The Lord started growing my heart for missions when I was in middle school. I began to serve in the children's ministry and AWANA program at my church and discovered my heart for serving through that. During that time, I was also blessed with the opportunity to go on multiple short-term mission trips and serve the Lord in an orphanage in Haiti. Ever since then God has placed a desire in my heart for missions.
In high school, I was given opportunities to serve in my youth group and to even take on a leadership role. It was through these opportunities that I felt called to ministry of some sort.
During my senior year, I began to consider taking a year off, away from the hustle and bustle of Northern Virginia to serve the Lord in another country. I mean, when else would I have the ability to do this??
After prayerfully considering taking a gap year right then and there, I felt God telling me to wait. Not yet. Trusting in His perfect timing, I decided to finish my associate's degree at the local community college I was enrolled at (I only had one year left). During that whole year, I pursued the Lord as I researched gap year programs. It was a long process, and after many closed doors, I was feeling very discouraged. In the midst of my discouragement, my mom sent me the link for the Cru gap year. It was an overseas gap year program for recent high school graduates. I would train with a team and then travel with them to three different countries for a few months at a time. The whole gap year would be about 9 months long. It was exactly what I was looking for, and I quickly filled out the application. It was amazing to see the Lord's hand throughout the process. Jill Johnson, who was in charge of handling my application, had worked with and evangelized with some people from my home church, Reston Bible Church. It was really cool to connect with her and even though it was such a small detail, I could see the Lord's hand in it. He is a God of the big and small things.
I was so excited when I found out I was accepted, and even though I wasn't leaving for another 6 months, I started getting ready for the trip. I got to meet the rest of the girls on the team and was so excited to be able to do ministry with them. I also began raising the funds for my trip. I had done fundraising before, but never this much and I was absolutely amazed by how the Lord provided. In less than two months I was fully funded and ready to go. However our trip was missing a very important part, leaders. Mid-May, Cru informed us that the gap year would have to stay in Orlando and only take a few short term missions trips throughout the nine month period. I was devastated, but I knew the Lord was working. If he was closing the door to Cru, then I would continue to wait until He opened the right door for me. I began once again to look for missions options for my gap year. In Matthew 9:37b, Jesus says “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.' This was very apparent as I was overwhelmed with oppertunities. Through this time of seeking and waiting, the Lord was working, but not in the way I thought he was.
When everyone had lost hope of a Cru gap year happening, God was making a way, providing both the countries and the leaders. On July 1st we got the official email confirming that Cru was moving forward with an overseas gap year program. The new plan is to spend a month in Orlando for training, head to Thailand for three months, come home for Christmas, and then head to Croatia for three months. It is crazy to think that in less than 2 months I will be leaving my home and embarking on this crazy adventure. I have no idea what I will encounter, but I have complete faith that God will provide all that I need. He has brought me to this point and I have complete confidence that He will continue to work in and through me.
Proverbs 19:21
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
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