I was recently asked to write a post for the Children at Risk blog explaining what I’ve been up to since last summer. And since I haven’t posted anything in quite a while, I figured I’d go ahead and share this.

Just for a little background information: last summer I was blessed with the opportunity to intern with Awana International, working specifically with Children at Risk. I spent six weeks working in the office, and was then able to spend two weeks in Chittagong, Bangladesh. My fellow intern and I were able to stay with the area director and his sweet family while traveling to different villages and seeing what long term ministry in a foreign place really looks like. 

The first thing I was told after arriving in Chicago was that my life was going to be completely transformed during the next eight weeks. Little did I know how much. 

If someone had sat me down and told me two years ago that right now I'd be crying myself to sleep, completely torn for the broken hearted in my own community, I never would have believed them. 

Until last summer, this heart beat for one place and one place only - Uganda. But today, I can honestly say that while I left part of my heart in Uganda, my eyes have been opened to the need in my hometown of Augusta, GA. 

This summer I was able to serve with Hope for Augusta, a ministry in downtown Augusta that works with kids in the urban area. I was able to be involved in tutoring programs along with Vacation Bible School and Camp Grace. 

Thankfully this heart not only beats for the beautiful people of Africa and Bangladesh, but it beats for the world. His world. I have fallen in love with His people. I will no longer allow stereotypes to control my life and the way I choose to live it. I will reach out to the broken. I will try my absolute hardest to love the unlovable. I will go wherever He tells me to go. I am willing to be His hands and feet. I hope. I pray that I will not let the fear that is instilled in me control me. I want to serve where others are afraid of serving. I want to befriend the forgotten, the "unreached." 

They're here. Waiting for precious hope; for the sweet gospel.

My heart was completely transformed last summer. I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I wouldn't change it for the world. Last summer, my Father took me all the way to Bangladesh in order to tell me that I belong here. Right here in Augusta, GA. At least for the time being. There is so much work to be done, and I am so beyond thankful that He is allowing me to be a minuscule part of it.

-Rosie 

a slight recap.

the journey begins. so blessed to have catherine by my side :)

visiting an orphanage near the Karmar's house. there were strikes going on, so we weren't able to do much since everything was closed. it was definitely nice to have some time to rest though.

singing with the kids at a church in chittagong. amazing experience!

visiting a local fisherman slum.

visiting the "rail-gate" slums with some girls from a shelter nearby. by far one of the most heartwarming, yet heartbreaking experiences. such sweethearts.

we got to lead counsel time with the kids at grace baptist church in banskhali. this is actually the first church that started Awana in this area. 

a local compassion project in banskhali.

just holding a little parrot in one of the villages :)

worshipping with 120 awana kids at church friday morning. 

the absolutely beautiful land of bangladesh.

getting ready for a "bachelorette party" bengali style.

yes, we went to a bengali wedding and got to wear absolutely stunning saris. the heat just added to the experience.

as you can see, we have definitely been busy. we've been able to sing and share our testimonies with more than eight groups, and it becomes more sweet every time. being able to use the gifts that God has given us all the way across the world has been incredible. this past week has definitely been one of THE most eye opening weeks of my life, and i cant wait to see what the Lord has in store as we finish up the trip. it has been so much different than what i expected, but im learning that sometimes that makes it even more beautiful. there is no doubt in my mind that this is exactly where i needed to be this summer. i have discovered so much about myself, and so much about my God. please continue praying for catherine and i as we finish our last week here! we have a lot still to do, and we so want to glorify the Lord to the best of our ability.

by the way, sorry the pictures are all over the place. my computer tends to do whatever it feels like doing.

chittagong, bangladesh

we arrived saturday morning and were welcomed by Prodip and Shikha Karmakar, along with their daughters Catherine and Katrina. thankfully we got here without any issues, just a lot of jet lag. 

the culture shock has definitely begun to set in. i have realized that it is a lot different traveling internationally with one person rather than an entire team. you are now the object of attention, not the group that you are with. and im not going to lie, it’s tough. it’s tough to feel out of place. but in the midst of it all, it’s exciting. it’s exciting to have nowhere to go but to my Savior. is it hard? unbearably. do i miss my family? more than i thought possible. do i miss the comforts of America? honestly, more than i thought i would. but the thing that’s incredible is that im not going at this alone. i am a child of the almighty comforter, the almighty healer, the almighty protecter. so i will stretch out my hands to Him, as david says in psalm 143, and i will seek Him above all else. 

i cannot wait to see what the Lord does in and through us. the adventure has just begun, and i can honestly say that i am looking to the Lord for strength as it continues. please continue to pray for catherine and i, that we may be a blessing to everyone we come in contact with, that the love of Christ will pour out of us, and that we will be able to adjust to our surroundings.

much love from bangladesh! 

