My Start in World Missions

I can hardly believe this is happening.  I am just so amazed.

I have had a heart for world missions for a while, but not since forever.  I met Jesus through the Holy Spirit for the first time when I was 12 years old.  I was just a happy kid at summer camp.  One evening during worship something beautiful happened to the room, and nearly everyone at the camp was at the front of the stage crying during worship.  I said in my head, “Now God, I know you’re real, because I can feel that you are here.”

Then after camp, I came home and resumed normal 12-year-old life.  God had obviously placed his seal on me that evening at camp, but it took me a few more years to really learn what it means to follow God.

I was a sophomore in high school and aside from school, dancing consumed my life.  Every day after school, I did ballet, pointe, jazz, and hip hop, and all of it was leading up to my biggest moment in show biz ever… our dance recital at the beginning of June.  Ironically, at the same time my high school youth group (The Point, at Crossroads now 12Stone) was planning a mission trip to go to minister to the Lakota Sioux in South Dakota.  I didn’t even consider it because my dance recital was the weekend after they left, but God intervened.  Roger McCormick was a high school leader at the time, and he asked me out in front of the church one day if I was planning on signing up.  I told him confidently, “No, my dance recital is that weekend.”  Roger responded without hesitation, “Well, maybe you could fly out a little late.” Lo and behold, in the next couple weeks I raised all the money for the trip, got a standby plane ticket to Minneapolis for $45, and Lisa Fletcher drove 6 hours from the ministry sight to Minneapolis to get me, (Made a quick pit stop at the Mall of America) and drove 6 hours back with me.  This was my first mission trip experience, and God just swept me right into it.

Fast forward a few years to last December.

I was a sophomore in college, and I had been supporting the Water’s Edge Liberia team however I could.  They wouldn’t let me go on the trip, but I was basically on the team. I was at every team meeting and did nearly everything they did except get the Yellow Fever Vaccine.  My job was just to be with them and serve them however I could.   In my heart, though, I was begging God (perhaps a bit selfishly), “God please let me go with them. I want to go soooo bad!”  I finished up my fall semester finals, and went to go watch a movie with the Liberia Team that night. On the way to the theatre I rode with Dave Bearchell, our leader, in the car, and he preceded to tell me that because of a series of unfortunate and wonderful events, I was allow to go with them. I screamed in disbelief that God even cared about my begging childish prayer.  But I took it! I had twelve days (which is not much time, for any of you who have ever taken a surprise trip to Africa), but by the next morning the same couple that had hooked me up with my $45 Minneapolis ticket years ago, donated just enough money for me to fly back to Atlanta home after Christmas in Michigan with my family to meet up with Liberia team in time to fly out with them on December 28th.  In those 12 days, I got my yellow fever vaccine, raised my money, and bought a plane ticket to Liberia.  As a poor college kid, I did none of this with my own money.  God generously provided everything I needed from all different directions. This was my last mission trip experience, and God just swept me right into it.

Somewhere after all this I got to start leading all the World Missions for Waters Edge.  It’s cool to know that I am called to be a part of something great.  Just like how Jesus called the poor fishermen, he has also called this silly young college girl. I don’t know what he sees, but I like where it’s going so far.

Now, I am preparing, with 51 of my closest friends, to go out to Liberia, Bolivia, Guatemala, and Haiti.  The glorious madness begins on Sunday (12/27) with the rolling out of the Liberia team.  Then continues on Monday with the Guatemala Team and Haiti Team, and on Tuesday with the Bolivia Team.  We are so excited to see what God does we can hardly stand it.

I am honored to serve God with you, Waters Edge… I like you people, and you should come with me next time.

-Silly Young College Girl, Danielle.