The Story of How My Life Got Flipped, Turned Upside Down

So, this is the story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside down, and I'd like to take a minute, just sit right there...I'll tell you how I became a school teacher/missionary in a town called Seoul??!! So, the line doesn't flow as nicely as Will Smith's Fresh Prince of Bel Air. However, the stories of how God chooses to work in our lives are so much better and often times just as humorous.
As you know, I have accepted a job in Seoul, South Korea. I will be serving as a missionary and teaching 5th grade at an international Christian school. I cannot even begin to tell y'all how excited I am about this opportunity. God has been more than faithful in leading me to this point. I didn't remember how many specific prayers HE has answered over the past 2-3 years until I started reading through my prayer journals. All I can say is WOW!! I also had failed to realize how many times in the last few years that I've had to completely rely on HIM through times of extreme discouragement. Praise be to HIM that somehow I'd forgotten most of the tough times. However, it was refreshing to remember those times of uncertainty, discouragement and trials so that I could remember just how good HE's been.
It's really hard to fathom that my time to move overseas is finally here. As many of you know, in 2002, I went on a trip to Ukraine. It was on that trip that the Lord gave me a heart for the nations and revealed Himself in ways I'd never before seen or experienced. He allowed me to catch a glimpse of HIS greatness and what HE'd do in and through me if only I'd ask and expect HIM to. In 2004, I went to S. Africa. I came back completely changed and with a great desire for missions and to one day move overseas. Little did I know that God would spend the next 4 years preparing me to serve overseas---not in Africa but in Asia. God used some times of intense discouragement to refine me and to remind me of who HE is and what He is capable of doing in a life that is surrendered to HIM and willing to step out in obedience, trusting in faith that HE alone is in control.
In November of 2005, I was asking God a lot of questions about my purpose in life. Why on earth would He send me 7 hours away from home just to teach? Didn't He want me to meet an amazing guy to marry and to devote myself to? I mean, then, I would have a purpose in life. Right? One evening that month, I pulled into the parking lot of my apartment complex and just sat in the car and had a little chat with the Father. It was that night that HE prodded my heart about missions and asked me some tough questions. Was I willing to trust HIM? Was I willing to serve HIM in the teaching job where He had placed me and fulfill HIS purposes in my daily routine? Was I willing to forget my plans and follow after HIM---even without a husband---even if it meant relocating to another continent? I began to seriously pray that night that the LORD would align my desires with HIS and that I would trust HIS best for my life. I also began to pray for clear guidance concerning missions and where I should seek opportunities to serve HIM. I also prayed that I would serve HIM whole-heartedly, with a cheerful attitude, here in the US (my current mission field) while I waited on instructions from HIM.
A year later, November 2006, I asked my parents to pray that I'd find a Christian agency through which I could serve as a missionary/teacher overseas. That week I met a lady whose husband is the vice president of NICS (Network of International Christian Schools). A whole new slew of questions began then. I will not write them out in detail. In March 2007, the Lord clearly confirmed my call to missions through HIS word, other Christians, hymns, and circumstances. I was dying to sign up and leave then, but God had other plans. Since March 2007, the LORD has done some pretty amazing things. HE has stretched and refined me---at times broken me. He has given my parents a peace about what HE's called me to do and assured them that HE's in control. The only safe place for me to be is in the center of HIS will. HE has caused me to trust in HIM and HIS plan. At the beginning of this process, I never thought I'd be moving to S. Korea of all places. However, I am confident that I am on my way to the place HE's called me to at least for the next 2 years.
Great reminders:
His thoughts are not my thoughts, nor are my ways HIS ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are HIS ways higher than my ways, and HIS thoughts than my thoughts. (Is. 55:8)
The Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will HE withhold from those who walk uprightly. (Ps. 84:11)
My prayer is that each of you would clearly hear the word of God and realize the perfect plan and purpose that HE has for your life. He so desires to do much more in each of our lives than we could ever hope or imagine. Expect big things and rely on HIM to carry them out. I love you and hope to hear from you soon!