to my Ohana

LEFT TO RIGHT: me, Hudson, Caitie, Eric, Jo, and TJ

 

To my Ohana,

 

 

Every time I say that, I get a warm, comforting, giddy feeling in me. Sure, Ohana means family-haven’t seen the movie yet ya’ll- but this is my family for the next four months at least, and these are my brothers and sisters for eternity, and I cannot describe the excitement I have knowing that we are all passionately pursuing the Kingdom TO-GETH-ER. 

I had reached out to a lot of my squamates over the last eight months of prep, but God decided to put me with some of people I had not been connecting with yet—He knows I want to G R O W! I have three guys and two other girls on my team. 

 

 

I want to tell you a little more about these peeps and the visions I see in them. You will totally get to know them more as I vlog (check out my youtube). Name meanings are something God has given me a love for, and I believe people actually live up to their names and that they can be prophetic….So….

 

 

Caitie—

 

Caitie is a Minnesota gal who loves teaching kids of many ages. She reminds me of a firework. She starts out quiet but when lit she gets going and sparks and shoots life from her almost uncontrollably. She is assertive and happens to be our financial leader for our team, and she is going to thrive in this position, and I trust her with it. 

 

Caitie means pure. Pure makes me think of a white rose—-soft, clean, lovely. You have been washed clean. He no longer sees you as broken, but whole. In China, whenever a cup breaks, traditionally that cup is mended with gold, for that crack, that break, is not looked upon as broken but the most important and of greatest value. In our brokenness, He mends us with gold. Your middle name, Olivia, means olive which is a staple food in the middle east used for oil which is used for evvveerryyyttthiinnng. God uses the olive tree to provide basic needs. Don’t forget that he will will always provide yours. Olsen means “ancestors’ descendent”. We all come from someplace, from people who thought similar things, lived life…choose to not live in the past, but push for today for tomorrow, to live in the Kingdom for the next generation to see His glory abound even more. 

 

Caitie, I am excited to see you blossom closer into the woman of God He is creating you to be. I want you to strive to not be afraid of stepping on people’s toes but to say what you think because it is valuable. Being a leader on the team means you have a great responsibility, but don’t be afraid of asking us for help. Since you love working with kids, I want you to strive to see the kids we work with as Jesus does over the next four months for He says “this is the Kingdom”. Bring this into the team. You have power with your words, and God is going to use them. 

 

 

 

Eric—

 

Eric is an east coast south guy who looks like the actor that plays Jesus. You have the natural ability to lead and that gives those around you who are seeking a leader a sense of security….remember the market scenario?? You made us girls feel safe by gently guiding us and probably not even realizing you were doing so. You take feedback well and immediately take action to become better as a person and teammate. Don’t lose that. The way you and Hudson found out how much both of you liked to lead ahead and not with people, then found that out, then fixed it was incredible and made the rest of us feel way more included and heard. 

 

Eric comes from the English name meaning “ever, always, ruler” which in many ways you have adopted for your love to lead and this in turn points to how Jesus is our Alpha and Omega. Douglas means “Dwells in the dark stream, dark water, or dark stranger.” It makes me think of mysterious which to me, sometimes you don’t show your true self because you don’t believe it is worth showing. I want to see your real self and truly know you as well as everyone on our team. Swiger means “one who operates a dairy farm”. This may sound silly, but the leadership of a farmer, the hard work ethic which you have shown bits of…not to mention that the Bible is compared to milk….I am excited to see what this name means more. 

 

I am so excited to see you become built stronger into the man of God He is creating you to be.  Even not knowing you for long, I see how much God is currently molding you into who He created you to be. I feel like you are going to surprise us with new glimpses of you daily, and I am excited to see who you are and who God is creating you to be. Keep loving Him more than anything else. Don’t shy away from Him breaking you for God is your rock. To break means He is building. 

 

Hudson—

 

Hudson—to be perfectly honest, I stalked you on fb after you friended me, and it made my heart so happy that you also played guitar—or at least you posed with one. 

You are so humble, inclusive…..and sure, everyone knows you ask a lot of questions, but you have the amazing ability to know how to help others get to the root, the heart, to heal, and rethink the situation to better process it. It is a gift. You are genuine and not afraid of being affectionate—not many guys are like that. 

 

Hudson—-you said your named after Hudson Taylor which I am sure sometimes makes you feel like you must rise to the same challenge. Don’t be afraid though to be the man God created you to be, not Hudson Taylor. The name Hudson is Scottish which goes all the way back to the translation of Hugh meaning “hug, heart, mind, spirit” which in all honesty, is you in many ways.  Your middle name, Paul, not just talking about the apostle, but the name means “humble”. Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less than you think of other people. Humility is an admirable trait that you possess and are visibly working at. Janz comes from the Dutch meaning “Jan’s son”. Jan comes from the name John meaning “God is gracious”, a truth and a life reminder that we need to be gracious as God is gracious. 

 

I challenge you to not undermine the gifts He has given you. I want you to use them, the questions—-dude, I hope our team can do interviews in the countries together to help those who don’t have a voice be heard! I challenge you to seek true humility as a leader, a follower, teammate, brother, son, warrior. Don’t loose your ability to love the unloveable, to connect with people-keep striving to strengthen those gifts. And finally, give others the grace God has given you, a reminder to all of us. 

 

 

Jo—

 

Jo!!! The fact that weeks before launch you switched routes, not knowing anyone, changing countries, girl, you are courageous. You have such a sweet personality. I am excited to see you show more of yourself. 

