Have you ever thought to yourself, “I was MADE for this!”?
That moment came for me in a bar in Phuket, Thailand. Surrounded by girls who had been told so often their bodies were worth more than their hearts that they began to believe it, I sought to break through the lies and reveal to them the pure, honest love of the Father.
It came again hanging out in a closed country with some local Jesus-loving students who risked their lives and their freedom for their faith.
And again, as I held and loved on a precious baby in my arms, who would have otherwise been aborted if not for the courage of a brave mother and support of a caring ministry.
At around 8 or 9 years of age, I decided to be a veterinarian when I grew up because working as a zookeeper with elephants wasn’t a very practical or stable job.
Somewhere around 12, however, everything changed. (Although, my obsession with elephants is still going strong.)
It’s funny how God likes to work. At 12-years-old, I hated church, especially youth group. My parents wouldn’t let me skip church, though, so I ended up sitting in the main services with them.
It’s this exact point in my life when I was ready to walk away that God began to bestow upon me His heart for the world.
Because I attended the main service, I was there every time a missionary came through and spoke. Confession: this was the only time I paid attention to what was happening in service.
Every piece of myself felt electrified as I listened to their stories. I’d never felt it before, and didn’t quite understand what was happening then, but it was the Holy Spirit breaking my heart for missions.
This defining moment in my life is a large part of why I chose to go on the World Race after graduating college.
Since coming home from the World Race about six months ago, I’ve had some time to reflect and think about my 11 months overseas. I wish I could wrap up everything I experienced and learned in a short little blog for all of you, but there’s no way I could do that. But I can tell you this…
The greatest thing God instilled in me on the Race is that I am chosen.
Chosen for missions.
Before the Race, I knew I had a heart for missions, but the Race showed me this is more than just a desire of mine, it is a specific call to action from the God who chose me, pursued me, and wooed me into relationship with Him.
He’s chosen to use me and send me to the nations on His behalf. Missions is what I have been made for. I don’t always understand “why me”, but the pull to go is too strong for me to ignore.
God has blessed me immensely with a period of rest at home and time spent with my parents. But now, I believe it is time that I continue to pursue my calling of missions and ministry.
Specifically, this means that I will be moving to Georgia in September to take part of a program called Center for Global Action (CGA)!
CGA is an apprenticeship program run by Adventures in Missions, the organization behind the World Race. It is a second year program built on discipleship, community, activation, and calling for those who have gone on the World Race.
Another blog will be posted soon to explain further what I’ll be doing in CGA as well as how you can help me get there. Until then, feel free to check out the website for a peek at the program. http://www.adventures.org/GlobalAction/
