No more striving…

My life the past three years I have realized have been like a movie on fast forward x16. I have just kept going. Kept pushing forward. Kept hoping for breakthrough. Kept wishing to be done and out. Kept striving. 

Ding. Ding. Ding. Striving. Do you know how many times I have heard that word this week? And each time I do my heart just burns knowing that word is what my life has been feeding on for the past three years and I am finally coming to reality that it can’t sustain me. I NEED to STOP striving. It needs to stop now. I just need to rest in the one who has created my soul. Who has created me to be. I need to trust in the one that has put me here on Earth. To say “yes” to being refreshed and renewed. To say yes “He has called me by name and I am His.” He has walked with me through this past season and He is continue to walk with me. He will not allow me to be consumed by the things of this world. To be taken astray by enemy, but instead He will shine His true light through. I am His and I am not going anywhere out of His presence. 

“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”  Isaiah 43:1-2

The waves of striving... the bay of rest and peace! 

And in this new season He is asking me to rest. This so goes against all that I have been doing and in living in the past three years. I have just been going and going in culture that doesn’t stop, but now God in His super funny ways has brought me to a place where I am literally be forced to rest. YWAM Bethlehem DTS(s) are located a small bible college out in the country side of New Zealand. It has sheep, cows, chickens, orange trees, avocado trees and macadamia nut trees. To get anywhere you have to get into a vehicle and drive. Yes, they are beautiful places to run and walk to, but you get the picture out in the middle of the beautiful no-where. Although the DTS schedule is pretty intense; there are moments of free time normally in the late afternoon or evening (times when family and friends half away around the world are sleeping so FaceTime is not an option) and internet is very limited here (super slow and expensive as well). So you get the picture of where God has placed me… in slow-easy going beautiful countryside New Zealand…

In a good way I feel like God is just smiling down on me saying “Daniella- I have set this up perfectly for you so that you can just use your moments to rest in me. To enjoy my presence. To read. To go on runs/walks. To take a nap” (I am slowing learning to embrace naps as not a waste of time, but as a time that allows God to refresh you). To be honest about all of this… this past week I have fought the desire to rest. I have tried to fill my time with being with people (which is good but not all the time), I have sat on my bed wishing that I could just scroll through Facebook or talk to family and friends back home. I have sat around bored. Kind of like a little toddler throwing tantrum. Oh, dear! My heart has a whole lot of working to be done and it’s starting with fighting the desire to strive, but instead rest. To take advantage of those moments and not complain about moments that God has created for me to rest in. To fully embrace them and enjoy them. So, here goes to taking on this deep desire of rest that God has placed on my heart for this season. Rest, Daniella, rest!

New Address in New Zealand

Hi friends,

My address is changing again! Yahooo! This time you will find me in New Zealand for a few months! 

A few of my favorite things are spending time with family, sitting in coffee shops, reading, studying the word, traveling, listening to pandora station: Bethel, running, getting mail and writing letters to friends around the world.

I promise if you write me a letter I will write you one back! :) 

Here’s to celebrating the art of letter writing! 

Daniella Rottier
749 Welcome Bay Rd
Welcome Bay, Tauranga
New Zealand 3175

Daniella Rottier

PO Box 15-134 

Tauranga 3030

New Zealand

OR 

Daniella Rottier

C/-Faith Bible College

Private Bag 12006

Tauranga 3143

New Zealand 

All three address work so take your pick! 

Love, Daniella

The In-Between “Season”

The past three weeks have been a blur of spending time with family, saying good-bye, parties, a road-trip, getting lost in books, sleeping (yay!), and being refreshed since I have moved back from South Korea. My time here in the states is short though as I get ready to embark on another journey… New Zealand! 

The past week I have spent many hours preparing for this journey through shopping, packing and sorting my things as well as reading so much about the culture of New Zealand. I can’t wait to truly embrace this new culture.

