Spreading Hope

It is so amazing to see the way that God is working to prepare me for my journey to the Middle East. Today I spoke at my church back in Poynette, WI as I am trying to build a team of support for my travels ahead, and WOW, God could not have been more present. As I was sitting in the pew waiting to go up in front of my church to speak, my nerves were calmed. Let's get this straight, I love public speaking! And when it is something I am passionate about, well then I love it even more. However, sharing my story to a large group of Christians, well you could say I was a little nervous. In a way my story feels like it is mine, but in reality I could not be further from wrong. My story isn't mine, it's God's. He is the one who continues to write the path for my life. He is the one who wrote my story. The sermon could not have coinsided more with what I was about to say. It's as myself and Pastor Ryan had planned out what he was going to talk about. But we didn't. Again God was working in amazing ways to inspire the people in church that day to "wake up," to go out and share the hope that they have, the story of our Savior. And as I was sitting in the pew, ready to stand up before my congragation, God's presence surrounded me. He was there, calming my nerves, giving me strength to go up and share. To inspire. To touch the lives of others, with His story. To raise support. His presence gave me the strength. It wasn't me, it was Him.

Below I have a typed version of what I said in church this morning. A little of God's story he has written for me, the experiences that he has blessed me with to become closer to Him, and about why I want to go to 4th Journey.

1 Peter 3:15 "But in our hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give you the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and kindness." Think about this. How this affects you personally. And while you are thinking about this Bible Verse I am going to share a bit of my story. The story that God has written for me and continue to writes for me. As many of you know I grew up going to this church. I was baptized here. I went to Sunday School here. I was confirmed here. I helped out with Bible School. I went to church....sometimes. Doing these things may make you a Christian, but it doesn't mean that you have a personal relationship with our Lord. And i definitely did not have a personal relationship with Jesus at this time in my life. That was until my sophomore year in college. November 6th, 2011 one of my best friends committed suicide. On this day I knew I needed more than just myself to get through this day. I didn't know what it was that would get me through, but I knew I needed something. I found my faith when talking to the mother of my friend. She inspired me to find God, to get to know God. And this was when my personal relationship with Jesus started. And it has continued to grown since then. In the beginning of this year, I was blessed with the opportunity to go to Kenya, Africa with a service trip with my University. This experience changed my life. In Kenya, materialistic things are almost non-existant. These people don't live with stuff, they live simply, greatful for what they have, and most importantly with and for God. They live with Faith, in a way that I had never seen. They way they worship our Lord was truly inspirational. Through this trip I felt God calling me closer to Him. I felt inspiration to travel and to help others, to share my hope. So upon returnal to the United States I knew that I wanted to travel again. That is when my sister and I planned a trip to Costa Rica to volunteer in nursing homes. This experience again changed my life. The glory of God was so present, specifically through the physical therapist that we were working with. Her strength in faith inspired me again to grow further in my faith. She lived by the glory of God and the reason she was working at this nursing home was for God. She told us that she knew this was her calling, and that by working with the residents she was serving God. So cool. So inpirational. With both of these experiences I saw God calling me. He has given me the passion to help others in other parts of the world. To experience new cultures. To learn new lifestyles. To share my hope that God has given me. 1 Peter 3:15 "But in our hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give you the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and kindness." This is why I want to travel to 4th Journey. To spread hope. God has made it clear that this is what He wants me to do. I want to serve Him by sharing the Gospel with others. In order to make this trip possible I need to raise a team of support to raise $2200. WIth the help of Dottie, and of course God, I am hear to share my story and ask for your support and prayers for my journey to the Middle East. This experience is completely out of my comfort zone, but with the strength of God I know that I will be able to share the Gospel with people I have never met. The reason I want to go on this trip is because I know God wants me there. While I am in the Middle East Jesus will be working through me to reach the students of the Middle East and to bring hope. Spreading the hope that God has given me is a way I feel as I can serve God. I wanted to end with thanking all of my supporters and reading one of my favorite quotes, "God does not inspire us to do what cannot be done."

#middleeast