Exciting News:
I will be moving to Smyrna, Georgia to join staff with YWAM Atlanta’s School of Biblical Studies! 😁🎉
As a student last year, it was such an honor to learn and grow with a group of people who chose to set everything aside for nine whole months in order to allow God to address areas within our hearts that we have withheld from Him, to allow Him to teach us and show us a deeper understanding of who He is, and to allow Him to transform our hearts in order to give us a deeper desire to follow in His ways!
When I was asked to join SBS staff a few months ago, I immediately wanted to say yes, but instead I brought it before the Lord and waited for him to bring clarity and direction! A few weeks went by and we began studying Ezra and Nehemiah. These two books focus on the rebuilding of the Temple and the Wall of Jerusalem after the Jews were released from their Babylonian captivity! Ezra was a scribe and very skilled in the Law of Moses, and his passion for teaching the Law to the returned exiles really stirred my heart! What struck me was that Ezra studied the Law and lived the Law, but he didn’t stop there, he taught his people the Law with interpretation so that they could understand who God is and who He has called them to be as a nation! You see, the Jews were exiled from the promise land for 70 years. That means that a great number of them probably never stepped foot in it before. They may have heard stories about their ancestors and continued doing some of their traditions, but their knowledge and understanding of the Holiness of God and the identity He gave them as a nation was lacking! In Nehemiah it says that after Ezra read the Law, everyone began to cry. They were brought to tears because they recognized the holiness of God and the wickedness of themselves, but get this.. they were told not to cry. Instead, they were encouraged to celebrate their return to the Lord! God desires the hearts of his people, and it brings Him joy when they return to him!
We live in a culture where some people believe in God and some may not, and it breaks my heart knowing how biblically illiterate the church is today. I grew up going to church my whole life, but I when I was 21 I traveled to the Middle East and realized how little I knew about God and His Word. I would have conversations with an Islam scholar who knew the Quran from cover to cover and it challenged me to dive deeper into the Word.
As a student last year, I learned how to study the Word, but now God is asking me to teach others how to study it as well! If I’m being honest, the thought of standing in front of a classroom full of adults terrifies me, but once again I am choosing to trust God with a faith filled yes! He is worth knowing, He is worth sharing, and He is worth my yes every single time!
YWAM is a nonprofit missions organization, so that means I am looking for people who will partner with me financially throughout these next two years! If you are interested in knowing more about what I will be doing while on staff, let me know, I’d love to share! Above all else, I ask that you will partner with me in prayer during this season!