I found myself in East Asia because that is where God called me to be.
Three years ago I was a somewhat scared, somewhat cocky, high school senior in Wisconsin getting ready to begin college at the University of Montana. I arrived on campus with little thought about my spiritual life, let alone plans to join a campus ministry group. But God soon showed he had a plan for my time in college.
Through an invitation to a Cru event at the beginning of the school year I slowly got involved in the ministry. When a Cru staff member asked me to explain my understanding of the Gospel–and I couldn’t–I realized I didn’t have a relationship with Christ. Shortly after that realization I gave my life to Jesus, but still wasn’t ready to go overseas for my faith.
This past December, that same staff member saw that my desire to share the true life I had found in Christ was growing. He knew I was seriously considering the Spring Break trip to East Asia and asked me to give a verbal commitment about going. At that point, I was ready.
While there, we engaged university students in conversations about God asking if they had ever heard about Jesus. Their most common responses were either, ‘I believe in myself,’ or ‘we East Asians have no beliefs.’
At the end of the trip we worried that because there are so few opportunities for East Asians to learn about Christ while living in East Asia, our interaction with the students we talked to would be their only exposure to His message. But, after reflecting on how God was able to bring me to East Asia, I am sure that our interaction with those students will not be the last time He speaks to them through a follower of Christ.
This trip affirmed the possibility of me investing a year in East Asia after I graduate to share Jesus with students who have never heard. The Holy Spirit has been working in my life to transform me from an ordinary kid in Wisconsin to a missionary who is willing to go wherever God leads.
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