for (re)starters

*originally posted july 24, 2012

To try to cover the past month or two would take pages...let alone starting from the beginning of this new journey.  But in one not-too-terribly long post I'm going to try to sum this up from the beginning.

For those who I have not told yet, I am a brand new staff member of the Navigators.  I will be working as a EDGE Corps staff member at the University of Akron for the next two years and then who knows after that! EDGE Corps (Evangelism, Discipleship, Growth, Experience) is a one-to-two year commitment to work on staff with a Navigator collegiate ministry and train under an experienced college missionary. ( For more info go here: http://www.edgecorps.org/)

God first placed Akron on my heart the fall of my sophomore year.  I honestly don't know what brought it on. I grew right outside of Akron and I always had a heart for the city, so maybe that was it. All I know is that I felt like God wanted to start a Navs at Akron.  I shared this with my campus leader at Kent, but soon forgot about it.

I spent the next couple years in a strange tug-of-war between who I thought I wanted to be and who I knew God wanted me to be. I made a lot of foolish mistakes, but I also continued to get involved with the Navigators leading growth groups, singing with worship team, etc. The summer after my junior year changed everything. The things in life I was trying desperately to hold onto were torn from my hands and I was left with nothing but God. I decided then and there that I would submit to being fully God's...I would do whatever He asked me to do. 

That fall at Navs retreat God put EDGE on my heart. As the video describing what EDGE Corps was played, I knew instantly that this was what I was supposed to do next.  I didn't share this information right away with anyone. To be honest I was a little scared. My passion was (and partly still is) design and illustration. Part of me wanted a "normal" job in a studio somewhere. A bigger part of me did NOT want to fund raise my salary (more on this later).

By EDGE Preview I had already shared with my campus director that I thought I was being called to campus ministry. It wasn't long after that he told me a couple was possibly planning to move to Akron and start a new ministry on the campus there. 

So long story short I applied, I prayed, I freaked out, I got accepted, I freaked out some more, I said yes, and I was placed at Akron. 

After I graduated this past May I flew with 5 other friends joining EDGE at Kent to Colorado Springs for training. The nine days we spent there with eighty something other EDGEers were some of the best days of my life. I met amazing people, I explored the beautiful Glen, and I grew a new confidence in God and His purposes for my life. 

We came back May 31st and the next day started full-time fundraising. I spent 5 days making calls and setting up appointments, took a 5 day hiatus for Bonnaroo, and then went at it again. But, as I said, thoughts on fundraising later.

So that is the short version. And you are always welcome to ask for the long version or details.

P.S. If you read this blog before, you may notice things have changed. All the old posts are in hiding and I am starting fresh with this new chapter of my life. Thanks for reading! I look forward to updating you and I promise most posts will be shorter :)