Half the time I think I am crazy for quickly moving back from Korea and jumping right into moving to another country in less-than-a-month time period, but more than ever God has confirmed over and over again this is exactly what He has called me to do in this next season of my life. Am I afraid that I will never teach again? Am I afraid that I don’t have my exact plans in place for after my DTS? Honestly, no! Was I? Yes, but God has shown me this week over and over again how faithful He is to provide. How faithful He is in His timing and ways. As I have reflected over my last three years in Korea even though they were so challenging and I would never ever want to live through it again I am so thankful that I can see how faithful God was/is and that there were many good things out of my time there. {Wildflowers post & Oh, Korea Bye post}. 

As I prepare over the next week for my adventure in New Zealand I am taking time to spend with my mama, catch up on Skype dates with dear friends, loving on my grandmama, finishing last minute details for NZ and just resting. I know that my time in New Zealand will be so refreshing, life-changing and a safe-anchorage! Tauranga- the city that I will be living in literally means a safe-anchorage which is something that God has been speaking to me over and over again this year. He has been teaching me that He is my only safe-anchorage. That only in Him will I ever feel complete, and satisfy. That when I lose track of who I am or allow fear to overcome me. He is right there safely welcoming me into His embrace and making me brave again. My prayer over the next 6 months is that I would become brave in Jesus. Brave to boldly proclaim His name. Brave to stand up to injustice. Brave to be different. Brave to live a life following after Jesus and not the standards of the world. Brave to believe in the desire of my heart. Brave to dream big and follow after them. Brave to be me. 

Would you like to join me in prayer for this next season of my life? If, so please email me at daniellajoy9@gmail.com. I will be sending out weekly emails with updates and prayer request. Something else that God has been teaching me a whole lot about is the power of prayer and asking others to join you. It is a step of being vulnerable, but something that God honors so deeply. {More to come on this some time soon}. Thank you so much for partnering with me! 

Let’s be BRAVE together! 

Love, Daniella

Oh, Korea bye!

Oh, Korea I have learned so much here and grew so much and changed. I’m not the same person I was when I moved to your humidity-hot July summer three summers ago. The girl who sat in McDonalds for aircon. The girl who was overwhelmed by not knowing the language or the crowds of people. The way you squish people on the subway or how the older people love to “rule everything”… (the road, the sidewalks and the subway).  Your awesome opened-air market places and your different smells walking down the street. The pressure to always do well and never take a break. Your fancy dress-up fashion, but also your socks and tennis shoes with a skirt. Your concern of body image and how you look. Kimchi at every meal and of course I can’t forget rice. How you can get wifi almost anywhere and sometimes in the most random places in the country side. Your people are kind, and loving once you get to know them. They have generous hearts. I have been overwhelmed by the amount of love your people have shown me the past three years. Thank you! 

My personal life here has not been easy. I had a lot things to that I had to grow in, learn, embrace and most importantly abide in God. Would I want to not have had the past three years? No, but yes… I wish I could have done without the hard (the dramas), but no because like I wrote in my Wildflowers in Valley blog post last week God placed incredible joys along the way. 

Thank you Korea for your beautiful quiet mornings (the land of morning calm). The changing of rice fields in each season (summer is my favorite with the green rice plants), public transportation, cheap opportunities to run in races (5k,10k,15k and 1/2 marathon), the randomness at Daiso, bingsue (a yummy shaved ice dessert), kimchi fried rice, shabu-shabu, Korean snacks, 7-11 on almost every street, tall apartment buildings (I have loved living on the 13th floor this year), coffee shops (my favorite by far), the opportunity to stretch and grow me in learning more about your culture and language, sitting on the floor to eat, Korean bbq, friendly older people on the hiking trails who always cheered me on when running, city life, but also nature mixed right in, gorgeous sunrises, pollution golden orange suns and fun days in Seoul.  I love your beautiful hanboks and yummy Gong Cha (bubble tea).  * And I’m sure I’m missing so many things… but the tears are starting to come…*

But I will not miss the food trash, the smells, someone smoking outside my apartment window, the pollution or yellow dust in the spring,  the pressure of excellence or body image or being pushed on a crowded subway. 

