A New Year

I can't believe February is almost over. Here are just a few highlights from the last two months!

School is back in session!!! At the beginning of the January, I signed up for my classes, and received the dreaded school bill. I was short $150 and had absolutely no idea where it was going to come from. The Saturday before my bill was due, I came across Matthew 6 and was reminded of all the times God had provided for my needs. I decided to bring this request to God and Him alone and watch Him do something incredible! The next day, our children's pastor approached me with an envelope...inside was exactly $150! I still get chills thinking about it! My course load this semester is pretty intense, but the topics are fascinating. I am extremely thankful for the opportunity to learn and gain experience that will benefit me in Guatemala.

At the beginning of February, Trinity had their annual mission's conference. I cannot remember a time that I did not look forward to this special time of year. God began to put the desire on my heart to be a missionary during a missions conference when I was in the 5th grade. Since then God has been preparing me for this calling through missions trips and many other ministries at my church. This year, Margaret Stringer, a missionary to the headhunters in Indonesia, gave her testimony. As a single lady she pursued this calling God had given her without the support of her family and church. She worked countles hours to be able to attend college, and there were nights she never thought she would get there. Finally the day came, when she was able to pack up her 5 gallons drums of everything she would possibly need for 4 years. She was finally going to be a missionary. The ways God worked through her in the indigenous villages of Indonesia is mind boggling. If only God will use me as well to reach the people of Guatemala. There are so many things that I am unsure about, but just like God guided the path He had for Margaret Stringer, I am confident He will direct my steps as well.

Which leads me into the way God chose to affirm this recent lesson in my life...

I have a small confession to make....I actually wrote the itazlicized part over a month ago, which I will explain why I never posted it later in the blog.

[This fall I will start my Senior year at UNF, which means I will be doing internships in different academic settings for deaf and hard of hearing students. I knew that my job would conflict with my classes, but God already had it all planned out. Last week I received a phone call from a major organization that facilitates communication for deaf individuals through video relay services. They were looking to hire several new interpreters and were interested in me...my first thought was, "I'm not good enough!" After praying and getting advice from my mom (one of the best sign-language interpreters in the nation), I decided to take a step of faith and schedule an interview. ]

I thought for sure I was going to be able to finish writing the blog and say, I got the job!! And in fact, I almost posted this blog with the assumption that this was the answer to all my financial burdens, and the way God was going to answer all my prayers. Well, several weeks after I was supposed to hear back from the agency, I recieved an email, saying that pretty much I didn't get the job. Talk about falling flat on my face. Needless to say I was absolutely devasted...why couldn't I just trust that this was God's plan instead of immediately freaking out?

This semester I joined a Biblestudy on Ruth, which can I say has been absolutely lifechanging. God used the book of Ruth to remind me that God doesn't allow humbling to happen for the sake of hurting or humiliating us, but so the posture of our hearts can be fully surrendered. I know seasons of hardship and humbling aren't typically the thing you find in blogs, but when I look to scripture I learn that perhaps nothing is more beneficial for us in the long run.

So instead of trying to figure out everything, I have decided to be courageous enought to let God write all the details. Here are just a few verses that I want to see God do in my heart.

• "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

• "He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." Matthew 10:39

• "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

• "Man's goings are of the Lord; how then can a man understand his own way?" Proverbs 20:24

• "Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to usward; they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee; if I woudl declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. I delight to do thy will, O my God; yea, thy law is within my heart." Psalm 40:5,8

• "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord; and he delighteth in his way." Proverbs 37:23

• "Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies." Psalm 27:11

Thanks for your constant prayers and support!