Service Adventure wasn’t my initial plan, and it wasn’t until the last minute that I decided it was the right plan, but I have come to find that sometimes that is just the way God works. I applied and was accepted to Service Adventure just about two or three weeks before the day it was to begin. After having all my plans laid out for college, I would continue to wonder, "If college is where God wants me, then why does it just not feel right?"
Everything involving college all fell together perfectly. I applied, was accepted, received a scholarship and even met my roommate. Although, despite how well everything fell together, something was off. Throughout my senior year of high school, I had this strong urge to go somewhere farther away from home for college and to just do something different. Something that didn’t involve conforming to the mainstream choices that most seniors in my small town made following high school. I looked at and applied to schools in Washington and Montana, where I was accepted to two of my favorite universities. I loved to entertain the idea of going to one of these schools but was still unsure if college in either of these places was the right decision. By the time graduation rolled around, I was only certain of two things; one being that college and the plans I had already configured just didn’t feel right, and two being that I was well aware of this strong urge that I was to be somewhere else.
As summer went on, I pushed college to the back of my head. I filled my time with summer activities and work. Any time the thought of college appeared, I immediately pushed it to the back of my head. As summer went on, it was clear that I wasn’t going to attend college, but I had to figure out what exactly that meant for me. One morning, before getting ready to leave for work, I joined my mom on our back patio, under the summer sun, for some tea. She and I always seemed to have our best ideas and conversations on the patio while sipping on tea. Out of the blue, she said, "What about Service Adventure, remember Leah telling us about her time in Anchorage?" (Leah was a previous Service Adventure participant and current leader of the Johnston unit). After discussing this for a bit with my mom, I felt the urge to further explore this possibility. So, we texted Leah, seeking information on the application process and if it was still possible to even apply. Leah gave us all the information we needed, and before I knew it I had filled out the application, had an interview, and was accepted to join the Anchorage Service Adventure unit. I finally began to become excited and feel at peace with what was to come, feelings that I hadn’t felt toward college as it moved closer and closer. I think it was clear that God was calling me to something more here. God was calling me to all the things I knew I truly wanted, but in a place that God wanted me and needed me. When we listen and truly want to hear what God has in store for us, God always seems to keep our best interests in mind all while sculpting them into this image and path God has for our lives.
I am certain that Service Adventure was the best decision for myself, and it was all in God’s plan. God’s plan for us always turns out in ways that may not always be clear at first, but will soon make complete sense, and turn out better than we could have ever planned out all on our own. Already, about six months into Service Adventure, I realize even more just how right God was for sending me up here. God continues to reveal Himself to me in ways I wouldn’t have intended coming into Service Adventure, but God never fails to remind me that God is always here and that God has something much bigger in store. I am constantly reassured that I am right where God wants me, and that Service Adventure has been a part of God’s plan for me all along.
