Stories of the call: Kristen
Kristen's call to ministry came slowly, step by step. At first, it did not seem as if she did anything out of the ordinary, anything that would lead to God's call for her life. In high school, Kristen went with her church on two mission trips to Honduras. She loved the experience so much that upon her enrollment at Messiah College she began attending monthly missions meetings. "It was there that God spoke to me about becoming a full-time missionary," Kristen reveals. "I was very excited knowing how much I enjoyed and grew from my previous trips." But it was only when she phoned her mother with the news of the realization that Kristen grasped the extent to which God was leading her. "I was completely excited and nervous at the same time about what my family would think," Kristen remembers. "I immediately [contacted] my mother and told her what I felt like God was telling me. She responded with, 'Oh, I already knew that. I've been telling people at work for months now.' Talk about confirmation! That was God's way of reminding me He is always in control and will take care of the details if we trust in His unfailing hand." 
Kristen knew, however, that she couldn't just go out and become a missionary; she needed to train, and nurture her other interests for use in the field. Though Kristen did not realize until college that she wanted to go into mission work, she'd always been interested in nursing. So she's currently cultivating her medical skills as a nurse in the Women's Health Unit at Hershey Medical Center. She's also beginning graduate courses in a Family Nurse Practitioner Program. As Kristen says, "nurses are useful anywhere," and she plans on using the talents she develops now to help others overseas. 
To help deepen her understanding of the path chosen for her by God, Kristen attended The Call '04, a Brethren in Christ conference for young adults seeking to follow Christ in ministry and missions. "The Call helped me to develop this new idea of 'becoming a missionary.'" Kristen recalls. "It opened my eyes to different opportunities and experiences. When you first think of long-term missions work, most people think of living in Africa and working with people among the bush, but it is so much more than that, so much more exciting and challenging. I loved hearing from missionaries and learning of different opportunities that make missions as exciting as God has intended it to be." 
Kristen's started taking the formal steps necessary to fulfill her call to missions. In addition to her medical training and experience, she's enrolled in the Missionary Development Program, and has become involved in accountability and mentoring relationships to help her stay focused. Right now, it's about preparing and planning for the future. 
Kristen wants to use her medical training in a home or clinic, as a visiting obstetrics practitioner. The question is where. She and her husband Ben sense God leading them into overseas missions, but they remain open to the location. "At this point, we know that God has given us a heart for His people, not one particular people group," Kristen says. "We really feel that God is going to place us in a country where we work well with and have the same visions/goals/passions as other team members. We recently returned from Thailand on a short-term trip and loved it. We aren’t to the point of saying 'Yes, we are going to Thailand!' but the trip definitely did not rule it out as a possibility for us. We have a few more years of preparation work before God will send us anywhere and who knows what can happen in that time." 
Do you feel like you might be called to missions, but aren't sure what to do about it? Kristen has some words of advice for you:
But most of all, Kristen emphasizes, don’t worry. "God will eventually show you a way to combine all your passions for his glory and honor."
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