Reconfirmation

   This Spring Break was unlike any other. I was so grateful that I was given the opportunity to spend a week in Norwood, Colorado with some of my best friends and her family. They are amazing people of Christ. They own this outfitting business that could be nothing more than a blessing from God. I wish everyone had the chance to hear their story not just of life, but also on how they came to own and operate this ranch with an enormous lake and mountains that surround you. This week has been a time of friendship, learning to love, peace, and reflection. We actually had the chance to do a Beth Moore bible study called Loving Well. It was really good for me personally to learn how to love certain people in my life and by loving someone it does not me always being their best friend or acting happy all the time. I don't have to constantly act like I do like everyone, but I learned that I can love from a distance. There are four main types of people in our lives that we have to learn how to love: 1. Joy 2. Testy 3. Foe 4. Far

   Joys are the people we constantly surround ourselves with and are easy to love. Testy is the person who knows all the right buttons to push and just get under our skin. Foes are the people who are most difficult to love because we absolutely cannot stand them. In fact we probably hate them! Its okay to be honest with God when we tell Him we hate someone. Only he can transform our hearts and attitudes towards them. The Fars are the people who touched me the most. Its the strangers in our lives. Those who are distanced from us. Of course India popped into my mind. It made me remember that we have to take care of a persons physical and emotional needs before we can even introduce them to their spiritual needs. My mission over in India is of course to reflects Christ's love through my actions, but as a medical intern I will be responsible to assisting in the Dalit's denied physical well-being. I want to help them get well so that they can experience the love of a God that they might not acknowledge as truth and existence. I have been so enveloped in prayer this past week. Not only for support, health, protection, and well being, but also for the Lords reconfirmation. He gave me just that. The conversations I have had this weekend with my friend's mom was so insightful and inspiring. That night I prayed a prayer for support, and the next morning I got a text message from a dear friend wondering how they could help support me. That same day we took a road trip down to Ouray, CO (which is a super small town)...we were exploring the town going in and out of shops. I needed to respond to a call from the Dalit Freedom Network...I needed to write down a number and inside this tiny antique shop I randomly pulled this piece of paper that was next to the cash register to quickly jot down a number. I finished my phone call and I turned over this paper that I pulled... it happened to be a phone card for a professor at BYU who was in charge of the India study abroad program. A very minute detail that might not mean much to most people, but for me all these little signs mean the world, and the best part is that they are constantly appearing all around me. This week has been amazing. It will be hard to get refocused for school and upcoming finals, but we only have about 5 weeks of school left. I know time will fly and my trip to India will be here before I know it! I can't wait to share with you how else the Lord is moving in my life. There is no way I can deny His existence and blessings in this trip.

So much to do...so little time

My mind is consumed with thoughts of India. Everything around me seems to be pointing in that direction, or instances continue to arise that reconfirm this journey ahead of me. Whether its an Indian advertisement on the back of multiple receipts, a Biblical Scripture in my devotional, people I meet and talk to, or in books I have been reading (The Gift of Pain).  Michelle, an amazing young women who will be going with me, is connected to me in almost a scary way. I have never met her, but yet she knows one of my best guy friends Riley who was with me when I discovered my own personal relationship with God. Just little things like that continue to happen and although they are small and minute...I know they are all from God. I can feel his presence around me and I can't deny the calling he has placed on my heart. I continue to ask you for your prayers and support. I know this is something I have to do! There are so many things that I need to take care of and it is honestly a bit overwhelming, but I know it will all get done. It may not be today, but with time, God's plans will always fall into place. God thank you for this peace and serenity you have granted me in at this time in my life. With out you I would be lost and hopeless. I want to live my life for your calling. Lord if my eyes are focused on you, I know you will continue to bless me and guide me according to your will!

The Beginning

Where do I begin with the amazing things the Lord is doing in my life. Attending college at Colorado Christian University has been a very unique and regarding experience. Besides being held accountable by amazing people in my life to grow closer to the Lord, I am experiencing my faith in new ways. One way imparticular is to finally hear God calling me a certain direction in my life. Back in October a group called the Dalit Freedom Network came and spoke to my class about an issue that truly broke my heart. I heard about the Dalit people or untouchables and how they are being persecuted due to the detrimental Caste system in India. The Dalit people are the most highly targeted for modern day slavery, human trafficing, and sexual exploitation. My heart broke for these people and I truly wanted to make a difference. I continued to pray about an opportunity to come available and by God's work I was offered a medical internship in Hyderabad, India for the summer of 2011. I will be gone May 22-July 6. I just bought my plane ticket last night and I couldn't be more amazed to see how the Lord is pulling this whole trip together. I do not have any expectations for this trip. I know the Lord will reveal things to me I could never prepare for. I want him to break my heart for what breaks his...In return I want to brake the chains that bind the Dalits to their detrimental lifestyle, but I also want to set myself free from lives burdens that are holding me back from living all for God. This trip is not about me, but about the work that the Lord wants to do though me. My prayer is that he uses me in a beautiful way to serve my brothers and sisters in Christ. That I am humbled before Him and feel truly blessed for what I have and where I am from. I know when my life is tough...there is always worse in other places. Lord set me FREE! Let me live my life for you and your purpose!