So here it is…. The time where I get to tell my family, friends, loved ones, and complete strangers my entire crazy life up to this point. How and why I’m going to Thailand and Cambodia with people who I have never met in my life. How I am who I am. How I can manage to eat almost 17 Texas Roadhouse rolls before my meal even comes out!
I’ll tell y’all straight up: the answer is God.
Let me start from the beginning. My testimony. I have grown up in church all my life. I started out going to a Church of God with both my parents. However, when my parents split up when I was around 6 years old, my dad, sister, and I were out of church for a short while. We eventually started going to our current church that my aunt pointed out to us. So I grew up at this church, First Free Will Baptist Church, lived with my dad, and visited my mom every other weekend. Both parents, over time, had remarried. My mom had my little brother, Wyatt, and my dad and stepmom had gotten a dog. Life was all that and a bag of chips. Ninth grade, however, was when life started to change for me (no I do not mean in that way.)
First, I must preface that up until this point in my life, church was just a “place” to me. A place to go to every Sunday and occasionally on Wednesdays to learn about this guy who died for me in my place. Pretty cool and all, but I was so far off from living how I should’ve been. Since I was in the 5th grade, I was going to this small, private school. In the 9th grade, my school to about a week long trip, a spiritual retreat if you will, to a camp called Harvest Time. Now going to this camp did not get me saved, but it did help with it. During our time at Harvest Time, we were not allowed to have our phones on us. Shocking, right? So when I got home my phone blew up with notifications. One message I got was from my mom. A little sidenote, I love my mom. Like a lot. I’m her number one fan because she has and always will be mine. Anyways, my mom sends me a message, and my heart skipped a few beats. Her message said that her husband, Steve, had had a heart attack a few days ago. My mind didn’t know how to comprehend that. So, I’m an overthinker. Sometimes, being an overthinker sucks. So I was back at home, thinking of all the WORST possibilities that could happen. Mainly the unthinkable. I was thinking what’s going to happen to my mom because I know she wouldn’t be able to afford living on her own. I was thinking about what’s going to happen to my little brother, who was around 3 or 4 at the time. All these thoughts were going through my head, and I started to break down crying. I had no idea what to do, but I had a crazy idea. I knelt by my bedside and prayed for the first time in I don’t know how long. I wasn’t very good at it, but I laid it all out there. And, a few seconds after I said “Amen,” I got another text from my mom saying that Steve was going to be all right and will be home in a few days.
I was so overwhelmed with joy that I started to cry my eyes out again. I, again, knelt by my bedside and gave my life to God. Little did I know, that decision would lead me down a road that I had no idea what would have for me. A road that led me to many strong relationships with others, some that I call my best friends to this day. A road that led me to driving with the windows rolled down, screaming Reckless Love at the top of my lungs (great song by the way!) And a road that apparently is leading me to Thailand and Cambodia this summer for 2 whole months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Speaking of, let’s talk about why I’m going out of the country to teach some Jesus to people shall we? Okay, so y’all need to know that I have had a heart for missions ever since I went on my very first missions trip with my church back in 2014. We went to Buffalo, New York to help with one of our missionary partners. Since then, I have been to Atlanta, Chicago, and Honduras. My life changed EXPONENTIALLY after each of these trips. My love for missions grew, which lead me to be going to Thailand and Cambodia. I also want to point out that I grew up in a church that is HEAVILY involved in the ministry of students and kids. It’s seriously inspiring to see how much love my church has for the next generations. So being in a church like this, I kind of adopted the love that they have and I am now pouring it out into the next generation. Every ounce of love I have for kids, I owe to God (of course) and my church. They taught me what it means to bend over backwards for kids. So, to make a long story short, the reason I chose Thailand and Cambodia is because of the abundance of work that my team and I will be doing with the youth ministry. When I was applying for a trip, I couldn’t shake the feeling that those kids needed someone like me over there. I have yet to understand why they would need me, but I have learned that God does NOT make mistakes with these kinds of things.
So I know it’s early in the year, and I still have about 4-5 months until I fly out of the country, but please be in prayer for the following things. First things first would be for the people in these two countries. Pray that they may be open to us. Open to what we have to offer, and what we have to say. Pray that their lives may be changed from all that my team does over there. Secondly, be in prayer for my team. We all need it. Not just for our financial goals, but for encouragement. Two months is going to be a long time away from our homes and loved ones, but it will fly by, even if we don’t realize it. Pray that our own lives will be changed from all of this, and that we may leave an impact on Thailand and Cambodia that can only be accomplished through Christ. And thirdly, be in prayer for myself. Pray that I may have no doubts as to why I’m there. Pray that God may give me strength when I need it, and I need a lot of it right now haha.
Thank you for taking the time to read this lengthy first blog, and thank you for all the prayers that you all will send my way. It truly means so much to be surrounded by people who love me and love God even more. So thank you from the bottom of my heart. Throughout the time leading up to my trip, I will be posting more blogs about how I’m feeling and what I’m going through. So be on the lookout! God bless each and every one of you!
Oh yea, and the reason I can eat about 17 Texas Roadhouse rolls before my meal is just a God given talent. No other reason than that.
