The Rest Of The Story

 

I'm back home and adjusting to life outside of YWAM. It's been good to be back with my family and settle into my room. 

For the first time in my life, I have a room to myself. While I'm enjoying being able to decorate however I want and my own space, it's a little strange not having a roommate that I have to consult. In this season though, I'm so thankful for a place I can go and be exclusively with Jesus. A place of rest. A place that's all mine. 

Last week was a rough one for me (hence the short update). I was dealing with tiredness, about a months worth of shelved emotions, and processing what God did in Panama. This is where I'm so thankful for the body of Christ. Staff members, friends, and family rallied around me. They gave me space to process and cry. They encouraged me to rest and go to Jesus with whatever I was feeling. They prayed for me. They loved and supported me. It made all the difference in the world. I was able to process through feelings and receive comfort from God and others. 

One of the things that God did in Panama was show me how He wants me to serve in the future. It's going to be in small behind the scenes ways. Most of the time it won't make for a great story, but it will be impactful for the kingdom of God. I'm thankful for such clear direction from Him and for Him continually leading me despite my fears. He was so kind to remind me that serving behind the scenes doesn't mean being invisible. He sent Marisa and several people to encourage me to step into all that He has for me. 

My school leaders asked me to share at graduation on how I had shown Christ's love in Panama. I shared about how I danced with a little girl during kids ministry, how a little boy held my hand while I picked up trash, and how I connected with a girl who is practicing English. No huge or dramatic story, but stories of showing God's love in the little ways. 

It was a surreal moment to be holding my diploma and thinking about all the moments that led up to this. All the hard moments that we pressed through, all the fun moments, and all the routine days had led up to this moment. Together God and I had made it! Marisa was there too. We hugged each other and squealed out, "we did it!" it was a great moment. 

After the ceremony was over I went around hugging classmates goodbye and thanking staff that God had used to encourage me. I was so encouraged by so many that night. 

Mia (staff) was there for the beginning of my YWAM journey and I'm so thankful she was there to celebrate the end of the journey. 
The next morning I packed up my stuff and headed home. I cried saying goodbye to Marisa. I know we will meet up again and still be friends, but I was so sad to say goodbye.  

We drove back home and had family lunch. It was fun to see the whole family and to share stories/pictures with them from Panama. 

Now I'm working on catching people up on what's been happening and trying to get my room more organized. In addition to that I've developed some health issues. We are working to get the resolved, but prayers would be appreciated all the same. 

And what's next? I know I mentioned a while back that God opened a door for me to go to a filmmaking course with a branch of Wycliffe Bible Translators. I'm excited to see what God does with this. I fly out on the 28th! 

Can you guess my favorite part of my Panama Adventure?