All these years, I never knew how blessed I was to call her my younger sister. Her name is Jaizel. She’s 25 years old, currently a college student, and working hard towards a vision that God has placed in her heart, which is to be an Optometrist. God spoke to her and said He would use her mightily not only in bettering people’s vision physically, but also spiritually.
For those who personally know us, Jaizel and I are complete opposites. She is more quiet, reserved, soft-spoken, a deep thinker, an observant, tech savvy, hands-on, and someone who usually works behind the scenes. I on the other hand am the total opposite! I’m a people person, an extrovert, an open-book, a chatterbox, a communicator, an extreme feeler, and a goofball. I must admit that we never got along growing up. We fought every single day during our childhood and teenage years, but it wasn’t until I moved to NYC that we got closer to each other.
It wasn’t until recently that God also revealed to me that He gave us different strengths for a special purpose. Just like how the body of Christ is made up of different parts and we all play a specific function in the body (1 Corinthians 12:12-27), I realized that Jaizel and I were given different spiritual gifts to learn from one another, help each other grow, and most importantly, build God’s Kingdom together. We’re not here to tear each other down, compare our differences, envy one another, or get jealous. We are here to build each other up, challenge one another to learn, and work together to bring God all the glory. In fact, it’s such a blessing that her strengths are my weaknesses and vice versa. We realized that we balance each other out and God specifically created us this way! 🙂
As we are now both walking this journey with God, I am extremely grateful that I am learning so much from her. Her fire and hunger for Jesus encourages me even more with my preparation for my missionary work. Her consistency and intentionality of studying the Word every morning and night pushes me harder to stay focused and stay intimate with God. Last month, I had the opportunity to witness her get baptized at my home church as an act of prompt obedience to the Holy Spirit. Since then, her flames have been burning hot and I am sooo excited for what God has in store for her life!
(Feeding the homeless with CityTeam SF alongside my sister, brother, and cousin – Sept 9, 2017)
Jaizel, thank you for teaching me what SERVANT LEADERSHIP looks like. Thank you for teaching me that being a leader doesn’t have to mean being on stage or having the spotlight. You’re showing me what true humility looks like and that is to serve others the way Jesus did, putting others first before yourself even if nobody is noticing what you’re doing behind the scenes. Thank you for taking on tasks that may not be visible to other people’s eyes. Your actions truly speak louder than words and your act of obedience evidently comes from the pure kindness of your heart. Thank you for allowing me to witness your spiritual growth and I am blessed that I get to partake on this journey with you. I admire your Christ-like qualities when it comes to servanthood and I know you were born to be a leader! I am thankful, I am grateful, and I am extremely blessed!
God, you’re sooo amazing! I thank you for being so faithful to my family and I. Thank you for allowing us to get to know you more every single day. Thank you for not giving up on us even when we had our backs turned.Thank you for the bond that we have, which will only get stronger as we walk this thing out with you. Thank you for letting us see you clearly and thank you for letting us live out the very purpose you have for our lives!
(Disneyland with the whole family – Dec 2015)
