In 2004, my last year of high school, I made a commitment to follow God with my life. A year later I started working at a Christian camp in northern California. I spent 3 years there before moving on to work with teenage boys who are considered "at-risk". 9 months later I moved to Virginia and worked during the summer of 2009 as the Assistant Program Director at another Christian camp.
I bounced around a little bit after that summer and a year later (2010) I was back at the camp in California for my 5th summer of work. I sensed a change of direction was coming and began praying about what to do after the summer was over. I got a very clear answer from God and decided to stay at camp for the remainder of the year. I was laid off along with the majority of the other staff members in August due to financial cutbacks. I was given (and took) the opportunity to stay as a volunteer. That began my journey of raising support and relying on God to provide financially.
In September of 2010 I began praying about attending a School of Ministry to strengthen my foundation of Christian principles. YWAM was an option that I had heard of previously but didn't know much about it. I continued praying about YWAM along with another school I was considering. At one point late in September I didn't see a clear direction with what I was doing and finally told God that I would pursue any option as long as He made it very clear where I was supposed to go. I received a donation of $6,000 that evening from a friend who said I should use it for YWAM. This friend had been unaware of my petition in prayer that day, there was my sign.
I began my YWAM journey on December 31st, 2010. I had been accepted into a Discipleship Training School and so I stepped onto a plane bound for South Africa. The following 5 1/5 months were filled with intense teachings and lots of time learning to love myself and other people. I began to see the gifts that I've been given in a clearer light and the immediate future became more clear as time went on.
I was given the opportunity to spend 9 weeks of my DTS in India spreading the Gospel and loving the unlovable. My team and I spent time at a Leper Colony where we were able to bring a smile to many faces, we handed out clothes and words of encouragement to widowed women, and we spent many hours working with children in various settings. The time was life changing and I'm incredibly thankful for the opportunity.
I've decided to continue working with YWAM and have been accepted on as staff in South Africa until June of 2012. Please consider partnering with my ministry as I set out to help change a broken world. The "Prayer Needs" tab at the top of this page will give you more up to date information as things change.
Thank you!
