Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” I instead tried to fit my own aspirations into something I could call “God’s will for my life”. In university, I believed I could chase after my self-fulfilling goals without ever taking my eyes off Jesus. Thankfully, that didn’t work out so well. The more I got caught up in school, ambition, and success, the more lost and isolated from God I felt, until I needed to cry out to Him to draw me back in.

God heard my cry, but He needed a willingness from me before He could really change me. So He offered me the opportunity to put aside my own goals for a while and serve. I never imagined that denying myself and following Jesus would take me as far as the Philippines. But a few years later, after two short-term trips and a one-year mission with International Teams serving the poor in Manila, I’ve found a new aspiration in life – to live in obedience and service to the Kingdom of my Father.

Over the course of a year, two of my closest Filipino friends and I have established a school in Manila for street children age 3-7. We teach basic literacy, feed healthy meals, and provide a safe and warm environment away from rough streets. Though I apply what I’ve learned in teacher’s college to our school, I rely daily on my Filipino friends to help design a Filipino curriculum, to translate for me when my Tagalog language skills fall short, and to lead as examples of Filipinos who grew up in poverty and oppression and yet found freedom and strength in Christ.

In 2011, I returned to the Philippines as a full-time missionary with International Teams. I am putting down my roots in an area entrenched in poverty, addiction, gang violence, and sexual and physical abuse. When children are facing all of these issues at once, they need even more than opportunities for an education and livelihood to survive. They require a greater, “wholistic” care that frees them from the oppression and hopelessness surrounding them. This includes the freedom that only Christ offers, as well as having a community of believers around them willing to live, share, and pray with them. I’m so blessed to be a part of that community.

You are invited to follow my journey on my blog.