so it begins…summer camp at Rivercrest.

Birds are chirping.
Deer are galloping.
Turkeys are bobbing as they walk.
The trees are swaying and the hiking paths, inviting.
The fire is blazing as it cooks hobo meals, banana boats, and s’mores.
The swimming pool is filled.
The chapel is getting decorated.
Prayers are constantly lifted up to meet needs.
The staff team is getting connected and pumped. This has been my life for the past few weeks…

Camp is about to begin.

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been working at Camp Rivercrest for almost two months now. Last minute details are getting figured out before our staff comes for training, less than one week away! After a week of training, 150 plus campers will flood the campgrounds!

This will be my life for the next 8 weeks. Campers will come and go each week as we invest in their lives and encourage their spiritual walks. They’ll have opportunities to participate in different events such as the zip line, rock climbing wall, high ropes course, mini BMX bikes, paintball, and more. In the midst of all the fun, our core staff aim to encourage these campers spiritually. We give campers an opportunity for a week away from home in God’s creation, with hopes that they will truly encounter Jesus.

Here it all begins… eight weeks of craziness, chaos, exhaustion, and perseverance. But nothing can replace work that goes into furthering the gospel of Christ. It’s a privilege that God has called me here to do this work, for His kingdom!

So it begins. Six days until the leadership staff arrive for training. Sixteen days until our first group of campers come. Summer Camp at Rivercrest… Bring it on! =)

God answers prayers.

God answers prayers, right?

Well, do you really believe that? If you really believed that God answered every prayer of yours that you prayed, how would that change your prayer life? God has been teaching me this lately, because I thought I believed He answers my prayers, until He actually started answering my specific prayers.

I prayed one Sunday night that a couple in my church would sell their house within the next week. I thought it was a pretty bold prayer to pray for a specific time, but knew that God could do it. Two days after I prayed, I heard they sold their house on the very night I prayed, Sunday.

I prayed one morning that my good friend to find an apartment in a city she’s moving to. I prayed for a conveniently located place, safe neighborhood, a decent-sized apartment, specifically around $300. I found out the next day she found exactly what she was looking for, a two-bedroom apartment for $600. Split between two people, her rent would be exactly $300.

I prayed one afternoon that my good friend wouldn’t get deported from America and forced back to her own South American country. Odds were looking very slim, but I kept praying. God answered my prayer. She is still here, and she still has a few more months in this country.

I prayed the other day for clarity on a specific area of my life. I prayed for a visible sign to take place and did everything in my power to make that sign happen. However, God twisted things so much that I didn’t plan on that sign to happen. I forgot about it and stopped looking for that sign. But then it happened and I saw this sign take place before my eyes. Exactly how I prayed.

I’m not writing this to brag about how God has been answering my prayers. I’m writing this because I am blown away by God’s awesomeness in answering my prayers. He can answer yours, too. God has been revealing Himself to me more through my prayer times and shown me that He hears me and listens to me.

Through God answering my prayers specifically, my faith is growing exponentially. I’m starting to pray and believe bigger and bigger things to happen. The other day, I prayed for the entire city of Omaha to be transformed by the love of Christ. I prayed for specific lost people to come to know Jesus. I prayed for the inner city to be nonexistent. I prayed that Omaha would be free from gangs and violence. I prayed to have the faith to walk on water, as Peter did.

I want to see Jesus lifted high. I want to see Him glorified in our city and our world. I used to pray these prayers, only half believing these things could really happen. But now, my faith has been reignited and propelled higher than ever and I’m fully believing that each one of these things can happen because God IS big enough.

My audacious prayers can never exhaust God’s power and sovereignty. The crazy, outrageous things I think in my mind about transformation happening in our city and world don’t even compare to the indescribable things God can do. My thoughts, prayers, and minds are so limited by how I view God, for He is “able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20, NASB).

God answers prayers. Do you really believe it?

I’m just starting to, and it’s radically transforming my life!!

disobedient me serving a faithful God.

Put yourself in Moses’ shoes for a second. You are leading the grumbling Israelites through the wilderness to the Promised Land. They claim to be dying of thirst, yet you’re fed up with it. You cry out to the Lord, He tells you to strike a rock with your staff. You obey and out spurts water for all the Israelites. You perform a miracle that shows God’s awesome power (Exodus 17:3-6).