Oh, Korea!!! God used my time here to change me, to build my confidence, to test my faith, to stretch me and to show me how much He loves me. My time here taught me how to be brave and embrace the moments of being alone. Thank you for being my home for the past three years. And I know that if I ever come  back it will be completely different because you are always building and changing and I just can’t keep up. You have come so far and continue to strive for more and better…. 

My prayer for you Korea as I leave is that your nation would have a radical revival and see your need for God. A God who loves you just for you. A God who doesn’t want us to strive. A God who gives so much grace. May you see His goodness in all things and  be satisfy in Him. 

Oh, Korea…. good-bye! 

 Love, Daniella

Wildflowers in the Valley

Valleys. A valley is a low area between hills, often with a river running through it. It is a depression that is longer than it is wide (definition found on google).

My past three years in Korea have been valleys. Valleys of learning what it means to depend on God through the hard.  To be in the low.  To walk down a long road that felt like it would never end. To think I was finally going to climb to the mountaintops, but only to slide down again with another hurt or struggle. The struggle was real. It was hard. No sugar coating. It was plain hard. 

These years of valleys are coming to end. In exactly a week from today I will be shaking the dust off my feet as I fly to back to states for a short trip of refreshment, seeing family and repacking for the next adventure that God is leading me down.  The past few days have been filled with so many good-byes, packed boxes and reflection. 

A beautiful pictured that God placed on my heart a little over month ago as I was processing my time here in Korea and asking God “why? why did He have me come here? why did He have me go through all this? what was the purpose of it all? In those moments of questioning, God in His  sweet tender way  gave me a beautiful picture that has brought so much truth to my heart: this season has been valley filled with wildflowers… wildflowers of joys, encouragement and support. God didn’t leave me in the valley alone. He didn’t bring me out of the valley right away. But He did provide wildflowers along the way that I could not have ever imagined… 

Wildflowers. A wildflower is a flower of an uncultivated variety or a flower growing freely without human intervention (definition found on google.) 

God planted beautiful wildflowers in these years of living in the valley. Ones that I could not have created myself. They were truly a gift from Him and kept me looking into His face for grace, strength and wisdom. Joy. He faithfully placed wildflowers of joy to keep my eyes on Him. To remember how faithful, loving caring and forgiving He is…

A few Wildflowers that are dear to my heart are: 

-The Houser family #familyawayfromfamily

-Coaching soccer (never did I think I would have love it as much as I did!!!) 

-Opportunities of mentoring 

-My student’s personalities

-Sweet Lucy

-Bubble Tea

-Dongbu 106

-My people (you know who you are) 

-If:table/if:gathering

-Fun days of exploring Seoul

-Spring Break trips to Taiwan, Jeju, and Japan

-Good friends

-Running in races

-Sweet moments in my favorite coffee shops 

-Beautiful rice paddies 

-Learning to lead without a title

-My prayer warriors 

-Seasoning my words with grace

-Fruits of the Spirit

-Hiking in the beauty of Korea

-Walks alone in my favorite season in Korea, autumn

-Embracing times of being alone

-Growing deeper in my faith

Looking back there are many little wildflowers sprinkle along the way… too many to write them all down, but my heart is overflowing with thankfulness as I sit here and reflect. I am not the same twenty-one year old lady who moved with excitement of dream coming true of teaching and living overseas. I have been changed from the inside and out and leaving as twenty-five year old lady who has embraced the call of “spirit lead me where my trust is without borders wherever you have called me (a verse from Oceans by Hillsong). I may be a little bang-up and bruised from these valleys, but God is healing me and making all things beautiful. He is faithful and I am faithfully following the calling He has placed on my life to speak words in truth with grace… of course. I am so excited for the mountaintop that Jesus has been leading me to… a DTS in New Zealand. I am praying with anticipation and expectation that it will be a deep time of healing and breaking free to be completely the woman that God has created me for. I am going with arms wide open ready to embrace and abide in my Savior. More thoughts on this next adventure in a blog post coming soon!  

