I guess I can begin by saying that I never, ever imagined that I would be doing something like the world race. & I dont really know how else to explain how i was called to the missions field except by telling my whole life story…which i guess should probably go under my bio section? but i mean, they just overlap so much. haha. sooo…i’ll try to keep it short?
I grew up in a Christian home & going to church was the norm, so I started learning about Jesus at a really young age. When I was going into 4th grade I went to a great summer camp that our church runs called Camp Carl. God used it in my life in ways I never could have imagined. I ended up going to that camp every summer until I was 16, and every summer God worked in my heart, drawing it to Him a little bit more. I remember loving camp because everyone there loved Jesus. Every summer, I had the opportunity to spend a whole week looking up to a college-aged counselor who LOVED the Lord and I wanted to be like them more than anything. When I would leave camp, I would be loving the Lord, but then school would start and real life would fade in and I would leave all of that in the summer.
After my sophomore year of high school, the year all of this happened, I switched from my high school to a Christian school called CVCA. A lot of friends I had made at church went there & after shadowing them, I wanted to be there more than anything. The relationships there were completely different than anything I was used to, and God used it to build a strong foundation in me. I loved those 2 years of school. I learned so much about God and grew so much in my relationship with him.
The summer before my junior year of high school I went on a month long missions trip with Adventures in Missions to Philly. It was a rough time for me. It was the first time I had ever been away from home for longer than a week and I was completely out of my comfort zone. I honestly didnt think i was going to make it through the whole month! Somehow I did and God did a lot in me, changing my desires and preparing me for what he was going to do. Through the trip God turned my heart towards working with innercity kids, which led me to choose a major in early childhood education.
My junior year I studied abroad in Australia, which is where God gave me a heart for all things international. I went by myself, because for some reason I had this crazy burning desire in my heart to go to Australia. I remember people would ask me, “why Australia?” and I honestly would just be like, “I don’t know? I just really want to go there.” I thought about it for a while and initially decided against it. And then one day, insanely impulsively, i knew i had to go, so i applied, and a few months later i was there. (i think I make all of my best decisions impulsively). God did so much in my life there that if i were to type it all out on here it would probably take hours to read. While i was there he revealed to me this adventurous, free-spirited side of myself i never knew i had. I did things I NEVER thought I would, such as sky diving, backpacking of sorts, and surfing. Also, through the amazing friends I met there, He gave me a greater understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit in my life.
And of course, once I went to Australia, I couldn’t stop traveling.
Since all of this, God has given me desire upon desire to live an unconventional life. Last summer my best friend Chelsea and I decided that we wanted to spend a year after graduating overseas. We started off looking at teaching English and decided we wanted to do something in the missions field. We prayed about it a lot and here we are! I’m so thankful for her. If God hadn’t brought her into my life I don’t know if I would be preparing to go on the World Race. I feel like God has placed all these dreams and passions in my heart and he is just waiting to fulfill them. I can’t wait to see what’s coming next. 🙂