Psalm 143:8-12

Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;

          For I trust in You;

          Teach me the way in which I should walk;

          For to You I lift up my soul.

Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies;

          I take refuge in You.

Teach me to do Your will,

          For You are my God;

          Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

For the sake of Your name, O LORD, revive me.

          In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.

And in Your lovingkindness, cut off my enemies

          And destroy all those who afflict my soul,

          For I am Your servant.

why me?

"The power of the One who raised Jesus from the dead is living in us, and as a result we have no need to muster up our own might. Our great need is to fall before an almighty Father day and night and to plead for Him to show His radical power in and through us, enabling us to accomplish for His glory what we could never imagine in our own strength. And when we do this, we will discover that we were created for a purpose much greater than ourselves, the kind of purpose that can only be accomplished in the power of His Spirit."


I have found myself asking this question a lot within the past few weeks, especially in preparation for Bangladesh. 


Why me?


I can't seem to figure out why in the world He would choose me to serve Him across the world this summer. I'm a filthy sinner. I struggle to stay focused on Him throughout the craziness of life, and a lot of the time I fail miserably. Yet He continues to love me. He continues to forgive me. He continues to equip me for the furtherance of His kingdom.


But why? Grace. That's why.


For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 
Ephesians 2:8-9


"But that gift of grace involves the gift of a new heart. New desires. New longings. For the first time, we want God. We see our need for Him, and we love Him. We seek after Him, and we find Him, and we discover that He is indeed the great reward of our salvation. We realize that we are saved not just to be forgiven of our sin or to be assured of our eternity in heaven, but we are saved to know God. So we yearn for Him. We want Him so much that we abandon everything else to experience Him. This is the only proper response to the revelation of God in the gospel."


I am here to make much of Him and His glory. 


"God blesses His people with extravagant grace so they might extend His extravagant glory to all the peoples on the earth."


So despite my flaws, I will continue to serve Him with all that I am. I will strive to live my life radically abandoned to Him. And I will go boldly where He has commanded me to go. Will it be easy? HECK NO. But will it be worth it? You better believe it. 

a new perspective.

“College: a four year window in a person’s life when God has maximum opportunity to build a foundation into a life lived for Him.”

A few weeks back, I began reading Fuel and the Flame by Steve Shadrach. In the beginning of the book, the author stresses how vital college can be.

In order for this to make sense, you're going to need a little background information. In so many words, school is NOT my thing. All throughout high school I was convinced that I wasn't in need of a college degree, but to my disadvantage (at the time), my daddy had a very different opinion. 

After I went to Uganda in 2010, the Lord completely changed my heart towards education. I realized that it shouldn't just be "something I had to do." Rather it should be something that I desired to do, in order to further my knowledge, therefore furthering the kingdom of God.

Needless to say, I'm a full time student at Augusta State. It is definitely still a struggle for me to look past the fact that I have to study and do homework, because school is not something that I'm passionate about whatsoever. But this is where the Lord has me, and slowly but surely I'm realizing that He has more in store for me during these next three (or five) years of school.

That being said, Fuel and the Flame has definitely begun to hit home. Throughout the entire first chapter, the author explains how much a young adult grows during this time. It's when you really begin to figure out exactly who you are in Christ.

