Call to missions
My call to missions was never one big moment or dramatic revelation. I can't tell you the exact day it started or when I first felt called.
What I do know is that whenever missionaries came to my church growing up and shared stories about what God was doing around the world, I would always cry. I had so much compassion for people and a deep ache knowing that there were places where people had so little. It opened my eyes to how blessed we are in America and to the incredible needs around the world. I saw the need, but I never imagined I would be the one going. Honestly, no one else did either.
As I got older, I knew one thing for certain: I didn't want to live the typical 9-to-5 life. I also had no desire to go to college. Everyone kept telling me, "You'll never regret getting more education," but I didn’t want to waste time. I wanted to pursue missions right when I got out of high school. I honestly didn’t feel lead to go to collage either. It simply wasn't the path God called for me. Yet at least…
I didn't care about the typical college experience. What I wanted was to see the world to experience different cultures, meet people from every background, and live a life that was bigger than what I had always known. I wanted to go. I didn't want to spend my life doing the same thing every day. There was something inside of me that longed for more.
During my sophomore year of high school, I learned about YWAM. It sounded incredible to spend time learning about God, growing deeper in my relationship with Him, being discipled, and then being sent to serve the nations. What an opportunity!
As I prayed about it, I felt like that was where the Lord was leading me. Then I thought, Why wait two more years?
The decision wasn't easy. I loved my friends, and I didn't want to miss my senior year with them. They didn't want me to leave early either. That was the biggest thing holding me back. But I knew I couldn't let comfort keep me from obedience.
So, I went to my principal with a plan to graduate an entire year early so I could pursue what I believed God was calling me to. He approved it!!
I combined my junior and senior years into one. It wasn't what I had always pictured for high school, but looking back, it became one of the best years of my life.
Even then, I still didn't have a dramatic calling experience. I simply had a growing desire to see people know Jesus. I wanted to see lives changed. I wanted people to be saved.
So I gave God my "yes."
I never had a burning bush moment or an audible call. I simply read what Scripture says to go and make disciples, to love people, and to proclaim the gospel. I decided I wanted my life to reflect that. Sometimes God's calling isn't found in one extraordinary moment. Sometimes it's found in an ordinary heart that's simply willing to say, "Yes, Lord."
“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
