Hi friends! What a crazy first month of the new decade it has already been. At the beginning of this year I was able to share with everyone about my upcoming journey to Africa for the summer! First and foremost I wanted to thank everyone so much for their thoughts, prayers, and donations to my trip. Through this, I am constantly reminded everyday how many people I have in my corner intentionally praying for me and rooting for me. This is such a blessing, and so reassuring.This second semester has not been easy, with classes, my first chemistry course at UGA, being away from home, trying to balance my new schedule, fitting Africa prep into all of this, and being intentional with my relationship with Jesus. Spending time with him has been my only way to keep calm through it all. He continues to be a place of comfort for my heart in the midst of the craziness.
So, one thing I really wanted to share with y’all was how God got me to this point, and why Africa! If y’all know me pretty well you’ve heard me talk about the way that God has worked in my life and how He has used some not-so-fun situations for growth in my life. Just for a little background, I was big into soccer growing up and it was a huge part of who I was for a very long time. At 15, I had a career-ending injury that left me wandering. All I did was soccer, it was my life, I was lost as to what was next for me. I was angry with God. I frequently asked “Why me?”. I was really in disbelief about everything that had happened. I just knew that I was going to be back in a couple short years, and all would be right in the world again! I was determined to have this big comeback story that would inspire everyone and be the big shot again. Obviously, God had such a bigger and better plan. I truly believe that He brought me down to one one my lowest points not just to humble me, but also for me to realize that He is God, and I am not. My plans are nothing compared to His for my life, and this is something I need to remind myself everyday still!
So as for Africa, I always had a place in my heart for service. Without soccer I was able too dive deeper into my schoolwork and different leadership positions. These changes lit a spark for helping others, and making a difference. At the same time, I was becoming more involved in my church, and came across the opportunity to go on a mission trip to Belize. The trip was life-changing, and it brought me to recognize that maybe God has something different for my life. For whatever reason that I cannot remember, I had this deep longing to serve in Africa. I didn’t know how that would work for me, I just continued to pray about it, for some reason God just laid that on my heart. Throughout high school I continued serving in school, at church, and in Belize for a week in summers. God was preparing me. Then in my first semester of college I was looking to do the same as I did in high school. I was chatting with my friend, Matthew Morris, about a possibility of me serving with a program here at UGA in Zambia for ten days. Matt was super helpful, and just as a suggestion, he asked me to check out the semesters program for the world race.
Then, I found it. This trip to Swaziland and South Africa for the entire summer participating in orphan care and youth ministry. I was a little hesitant, but it just was exactly what I was looking for. So I applied, had an interview, and then I was going to Africa. Announcing it to everyone made it a little more real, but still even to this day it is so hard to believe. With this being something that I’ve wanted for so long, I am just so unbelievably blessed that God has picked me for something like this.
One thing that God has taught me throughout this is the importance of just waiting, and leaning into Him. We live in such a fast paced society, and we want it now, we want the change now, we want change for our lives because we are unhappy! But I’ve learned that God’s got us here for a reason, and it just takes seeking him to figure out why. He has us in these seasons for a reason.
