Texas, here I come…

It’s 10:00pm in Seattle and I am sitting in the middle of my room looking at all the stuff that needs to either get packed or left behind & the massive pile of laundry that needs to get done before.

This week I’ve been blessed to have had the time to spend with my family and some close friends. My thoughtful dad even took the time off work this week to be my personal assistant to help me prepare for Mission Year. With his help, I’ve remembered A LOT of things that needed to get settled before heading to Houston (student loan/deferment paperwork, paying off credit card bills from school, and getting the necessary items for a hot/humid place like Houston!), and I am so grateful! Despite all my fears of moving away from home, my friends, and my community I have peace deep down about getting on the plane and starting Mission Year.

Whenever I do something that I feel God is calling me to do, I always feel the support and love from the right people to motivate me to run towards that calling and always finishing strong. A long time ago, I once told a friend that in our lives if we feel that God is urging us to do something, God will bring peace into our hearts and those that we need support form. I remember praying back in February that God would bring peace about Mission Year especially to my parents – or it wouldn't be something that I wouldn’t commit to. Regardless of where I was to be placed, what service organization I was going to serve with, what church community I was going to join - I just wanted and was so desperate for a year to be mentored and discipled into a better me. All the way through, my family (that includes all my friends) asked questions and encouraged me to follow the path that God has clearly paved for me.

So here I am, overjoyed & grateful by your support as I take these steps forward. thank YOU thank YOU thank YOU!

So, about these 11 months...

Well, for the next 11 months I hope to learn more about what it means to live in a community. My number one goal is to live a productive life every day that I am in Houston. I pray that being more like Jesus is my priority so that I may build the habit towards living the rest of my life serving God in a radical way.

I want to be a radical disciple of Jesus Christ. I know this statement is bold, but to me it means that I want to be deeply rooted in the ways of God so I may learn how to better  serve, love, and communicate to everyday people that I meet – so that they may (hopefully) feel the love of Christ radiate out of me.

What about you? You don’t have to move to Houston, Texas in order to love and serve your neighbors. In your home, workplace, church, and community there is always something that you can do to live holistically. What I hope is that you will join me & take up the challenge in discovering the life that Christ calls us to live daily.

Are you up for it?

"Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way" (James 1:2-4 MSG)