How I got here, and where I’m going.

My journey started about ten years ago with a trip around the world that changed my life! The summer after my freshman year in college, I decided that I was not going to miss out on the Latvia mission trip most of my friends went on that previous summer. They came back with so many memories, funny stories, inside jokes, and, to be honest, I couldn't handle the FOMO (fear of missing out) so I decided that i had to go! Let me remind you, at that point, I did not know that the country, Latvia, even existed nor could I have pointed it out on a map. I also thought Estonia was a fairy tale land form some movie, but that’s besides the point. Needless to say, I knew that my friends wouldn't stop talking about what a beautiful place and how amazing people were. I just couldn't miss out on the next trip! So, summer of 2009 rolled around, Gayle and Clark Red, the trip organizers, ask me if I want to go and I, cheerfully, said yes! I, along with my good friends Taylor Allen and Zach Daniel, traveled all around the country and had amazing experiences in new places and with new people.The Asnevics family was gracious to host us and grafted us into the Vilandes Baptist Church family. Our last two weeks were spent with the rest of the First Baptist Richardson team. We put on an English Learning Camp for youth from all over Latvia. I remember thinking to myself, If I could, I would move to Latvia in a heartbeat.

That trip was the first time I felt like I had contributed something of value to others lives. I had never felt so in tune with God’s plan, not only in the lives of the youth we were ministering to but also my life. The clarity I was able to have was what lead me to start thinking about youth ministry as a direction I wanted to move toward. I started to become more involved with the youth ministry at First Baptist Richardson and couldn't get Latvia out of my mind. I was able to go again the next summer with a larger team and put on another camp. We were able to bring more youth this time and have an impact on many other lives.

Soon after we returned from the second trip I became a Student Ministry Intern at First Baptist Richardson and started pursuing a degree in Student Ministry. I was excited to see where this new passion would take me and wanted to help youth navigate their physical and spiritual worlds. Being an Intern was a very eye opening and humbling experience. I took pride in my knowledge of God and the scriptures but what I lacked was wisdom; which could only be gained by implementing said “knowledge”. God was able to expose many faults and insecurities I had been carrying. The saying,”You can't lead someone somewhere you have not been.” rang true in my life. I knew that I needed to confront these issues so that i would not be a hypocrite. I was able to come away with many lessons after my internship. Many of them confirmed my love for youth ministry and also my lack of spiritual and emotional maturity. God, graciously, put me in the right place at the right time to show me how I played a role in His greater plan.

After that summer in 2009, it took me seven years to get back to Latvia. Trust me, i wanted to go every summer but I later found that God was working on me and i was not ready to go back. Simply put, I had to grow up and get my life in order. There are two verses that weighed heavy on my heart:

John 14:2121 The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.”

Matthew 25: 31-46 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’  Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels!  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’  Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?’ Then he will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’  And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The verses in Matthew tells me that God, greatly, cares about the individual relationships we have with him. So it is not about who knows God but who God knows and who He has a relationship with.  The Verse in John tells me, I could learn everything i could possibly know about God, but if i do not obey his commandments I will not be able to love him nor will he reveal himself to me. These scriptures were a wake up call for me to put my relationship with God in the center of my heart and life. Once I started to work toward that goal, I began to see God's spirit break through. He began to humble me, to help me see the broken nature of my heart and brokenness in everyone around me. Through this renewed relationship, my relationships are becoming  better, my physical and mental health is becoming better, and the more I allow Him to be my center, the more He works in and through me. I praise Him for leading me to the place i am now and I am excited to go and be whatever to whomever He needs.

So earlier this year, a couple of weeks before I traveled  back to Riga, my good friend Toms Asnevics, threw out this crazy idea, “Why don't you come and live in Latvia for a Year and do ministry with us?” This wasn't the first time we had that conversation but I told him that we would talk more when I got there. After a long lunch conversation, I new that God was stirring something in my heart. When I got back home, all i could think about was Latvia! Somehow I felt like the idea of life in Latvia could become a reality. I began to think about my life, job, future ambitions, and all the plans I had made. Then it came to me as I was praying and thinking; This whole time God was preparing me for what he had in store for me. These past years had been an incubation period. I had not been ready to step out into the world but, things had changed. I had changed. So I determined to follow my heart and move to Latvia. The decision, was not a hard one to make. I knew then, and know now, opportunity to be a part of what God is doing should not be passed. I am blessed to have family, friends, and  employers who encouraged me to step out into ministry and the path laid out for me. I am excited to see what God has in store for me and for the people in Latvia.