You are still on this journey through the wilderness and it happens again- everyone is complaining. You go before the Lord and this time, He tells you to speak to the rock and water will squirt out. But this time, you don’t obey. Instead of speaking to the rock, you strike it twice with your staff, knowing that water would abundantly come out. Water spills out, yet you disobeyed. God then tells you that you can’t enter the Promised Land because of your actions (Numbers 20:8-12).

What makes the second time different than the first? The first time God tells Moses to strike a rock, it’s in Horeb, a place of hardened rock. A normal man would not be able to hit the rock to gain water. However, the second time, they are in Kadesh, a place full of limestone. Even the normal shepherd could use his staff to find a certain location, hit the limestone, and find water bursting out. Because of Moses’ disobedience of not speaking to the rock, God’s awesome power was not displayed.

As I learned this from a friend, I kept thinking about how often I disobey by acting in my own power. What is God asking me to obey Him in currently? So often, I take matters into my own hands and take action before the Spirit moves, thinking my way is “better”. Rather than waiting in obedience, my disobedience could prevent God’s miraculous power to be shown, like Moses.

However, in the midst of my continued disobedience and unfaithfulness to Him, He remains faithful. In the past few weeks, God has reminded me of His faithfulness, over and over and over again. He is faithful to call me to where He wants me. He is faithful to answer my prayers. He is faithful to provide for me. Despite my disobedience and unfaithfulness, He always remains faithful!

Always.

next step: Camp Rivercrest

For the past two years, I’ve had about six months “planned” at a time. This stage of my life is no different. However, as of yesterday, I’ve entered into the next phase in my life:

Camp Rivercrest.

Yesterday was my first day. I’ve recently transitioned out of working as the missions intern at Christ Community Church and the volunteer coordinator at Compass Ministries, located in Omaha’s inner city, to a C&MA Bible camp in Fremont, Nebraska, called Rivercrest.

It was a bittersweet day. Rather than being around adorable, sassy, African American children in Omaha, I’ve been soaking up God’s creation- the Platte River, numerous trees, sunrises and sunsets, and of course, quality time in my hammock.

The past six months have been an incredible time of growth. I’ve learned about church ministry, urban ministry, and about the Bible through online schooling. I’ve grown in my relationships all around me- my parents, my brothers and sisters, and my closest friends. I’ve discovered many things about myself and my walk with the Lord. God continues to grow me in uncomfortable ways that only make me stronger in Him.

I don’t know what the next six months holds, but God continually reminds me that He is does. He is faithful. He cares for me more than the birds in the air and the lilies of the field. His plan is best. I’m unsure what my future holds, but I’ll continue to put one foot in front of the other. I’ll keep walking through doors until God closes them. I’m anticipating the Lord’s great and perfect plan ahead!

As for now, I’ll focus on the present- Camp Rivercrest!

$10 & H2O

Confession. I’ve never stopped my car in America to help a person in need. I’ve seen homeless people, a few times I’ve tossed money at them, but have never stopped to actually talk to a homeless person… until the other day.

He caught my eye as I drove on east on Douglas past 30th Street. His long gray hair was shining in the sun as he smiled. He was wearing a jean jacket and held up a sign that said GOD BLESS YOU. I was giving a friend a ride home, yet felt that I should help him. Thoughts arose in my mind as I analyzed the situation. I dropped my friend off and knew the Holy Spirit was leading me to go back to him. I wasn’t quite sure why.

My heart started beating faster as I approached the corner he was at. I turned down my music, rolled down my window, and told him to meet me at Burger King just a block away. I parked, made eye contact with him, and we walked into Burger King together. When we got in there, I offered to buy him some food or a drink, but he told me he wasn’t hungry or thirsty. We walked out and I initiated a conversation.

Leslie. His name was Leslie. He was just like me, a human, a sinner. I learned his daughter was sick. I learned his kids were all Jehovah Witnesses. He believed in God and knew about Him. Yet Leslie lived in tough circumstances that didn’t allow him to have the resources that I did.

As we departed ways, he teared up. I ended up giving him a large bottle of water, a few bucks, and a gospel tract. God is starting to break my heart for the homeless and those in need. As followers of Jesus, we are called to love them… but if we do love them, how much do we really show it?

It happened again the other day, just off of the interstate. I was stopped at a red light, and saw this guy standing to the left, an entire lane over. I told myself that if I got some money out in time before the light turned green, I would give it to him.

