Hello! Long time no blog! I wanted to take a minute to update my amazing supporters who have been encouraging me throughout this journey.
Adjusting to life back in the states so suddenly was no easy feat, but the Lord has been teaching me so much in this season of uncertainty and frustration, and my faith and trust has been more rooted in Him because the only thing I could cling to for a while was Jesus. I wrestled with the Lord a lot in the first few weeks of being home, asking questions like “why?” and “what now?” I felt like my purpose and identity had been stripped away when I couldn’t leave my house or be with my incredible community. I felt stuck.
My heart was longing to serve the Lord. I applied for jobs and tried to find a place to use my gifts for the Kingdom, but everything fell through and I found myself asking God daily to use me in this season. I had to remember that the Lord doesn’t love me based on how hard I work, but that He loves me because He’s chosen me, that I get to serve Him from an outpouring of the love he extends to me.
I was pretty frustrated when June came around. I had been home for about two months, and quite frankly felt weary and useless.
A couple of days later, my squad mentor who discipled my entire gap year squad sent an email about a world race semesters opportunity, which are 1-3 month mission opportunities with Adventures in Missions- the organization the World Race is under.
I instantly felt my heart quicken, and knew this opportunity was from the Lord. I put my name down and just a couple of hours later it was confirmed I was going to the Dells in Wisconsin for the month of July! Suddenly all the jobs I applied for that fell through made sense, and I could see the Lord’s hand throughout my whole season of being home. I had just been so caught up in what I was lacking that I was unable to see the beauty in my season of waiting.
I will be going to the Wisconsin Dells and serving with Bridgepoint Mission Center. They are a church on mission and want to see their community thrive- spiritually, emotionally, and physically. They provide training, programs, and activities designed to be a catalyst to help their community members get connected, equipped, and empowered to positively impact their own lives, community, and their world together. We will also be sure to take precautions with COVID-19 and will still be following local restrictions, complying with gathering size guidelines, taking our temperatures regularly, and wearing masks when necessary.
4,800 International University students from 56 countries travel to Wisconsin Dells each year to participate in a fourteen-week International program to staff the tourism boom. Currently, over 500 students from all over the world are delayed in the Dells until their countries reopen their borders, and my team will be building relationships with these students and have the opportunity to share the hopeful gospel with these students, many of which come from countries from the 10/40 window with little to no access to the gospel. Relationship building with these students may include bible studies, worship and prayer gatherings, talent nights, cookouts, and hanging out at Bella Goose Coffee Roastery.
My team will also be helping with the daily distribution of food that is dropped off each week at their local food pantry. Pre COVID-19, they were serving 70 families, and now they’re serving over 350 families a week. We will be praying for those families and sharing hope as we practically hand out food. We will also be serving their network of churches with any additional service projects they may need help with.
After waiting on the Lord and praying for Him to use me in this season, I am beyond excited to see how he is going to use my team in partnership with Bridgepoint. The Lord also gave me a huge passion on my gap year to hopefully one day serve in the 10/40 window long term, and Bella Goose Coffee also has a shop in Thailand that we worked with, and it was one of my favorite ministries, so to see His hand all over this opportunity reminds me of his faithfulness. No season is ever a waste in the Lord. He is so faithful, and has always been faithful, even when we can’t see it he’s working.
I will be serving in Wisconsin for the entire month of July, and then will be going to Texas A&M in the fall!! WHOOP!! I am super excited to see how the Lord is going to move in my time in college station where I will be majoring in International Studies in hopes of one day being able to serve overseas long term. Lord willing.
Thank you for taking the time to read this today and for supporting me throughout my entire journey, it’s crazy that it has almost been a year since I launched. I would love for you to partner with me in prayer over my team, bridgepoint mission center, the food distribution center, and the international students. Pray for us to walk in obedience, and that the Lord would bring divine appointments for His name to be glorified. I also need to raise $950 for living expenses for the month, so if you feel led to partner with me financially, you can donate through the link on this blog! If you would like to hear more about what the Lord did in my life during my gap year, and what he is doing now, I would love to meet for coffee before I leave for Wisconsin in July! Feel free to reach out and email me at [email protected] or just text me if you have my number! Thanks again for reading this and for supporting me, it means more than you know!
The Lord is faithful, and He is good.
Til next time,
Mallory sailer
