I am the vine; you are the branches. 

If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; 

apart from me you can do nothing. 

John 15:5

Wow, has it been a while! I’m writing this during our last ministry week in Guatemala, and it feels absolutely wild to be saying that. The past month and a half has been a season of stepping into new areas of growth, sitting in awe of the Lord’s intentionality, and walking in obedience wherever the Spirit leads. Back in Malaysia, one of my squad mates posed the question: if you were to describe your walk with the Lord right now in a season, what season would it be? To answer that now, I’d say I’m in summer! Throughout the entire race up until arriving in Guatemala, I’ve seen the Lord inviting me into a deeper level of intimacy with Him. He’s captured my heart in ways I didn’t know were possible and as I’ve surrendered more and more, He’s continuously revealed the fullness of His glory. There have been times when I felt as though I wasn’t able to pour out enough in ministry. Moments when I was confused why I seemed to be abiding in His presence more than making impacts in the community. Little did I know, I needed to heal first. I needed to be filled up so I could pour out of an overflow. I needed to learn that sitting at the Lord’s feet is the highest place I could be, not achieving great things in the world. And through continuing to meet with the Lord and seek Him, I am now so visibly witnessing the fruits He’s produced in me. I’m in full bloom!! Only through remaining in the true vine, the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are at work in and through me. I can do nothing apart from Him.

In Guatemala, my team has been working with two ministries. The first one is a local Care point that offers a feeding program to students before school each morning. We arrive there at 6:30am once a week to cook breakfast and love on the kids and their parents before they head off to school! These sweet mornings give us the opportunity to serve through a meal and simply get to hang out with these wonderful students! After they head off for their days, we will either do some sort of manual labor around the care point or attend a few house visits. These visits have been a beautiful time of seeking the Lord’s heart for each home we enter into and lifting up our brothers and sisters in Christ through prayer. The other ministry we’ve gotten to serve with has been my favorite so far on the race! Reindom ministries offers after school programs to students who either aren’t receiving a proper education or don’t have the funds to attend school entirely. Me and my team get the privilege to help teach english, bible, and physical education classes to children aged 5 to 15 years old. Upon arriving at ministry each day, we begin our mornings by spending an hour in the prayer room. This is one of my favorite parts about Reindom. We won’t even drive to the ministry school until we have spent time receiving from the Lord first. 

As a little girl, I dreamed of growing up to be a teacher. Ask anyone in my family, and they’ll tell you stories of the times I would force my siblings to sit down so I could practice teaching as if they were my students. I remember my mom taking me to the teacher store (one of my favorite places ever!) where I bought classroom tools to practice with. Once I high the end of my middle school years, I started to not enjoy attending school anymore so I gave up the dream completely. I decided I didn’t want to spend my whole life showing up to school everyday, and I lost the desire to teach. However, the Lord had a purpose behind that dream I had forgotten about. I remember returning to base after our first day at the Rohingya school in Malaysia. I had just come back from meeting the student I would be tutoring, and had ended up practicing English words with 6 other students in a circle on the floor. The joy that had sparked in me that day at the school was something I hadn’t felt in a while. I found myself asking the question, “Am I supposed to be a teacher?” But didn’t dig any deeper into this idea. The thought never left my mind, but it seemed like only a far-fetched dream. 

Now, serving at Reindom, my love and gift of teaching has shown itself so clearly. And it wasn’t until I was on the phone with my mom and she strongly encouraged me to pursue teaching when I realized that this is truly the area I feel called to in my future. The Lord has been so intentional in putting me in positions where I have so easily recognized the gift of teaching He has given me. And through much prayer and confirmation I’ve received from the Lord, I am now committed to major in Elementary Education this fall at a small Christian university not far from my house! I’m so expectant for how the Lord will use my gift of teaching as a ministry! 

Every Thursday in Guatemala, we’ve had what we call activation days. We begin our mornings with worship as a full squad and then go into a teaching led by one of the staff at the base. After receiving a message on a specific topic, we each take personal time to sit with the Lord and ask Him questions we were given by the teacher for that day. We then transition to a time of debriefing within small groups. After our time at the base, we always go out to evangelize! On my first Thursday in Guatemala, I remember feeling very nervous for evangelism. I knew I would be the designated translator, as I am one of the few people on our squad who is fluent in Spanish. I doubted my ability to translate well and didn’t feel confident praying in Spanish. I felt as though I carried a bigger responsibility than anyone else in my evangelism group. This pressure I put on myself led into fear and I quickly became very hesitant to speak Spanish. I noticed quickly after the fear arose that I was believing the lies the enemy was trying to attack me with. After receiving prayer, I have been able to walk in freedom from the fear of speaking Spanish each day since. And through being willing to step into this gift, I’ve seen the Lord use it for more than I could’ve imagined. It has been the biggest blessing to speak the same language as those I’m ministering to in this country! 

In everything we do, I am continually reminded that apart from Him, I can do nothing. It is only the work of God in and through me that makes any of this possible. I am simply a vessel for His glory. And the more I continue to step into obedience and surrender my fears and pride, the more I see Him be faithful to move in the hearts of those I get to minister to! Thank you for reading and catching up on my life on the mission field! I am so grateful for all of you who have partnered with me financially and through prayer!