How many times do you make well thought-out plans, just to have life completely change it up for you? It can be kind of frustrating sometimes, right? I mean, you spent all that time thinking of the perfect plan just to have it suddenly turn into something different.
Whenever this becomes a reality, we can do one of two things: 1) Fight it and try to make our original plans work anyway, or 2) Welcome the switch-up and accept whatever comes with it.
This happened to me the summer before my freshman year at Olivet Nazarene University. Only the plans that got changed up on me were life-changing.
Since my sophomore year of high school, I had it set in my mind that I was going to attend Olivet and major in multimedia communications. I had this awesome vision of one day becoming a director of documentaries while traveling the world. I was confident this was what I was supposed to do with my life, and I was excited to get to college and get started.
Little did I know, this wasn’t at all what God had planned for me.
Fast forward a couple of years. My first excursion out of the country: a mission trip to Haiti. Let me just tell you, I was PUMPED. We were going to be spending most of our time with kids, and kids are my favorite type of people. So not only was I going to get to spread the love of Jesus in another country, but I was also going to do it while in the best company possible! I knew it was going to be an incredible experience and that I would cherish it forever.
I also knew that once the week in Haiti was over, I’d be ready to come home.
From the minute I stepped off that plane in Haiti to the minute we were on our flight home, however, my heart was completely transformed. I fell in love with the country and the people there. This was when I felt God calling me to missions.
When I got home from that first trip, I changed my major to a double major in intercultural studies and social work. I’ve been to Haiti a second time and have another trip coming up next summer, as well as a future internship in the making.
My whole point in telling this story is to show that it’s not always bad if your plans end up being a little different than you envisioned. Sometimes God has a different plan for you, one that could end up being even better than you expected.
“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9).
To learn more about Olivet’s areas of study relating to missions, contact the Office of Admissions at admissions@olivet.edu or 800-648-1463.
