The BCM has also presented me with the opportunity the past two years to go on a mission trip over spring break, called Beach Reach, where we go to Panama City Beach in Florida.  This trip has been a great opportunity each year to reach people while they're on vacation, and has consistently shown me the faithfulness and power of God at work in a city that is so lost.  It has given me the opportunity both years I've gone to get better at praying and intercession on others' behalf.  I think the most significant thing this trip has taught me is that I need to rest in God's power; I can't do anything successfully without His help.  God consistently has given me the words, strength, and endurance to have difficult conversations, and the patience to listen and deal with lost college students.  

I cannot wait to continue my faith journey in Manchester this summer and I cannot wait to see how God will work in my life as well as the lives of those I interact with while abroad.  Just as it says in Romans 10:14-15, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'"

When I was young, my family was Christian and I was baptized as a baby, but by the time I started remembering things, my family had left the church we regularly attended because of a scandal with the lead pastor.   We struggled to find a church after that and I probably didn't go to church as frequently as my parents would have liked.  When I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 5 years old, I really started to doubt the presence of God.  I remember my little 5-year-old self thinking, “Why would this happen to me?  If God really loved me, why would He do this to me?”  

Because of the stigma around the word diabetes, I became very reserved and quiet, and through all of elementary school, I really only had one friend.  When I got to middle school, I became resentful of my condition, thinking “It’s so unfair that I have to give myself shots every time I want to eat when others can just eat whatever they want.  Why couldn’t God just make me normal?”  

It didn’t help that halfway through my 6th grade year, my family moved to South Carolina and I had to create a whole new life for myself.  I did not adjust well to the change, and I didn’t make many new friends.  I became depressed throughout middle school, and by 9th grade, when everything went downhill because of COVID, I thought I didn’t have anyone to turn to anymore.  I thought of ending my own life; I thought I didn’t have any hope left.  

But that’s where I was wrong.  In the middle of the pandemic, when things were still closed, one of my only friends reached out to me and asked me to come to a “social distancing picnic” that her small group was having.  It was the first time I attended anything “churchy” in about two years, but I knew I needed to get out of my house, so I agreed to go, and I’m so glad I did.  

I know it seems kind-of silly to tie it back to this, but I believe my Diabetes is what brought me to Jesus in the first place, because without it, I wouldn’t have learned about His everlasting presence in our lives and His infinite love and grace for us.  Shortly after getting re-baptized, I was at the lake with my family and I had both of my medical devices visible on my body, and this little 7 year old girl came running up to me pointing and said, “I have those, too!”  Her parents come up behind her and both of our families begin talking about our experiences with diabetes, but by the end of the conversation, we were all talking about Jesus, and I've never been more grateful for the way God made me than in that moment.  Additionally, I had the opportunity to go on a mission trip over spring break this year, and I was able to share the gospel and make a friend with a vacationer because somebody recognized the Dexcom on my forearm.  

I'm not saying my life has been all sunshine and rainbows since I've started following Jesus.  In fact, some of my worst days have occured more recently.  But, having Jesus in your boat doesn’t mean that you won't face any storms, it means that no storm can sink your boat!  Just as it says in Luke 8:22-25, God promises that amidst storms, He will be with us, which to me is a major comfort.  

I’d like to end by sharing my favorite Bible verse with y'all.  Joshua 1:9 says “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged.  For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”  This verse constantly reminds me that whatever unseen struggle I may be going through, the Lord does see me.  The Lord has always been with me, He is forever faithful.