Hello! I feel so honored that you are here!
Two things to know about me: I am deeply in love with the Lord, and the goal of my life is to continue to take every next faithful step God gives me.
I want to share a bit about my journey:
God has always the greatest strength and comfort throughout my life in what I would describe as a chaotic childhood that forced me to grow up quickly. Fortunately, I had a deep friendship with the Lord from a young age, but without someone mentoring me in what I was experiencing. So I sought to honor God with my life and tried to figure out this God I knew with what I had. Flash forward to my Senior year of college-- I had decided to study Speech Pathology and work with students with Autism, and despite it being something I enjoyed, I was unsettled because I knew in my heart that God was calling me to do something different with my life.
So after months of praying, I took a bold move, and decided to take what was the first faithful step towards whatever God had revealed to me...
This move landed me in Davis, CA where I worked for a year at a Covenant Church as an intern within a Protege group, being intentionally discipled. It was a huge turning point in my life as I experienced true Church community being lived out through conversations about faith in a diverse community. At this point, many of you started to follow this journey, and thank you for those that have faithfully been keeping me in your prayers, I want to give a quick recap of the next few years as God as took me all over the world to teach and prepare me for a life of ministry with the next generation by seeking to holistically walk through disciples.
What I hope you can see is that although my location has varied, my intentionality in each season has not- I have been fearlessly and passionately pursuing what God has had to teach me in each next step about my Call to Missions.
MY MINISTRY EXPERIENCE:
HERE ARE SOME OF THE NEXT FAITHFUL STEPS THAT I TOOK TO GIVE ME BOTH EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION IN PASTORAL CARE IN MISSIONS:
Youth with a Mission (YWAM)
After my year in Davis, God Called me to do a missions training program for six months, that took me from Hawaii to South Africa, where I got to study and practice how "missions" can be when done in a way that gives dignity to those that you go to love and serve.
Lake Avenue Church
I had the incredible privilege for several years after YWAM to serve at my home church where I was on full time pastoral staff for the Middle School ministry! In addition, Lake Avenue has a rich history of sending its own, and I have been very grateful for the opportunities I have had to be trained and equipped through our churches connections!
Fuller Theological Seminary
I started my Masters Degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in Fall 2015 in Global Leadership (which is a completely online global cohort in Fuller's School of Intercultural Studies for those in full-time ministry). I chose this program because I want my perspective of ministry to be holistic and global in nature and within this cohort I have the opportunity to learn alongside people in ministry all around the world! This program was also completed by Lake Avenue's Pastor of Missions and Outreach, so it came highly recommended.
To read more about the program that I'm a part of, click HERE.
Harambee Ministries
I felt the best way to love and learn from the community that my church serves was to live intentionally there, and through the Harambee Community, I was able to live and be mentored by the then-Director of the ministry and his wife! Harambee was the first location where John Perkins started Christian Community Development work, and this has been crucial to my foundational understanding of holistic ministry to those marginalized in society.
Community Clergy Coalition
I also have been involved with a collaboration between local clergy, non-profits and community leaders with the local Pasadena government to work towards equal opportunities for those marginalized in our city through prayer, something that is rarely seen in cities, and therefore has been a model other cities have been following! The Founder of this organization also completely my Masters program through Fuller Seminary, which has confirmed its unique fit for equipping me for my Calling.
In this time God has been stirring my heart:
- Sustainable Discipleship has been highlighted in this time as a focus in ministry for leaders and students, and I have pursued opportunities through my job, intentional living and education to grow in this area as a leader.
- Intentional Living in diverse communities as spaces for listening and learning from one another has been an incredible blessing through my living situation at Harambee Ministries, and is something I deeply value.
- Being a part of cross-cultural teams, and gaining education, experiences and resources in how to run cross-cultural teams.