In the Summer of 2018, I was a co-leader for a team that went back to Banská Bystrica, Slovakia to serve at a Fusion Camp. Again, I taught an English workshop, built relationships, and shared Jesus. These experiences were amazing, the Lord used me for His glory and He taught me so many things about His goodness, faithfulness, and unending love.
After serving the past two years on short-term teams and taking steps toward a future calling the Lord has for me, I thought I would be in the United States in the year of 2019. My plans are different than the Lord’s plan and praise Him for that! This September, I will join other individuals to serve on a team that will be traveling to Poland. On this trip, the team will be serving the Miller Family, who are currently serving in Poland with Josiah Venture. This trip will be an English Language Arts Camp for the Miller Children. The Lord put a heaviness on my heart for this trip and a desire to serve Him in this way. This trip is an opportunity to use the gifts the Lord has given me for His glory and to serve and love on the Miller Family. I am excited to see what the Lord does in the lives of all involved in this trip and how He will glorify Himself through it. Already, I can see His mighty hand in this trip.
God placed a calling in my selfish seventeen-year-old heart. Today, I am humbled and thankful that He would transform my heart and allow me to serve Him through this calling.