I am the only daughter of my wonderful engineer parents, and was raised in Springboro, Ohio, a suburb south of Dayton. I had a wonderful childhood; I loved to read, spend time with my grandma, and play with dolls. I got to travel often and was fascinated by the world at large from an early age. On my street growing up, it was safe to ride your bike, and all the neighborhood kids played capture the flag and super soaker wars all summer long.
I always believed in God, and that He had a Son, Jesus, who died for our sins. We didn't really go to church that often, but my grandma taught me the basics. But I didn't really understand Who Jesus was, know what He said, or understand why He needed to die for our sins. I did not know He meant it when He said "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it" (Matt. 16:24-25). (Confession time: I still forget He really meant that when He said it.)
The game-changer was a Bible study in high school, led by a Young Life leader. I was invited by a friend, and I started going regularly as a junior in high school. I was amazed by my leader and the girls in the group from my school. They were so genuine; they had real emotion they shared, even if it wasn't what you were supposed to feel. They sacrificed for others like no other teenagers I met, and their lives revolved around doing everything they could to show love to their classmates. They didn't often make excuses for themselves, but owned up to their mistakes and failures. And they did not view schoolwork and ambition in the same esteem I did, but made priorities of things like reading the Bible, praying, and just having intimate personal time with God. For the first time, I saw a faith in Jesus that actually lived and breathed. Jesus came off the page for me – I realized He is a LIVING God, moving and speaking still today, and He empowers His followers with new life.
That new life began in me. The changes, feelings, and voice of the Spirit were slow and quiet at first. Over the years, though, they've grown larger, fuller, deeper, and more vibrant with every step of obedience to God, with every trial, with every grace. God has chosen to completely fill my life with His love, grace, acceptance, significance, and abundance. As Jesus says, "I have come that you may life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10), and it's true. The only way I can describe a life lived in surrender to Jesus is of resonant fullness (resonance, like a lingering note from an orchestra, meaning "richness or significance, especially in evoking a strong emotion", and fullness meaning "complete in every particular"). I would not chose any other life.
After I graduated from Springboro in 2008, I went off to The Ohio State University (Go Bucks!) where I led Young Life at Jonathan Alder High School, a para-church ministry for high-schoolers. Although I started off studying Biomedical Science, I changed my major to International Development Studies my Sophomore year. This was a big decision for me, and something I believe God called me to do. Through this major, I learned so much about my passion – international poverty – and developed a love for economics as well. I also added a Business Logistics major before I gradated in 2012.
My last year of college, I knew I was called to stay in Columbus for the time being and work full time, so I accepted a great supply chain/procurement job with a Fortune 500 company in Columbus. In this position, I learned so much about myself, God, and business. I had an amazing experience but knew a corporate position wasn't going to be a permanent life for me. In Jan/Feb of this year, God very clearly called me to mission work in 2014, and that is why I am going on the World Race!
There is lots more to this story, so just ask if something piques your interest!
