When I was little I dreamed of being a million different things when I grew up. A Vet, Sports Medicine Physician, Firefighter, Professional Soccer Player, Teacher, Farmer and so much more. I wanted to do something with my life that would make people remember me. How could people love me if they wouldn’t remember me when I was gone? This was my stance towards the beginning of my testimony, but thankfully the lord saved me from a self-pleasing idol that was within my own heart.
By my junior year of high school, I knew what college I wanted to attend, The College At Southeastern. I had visited their campus that spring and fell in love with it the moment I got there. I walked around campus, took a class, met the community, and knew this was where the lord wanted me. I love Southeastern because of its mission statement, to train and equip students to go, this is where I first fell in love with the idea of missions.
It wasn't too long into the summer that I went on my first mission trip to Chattanooga Tennessee with my youth group. There in Tennessee, I got to work with a team to help rebuild this lady's house. It was work by day and worship with each other by night, it was one of the most joyful things I experienced. I love missions because I love serving people. It excites me to see their joy from a work that was only possible from a higher being. You witness the miracles of God working and the hearts of his people turning towards him, it's the greatest medicine for the soul you could ever receive. Along with that trip, throughout the summer I had a certain intrest do a study on different religions, I wouldn’t see the benefit of that until the next year to come.
After summer was up I started my senior year of high school and my college applications, to your surprise I only submitted one, to Southeastern. I was so joyous when I received my acceptance letter, this was where the lord wanted me to be next year!
Or so I thought. In the spring of my senior year of high school I was intrigued by a new partnership that had been made with my college, A ministry called Salt Next Gen Ministries had just offered up a Gap-year opportunity in exchange for college credit. The program was offering 4 months of missions training in the fall followed by 4 months of hands-on missions work overseas in the spring. I knew I wasn’t going to do it, I had my future set, Go to college, potentially get married, and start my life near home, but God had other plans. A small interest turned into deeper research, to an optimistic phone call, to the acceptance into their program, and my plans put on the back burner. To be completely honest I didn’t want to go. My flesh was clinging onto things for me back at home, but my spirit was holding onto what God wanted me to do. That's how I knew I was making the right decision to go.
So in the fall of 2023, I packed up and moved to Nashville Tennessee where God truly moved in my heart and the lives of his people. I started my training in Cross-Cultural missions which ironically the lord prepared for me the summer before! I started getting involved with multiple different ethnic ministries where I got to personally build relationships among the nations. I met and grew with an amazing team and made friendships for life with 7 other students. I got to teach a girl English every week where I developed a close relationship with her and her family. I was introduced to a love for teaching English to foreign students and was moved to get my teaching certificate for the future chapters of my life.
I believe That Nashville Tennessee is where the Lord moved most in my heart to a calling of working among the nations. We begin our overseas deployment to France in February 2024, Where we will be working with North African Refugees and local university French students. The Lord has moved me to continue my education at The College At Southeastern in the fall to get a BS in Global ministry where I may be equipped to further the Lord's calling on my life. For now, we are in preparation for France. I look forward to posting more about our time there but in the meantime, you can be praying for our teams in Spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical preparations before our deployments overseas to France, Turkey, and Egypt. Thank you so much for reading about my journey to missions, and how the lord has fulfilled the Great Commission through this testimonial.
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