God used this little girl to impact my life... she will always have a little piece of me! 

Thank you to those of you who have stood with me in this season of clinging to God’s faithfulness. Thank you for your prayers, your encouragement, your support, your love and your wisdom. May you be so blessed for the blessing you have been to me! 

Love, Daniella 

P.S One of my prayer warriors sent me this song a few weeks ago. It is a beautiful reminder of how faithful God is until the end. He carries us through. This song so much sums up my season of valleys. He has been so faithful to end… Check out this song Faithful Till the End by Bethel Music:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tw8tYFh1JY&app=desktop. 

Quarter of a Century

Birthday morning coffee and Jesus Time

This week I turned a quarter of century a.k.a twenty-five with so much joy! As I celebrated one of my best birthday eves with bubble tea delivered to my classroom, eating Thai take-out with my family away from family on their balcony and an impromptu girl’s night with Evelyn and Sarah painting our nails sparkly pink! I thought, twenty-five, I’m ready for you! (This  is the first time in a long time that I have felt this way about turning a year older… last time was twenty-one!) 

I am so believing that this is going to be an awesome and a refreshing year. I’m looking forward to this year and all that God is going to lead me down, teach me and show me His faithfulness. Twenty-four was nothing, but learning through the valleys (more to come on this in the next blog post…I promise!) I have grown so much this past year and truly trust my Savior. I know that He is for me and not against me. That He will fight for me. Exodus 14:14 (there are so many cool stories of this). And that focusing on the things unseen is my heart desires. 2 Corinthians 4:18. 

This year at Christmas, God laid these three words on my heart and I believe they are what my twenty-fifth year is going to be sum-up as love. beauty. youth. 

Recently I listen to a sermon by Francs Chan talking about how it’s hard for humans to truly understand how much God loves us, but it is so essential  to. God is love. God created us and loves us to our core.  Over the past year I have truly learned what it means that God loves to my core and now I feel the passion to able to speak this truth to others. To continue to be in awe of His love for me and to share that with those around me. His beautiful and grace-filled love! 

Impromptu Girl's Night with #familyawayfromfamily 

God, I pray for a year of beauty. Beauty in seeing your work be done. Seeing your faithfulness in such a beautiful ways. Worshipping you. Soaking in your word. Memorize your scripture. More times of just you and me- all of these things create beauty. I pray that I would be a reflection of your beauty in all that I say and do. That your beauty would be my anchor. 

This past year God really gave me confidence in ministering to youth. Yes, I have had opportunities for the past 5 years or so, but I was never confident in it and didn’t think “I was good enough” to be doing it, but God has been chipping away at that insecurity in me over the years and replacing it with a boldness, love and wisdom that can only come from him. (Proverbs 1:7). I am definitely still growing in this call that God has placed on my heart, but I am now walking in His freedom and leading into it. This year I have truly found that I love pouring into youth. I am praying that as I move from my current role of that here in Korea that God would open up doors of opportunities continual where He leads me. I also think God is so awesome in His perfect timing of leading me to join Youth With A Mission for 6 months in doing a Discipleship Training School. It is so His perfect timing. He has set apart this time specifically- without a doubt in my heart; knowing that this is the perfect timing- it wasn’t meant for any other time, but now and that I can faithful believe for clarity of what to do afterwards. That He is already opening doors and creating plans for my future and preparing me for it. I am beyond excited to be going on this amazing faith adventure with my Savior, my father, my God! 

Celebrating with my second graders at the surprise party their mom's throw me! 

