How I Got Here

"What made you decide to go to Africa?"

I get that question quite often, so I'll start at the beginning.

Only I'm not sure where the beginning is.

Maybe it was on my first mission trip when a blue-eyed girl with no front teeth told me, "I'll never forget you, because you told me about Jesus."

Maybe it was going to El Salvador, experiencing how cross-cultural missions gets in your blood, and coming home with the song lyrics ringing in my ears, "Now that I have seen, I am responsible. Faith without deeds is dead."

But I'm pretty sure it started before that. When I was nine, my Sunday School teacher gave me a biography of missionary Hudson Taylor to read. Just me. As homework. Who does that?? But you see, that was right after I had given my life to Christ. God doesn't have to wait for us to grow up or mature before he starts working in our hearts. So I will never know what possessed my teacher to give me that book, but I do know that the Lord used that small seed to grow a love for missions.

That is not to say I knew in fourth grade that I was going to be a missionary. Actually, in high school and college when I was trying to figure my future and sensing the Lord's calling, I used a lot of "Moses excuses." Lord, you know I'm too shy. Not a good public speaker. Oh please pick someone else!

But the more I protested, the more I began to see that all he asked of me would be accomplished in His strength, not my own. By the time I had finished college, He had brought me to a place where I was able to say, “Here am I; send me!”

Over the next year I worked through the application process for the Journeyman program. During the process, I attended a conference where I prayed about the many opportunities available and accepted a position as a missionary to Zimbabwe.

I attended two months of stateside training in preparation for my mission assignment. It was a very special time filled with fellowship and valuable teachings that ranged from practical skills like cooking over a fire, to biblical doctrine and evangelism training. The most important lesson I learned during orientation that I have carried with me is the necessity of abiding in Christ and keeping in step with the Holy Spirit. Christ tells us, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

While at training, I learned that there was a possibility of a delay in getting a visa for Zimbabwe. In fact, two months after my training had ended, I still did not have visa approval. It was a difficult time of waiting and uncertainty of when I would be saying goodbye to family and friends. Finally, I was asked to serve temporarily in Botswana while my Zimbabwe visa was being processed. The Lord gave me an undeniable peace about going, so within a week I flew to Botswana!

Botswana proved to be very different from what I had learned about Zimbabwe.  The assignment also was very different: evangelism and discipleship on a university campus, whereas my assignment in Zimbabwe was to be a volunteer coordinator with a medical ministry. There were many days that I felt unprepared to step into this position, but the Lord proved so faithful by sending other girls to partner with me in ministry, helping me connect with many students and begin a Bible study, and giving me an awesome, supportive missionary family.

I went to Botswana viewing it as a temporary stop on my way to Zimbabwe, not really expecting to invest much there. How small my view of God was! I fell in love with the people there and it began to feel like home. So naturally, when I had been there for four months and found out that Zimbabwe had denied my work permit, I hoped and prayed that I would be able to spend the rest of my term in Botswana. The Lord had other plans, however.

At the beginning of June I was reassigned to Zambia to continue to do university ministry. That move brought so many mixed emotions: sadness to leave behind the ministry and relationships that had become so dear in Botswana, disappointment at being unable to enter Zimbabwe, and eagerness to see what the Lord had in store in Zambia. A friend expressed it well by saying “I am excited even when things don’t end up the way I expect, because it means that God is intervening.”

So many things have shown me that it was his plan for me to come to Zambia. Here I have a ministry partner, who is a dear friend from my training in the states. She also spent time in Botswana a year ago, and we learned about university ministry from the same supervisor! Having her has been such an encouragement and a confirmation of God’s plan.

Looking back on my journey over the past year, there have been many unexpected twists and turns. Some days I wonder if I had known all of them ahead of time, would I have chosen to follow? But God, in his infinite wisdom, has led me one step at a time, never giving me more than I could handle. I have experienced the truth of Isaiah 30:21, which says “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’ “ My prayer is that you will experience his faithfulness as well, wherever he takes you in life.