Going out on a limb...

Today was an amazing day. After work in beautiful FoHo, I studied for a bit then left to attend college group (Nikos).  Last week, Meagan and Nessa took me to Nikos and I really enjoyed it. To be honest, I am picky about where I attend church. I know what God desires from a church and I definitely stick to that. At Nikos the pastor preaches from the bible, verse by verse, and so it is easy to see the word how God has wanted us to. Anywho, tonight was a great night and God spoke to me very clearly. So, I would like to share :)

Throughout my life, I have gone through many phases. I used to be a very shy person, then I became a very outgoing person back to being shy and now I would say I am outgoing. But I am not going to lie, I find it difficult to openly interact with people that I do not know. When I tell my close friends that I can be shy they laugh at me and say, "yeah right!" Well tonight, God spoke to me and showed me that I need to stop holding back.

I find myself always being in situations where I feel content. I surround myself by people and places that make me feel comfortable. It is kind of rare for me to do something out of the norm. Tonight, I saw so many past opportunities that flashed in my head of times where I should have stepped out of the box.  I know that God is with me and will guide me but yet I still hold back at times. For instance, there has been times where I find people who are not really that close to me, broken down inside. Whether those people show it throught their actions or words, I can just see it. I have thought to myself countless of times if I should ask him/her if I can pray for them. But of course, there is that fear that comes along that says, "eh. Don't bother." I know that the fear is not of God. I will not experience another one of those moments again.

If we hold back in life, we can miss many oportunities that are placed in our path. That is one of the things that I was reminded of tonight.  Who knows the impact that I can have on somebody's life through God if I never try.  I have actually experienced what it feels like to make a difference, even if it was for a short amount of time. A couple years ago when I went to Haiti, there was this little boy that caught my eye. The kids at the orphanage we went to were somtimes skeptical and would just stay in the corner. Of course, this boy was one of those kids and something about him told me to try to talk to him. I am guessing the boy was around two or three years of age. I spent a lot of time trying to talk to him and have him warm up to me but, he continued to look down as if he was shy and as if I were some random stranger (which I was). I finally was able to find out his name from a worker at the orphanage.

One day when we were out in the play yard with all the kids, I saw the little boy wandering around with his head down. A lot of the kids where playing together, laughing, jumping and doing stuff that kids do but, he was not. I called his name, "Watson! Watson!" The next thing you know he looked over shocked, as he was curious to who could be calling his name; he smiled huge, and ran over to me with his arms wide open. I grabbed him and he sat on my lap as all the kids played around us. The smile that he showed was a smile that I can hardly describe.  It was as if he knew that someone cared about him, someone wanted him. It is one of the most cherished memories I have of Haiti that I will hold onto the rest of my life.

The reason why I share that story is because I feel like that is the impact that we can all have in others lives. Sometimes people just want someone to care and listen to them.  It gets easy to get caught up in our own life and worries, forgetting about those around us. I know that for myself, I want to show God's love and mercy throughout my life. I want to show people that we do not have to go through this life alone.  But in order to do this, I cannot be timid and I need to stand strong in my faith.  I hope that maybe this can help any of you who have struggled with any kind of fear.  Just know, that the one attempt you make to reach out, can change somebody's life forever.

Blessed.

“Higher than the mountains that I face

Stronger than the power of the grave

Constant in the trial and the change

One thing... Remains

…Your love never fails, never gives up

Never runs out on me”

The words of this song are very overwhelming.  This past week I have been thinking a lot about my life and those around me.  I can honestly say that it has been a trialing week. I have been trying to find the place where God wants me. Personally, I know where I need to grow and build but how do I help those around me?

How do I show those around me that God desires for them to live this life full of abundant joy rather than temporary happiness? It breaks my heart to see many of my friends and loved ones struggle through their times alone when they do not have to.  In the song above, God’s truth is very clear that he is “constant through the trial and the change.”  God is there, waiting for us to reach out to him. This world is continuing to become more and more corrupt.  Things are not getting easier but that does not mean that we have to lose hope.

There is someone out there who desires to be our everything. He wants to open our eyes to the truth and show us how to have an everlasting life yet so many of us chose to reject Him. I know that for myself, I used to be that person.  I used to reject God and try to fill the void inside my life with things that led to “happiness.” Yet, those things were just temporary.  I am thankful that I found the truth that has allowed me to enjoy pure happiness.

Life is rough and things rarely go how we want them to but that is okay with me.  He continues to provide and I could not ask for anything more.  I am very blessed. We as a Nation, are very blessed.

