a long-intended post: Urbana 06 reflections

Urbana, a place to find your calling. A life changing experience. As most have attested, Urbana was not simply a good experience, but a steep learning curve. Perhaps, we wonder if we managed to come away with all that we could. There were many inspirational messages, God stories, and stories that spoke to your heart, but yet you question if you were able to absorb it all in. Have I changed at all from Urbana?

Entering Urbana, I sought to understand further what it meant to minister to the Shalom of the city through inner-city missions. Coming from such a privileged society, I truly wanted my eyes and my heart to be open to what the Lord desired to show me. I desperately wanted to live a life worthy of His calling. Most of all, I wanted to know how my job as a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) would fit into missions. So, I attended several workshops on Inner-city missions and on calling and the workplace. Although those experiences opened my eyes to what I could do in the city, I still felt slightly unsure. I needed to know more. At Global Connections, I went around to the hundreds of booth searching for a hint, searching for something that would potentially pair my God given desire to be an SLP with his mission field. After an hour or so I felt frustrated, asking God why there seemed to be so few opportunities for an SLP. And then, I met Winfer at the Interserve booth. It was such an amazing experience to meet this woman, as God brought her to me at just the right time. A woman that was willing to talk to me about how my job as an SLP could be used in the mission field. She used examples from her own life, working as a physiotherapist (now placed in Afghanistan) and how God used her. Although we spoke only briefly, she was deeply encouraging. I may not be sure where I will end up in the future, be it in inner-city missions or overseas, but I know that I am not going to just settle. I yearn to live a life that is not constantly filled with regrets, but a life worthy of His name and renown.

*sidenote* my church has a blog for our Urbana reflections, to read them click here