Jeremiah 29:11 “’For I know the plans I have for you.’ Declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” NIV

Proverbs 19:21 “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” NIV

Proverbs 20:24 “A man’s steps are directed by the lord. How then can anyone understand his own way? NIV

 

It is amazing to me the way that God works. I was raised in a small west Texas town. I don’t even remember visiting a large city until I was in college. When I was in high school I made a commitment to do whatever God asked of me and to follow wherever he lead me. I was very interested in Africa and often teased that I could catch the next banana boat out. God has led me on an amazing journey. Soon after college I moved to Dallas, Texas to do inner-city missions. I worked in a mission church leading an after school program for children living in the inner-city. During this time, I met a couple who were soon moving to Bogota, Colombia, to serve in a church there. After some time they contacted me to see if I might come and serve with them in South America. I had thought that when I served overseas it would be in Africa, but after praying I felt that God was leading me to Colombia for this short term assignment. I worked with the youth in the church and also really enjoyed helping with the ministry to street children. I took Spanish classes and began to learn a new language. I remember wondering how all of this was going to fit into God’s plan. At the end of the assignment I returned home to America to finish my seminary degree and continue to pursue foreign missions.   Finally, it looked like the banana boat was going to take me to Africa. I moved to Senegal to a small village called Fissel to work with the Sereer people. They are the most amazing people and it was such fun to learn their language. When I returned home to America after my time in Africa, again I wondered how God was going to put everything together. I was hoping to return to Africa, but it did not work out the way I had planned. A few years later my husband and little girl and I moved to France to study French in order to serve in North Africa. Just before we were to move to North Africa we found out that we were going to have twins and that there were some serious problems, so we were advised to return to the states for the birth of our precious baby boys. God did many miracles and our boys are doing very well. During the time in America when the doctors were keeping a close eye on our children we went to San Francisco, California to serve among African refugees there. San Francisco is the most amazing city. Once the doctors said our children were ready to return overseas we began looking for the position we felt God wanted us to fill. One day I was reading a job request for Southern Spain and I was blown away at the way God works. We are now serving in Almeria, Spain among African refugees and migrants. As I was walking with my family along the beach bordering the Mediterranean Sea one evening I met some ladies from Africa. I spoke to them in Spanish, French, and Sereer. What an awesome experience to great a Sereer person in their native language in Spain. There are many Sereer people here in Spain. So in many ways God has brought everything together and full circle.