God, I thank you so much for this year of twenty-five. I so look forward to deepening my walk with you-to press deeply into your heart and live out your word. May my attitude always be filled with joy and grace. Open my eyes to your plans and ways. Help me to rejoice in hope. Be patient in tribulation and constant in prayer. Thank you so much for clearly laying Romans 12:9-13 on my heart for this year. May you show me so much through this passage as you etch it onto my heart this year. 

Source: http://frenchpressmornings.com/

Love, Daniella

A Losing Year

Losing means in very smiley words "not winning."  I’m getting good at losing this year- I think it’s for a reason- to learn and be reminded that I need God’s strength. That my identity is not in what I do, but in how God works through me. It’s not about being on top, but it’s about the lessons learned along the journey! 

There have been so many things this year where I have to had to bend my knees and release my control and abide in God. To “lose”. To walk in His leadings and do what He is calling me to without receiving the human recognition that my prideful heart longs for. 

The loss of a leadership position, but instead God has given me the natural ability to keep leading without a “title”.  The loss of undefeated season and championship win in coaching soccer, but far better than any win as a coach I experienced the joy of seeing my team learn so many amazing life lessons as well as growing closer together as a team. The loss of my dear grandpa. This one hurts deeply as I grieve still, but in the grieving God has drawn me closer to His heart. The loss of my half marathon. This one I physically lost to my own self standings compared to my other races, but somehow this race was one of my favorite races as I struggled to cross the finish line. The loss of learning my ministry here with mentoring high school girls’ instead the Lord has placed it upon my heart to keep pursuing some of them even after I am gone. Knowing that soon I will experience the loss of being present in Lucy's life, but continually being reminded that the Lord provides for our every need. That He has Lucy in the palm of His hands and that He has the perfect plan for her. The loss of being in the same place as my family away from family, but knowing that God has forever marked them on my heart and there will always be room at the table with them. The loss of another year teaching, but knowing that beyond a doubt God has plans for me in this new season of YWAM in New Zealand. 

You see it’s a losing year for me. It’s a year where I have had to learn to embrace the losses because in the end I am learning that all that matters is my heart’s attitude and what God is teaching me in the process. 

It’s been tough facing so many losses this year. For awhile it brought me under and I felt like I was drowning in it, but slowly my feet have started finding the ground and knowing that this season can’t last forever, but my hope in God can brings me closer to the shore. 

{God, thank you for being the only thing that my heart truly wants to “win” in. That even in the losses I can see the lessons. I pray through every loss that I would grow closer to you. To see you in everyone of them. To rest in you and embrace losses and the wins!} 

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increase strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not be faint. “ 

Isaiah 40:28-31

Of course there were a few wins this year as well. Winning Seoul Conquest for the third time in a row and having a fun day exploring with high schoolers. Wining Coach of the Year and loving every minute of coaching the past three seasons. Winning some awesome friendships this year that I am so thankful for. I would have never made it through the year without them. I guess life is all about the wins and losses and the journey through them. 

 {God, thank you for working in me and using the losses and wins in my life to point myself towards you! May I continue to wait (abide) in you for renew strength as I finish this season and enter into a new one} 

Love, Daniella 

Joy in Coaching

Every spring for the past three years God has blessed with a little joy. A joy of coaching a high school girl’s soccer team. Never would I have guessed when I was playing sports in high school that I would someday be the coach. I never consider myself a very good player in any sports I played, but I liked the idea of sports, working together as a team, working out,  and being like my siblings (who are SUPER good at sports. With all that said I am just a huge sports fan in general and watching all sorts of different kinds of sports is one of my favorite things to do!!! (which reminds me I need to get my tickets for a Korean baseball game soon so I can watch a game before I say good-bye to my season in Korea!) But it’s true I have coached for the past three years and have loved it! 

That’s why tears are so close these days as I write this post thinking about my team for the past three years. I have LOVED coaching not because the first two years my team went undefeated and were the champions of our division  or because I got Coach of the Year award this year. No, it’s because of  my TEAM. My team of girls even as it changed over the three years. These girls taught me SO much. God used them to grow me and show me how much He loves me and believes in me. 

