The time has finally arrived! I have been looking forward to the next eleven weeks with a little trepidation, but mostly with great anticipation. My classmate Sam Ream and I, who go to a Bible college called SOULS West, are at the All Nations SDA church in Monrovia, California (near Los Angeles) for our Bible work practicum. And our mission? To knock on the doors of the people living in Monrovia and the surrounding communities; to study the Bible with interested people God puts in our paths to help them develop a closer relationship with Him; to see people get to know Jesus for perhaps the first time; to help train and mobilize the church members to become more active soul-winners; to participate with and assist in an evangelistic series; and to do whatever else God calls us to do during this time that will make us more effective workers for Him in the future and hasten His soon coming.
I will be posting more in the future of experiences that God will be giving us as we work for Him; but for my first post, I just wanted to tell a little about myself and how I got to where I am.
I grew up 13 miles outside of Greeneville, TN in the northeastern corner of the state. Surrounded by pastures and farm land, our home was nestled in one of the valleys of the Appalachian Mountains. To give you an idea of the kind of place my family lives, I used to think our road was super busy if three or four cars drove by in the span of a few minutes. I was blessed to have godly, deeply committed, Christian parents who raised me, my two older brothers, and sister to love Jesus and desire to serve Him.
Although I had a desire to serve God, I definitely had my rebellious side. Quite honestly, I appeared to be the perfect kid to those at church and to most of my friends. I mean, who wouldn't think so. Almost every Sabbath, with few exceptions, I came to church. From when I was a pre-teenager, I was very involved in the Audio Visual department; I assisted and taught in the younger Sabbath School divisions, I was a junior deacon and later a deacon; I volunteered at the Community Services Center; and whenever someone in the church needed help, I was there to help out. I don't mention this to brag, only to point out the fact that even though I looked really good on the outside, inside I was a mess. I didn't respect my parents as I should have and consistently rebelled against the things they asked me to do. As a result, I was going down a downward spiral and didn't really care. Of course, I had those good streaks. God would get through to me at various times and I would choose to follow Him for a short time, but unfortunately it never lasted long.
One night, six or seven years ago, I was on one of my short lived upward swings. As I was spending time in prayer one night, I received an unmistakable impression--almost an audible voice--that God was calling me to overseas missions. I had never been outside of North America before, but my dad had grown up as a missionary kid in Africa and I always heard stories of his experiences. When people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always said confidently that I would be a nurse or a pastor. I guess deep down I had that missionary blood flowing through my veins and knew that those were some good ministry careers that would be helpful in the mission field.
In keeping with what I felt was God's calling, I went to Weimar College (Northern California) in 2012 to take Pre-nursing classes. The goal was that as soon as I was done with my RN or BSN, I would go overseas. After my first semester, I joined a 10 week summer program called Youth Rush in which we knocked on doors sharing the gospel with people through Bible-based books that we left on a donation basis to help us through school. That summer changed my life. I think it was then that I really began to realize how essential it really was for me to be involved in ministry. During that 10 weeks, I began to have a personal relationship with Jesus deeper than ever before.
After that summer, I went back to Weimar College to finish my nursing degree. But God had other plans. The details are too many to write here; but after I finished my second semester, I ended up in Chad, Africa in January 2013. Among other things, I needed to confirm what I felt was God's life-calling for me of overseas missions. My first Sabbath in Africa, I woke up and walked outside of my hut. I was overwhelmed with the strange yet comforting feeling, "I am home! This is where I belong." Was it easy? No. No electricity; hot dusty winds; strange smells; a language I don't understand; a people whose customs I don't comprehend; a land of malaria and many strange diseases; a place far away from my friends and family. But I was home. I really can't explain the feeling. Yes I miss where I grew up and yes I may have missed all the conveniences I was used to for a little while, but I knew that I was where God wanted me to be and nothing could make me happier. I stayed for only four months, but I left knowing that I was coming back for much longer. When? I don't know except that it will be in God's timing.
While in Chad, God closed some doors and opened others so that I became heavily involved, among other things, in an evangelism training school for 20-30 lay church members. This was not my original intent for coming to Chad, but it was there that God also showed me my love for teaching more than I had seen before. Ultimately, I realized that I needed evangelism training of some sort to be an effective soul-winner and teacher, but I didn't know what that would consist of. I just knew I needed to get trained as quickly as possible and get back to where I know God has called me.
I returned to the States and a few weeks later joined Youth Rush for my second summer of door-knocking and ministry. During that summer I once again had a deep experience with God. In light of the training that I had been impressed that I needed and the love that I discovered I had for teaching the Bible to others, God called me to attend Souls West, in Prescott, AZ. Souls is an acronym for Seventh-day Adventist Outreach Leadership School. It is the two-year evangelism training school for Pacific Union Conference with emphasis in Literature Evangelism and Bible Work.
Since September 2013, I have been at Souls West. God has been giving me a deep experience with Him that I have never had before. But I know that it is just a small vista of the grand expanse He wants to show me of the happiness a still deeper experience with Him can bring. He has shown me so much about myself and my weaknesses and grown and strengthened me in ways that I honestly didn't expect. I definitely see that He is preparing me for more effective service and can't wait to see what He will do in the next 11 weeks and the rest of my life.
This blog is long, I know. Future blogs won't likely be so long; but for you readers out there, this is how God got me to where I am. Honestly, this is a very brief summary of only the main points of God's leading in my life. And now I am at All Nations SDA church in Monrovia, CA ready and willing for God to use me and grow me however He wants. And yes I know by experience growth can be painful, but it is so rewarding.
God calls each one of us to "seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33). Growing up, I was doing the right things on the outside, but inside, I was not happy. Only when I chose to put God's work the first priority in my life, desiring and truly beginning to experience His righteousness in my life, did I become happy. It has not been all smooth sailing the last couple years; there have been ups and downs. But, praise God, as I look back on my life, I see that He has been steadily growing me to become a much more effective worker for Him and I have confidence that He is in charge. I don't have anything to be afraid of because He is in control.
There is nothing special about my story. It's not really the story of an country boy from Tennessee. Rather, it is the story of a powerful, loving God who takes ordinary people and works through them to do ordinary things that bring about extraordinary results. The results are God's; we just have to be willing to be used by Him and He will do the rest.
I pray that each one of you who read this brief story of God's work in my life until now, will dedicate your life to serving Him. Nothing is more fun; nothing is more fulfilling; nothing is more rewarding.
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