A few years ago, I would have never imagined myself writing this letter. But now, after knowing the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no greater joy for me than to share this with you. I grew up in a non-believing family, so it was not until high school that I found my purpose in Christ. Since then, my relationship with the Lord deepened through the years I spent at Covenant Fellowship Church in Urbana-Champaign through my college years, and it was here that my faith was solidified and my calling confirmed. In the past three years, God blessed me with various opportunities to serve His Kingdom in the Chicagoland region and allowed me to partner with Him in bringing the Gospel to different areas of the world through short-term missions. The Lord opened my eyes to see that the harvest is truly plentiful, but the workers are few. This year God specifically challenged me "can you love a people that is not your own?" This burning question on my heart led me to join this missions team to Ecuador. In a foreign environment with an unfamiliar language and culture, it is my desire to learn what it means to wholly depend on God. I am very excited to share His love with the people of Ecuador and I am thankful to have the opportunity to grow through this experience as well.

Portoviejo is just one of the cities that was damaged by earthquakes in the spring of 2016. Many people lost everything. Many lives were lost. Our responsibility is to go and be good listeners. People who have been through tragedy like this need to tell their story. After we listen to their story, we pray that they will be willing to listen to Gods story of love, forgiveness and hope.

Once again, I am very thankful for this opportunity to be used by God to share the Gospel with others. However, I realize that this race is not run alone, but collectively with the body of Christ. As even the Apostle Paul had numerous supporters during his time in missions for the Lord, I see that the battle of prayers lifted up here in America is just as important as the field work done in Ecuador. So I humbly invite you to consider partnering with me in this process through prayers and financial support, which helps cover expenses such as transportation, food, and shelter. To participate in this mission trip I need to raise $2,750 by June 8th to cover the transportation, shelter, training and food expenses. It is my hope and prayer that God’s Kingdom will be advanced through this partnership. Thank you and God bless!