Jo, don’t be afraid to use your words. Words can speak life, and yours are valuable to our team and I want to hear them, to know your opinion and walk with you. Also, don’t be afraid to cry. You have two sisters and three brothers here ready to engulf you with hugs and just hold you and pour His love and hope on you as we go through this season together. You have the power to connect with people and I challenge you to take that step and be vulnerable with us, in the people we serve, and also the people that need to hear His hope. Don’t shy from telling your story. It is His. 

 

Your name, Joanna, comes from the Jewish name meaning “God is gracious”. Grace is a gift that we don’t deserve. You are a gift, a precious being that is loved. You were created for a purpose.          

Your middle name Marie comes from the Jewish name Mary which means “bitter”. This meaning can go the wrong way. I want you to think of wine, strong cheese, dark chocolate and vinegar—-all things that are bitter but they are like gold, they are delighted in, sought after, cherished, saved up for a special occasion. Bitter things are actually good. They make the sweet things even more sweet. Lowry in Irish means “defendants of Labrahada”. Labrahada means speaker or spokesperson—-your love in writing/journalism? Don’t lose that.

 

I challenge you to relish in the grace God has given you, to overflow it upon others, and to take the bitterness in your life and instead of throwing it away, I want you to see the good in it, the ways God showed up to show you the sweetness in the moments of bitterness. I challenge you to share your stories one step deeper than is comfortable. 

 

 

TJ—

 

TJ is from Illinois and is one of the most perceptive people I know. He is naturally a bit quieter, but when He speaks, He means it and doesn’t take words lightly. TJ is an amazing photographer of nature, capturing the creator within it with just an iphone. 

When you were told to lead our squad on an “adventure” aka campfire and squad time, you became a new person and showed a leader we new was there but needed to break free.

 

Your name, Terry, is from the German name meaning “power of the tribe” and that is what you are. From all the knowledge you have gained from reading the Bible so diligently, you will show us the true power of our tribe, not just our teamwork but more importantly our oneness in our unconditional love of Jesus by -as you have showed many of us- pulling out scriptures that come to your mind so often. Your middle name, James, besides being the apostle, comes from the Jewish name Jacob which means “supplanter”. I am still curious as to what that name really means and excited to learn more about it. Capps comes from the name given to those who made caps or hats. Taken to a deeper level a “hat” is a role, a personality, a job. Maybe one who is a visionary, an encourager?

 

You have so much knowledge and wisdom. Don’t hide it. You are valuable to the team for our growth and how we are to serve others and live for Christ. You see things in His creation, His beauty, His gifts. I challenge you to put those things that you see into words that can be even just a small glimpse of Him and His Kingdom.

 

 

……………………………….

 

To the three men on my team: you asked us girls how you can create a safe place for us. To be honest, we girls were all dumbfounded at that question and didn’t know how to answer due to never ever being asked that before or having many solid godly men in our lives as examples. 

This is my answer to you, and it goes for all of us girls, I want you to run after God, to love Him more than ANYTHING else, unconditionally, for if you know how much God loves you, and you truly love Him with all your actions, thoughts and words, then you WILL know how to love me, Jo, and Caitie. Sure that seems super simple yet possibly not what you were thinking. Maybe you were thinking that I would give you a list of how to make this a safe place….

You know where I feel most safe? I feel most safe in the presence of God, in His arms, overflowing with His Spirit and truth, and leaning on His strength. Your loving God more than anything else creates a safe place for me as well as the other girls. So run after God with everything. Surrender to Him everything. Thank you for adopting me as your sister. I am honored to have you as my brothers and do life with you. 

 

This is what I promise to do to create a safe place for you men: Strive to have God first in my life, always, and continue to grow closer, deeper, and more passionately in love with Christ. For God is my safe place, my rock, my redeemer, my strength and joy. I will strive to constantly seek Him to know how to treat you men as my brothers in Christ and build you higher to His calling for you in His story. 

If you need a check off list to love us girls, to make us have a safe place to grow, to learn, to be, you can ask us —do it— but always ask Him first. The Holy Spirit is here to tell you all truth, to guide you into all wisdom and love from God. 

 

To my two sisters: you are an answer to prayer, truly. I am excited to do life with you. Laugh with you. Cry with you. Serve with you and for you. I am still learning the sister thing from not growing up with sisters, but having you two will be such a blessing and joy! 

I promise to let you have your space when you need it—don’t be afraid to tell me to back off. I will give you lots of hugs and snuggles cuz we all know we love em. I will push you higher, but I will strive to be open for you to push me higher as well. Also, my clothes are up for borrowing. It makes life so much fun to share things (: 

 

To my team: don’t be afraid to call me higher. To not call me higher is hindering my growth as a woman of God. I am am over-achiever and am constantly pushing myself and others to be better, grow closer to Jesus—just a heads up. I am awkward, try to make jokes-but they are never any good- and have trouble explaining how I feel so just give me a hug. Things usually look black and white—“simple” to me. The way I love is caring for you. Whether that be listening to you, praying with you, giving you a massage, cleaning or organizing anything so you don’t have to, writing you an encouraging note, buying you your favorite food or drink… I love to love my people, His people….but I will only do it when I sincerely mean it, honestly. I have been learning to rest, and God is showing me that resting, for me, is caring for you, for animals, other people, etc. Worship…ask me to worship with you…It brings me life, and we need to worship as a team more so than anything else. Seeking and praising God T O G E T H E R will break down walls, pull us closer, give us rest, joy, peace, love, filling us with the Holy Spirit. I want to worship with you. 

 

To my team leader: I love you so much even though I haven’t met you yet!