Yesterday I was talking with a couple of my co-workers about missions and how I one day desire to be a missionary. We talked about how God has put it heavy on our hearts to help those in other countries who do not have the resources that we have here. In other countries they cannot seek help form their community because the overall country is full of despair. It reminded me of when I went to Haiti back in 2009.  That was a life changing trip where my heart fell in love with missionary work.  I feel like I can go on about the desire I have to be a missionary but maybe that can be saved for another blog :)

I would like to finish this post off by saying that I want to ask for prayer from anyone who reads this; prayer for God to continue to open my eyes and the eyes of those around me.  For my friends/ family who are reading this, I want you to know that I love you all very much.  I pray for so many of you daily and I hope that God can continue to work in our lives.

Last thought, this past week I was actually reunited with a great friend. He reminded me of the joy that he had brought to my life and how much I really missed him.  Sometimes we tend to forget the people who have helped us along the way and how much happiness they have brought us. After meeting up with my dear friend I thought a lot about our friendship and how I really feel that God desired for us to be friends for a reason. I may not know exactly what that reason is but ultimately, I am here for him and I know he is also here for me.  One thing I would like to say is that for all of you who have stuck by my side when things got rough, I appreciate it. School has consumed my life but I want you to all know that I truly value you guys.  I love you all very much :)

You Got Mail

In November of 2011, I decided to support a child who lives in another country through Compassion International.  I had many opportunities to do this in the past but could never bring myself to actually make a commitment. But, this time around I figured it's now or never.  As I looked at this table full of children who needed support, I did not know where to even begin.  I honestly wish I could have supported them all but at the moment, that was very unrealistic. So, I prayed to God to show me which child I should choose.  I started looking at all their birth dates to see if anyone had the same birthday as me but of course there was nothing. Then after about 25 minutes of looking, I saw a little girl who I thought kind of resembled me as a young girl. I picked up her portfolio and she just so happened to have the same last name as me. Right away I knew this was the child I would support for the next 11 years (since I plan to support her until she is 18)!

I was extremely happy to finally have made a commitment to something that I am passionate about.  As many of you know, I visited Haiti back in 2009 and my heart fell in love with missions. The mission fields that I am particularly interested in are countries overseas that are not able to be blessed with freedom of religion, running water, food and economical wealth. I have encountered first hand the pain that third-world countries face and I continue to find myself headed down the road of a missionary.

Being able to support my child, Joana, who currently lives in Brazil has truly been a blessing. I feel as if God is still using me as a missionary even though I cannot physically be in another Country serving.

GREAT NEWS! Today, I opened a letter from Compassion International and it happened to be from Joana :) I was so ecstatic to hear from this little girl that God has placed in my life.  She wrote to me about her family, what she wants to be when she grows up, and some of her favorite things.  She also included a bible verse which she wrote in her native language, Portuguese... 

Isaiah 40:31: "But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

It literally brought tears to my eyes to receive this letter because I feel like God continues to send blessings along my way. These past few days have been a bit rough and discouraging because of situations that have happened around me but I was reminded by a 7 year old girl today that God is here, he is my strength. 

My purpose here is to serve my Heavenly Father. I have encountered what it is like to live for everything but God and it eventually brought me destruction.  As I see so many of the ones I love go down the same path that I was on, it breaks my heart.  The world is full of false hope that leads people to believe that they can fill the emptiness inside with whatever makes them happy. But don't people realize that the happiness they feel with these worldly things is only temporary?

I live for a God who gives me everlasting happiness regardless of my life situations. I struggle every day but it is okay because in my weakness, I find strength.

The time has come..

to finally start a blog! I loveee reading other people's blogs and it has been on my to-do list for a while now. So here it is!  I decided to start this blog because as many people know, I love to share my life with others. With the season that I am in right now, it is hard to always keep people updated on the amazing things that have been going on. I also just love to express myself sometimes, haha. 

Well this past week has marked my second week of winter session in DH school. Things have been mind boggling but I truly love what I am doing right now! People used to always ask me, "Gabby, are you SURE that you want to do that? People's mouth are so disgusting." Well.. yes, yes, yessss!! There is so much more to just cleaning somebodies mouth as a dental hygienist.  As health care providers, we help educate and show our patients that we want the best for their overall health.  People do not always realize that your mouth can be the beginning of a systemic problem that you may have. But, I will not get into that on here lol.

Dental hygiene school has been life changing in so many ways and I love all of the people who have been by my side through it. My lovely family and friends have shown their support with encouraging words and prayers. Along with my wonderful employers who continue to help me work out the best schedule possible. I definitely cannot complain! 

With all this said, I would not be where I am at right now if it was not for my Heavenly Father! Whether people know what I have been through or not, the reality is that it has not been easy but I have come out on top. The grace of God is miraculous and honestly blows my mind.  He has continued to open my eyes, especially through these last months. At the end of the day, I remind myself what I am living for. I am not living to be a dental hygienist or a good friend to others but ultimately to serve God in all that I do. His plans for me just so happen to consist of becoming a dental hygienist and person who loves people (at times ha).  Sometimes I know I can lose sight of this.

Well seeing that I LOVE pictures :) Here are some of the people that have been a tremendous blessing these past few months....