A couple of Fridays ago our school had our annual Sport’s Banquet and did I ever feel so honored by my players and athlete director. My sweet team gave me a beautiful banquet of red roses and a huge red heart with notes from them.  My athlete director honored me with Coach of the Year. It was truly humbly. This award is not about me, but it’s all about what God did through me in coaching and my team of girls who believed in me as their coach. I am so thankful that I had an opportunity to talk to my team about our season and what I thought as a coach. I was able to honor my players. I also took the opportunity to give my final words to all ICS athletes as you know my season here in Korea is coming to end. I am very excited about what is next, but it’s little things like coaching soccer that make it hard to leave. The girls on my team have won a place in my heart. It was not an easy season, but fought hard together through every obstacle on and off the field! 

Receiving my award

 

And these are the words that I spoke to my team: This year we had to overcome many obstacles; not enough players, injuries, our first lost in the past 3 seasons, refs who were not always in our favor and a terrible tournament schedule. We faced disappointments and fears as a team. 

Many have been asking and wondering how can you still love this soccer season even though it was filled with disappointment in terms of scores and rank compared to the  other past two seasons. 

Well let me take a few moments to tell you: 

First, every season is a new season. A new team. New goals and dynamics. It’s important to remember that comparison is the thief of joy. We shouldn’t compare seasons but we should embrace the season we are in with open minds and hearts to learn from it so that we can grow. (And this totally apples to everyday life as well). 

Second,  as a coach I saw my team as true conquerors and champions. We built muscle. We built character. We grew stronger. We grew bolder. We pushed up. We pushed limits. We sweated. We laughed. We achieved. Together. This Season. As a team.

My Captain this year and little Evelyn

These ladies fought hard despite our circumstances we faced as a team. Like I always told the girls before and after each game “If you give it your all a win will feel deserved and a loss won’t hold regret.” Well, those of you who were at tournament can testify that these ladies gave it their all as they fought through 3 games basically back to back (that’s 4 1/2 hours of soccer straight) to claim third place proudly. 

Yes, we can claim third place proudly because we overcame disappointment and pulled together as a team even when we face a huge disappointment of losing the first game in tournament. We had a choice to make… either to put each other down and give up for the rest of the day or come together as a team and conqueror all the rest of our games. And man did these ladies crush the other teams! 

The greatest joy of being a coach to these ladies the past three season hasn’t been the wins or even the losses this year, but it has been seeing how God used soccer to teach us all lessons… life lessons:

Lady Conquerors- I hope and pray that you will hold onto these lessons as you go through out life: 

-Remember One kind word can change someone day. Kindness changes everything.  It warmed my heart as a coach to hear you ladies speaking truth to one another, building one another up and cheering one another on in both the awesome moments and also in the moments when someone felt like they failed. 

Dressed up for our school Spring Fling Dance 

Which leads me to the next lesson… 

-We learned that it always better to work together as team. Remember ladies there is no letter “i” in team, but there is an “e” for we! :) We don’t score a goal for ourselves or defend a ball for ourselves, but when we have the right heart and do it for our team it makes a bigger difference and keep our eyes off ourselves. 

-Life is tough, but so are you, Lady Conquerors

-We also had to face many fears throughout the season both individually and as whole on and off the field, but I want you to remember: You were never created to live depressed, defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed or unworthy. You were created to be victorious.  

You can only crush your fears with truth. 

• Our bodies are created to honor and glorify God that even includes what we eat and how we take care of our body! 

• Like Mia Hamm said  [We learned that] “It is more difficult to stay on top than to get there.”

Dig-deep was our motto! 

• Dig deep, ladies!