“The most recruitable, trainable, and sendable category of persons on planet earth is the American college student. They are, and will be, the leaders of every facet of society. If we can win students today, we can win the world tomorrow. Although they make up only 1% of the world's 6.6 billion people, they are easily the most "powerful percent" on earth; the most influential slice of humanity in existence.” -Steve Shadrach

Now for a slight change of subject:

In Matthew 13, Jesus tells a few different parables. The one that I want to focus on is the parable about the sower. Jesus mentions four different scenarios. Some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. Some fell on the rocky places, and immediately they sprang up but when the sun came, they were scorched because they didn’t have roots. Some fell on thorns and were choked. But others fell on the good soil and actually yielded crop.

I cannot count the number of times I've heard the parables mentioned in this chapter. I always knew that I didn't want to be planted on the road, the rocks, or in the pokey vines. But until this moment, I've never truly gotten it. 

I absolutely love how this is broken down in verses 19-23 of this chapter:

"When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom the seed was sown beside the road.

"The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;

yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. 

"And the one on whom the seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 

"And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings it forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty."

I’m coming to the realization that college isn’t just about barely scraping by and getting a degree. It’s about building an incredibly firm foundation, deepening a lasting relationship with the Lord, and figuring out what exactly it is that He wants for my life. 

"We're not saying the college campus is special in and of itself, just that our hearts are there. Our roots are there. Our calling is there. And our desire, like you, is to see God's name magnified in this collegiate generation." -Louie Giglio

aspiring world changer.

“There is but one coward on earth, and that is the coward that dare not know.” 

During my internship in Chicago, I will be working with the Children-at-Risk program. We’ve begun working on our advocacy project, and in order to do so, we need ideas. We were given some websites that have done really incredible things, so today I began researching.

demiandashton.org - an organization that is striving to “raise awareness about child sex slavery, change the cultural stereotypes that facilitate this horrific problem, and rehabilitate innocent victims.”

As I’m sitting here at my desk, my heart is breaking. 

Facts about sex slavery:

- The global sex slavery market generates $32 billion in profits annually.

- Two million children are subjected to prostitution in the global commercial sex trade.

 - In just the United States, between 100,000 and 300,000 children are enslaved and sold for sex.

The average age of entry into prostitution is age twelve. 

Age twelve. 

At age twelve the average girl is in seventh grade, concerned with absolutely nothing other than clothes, makeup, and cute boys. Yet there are over one hundred thousand children sold into sex slavery in the United States alone, two million worldwide.

Every minute, two children are sold.

I just want to fix it. I want to comfort the broken hearted. I want precious children to know that they are beautiful. I want them to know that they have a Father that loves them, even though they feel completely unlovable. I want them to know that they are not  forgotten. 

“Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.” 

my story.

Growing up, I was surrounded by people who served the Lord from all over the world; specifically two families in Africa. People always told me that the Lord would show me what He wanted for my life, and I vividly remember being absolutely terrified that He was going to call me to serve Him in some foreign place like Africa. I was much too selfish to even consider leaving my home, my family, my country. My prayer was that the Lord wouldn’t even consider me for serving Him in a place as “horrible” as Africa.

Then in 2008, I studied the book of James at Precept Ministries. And I read James 1:27 – “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

This verse changed my heart forever. The Lord completely grabbed hold of me, and suddenly I wanted to serve Him in whatever way He saw fit, whether that be in a country on the other side of the world, or right here in Georgia.

During my senior year of high school, the opportunity arose to travel to Uganda, Africa with an organization called SafeWorld Nexus. I immediately accepted, eager for a new adventure.

Four days after graduation, the journey began; the journey that would change my life forever. I completely and totally fell in love with Africa. The people, the land, the precious orphans who desperately wanted to be loved – everything fit.

Something that I have come to realize since I returned is that I need Africa more than Africa needs me.
“It is Africa that has taught me that possessions in my hands will never be as valuable as peace in my heart. I’ve learned that I don’t need what I have and I have what I need. These are just a few of this continent’s many lessons. I came here to serve and yet I’ve found that I have so much to learn, and Africa, with all its need, has so much to teach me.” -mochaclub.org

I am now an eighteen year old college student whose prayer has drastically changed over the years. Now, I hope and pray that the Lord would bless me with the opportunity to serve Him in the beautiful country of Uganda. I pray that I will be satisfied if He leads me to stay in the States. I pray that I will use my talents to further His kingdom. I am ready to put away my predetermined thoughts of everything. I want to be clay.