Prague at Christmas | GoCorps

Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2016

Europe really does know how to do Christmas. And Prague, Prague is amazing at it. There is a Christmas market in every major square in the city. Usually boasting a beautifully decorated tree, hand crafted gifts, and delicious food, the Christmas markets are nothing short of magical. You can feel the Christmas spirit everywhere. The school I teach at has a Christmas tree in almost every classroom and there's even a nativity in the lobby. Knowing that a majority of the people in this country aren't religious, I was surprised when I had students saying to me, "I can't wait until baby Jesus comes!" When I expressed surprise in my office aCzech teacher explained to me that, in the Czech Republic, there's no Santa Claus. Instead, its baby Jesus who brings the presents on Christmas.

So to my students, Jesus, is the equivalent of Santa Claus. He is something they believe in as children but stop once their old enough to understand the difference between reality and fantasy. While this fact may be discouraging to some, I found myself praising God. Even though most people in this country would deny who Jesus really is, they do know His name. Philippians 2:9-11 says, "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

There is power in the name of Jesus. My prayer is that, in the New Year, the people of the Czech Republic will not only know His name, but know the reality of what is behind the name. For He truly is a Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. Merry Christmas!

Marissa

Class of 2016

About me:

Acts 1:8-"But you will recieve power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

Five years ago, if someone had approached me and told me that, in August 2016 I would be on a plane, ready to serve for two years in Prague, Czech Republic, I probably wouldn't have believed them. I would have told them, "No way, not me. I'm never leaving San Diego." My plan in college was simple; get my teaching credential from a local state school, get a job teaching at the same elementary school as my mom (the elementary school I, also, attended), get married, have kids, and live in San Diego. Leaving, apart from maybe some vacations, was never a part of my plan. Thankfully, I serve a God who has plans of His own, plans that are bigger and better than my own.

About a month before I was to start at the state school, I got a call. It was the admissions office of the university. It turned out that they had just counted my units and I was two units short. I needed 60 units to transfer, I only had 58. They were rescending my addmission. Immediately, all of my plans, everything I had been working towards, was torn away. I couldn't believe that I had miscounted those units. How did something that small get past my notice? I can't tell you how many times I counted and recounted those units. As my mom got on the phone with the admissions office, trying to find a solution, I began to cry. I asked God, "Why God? Why is this happening? I did everything right!" It was at this time that God reminded me of Proverbs 16:9, "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." I realized at that moment that I had never really consulted God when it came to my plan. I knew then that, while I had made plans, God was now establishing my steps. I prayed that God would direct me to my next step. And so He brought me to Biola University.

I began attending Biola the following spring and immediately could tell it was where God wanted me. That first semester I attended the annual Missions Conference. During this three day conference all classes are cancelled so that students and staff can focus exclusively on the Great Commission. As I heard various speakers, missionaries, and pastors speak about their ministries overseas something began to stir in my heart. I had never been open to going overseas but, since my plans with the state school had fallen through, God had been pressing upon me to stop saying no to Him and just be open to what He might have in store for me. I wasn't completely convinced yet, but I definitely felt God doing something. And so I went about studying and working hard on my classes. During these two years at Biola God began to refine me as a teacher. As I began working more and more in classrooms I realized that teaching was my ministry. Each time I stepped into a classroom God found a way to affirm that this was my calling. Every part of me felt made to teach. At the same time I was developing a passion for education, God was also using my bible classes to teach me about His Kingdom. Over and over again I saw how God called people to take care of widows, orphans, and foreigners. The more I studied, the more I couldn't deny the obvious truth that God calls all Christians to go, in some capacity. I began to hear a whisper in my heart, quiet at first and growing louder with the passing weeks and months. And the whisper was something akin to Isaiah 6:8, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Much to my surprise, I found myself responding in the same way Isaiah had, "Here I am! Send me." In just two short years, God completely reoriented my heart, giving me a passion for teaching and those who didn't yet know Him.

So I began to seek opportunities to serve overseas. January 2015 I went on my first overseas mission trip to India. There, I spent ten days working with and serving members of the lowest cast. I walked away understanding that, even in the darkest of circumstances, God is present. The follwing summer I travelled to Indonesia, where I taught summer school at an international Christian school. This was my first time teaching in a cross-cultural context, with students and collegues who were from an entiriely different culture than me. During this time God showed me the value and possibilities for teaching in such a context. I left both India and Indonesia with a desire for something more long-term. A while back, while still at Biola, I had stumbled across GoCorps. GoCorps' mission statement and vision had really appealed to me. I appreciated their views on all Christians as Goers and their commitment to helping recent graduates get overseas. So, almost immediately after completing student teaching in the fall of 2015, I began the application and interview process. My coach introduced me to TeachBeyond, a non-profit that seeks to send Christian educators to countries where there is a need for the Gospel. The hope, is that teachers will be able to provide a wholistic education, while also building relationships so that they can share their faith in Jesus. I was able to find a team in Prague, where there was a need for an elementary school teacher. It just so happened that I was the only qualified applicant for this position. Hearing that, I knew God was definitley working and that He wanted me to join this team.

Since commiting to GoCorps and TeachBeyond I have felt at peace and so happy with the turn of events my life took just a few years ago. Looking back, I realize that my life is nothing like I thought it would be. And I couldn't be happier. I had such a small view of God and what a life with Him could be like. He has completely shattered that view. He has given me an even bigger picture of Him. Instead of agonizing over every detail and planning for a future that might never happen, I do my best to just follow Him. Moment by moment, day by day. I hope that I will continue to do so no matter where He takes me in the future; whether it be to San Diego, somewhere else in the U.S., Prague, or even to the end of the earth.

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