-Ephesians 5:20 says “In all things give thanks.” You ladies have pure hearts in thankfulness… even in overcoming obstacles you looked for the things to be thankful for. We even recorded a song after tournament with all the “soccer” things we were thankful for to our God! Having thankful hearts always gives you a better perspective on life. 

-Lastly, we continued to learn what it means to glorify God through playing soccer through the way we respected our team, the other teams and the refs. Sometimes this was hard, but we did it! 

As you can tell it has been a pure JOY for me to coach you ladies this season as well as the previous two seasons. More than you know it has been a blessing to my life and I have grown and learn so much through it. Thank you for loving on me and believing in me as you coach as well as your respect. I am truly going to miss coaching you all. It is something that will always have a little piece of my heart. Thank you! 

And because this is my last year I want leave a challenge for all future seasons, players and coaches: 

Being a Christian athlete doesn’t mean praying for your team to win. God doesn’t give an edge to those who pray, over those who don’t; hard work does that. Being a Christian athlete means competing for Christ, in a way in which you always give your all for Him, and win or lose, you thank Him for the ability and opportunity to play. It means giving all the glory to God, no matter the outcome, because you trust in His plan for you life. 

Remember a sport is more than just playing a sport. It’s about building relationships, a team, mentoring and learning life lessons! 

Go fight and Conqueror and know I will be cheering for you all from afar! 

Two of my biggest supports this year! 

My awesome team after tournament! 

{Thank you, God for pushing me out of my comfort zone my very first year of coaching and building in me confidence to use coaching soccer for your glory and to pour into the lives of these girls. May your work continue to grow as I pass my team onto the future coach. It’s all about you… not me that’s my heart desire as I say good-bye and let go! These girls will always hold a place in my heart and I am excited for how God is going to continue to work in them!} 

Who knows if I will ever coach again?! But if the opportunity comes again I am sure I will jump right in… we will just have to wait and see. For now I hold onto the memories of the past three seasons with joy and a smile remembering the nickname these girls gave me “Ms.Coach”! 

Love, Daniella 

Local Vacationing

Hello there. It’s been awhile. I could come up with all these excuses for my absent, but the truth is that I just haven’t taken time to write here. I haven’t really taken time to process my thoughts in writing much these days, but it’s time. It’s time to write about something I learned over spring break (which by the way seems like forever go now…)! 

Spring break came at a much needed time with the end of the school year approaching, the middle of soccer season,  and after leading a full week of service projects with the whole elementary school (basically like VBS)! 

One of my roommates and I decided to jet-off to Japan for six days and rest. It was such a beautiful and restful trip and here’s why: 

We stayed with friends. We became like locals for the week. We enjoyed the easy pace of life. We explored the little unknowns. We picnic next to a river. I ran through the neighborhoods and bamboo trees. We smelled the cherry blossoms at local golf range. We ate ramen at super yummy local restaurant. We shopped at a grocery store.  

We did do a few tourists things and I can honestly say those where the times where I was overwhelmed and didn’t really enjoy it. One, tourist things become so overrated and two, too many people! I want to see how the natives live. I want to truly experience what it is like to be a local in Japan. 

So my spring break trip to Japan taught me that I like to vacation like a local in the country. Skip out out on the tourist things and embrace the true culture of the country! 

Can’t wait for my next adventure of being a local…!

Love, Daniella 

Good, Good Father

A song that has been on repeat in my heart and head this week is Good Good Father by Chris Tomlin! God has shown Himself to me so faithfully this week and has shown me the kind of father He is in my life. 

“Oh, I've heard a thousand stories of what they think you're like

But I've heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night

And you tell me that you're pleased

And that I'm never alone”

My time in Korea has been some of my loneliest moments yet, but in these lonely moments God has whispered in His tenderly loving way that “I am not alone.” He is all I need. He is right with me. Even in the dead of night when I can’t sleep He is watching over my thoughts and pointing them towards Him. 

