Hi! My name is Taryl Rae Crabtree. I am 22 years old, and I live in Los Angeles, California.
I grew up in Southern California with my parents and two older brothers. They are an amazing support system and I’ll miss them a ton next year, but it is an incredible blessing to have their encouragement as I get ready to leave in September for World Race.
(My brothers and I enjoying the California sun:)
I am currently a senior at UCLA majoring in Communication Studies and double minoring in Political Science and Public Affairs. As I get ready to graduate this June, it’s amazing to look back on the past four years and reflect on how much the Lord has grown me in my time here.
I have been incredibly blessed with a Christian community on campus called Cru. The men and women in our movement have shown me so much about what it means to genuinely care about and serve other people. Together we have learned what the Lord can do when we are willing to step out and into the lives of others. Two years ago I went to Japan with a team of students to share the Gospel on college campuses. I could share so many stories with you about experiences and conversations I had with people in Tokyo, but one of the most important lessons I learned was spoken in encouragement by one of our team leaders: “There are always opportunities to share the Gospel and how the Lord is working in your life, but you have to be actively looking for those moments. The Lord provides opportunities. Be bold.”
For nine months, I will have the opportunity to focus on looking for these moments, and serving the people in each of the three communities I will be living in for three months. I will be travelling to Central America, Africa, and Southeast Asia with a team of students between the ages of 18 to 22 sharing the Gospel and ministering to local communities. I invite you to join my team and I in prayer as we ask for encouragement and fearless hearts. Pray that we would be bold—for we are most certainly willing. Willing to be uncomfortable, humbled, and sent halfway across the world with nothing but a forty-pound backpack and a desire to serve the Lord and the people we come across.
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ” –Colossians 4:2-3
Your prayers are an incredible encouragement and I can’t wait to share more of what I am learning in the months to come as the Lord sends me on this incredible adventure.
God Bless,
Taryl
(Our team in Tokyo)
(My lovely roommates!)
(My Bible study. Love them!)
(My amazing friends in the Cru senior class at UCLA)
And last but not least…
(My roommate and I shopping for our World Race gear!!)