I opened my wallet as quickly as possible and found the smallest bill I had, a ten-dollar bill. I rolled down my window, grabbed my bottled water I was about to drink, and yelled at this homeless man. He ran over as I waved the cash and water out of my car. He walked over, gave him the gift, put my hand on his and told him that God loved Him. Immediately, he smiled and was incredibly joyful. The light turned green and there was a car behind me. I waved my hand and drove off to my destination.

These men have changed me. I’m hoping to help every homeless person I possibly can, whether it be a few bucks here or there, a bottle of water, or sharing the gospel. They are just like me, desperate people in need of a Savior.

I need Jesus just as much as I do, each and every day. Ten bucks and H₂O have reminded me of that.

“I’m graduating…”

Out of most normal middle-class schools, for every 100 students that start kindergarten, 96-98 of them will graduate. For low-income communities, for every 100 students that start kindergarten, only 50 will graduate. 

I recently learned this statistic at CCC’s Global Summit event, “Poverty in Omaha”. It was a panel discussion with some of CCC’s partners in North Omaha. With education as a focus, I was reminded that it’s about relationships and trust that a student has with a positive role model that encourages their education and motivates their desire to learn. I sat there next to one of our Compass kids, we’ll call him Jake. In poverty and low income communities, graduating high school is a possibility, but not expected, as in middle class communities. I leaned over and whispered to Jake:

Me: “Hey, you are going to graduate from high school.”
Jake: “I’m going to graduate from college.”
Me: “And then you’re going to graduate from graduate school or medical school.”
Jake: “No, I’m going to law school for six years and graduating after that.”

Trust is the foundation on which my relationship with Jake has been built. I encourage Jake in every way I can, hoping that it will make some impact on him. He has the dream of graduating college and law school. I will continue to encourage him and his learning in order for him to achieve this dream.

This makes me smile.

faithful.

A 5K run on a gorgeous day in Omaha, Nebraska has taught me a precious life lesson that I often forget. First of all, if any of you know me, you know that I’m a basketball player. I don’t run “long distance”. One mile for me is considered long distance. However, the weather being 72 degrees Fahrenheit in Omaha today allured me to get outside to enjoy the weather.

I started running on this path near a creek. I saw a bridge off in the distance and thought to myself, “I’ll make it to that bridge, then turn around to head back.” The bridge seemed further and further away. What appeared to be so near ended up being farther than I thought.

And then, I finally made it. I reached the bridge only to turn around and see the distance that I had ran. It was probably about a mile and a half, but as I stared off in the distance, I was impressed that I ran that far without stopping.

The Holy Spirit then whispered to my heart. I thought of the run to the bridge and how the path seemed endless, yet when I looked back, I was quite amazed. As I seek Jesus in this life, I try to have my next step lined up. The bridge seems close yet is really far. However, when I turn back to look at where I’ve come, I see all the times that God has remained faithful.

Rewind my life four years. I was a sophomore in college and finishing my basketball season. Our team had made it further than any other team in school history and life was perfect. I had good friends, academics were going well, college ministry was fruitful, and I loved my teammates. Then, my best friend died in a car accident. Months to follow were treacherous and the dry desert seemed like an eternity. However, God was faithful and brought me through. 

A few months later, I was immersed in the toughest season of my life. I was injured and out from basketball for over a month at the time my teammates were adjusting our new coach’s program. By the time I healed up, it was too late. I found myself sitting on the bench and pouring all my strength and energy into being a practice player and attempting to encourage my teammates. Still in the midst of the wilderness, my academics started to slip, friendships deteriorated, and I was missing my dear friend that passed the year before. Still, God was faithful and brought me through.

I quit basketball after the season and enjoyed my senior year. I thought the tough challenges were over for a while, yet months later, I found myself facing one of the hardest decisions of my life. God called me to be a full-time overseas missionary and forsake a pharmacy career and the American Dream. It was a tough decision to make, but God gave me strength. He was faithful and brought me through. 

From three months to China to quitting pharmacy school, internships within international ministry and church ministry, back to China and to Omaha’s inner-city, God has led me each step of the way. Why do I forget that so often?

Now here I am, running toward the bridge, running toward Jesus. Every once in a while, I just need to turn around, look back, and see how God has always been faithful. He has always brought me through… 

And He will continue to do so. Don’t forget that.

“I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your doings; I muse on the work of Your hands.”                                          - Psalm 143:5