“You're a Good, Good Father

It's who you are, it's who you are, it's who you are

And I'm loved by you

It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am”

 He is a Good, Good Father. He listens. He watches over me. He protects me. He loves me. He knows what is best. He never leaves me. He holds me. He accepts me. He pushes me in the right direction. He shows grace. He disciplines. He teaches. He shows the way. He loves deeply. He provides. He draws me near. 

“Oh, and I've seen many searching for answers far and wide

But I know we're all searching

For answers only you provide

Cause you know just what we need

Before we say a word”

This week I have had the awesome opportunity of leading two of my students in accepting Jesus into their hearts. It’s all for God’s glory. Both students came to me after I had the opportunity to quickly share my testimony in our elementary chapel. They wanted to ask questions about God and were wondering how they could have Jesus in their hearts. The awesome things is that all answers were found in the Bible. Just like the song verse above says “ many are searching for answers far and wide, but I know we’re all searching for answers only [God]can provide.” It was the most amazing experience being able to witness these two students accept Jesus into their hearts. To see the joy of God fill their hearts. God- what an amazing father you are. All the glory to you! 

“You're a Good, Good Father

It's who you are, it's who you are, it's who you are

And I'm loved by you

It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am”

 God’s love has blown me away this week. I have been exhausted. It has been a non-stop two weeks between teaching, coaching soccer, loving on those in my community, talking with students about God, supporting one of my soccer girls in a ballet recital, and so much more. It is all good things and all things that I want to be doing, but my body is exhausted, but even though my physical is tired my spirit is overflowing with JOY. God has shown me how much He loves me this week and how much He cares about me by showing me exactly why He has me here even through this hard season. To see all that He is doing just leaves me in complete awe of His goodness and mercy and love and compassion! I am blown away by His love and goodness! 

“Cause you are perfect in all of your ways

You are perfect in all of your ways

You are perfect in all of your ways to us”

God has shown me this week that even though I wanted to be like Jonah and run away from what God was asking me to do because it was hard and hurtful or it seemed that way in my eyes. God had a far better plan for this season. He really is perfect in all His way. He is the perfect Father. Even when I doubt He holds my hand and leads me into His perfect plan for my life. Even when jealousy or hurt or “not enough lies” fill my heart He blows them away with His perfect love and ways! Heart- just trust in Him and keep pressing forward! 

“Oh, it's love so undeniable

I, I can hardly speak

Peace so unexplainable

I, I can hardly think”

This week there has been more moments of lost of words than I have had in a long time (some of it could be because of exhaustion), but more because of the holiness of God. I have found myself in complete awe of all that God is doing in my life, my student’s lives and my family lives! He gives a peace that is so unexplainable. Even though there has been many amazing things this past week and so many things to just sit in awe praising God there has also been some hard. A little girl in my class who has lost her mama last year to cancer just lost her grandmother this week. My heart literally breaks for this little girl. I can hardly handle it, but then I am reminded to lay it at Jesus’s feet and walk in the love of Him. To love on this little girl with all that God’s love pours into for her. There has been many moments of jealously in my heart this week , selfishness, pridefulness and not feeling enough…

“As you call me deeper still 

Into love, love, love”

But God calls me deeper into His love. I don’t deserve this love. I am a sinner, but Jesus died on the cross to wash away my sins and to make pure as snow. And I am completely overwhelmed by that this week! It has been one crazy awesome week filled so full! Thank you, God for being a good, good father! 

“You're a Good, Good Father

(You are perfect in all of your ways)

It's who you are, it's who you are, it's who you are

And I'm loved by you

(You are perfect in all of your ways)

It's who I am, it's who I am it's who I am”

{God I pray that you would protect my heart and attitude this week from the enemy who wants to steal, kill and take away joy. I pray that you would reign over my life, my classroom, my apartment, my school, my family and friends. I pray that you would be so presence like you always are. That my eyes would stay focus on you. That I would’t become prideful or overwhelmed, but look to you always! I love you!} 

Love, Daniella