Introduction:
Hello, everyone my name is Marguerite San Martino but most call me Margee. I am a senior at Woodinville high School which is about 30 minutes out of Seattle, Washington. I have grown up in a Christian home as a PK (Pastor’s kid) and I am beyond blessed to have been placed by God into a family like my own. My family is everything to me, I am the 5th of 6 children so I am very used to chaos and noise. I love playing sports and being active especially playing volleyball. I played volleyball for five years but I decided to quit this fall in order to be an after school nanny and to have more time to focus on school. I absolutely adore children. We have home videos from way back when and one of the clips is of me as a toddler being way more excited with my sister’s baby doll than with my baby toys… I have literally loved babies and children since I was born. I nanny four days a week for the best family in the world. They have three adorable boys; Moritz (10), Oscar (8) and Leo (6). We have so much fun playing in the woods, wrestling and playing Lego. I also attend my youth group every Wednesday night for games, worship, sermon and small group time. I am so, so blessed to be a part of such an amazing youth group. Ever since we got back from our L.A. Missions trip last summer we have all been the best of friends which really changes the atmosphere of our group. Everyone is so welcoming and so inclusive. It really feels like a family.
HIGH SCHOOL… The Honest Truth:
Although, my life hasn’t always been rainbows and butterflies…high school has been very tough for me. Freshman year of high school I was very depressed and I did get better in some ways but in other ways I still felt numb and vacant in my life. I moved through the motions of life not really feeling super depressed but not really feeling alive. There were many moments of excitement and fun but in the end I was very sad, all the time. I know now that most of how I felt was from my diet. I am very allergic to dairy and sensitive to gluten, coffee and some types of sugar. Another reason was I would go through these dangerous spirals in my spiritual life. I would have this mountain high on youth retreats and be very close to God and in many ways this was such a special time of fellowship and learning more each time about God. But as soon as I got home I would conform to my old ways and slowly become distant from God and eventually hit these real valleys in my life where God was absent. Then, I would go to another youth retreat, coming in angry and lost. Then, by the next day my whole life had changed and I was feeling amazing because I was right next to God again. These cycles are very natural to anyone and by sharing what I was going through with my small group I quickly learned a couple of the other girls were going through the same exact thing.
My junior year of high school was the worst. I dabbled in the high school party scene. I gained many friends who had terrible influence on me and for the most part I was having the time of my life. Little did I know that underneath the fun of partying there is so much destruction going on. Spring came and over time I stopped doing good in school, I stopped caring and I stopped going to church. June of 2017 was the worst month of my life because everything caught up to me and I was so broken. I went on my family reunion and I remember so distinctly being so angry that anything would make my blood boil. I was so lost. I was so broken.
That’s the beauty of Jesus Christ our Savior. Right after my family reunion I went directly to my missions trip in Los Angeles. Within a day and a half my whole world changed. I reached out to God and he came and took all the weight I had been carrying. The rest of the week was bliss and I felt so free. Not only did God take away my pain and forgive me but he showed me where I was meant to be, on the mission field. I’ve never felt so right in what I was doing. When I was a little girl a missionary came to visit us and he gave a chocolate bar with the Alps on it. He pointed to those mountains then looked at me and said, “you’re going to be a missionary one day”. I’ve never forgotten that and to be honest it scared me because I didn’t want to be a missionary but again that’s the beauty of God’s plan for each and everyone of us. We go through these hardships and obstacles so we can be who God has called us to be. If I hadn’t have fallen so hard and experienced the things I have then I wouldn’t be the person I am today.
During our debrief after our L.A. Missions trip in front of our whole church I was talking and out of nowhere I said, “I could see myself doing what I did last week for the rest of my life…” and now here I am. It’s funny how the human brain works because I still, after all these signs from God, I didn’t know what I was going to do after high school. So, God made sure I did… I did something that has never happened before… I went on vacation with my parents BY MYSELF!!! None of my other siblings could come. In those five days in Forks, Washington my parents helped me realize that maybe college wasn’t next for me, maybe I should look at the possibility of going on a missions trip. Quick shout out to my amazing parents who are so supportive and helped me realize what God was trying to tell me most my life.
It is now January, 6 months after God fixed my brokenness and it’s crazy what has happened. The first couple of months were very, very hard. My grandfather died and to some that isn’t a very big deal but like I keep saying, family is my world, family is everything to me. My grandfather was a selfless man and I can’t wait to see him in heaven one day and play one-on-one basketball together. Then, I went through a very difficult time with my friends from school. I am a full time running start student which means I take college classes at our local college, Cascadia instead of being at high school everyday. As you can imagine that alone creates a huge hole with friends because when you’re not there everyday experiencing life with them you can very easily grow apart or not see each other for a long time. I was also having a hard time coming back to my life and leaving the party scene and everything and everyone that comes with it. But amongst all the tears of my fall God showed me that I have so many more friends I can turn too, all the people in my youth group (YG). Before my missions trip I was in a very small bubble when it came to who I talked to at YG. I didn’t necessarily realize I was doing this until I was looking back and seeing how exclusive I was. Building the relationships with the people in my YG has been crucial to God’s plan for me because again, without realizing it I began ministering to the kids in my YG. I hosted a Halloween party, Thanksgiving party and a Christmas party. These were precious times for our group to grow closer together and become friends. I am so thankful for these friends for getting me through my hard season and to help me see daily how great it is to have good friends who are also brothers and sisters in Christ. In the end, high school might have started bad but it will most definitely finish good.
Finding the World Race:
When I got back from from my trip to Forks with my parents I immediately started researching and everything I was finding was either 3 or 6 months long… In my head I was thinking, “Well, if I’m going to do a gap year missions trip may as well go all in and go for 9-12 months”. Then, I found the World Race which is a perfect 9 month long trip! When I broke the news to my dad his mouth hit the floor. He really wanted me to do a 6-month trip which is highly understandable but this trip felt so right. My dad and I investigated the whole website three or four times over to make sure it was a good fit for me and let me tell you it is! Just this past Wednesday night my small group leader and friend shared with our YG about how blessed we are. She talked about using the tools God has given us to help others and this is my way. I get the opportunity to travel to Cambodia, Ethiopia, Nicaragua and Costa Rica and share the Gospel with these people.
Matthew 28:19 “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Ways YOU can Join me on my Journey:
-
Pray. I will need prayer support for strength, wisdom, discernment, clarity, compassion, love, joy..
-
Donate through this blog!!! When you donate through here it goes directly to World Race and my fund of $15,800 but after all the costs of airfare, protection programs and gear it will be close to 19,000.
-
Cash and Check. Donating to me personally is still much needed because I have to buy all my gear, supplies, airfare and I will need money on the ground.
-
SPREAD THE WORD!! Tell everyone about my trip and show them my blog. I will be adding a Youtube Channel as well for all my vlogs (video logs) while I’m on the ground serving!
*My next blog will be up shortly with videos of me speaking about my trip in front of my church twice, overcoming fears and leaping outside my comfort zone!!! STAY TUNED!!!*
