Their story is my story

The first story I ever wrote was about a teacher who was so sick that something as simple as a spray of perfume could kill her.

I was a senior in high school and had no idea what I wanted to do
with my life. As my teacher read it, she asked me if I’d ever written
anything before. I told her I hadn’t. She said I was a good writer.

I had no idea that with those words, the dream God had for my life was being born.

Ever since then I’ve been telling stories through my writing.

My first story as a professional writer was about a robbery. It
wasn’t my greatest piece of work. But from that point on, I met all
kinds of people and shared their stories. I met students, teachers,
doctors, patients, athletes, coaches, politicians, voters, immigrants,
people who were anti-immigrant, experts, and the common man.

But no story ever captured my heart as those of people whose voices were not being heard.

The story of the child whose parents had abandoned him, or the child
who’d been sexually abused. Or the stories of the women living at a battered
women’s shelter. Or the one about the man who was killed by a train and
was buried as an unknown immigrant from Mexico.

Or the one about the orphan girl in Tanzania who didn’t have a birthday.

These are all people who – to the world – are unknown, nameless, faceless.

But they’re all people who – to the Creator of the world – are loved, known, priceless.

My dream is that one day all of these voices will be heard. And I’ve
been called to make these voices heard wherever I may go – to share with
the world that people who are in pain, who are suffering, who are
different are just as worthy of love and acceptance as anyone else.

I’m living out my dream. Right here. Right now.

I’ve never been a part of something as big as Adventures in Missions,
the organization that has sent tens of thousands of people to fight on
behalf of the voiceless. It’s exciting and scary at the same time – to
have been called here at this point in time. It’s challenging yet
rewarding. Overwhelming yet peaceful- to know that I’m exactly where I
should be.

A dream was birthed in my life more than 10 years ago. But it wasn’t
mine. It was God’s. And now he’s letting me live it out wherever I set
foot.

I’m humbled. I’m honored.

And because of it, I know that I am loved.