Hi Everyone!!
So here are a few fun facts about me!
– I’m the oldest of 5 siblings!
– I’ve lived in Marietta GA my whole life!
– I did musical theater from 7th grade through my senior year of high school and I participated in over 30 shows!
– I’m a huge Disney nerd! (Favorite movie:3-way tie between Tangled, Mary Poppins & Toy Story!)
– I have a slight obsession with Pinterest (37,347 pins total at the moment)
– I also have a slight addiction to all things coffee; I’ll never turn down an iced caramel macchiato or a peppermint mocha!)
Some of my favorites include:
TV Shows: the Office, Friends, The Crown & Stranger Things
Foods: Any kind of pasta, chocolate chip ice cream, & dried pineapples
Music: Matthew West, Crowder, Sara Bareilles, & Pentatonix
I was raised in a Christian home and accepted Jesus as my Savior when I was 6. Growing up we moved around church homes fairly frequently and during my sophomore year of high school, we settled at our current church home, Mars Hill. During high school and freshman year of college, my faith took a backseat and I began to find my worth and find acceptance in the form of other things, like my friends, what people thought of me, my status on social media, etc.
The fall of my sophomore year I went on a mission trip with my church to the Dominican Republic, and it was life-changing! I’d always had a heart for missions and for travel but going on this trip really opened my eyes to what the Lord was calling me to do. It completely changed my life. That week was spent pouring into Jesus, listening harder to Him, and reaching out to people and telling them about the incredible grace & love that Jesus could give them. But when I came back, all the incredible things I had learned on that trip began to fall away and disappear. I fell back into my old habits and grew distant from the Lord again.
I continued to go back to the Dominican Republic for the next 2 years, and although each time I went I was stronger in my faith than before, when I came back I always found myself back where I started. Acknowledging Jesus, but not putting Him first in daily life, letting others things be my priorities. Before my final DR trip, in August 2016 I was baptized! That was a huge step in my faith and I really think it was a major turning point for me! (If you want to read more on my baptism story, click here !:)
I first was introduced to the idea of the World Race about two years ago when I found out my cousin was embarking on his own World Race. The thought of leaving home to go serve the Lord internationally was so exciting to me. I think it was then that the Lord presented the idea as a possibility that I could do it. Flash forward to Christmas 2017 where my whole extended family got together and was able to FaceTime my cousin. I remember talking to him through the tiny iPhone screen, the connection cutting in and out and it was so evident how in his element he was. You could tell he was having the time of his life. I distinctly remember the Lord saying to me “You should pursue this.”
Over the next couple of months, I prayed and prayed about it. I definitely felt a calling to go but I didn’t know exactly when. 11 months is a long long time to go and I wasn’t so sure if I’d be able to handle that. I prayed and asked God when the right time to go would be to do it now during school or to wait until after college graduation to go. I ultimately decided the best plan was to finish my degree, save up enough money on my own and then apply for the World Race.
Then about a couple of months ago, the World Race announced a new program, the “Semesters” program. Similar to the World Race except for its 3 months long. I remember reading through the information with happy tears streaming down my face. I heard God telling me “See. Did I not tell you I would provide for you?” God had been with me through my months of prayer and deliberation and I got an answer. I knew the 3-month program was right for me.
I’m so incredibly excited to embark on this journey. Jeremiah 29:11 says ” ‘For I know the plans I have for you’, declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.’ ” The Lord has a great plan for me and I can’t wait!
