New Adventures! (Psalm 23)

Hi friends!

Before reading any further, I want to share a Psalm that has been resonating in my heart so deeply.
Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.’

This new season that I am entering into is very new and therfore comes with fears of its own, but my peace has been found in the LORD. David writes in this Psalm that the LORD leads him, refreshes him, and fulfills him! This is the truth that I am holidng onto as I enter into this new season of life!

Throughout this last year at Ozark, I had many opportunities to see the different ways that the Lord is moving in different peoples lives. I was able to hear stories about people on the mission field, rescuing people from sex-trafficking, camp ministries, church planting, etc. A specific example of this is a conference that I had the opportunity to go to in January 2023. This was a conference hosted by a ministry named Pioneer Bible Translators. While at this conference, I was able to be educated about what really goes into a successful missionary team. One of the crucial positions that I was able to learn about was a counselor for the missionaries and the fact that when a counselor is on a missionary team, the team is so much more likely to stay in their area of ministry. This created a spark in my heart for the healing of people overseas, specifically missionaries and refugees.

In April, I began to look into a program called Gap Year by The World Race. This is a program that sends college students on a nine month mission trip during the school year. I felt like the Lord was asking me to go on an extended mission trip but this one scared me so I would consistently abandon the idea and come back to it, it was a cycle. When I got to Camp Como for the summer, The World Race was still heavy on my heart but I had no clue what to do or how to do it, so I kind of began to ignore the desire that God had grown in my heart. Yet God did not give up on me and my stubbornness- He continued to grow this fire for missions in my heart. About two weeks into the summer, we had another staff member join our team. Turns out, he was joining us late because He was coming back from his gap year trip, hosted by The World Race. This was such an answered prayer because I was able to ask all the questions that had been racking my brain for months and receive answers back.
This led to me officially scheduling an interview with The World Race, but instead, I showed interest in a four month spring trip to Ecuador and Colombia- not necessarily dedicated to going but willing to open that door in case the LORD wanted me to go. All-in-all, the interview went extremely well and less than a week later, I was officially offered a spot on the South America trip.

After speaking with both of my parents, I would love to officially announce that I have accepted my spot on the trip. With this being said, I will be taking a semester off of college this spring, but that is not to create any concerns, as I am over a semester ahead of where I am expected to be at this point in college. This trip will be a huge growth experience for me personally and for my faith. I am so grateful for this opportunity and do not want to take this portion of my life lightly at all. Now, I would like to ask something of you. First, I would absolutely love it if you could be praying for me, my team, and the ministries in Colombia & Ecuador. Prayers that the LORD would be preparing my heart as the trip approaches and as I have to say goodbye to Ozark for a short time. Prayers for unity among my team as the LORD skillfully crafts the team together in the amazing way that only He knows how. Prayers that the LORD would prepare the hearts of the people in Colombia and Ecuador for the conversations that we will get to have and the relationships that we will get to build. Your prayers are so incredibly appreciated as prayer is such a powerful weapon!

Secondly, I would like to ask you to prayerfully consider partnering with me financially for this trip. To cover all of my travel expenses, housing, health, food, and all living expenses for four months, I have to raise about $8,000. I understand that this is a lot of money, so I hope you understand that I would not be asking for your support financially if I did not think this is what God wanted from me in this current season.

Again, I ask most importantly that you be praying. I know that the LORD will provide whatever is necessary for the continuation of the Gospel! Money, travel, food, relationships and everything else will fall into place so I just ask that you be praying for those!

Thank you in advance for your generosity, in all forms! If you feel led to help financially, there are two ways you can donate! You can donate to me personally and then I will put the money directly into my fundraising account! Or you can donate directly to my fundraising account!

Venmo: @eutivaa
CashApp: $EutivaDasch
Fundraising Link: CLICK HERE

In Christ, Eutiva Dasch