Back to the Future: Prayer letter 3
I am now 23 years old. This past weekend so many people made sure that I had such a wonderful day and I am so grateful for such great friends! In light of my birthday I have been thinking a lot about where I was one year ago, and even took some time to look back at the past year via facebook. I have had such a great year and probably some of the greatest changes. Here is a list of 23 wonderful things God has blessed me with in the past year:
1. I finished my first marathon.
2. I visited 8 new countries.
3. I built relationships with a new family in Spain.
4. I got to visit my German "sister".
5. I stood on top of the world in the Swiss Alps.
6. I met my new niece and nephew.
7. I swam in the Medditerranian
8. I graduated from the University of Michigan.
9. I got accepted to staff at New Life Church.
10. I had the opportunity to see my sister finish her first marathon.
11. I felt the real feeling of coming home for the first time.
12. Two of my very best friends got engaged and asked me to be part of their special days.
13. I have gained new friends that have meant the world to me.
14. I visited the Olympic Games.
15. I have tried so many new yummy foods!
16. I was baptized!
17. I have seen multiple people come to know Christ.
18. I went to my first Red Wings game :)
19. I saw Spain win the Eurocup while I was a Spaniard.
20. I was part of a group of people who shared the gospel with 500+ people.
21. I revisited La Libertad, El Salvador-my home away from home.
22. I made croissants from scratch. (If you have done it you know how big of an accomplishment this is, and if you haven't take my word for it.)
23. And lastly I was given a whole year to spend worshiping the Lord.
Recently I have not been having the easiest time, and have just been feeling a lot of emotion and sadness. However, I was chatting with a friend today, and because I have been doing a lot of reflecting around my birthday, I was thinking about how temporary life is. Not in relation to dying, but how temporary my actual situation is. A year ago I hadn't been to Europe yet, and that is almost unimaginable. A year from now, God willing, I should be living in La Libertad. God promises to deliver us from our sorrows and trials. I trust Him.
On a lighter note, one of the women who went on the El Salvador trip this past February was kind enough to share a bit of her story with me, and I hope that it is as encouraging for all of you as it is for me!
1. I finished my first marathon.
2. I visited 8 new countries.
3. I built relationships with a new family in Spain.
4. I got to visit my German "sister".
5. I stood on top of the world in the Swiss Alps.
6. I met my new niece and nephew.
7. I swam in the Medditerranian
8. I graduated from the University of Michigan.
9. I got accepted to staff at New Life Church.
10. I had the opportunity to see my sister finish her first marathon.
11. I felt the real feeling of coming home for the first time.
12. Two of my very best friends got engaged and asked me to be part of their special days.
13. I have gained new friends that have meant the world to me.
14. I visited the Olympic Games.
15. I have tried so many new yummy foods!
16. I was baptized!
17. I have seen multiple people come to know Christ.
18. I went to my first Red Wings game :)
19. I saw Spain win the Eurocup while I was a Spaniard.
20. I was part of a group of people who shared the gospel with 500+ people.
21. I revisited La Libertad, El Salvador-my home away from home.
22. I made croissants from scratch. (If you have done it you know how big of an accomplishment this is, and if you haven't take my word for it.)
23. And lastly I was given a whole year to spend worshiping the Lord.
Recently I have not been having the easiest time, and have just been feeling a lot of emotion and sadness. However, I was chatting with a friend today, and because I have been doing a lot of reflecting around my birthday, I was thinking about how temporary life is. Not in relation to dying, but how temporary my actual situation is. A year ago I hadn't been to Europe yet, and that is almost unimaginable. A year from now, God willing, I should be living in La Libertad. God promises to deliver us from our sorrows and trials. I trust Him.
On a lighter note, one of the women who went on the El Salvador trip this past February was kind enough to share a bit of her story with me, and I hope that it is as encouraging for all of you as it is for me!
This past year I have been grown with God, but had not fully accepted Jesus. When I went to the University of Michigan, right away I got involved with New Life Church. When spring break came around I heard about a New Life missions trip going to El Salvador. I felt a strong calling to go on this trip. A Few weeks before the trip I began to doubt whether or not Jesus was the only way. I felt very ashamed of this because of the Christian missions trip I was about to embark on. But that didn’t stop me from telling people how I was feeling and asking questions. I had very moving spiritual conversations with Sue, one of the translators and his wife during the trip about Jesus. By our second night, which was Sunday, I believed that Jesus was the only way and that He was able to make us clean from our sin. The Devil worked hard to try and pull me back to a life of darkness. There was a definite spiritual battle taking place. When we went to a very poor neighborhood on Monday my heart was cold to what I saw and because of that my heart broke. I felt as though I was dead inside. This was the first time in a long time that I had seen my sin and felt so bad because of it. By Tuesday morning, March 5th, I could not take it any more. I felt a need to do something about the filth that I was living in and I decided to make the decision to accept the gift of forgiveness and redemption that Jesus gives us. Sue prayed with me that morning. I was able to repent for my sins and invite Jesus into my heart and I felt that weight lift off my chest. On Thursday, March 7th, I was baptized by Sue, surrounded by our team and people from the church in La Libertad. I stood in the Pacific Ocean while waves crashed into my back and died to my old self and was made new in Jesus!
Such a beautiful picture of God's redemption, and a great reminder of why I love ministry so much. I would love if you would check the panel on the right for my latest prayer requests, and please feel free to leave comments with your prayer requests!
Standing in awe of His deliverance,
Sigourney
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