As our STSM program has begun we will be asking a trainee each week how their training has been going, lessons learned, and ways to even pray for him or her. First up we have Walter Lee, a 1st year from UCI!
I was born and raised in the Bay Area and came to UC Irvine not knowing what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I applied as a mathematics major because I felt like that was the only thing I was good at and was desperate to find and switch into a major that would make an acceptable compromise between something I enjoyed and a lucrative career path. Until I had to move down for college, I was blessed to be born and raised in a church with an extremely solid missions program that I partook in for most of my high school summers. Despite this, my motivations for my future were selfish; I just saw college as a stepping stone towards a well-paying career and a stable future. Near the end of my fall quarter, I found small, small relief when I finally decided on a major that met my criteria, but all of this would become meaningless in a matter of weeks.
At Winter Conference, I prayed for a heart for missions and God delivered. With each sermon, I became more convicted of God’s own heart for those that are lost, and I finally came to give up my hope and dreams for financial security in the future for the sake of progressing God’s kingdom, but this was no sacrifice. During the conference, I deeply came to know the greatest treasure that is the gospel, and I knew that this must be shared with those who did not know. This was no longer just the Great Commission to me, but my own personal conviction. When Pastor Richard described STSM as an internship for a potential future in missions, I knew that signing up was a step in the right direction.
This past training covered the glory of God. It’s funny because I could trace back everything PR covered to a past sermon, but that’s not to undermine the topic of the training at all. In fact, the assigned reading (Desiring God) and training only emphasized the glory of God, and how loving He is for the sole reason that He gave us the greatest joy – Himself. Learning this, I was disturbed at the realization of how many people found their joy in false gods and idols. They’re wrong! These were all people giving to their lives to what they found as their greatest pleasure, only to be steered towards eternal damnation. This is why God calls us to missions: to direct praise to Him by bringing the lost into the light of the Greatest Being.
I am very thankful for KCM for the resources to serve God on such a large scale, and I’m excited for the rest of training – to go further into learning how we can apply our faith in the mission field and to know the heart of God. With the rest of life catching up with me as the academic quarter progresses, I only expect it to get harder to manage everything, but I look forward with joy, knowing that all this will only refine me mentally, emotionally and spiritually (maybe physically). With that being said, I have a couple of prayer requests:
- To constantly have a servant’s heart – that I would never make STSM (both training and mission trip) about myself, but to always remember that I am doing all things for the glory of God.
- To have faith – that I would trust God and have a patient heart that waits on his perfect timing. I’m especially worried about receiving support (both financially and emotionally), so I would like prayer regarding those two specifically.
- That I would never undermine the glory of God for lesser things – this is a lifelong prayer.
