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If you asked me when I was younger what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would say something like a Photographer for National Geographic, something that would allow me to travel and document the world. When I was younger I wanted to be able to see the world & all the different cultures. I wasn't a Christian when I was younger so I never thought about the "calling" God had on my life. I had passions inside of me but never had a understanding why. My whole life I've seen the beauty in people and the world around me. For example, I love the way the sun hits the water during a sunset. It makes the more beautiful orange sherbet color. It wasn't until I found God that I realized many passions and heart for the world comes from God.

When I became a Christian, I was a messy emotional 16 year old trying to find her purpose in the world. I didn't really know what my purpose or calling was. My main desire was to learn more about God and have a relationship with him, to serve him and seek him out daily. I didn't know everything and I still made mistakes. During this time a new friend of my encouraged me to read a book called Kisses from Katie, a book about a young girl who starts a ministry in Uganda. The book impacted my life in a way I hadn't expected it too. I continued reading books about missions, and my heart so deeply wanted to go on one as I continued reading of what God would do through the hands of people and the lives that were changed.

By my senior year, I was attending church every week and learning more about God. An announcement happened during our winter retreat about a missions trip in the spring. My heart desired to go so bad but I feared my mom would say no. I began to pray about this trip. In the mean time I wrote a letter to my mom about my heart for the trip, reasons I wanted to go and how much it meant to me. My mom said yes and I began filling out the pamphlet while my mom still sat with nerves and anxiety if it was a good idea.

That Spring, I went on my first missions trip with my youth group. It was to Kosice, Slovakia. The trip gave me opportunities to share my faith, build relationships and help the local church. I grew a lot during the trip, learning to step out in faith, share my testimony and connect with kids my age about God. I graduated that spring and gave the next two years to a discipleship program at my church called Eikon. Through those next few years I was given the opportunity to serve again in Slovakia as well as Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Jogjakarta, Indonesia for a semester. Aside from over seas trips, I was able to do ministry for my local church, I worked with underprivileged kids in our community, and helped at the local nursing home. This whole time not really paying attention to my "calling" but falling in love with God and ministry.

The last semester of the discipleship program was when I spent a semester doing ministry to college students in Indonesia. I spent each week teaching english, as well as leading a college group and just making friends. I absolutely loved it. I wasn't raised in a christian home so I didn't understand everything about ministry, but I loved what I was doing. I learned how to trust God, how to minister cross culturally, and how to be a servant. Coming home that summer, I prayed and asked God what he had for me. I had to finish college and I didn't know where. I saw there was a Christian Ministry major at Biola when college searching, and I felt a tug. I began to pray about it, and from prayer and spiritual leaders I felt that was what God was calling me to pursue. Looking back, I never thought I would be sitting here at a Christian College pursuing a Ministry degree, but I love it and can't wait to see where I go. I have a heart for the local church, youth and the unreached all around the world.