The Call

For 8 years, I have prayed and asked God for the chance to return to Africa. Within this 8 year span, there have been seasons of joy, growth, mourning and trials. For so long, Africa has been the happy ending of an eight year prayer, but in reality, it is the beginning of a new chapter on my journey of faith. In 26 days, I will be leaving for Sierra Leone, West Africa. My monthly support is quickly accumulating. May God receive glory for this answered prayer. I anticipate God providing the rest based on his promises and faithfulness.

I have had the chance to speak at various churches, groups and with individuals about the call God has placed on my life: a call to love and serve the unreached of the earth. For some, it resonates and echoes their own heartbeat. For others, it is misunderstood and questioned. Regardless of the mixed responses, it remains. This “calling” is the only immovable object that withstands the waves of life and winds of change. Only it remains when everything else is eroded away with time. I thank God this calling is not dependent upon others’ responses or approvals. The only constant, driving force for this calling is my passion for the One who has called me. All else is contingent upon this foundational necessity.

So you may ask, “Why do you want to live so far away?” or “How can you leave your family for so long?'”, or maybe even, “How can you go to a place that is so unsafe?” My answer? I do not know. But I will tell you that avoiding my call to go and obey would be equivalent to telling me to not breathe. It would be like asking me to never take another bite of bread and await a long, cruel unnecessary death by starvation. I simply cannot. This fire in my bones will never be extinguished, and my love for Christ will forever compel me. Only by His supremacy through His perfect grace, mercy and love, can I claim this calling.

God never promised us safety, security nor lavish comforts in this life. He did, however, promise peace, love and joy despite our surroundings and situations. True passion and worship for God transcends any moment of hardship or despair that we find ourselves in. Often, these very times of darkness are the times God increases our passion for Him even more. So, why do I go? How can I do this? Because He went for me and will go with me, and all glory will be His now and forever.