Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8

Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8

            Perhaps that’s where it all started. The call to Ethiopia is a faith journey that began long before I was recruited for this team. As I sit here now (2 months into this incredible experience) and look back over the past few years, I am amazed at how I can see God’s hand at work in my life. From the people that were placed in my life and others who were taken out of my life to each detail of each life season, God had intentionally designed each day. Through joys and struggles, He was/is drawing me to Him…preparing my heart…to seek Him…to follow Him.

            Reading mail, e-mails and facebook messages from friends and family back home has been such a wonderful source of encouragement and affirmation since I’ve been here. So many people have commended my act of obedience, saying that they could never have the courage to do this, or that they’ve never known anyone so bold. Courage and boldness are definitely not two strengths that I can boast in. Some of the very people who said those things are, in fact, the ones who have inspired me the most. I don’t think that being a ‘missionary’ necessarily means quitting your job and leaving your family to go to a third-world country. I think our mission is to love and serve wherever we are called to be…whether it is the small, mountain town of Dahlonega, Georgia or the large, beautiful country of Ethiopia…I don’t think there is really a difference. Since I’ve been here I can’t help but constantly think of (and continue to pray for) my friends who have taken giant leaps of faith way before me…to places that were uncomfortable and sometimes lonely…places where they were without the familiarity of friends and family… places where they were faced with their own insecurities and learned about the sufficiency of God’s amazing grace…places where they had no other hope than to depend on God alone. I am incredibly grateful for the influence of friends like Adrian Spencer Bland, Tara Huffman Santiago, Keylee Clemons Brown, Tyler Woodard Chambers, Kristy Caston, Christina Sabo and so many others who have done just that. These women have put their faith in God as they followed their husbands across the country (or world)…to love…to serve. Although our ‘missions’ may not be exactly the same, I believe our purpose for packing up and leaving ‘home’ is.

            I may be sitting in a different country as I type this, but being here doesn’t change who I am. I am still a little girl who continues to fall short daily and recognize my desperate need for grace. I am so thankful for all of the prayers and encouragement that come from home (it’s so hard to really emphasize just HOW thankful I am), but I need to remind you (and be reminded) that my meek efforts are not worthy of praise or adoration; instead, continue praying that I have ears to hear, eyes to see and a heart that is open to all God is teaching me.

Romans 5:1-11