New Door.

life is full of seasons.
chapters. 
experiences.
memories.
the good days.
the bad days.
and those in between days.








I have had all of that here in Davao. 
life in this city has been a roller coaster. 



tears of joy. sadness. anger. hopelessness. frustration. thankfulness.
and just because sometimes it feels good to cry. 
to let it all out.
everything your heart is feeling.
all that is weighing it down.
even sometimes you have no reason. 
but to just let the tears fall. 

I never would imagine my life at where it is now.
living in the Philippines.
volunteering in a birthing center.
becoming a midwife. 

I never thought I would be apart of the medical field. 
I pass out from needles....
Yet that one day in Haiti. 
That sweet little boy I got to name Isaiah. 
and his beautiful mama.
God used them to put me on the path that I am on. 

I have seen. learned. experienced. 
SO MUCH. 
this last year and a half. 







Our requirements have changed from when we first started.
we now need atleast 10 of our 25 births as a primary midwife to be in the United States.

God has opened a door for me. 
to do this. 
in Texas. 
at a birth center 1.5 hours from my parents. 
to learn home birth. 
finish my assignments.
and complete my requirements.
to finish with my original ending of Spring 2017.

I will be working with some amazing midwives.
one who was in my exact shoes here in the Philippines a few years ago.
another who interned here. 
along with others who share my same passion. 
for empowering mothers.
treating birth as a natural experience. 
and loving families as they grow. 

My heart is full of emotions.
but I am not sure what or how to feel them yet.
I am excited to be back stateside.
but nervous to learn life again there. 
this is all I have known for the last 3 years. 

Life in Haiti.
Life in the Philippines. 

now onto life in Texas. 
never thought I would end up there. 
but I am excited to see what God has planned for me. 







financially I am trusting in Him.
I will be going off of full support.
and I will not have a consistent income due to my apprenticeship.
and being on call 24/7. 
I know He has gotten me this far and He will continue to provide.
can I ask for prayers for the right jobs to open up with flexibility. 

4 shifts left.
2 weeks from today I leave this country. 
February 4th I will be flying to Minnesota for a week to spend with Elizabeth. 
catching up with dear friends.
enjoying the cold winter for the first time in about 3 years. 
Then to Kansas to surprise my niece and nephews at the airport.
who don't know when I am coming back. 
to finally have sister time that my heart so desperately needs. 
and catch up with a community who loves me so well.

I will finally make it to Texas the end of February. 

and start this new season in this chapter. 



Thank you for all who have supported my life overseas.
who have prayed for me.
loved me. 
and encouraged me. 







I only wish you could have experienced all that I have. 
Hope that my words you have read painted somewhat of a picture.
of these last few years that I have lived. 
This world is beautiful.
and I can't wait to explore more of it. 

Would love for prayers these last few weeks. 
for memories to be made to tuck away in my heart.
for laughter. 
safe travels. 
& those moments when I break down.
cause I know it will happen more than one time. 

Oh Lord, I don't know what this next season will be filled of. 

but I trust You.

You have never led me astray. 

and you won't start now. 

my life is Yours.

ever since that night under the stars standing on the rooftop in Haiti. 

Your my guide. 

You have laid out this journey.

just for me. 

And I wouldn't want it any other way. 

thank you for all these experiences you desired for my heart.

for letting me love your sons and daughters.

and giving me a heart for justice. 

this is just the beginning.

and I can't wait to see what You have planned for me.

for these skills.

&& those for my heart to love. 

In Christ's abundant love.
Emily Elizabeth

Singing in 2016.

what a beautiful way to start a new year.

singing praises to our Father.
giving Him the glory for 2015.
and opening up our hearts to 2016. 

worshiping His name.
His love.
His heart. 
His goodness. 

all the while fireworks going off in the background. 
smoke seeping in through the doors. 
a cough here & there.




and just hours before the clock turned into the new year.
the poor of the poor.
the blind.
the deaf.
the exhausted.
were served. 
loved.
and celebrated.

they sat in cloth covered chairs.
sat at tables all decorated.
had a warm meal served right before them.
drank coke that was ice cold. 

 { their smiles.}
ones you can never erase.
 { their laughs.}
music to ears.

the children. 
maybe eating their first real dinner. 
or first meal of the day. 

Oh Jesus. 
thank you for showing me how to love. 
in the exact same way you did. 
thank you for giving my heart this moment.
this memory. 
the ability to serve along side my brothers & sisters. 

"No, this is the kind of fasting I want : 
       Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. 
Let the oppressed go free, & remove the chains that bind people.
           Share your food with the hungry,
           and give shelter to the homeless. 
           Give clothes to those who need them, 
           and do not hide from relatives who need your help. " > Isaiah fifty eight verses six & seven. 




It was the first NYE that I even stayed up past midnight in a while. 

I got to spend it with my cousin. 
with other hearts so radiant. 
a servitude so contagious. 







all of our guests left with a box full of yummies. 
full tummies.
and the ability to sit down. 
rest.
be served. 
celebrated.
loved. 
and to just be. 


" You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart. " 
> One Peter one verse twenty-two

This was the best new years that I have had in a while.
the best thing for my heart.
which it so badly needed. 

Oh I pray for those beautiful people.
for their hearts to hold onto that feeling I hope they felt that night. 
and I am thankful I could be apart of it.
and they could be forever apart of my 2016. 

Jesus is moving. 

Revival is coming.

things are changing before our eyes.

people are loving. 

those who are deemed unlovable. 

because that is what we are told to do.

Love.

because HE loved us first. 

before we were even born.

He loved us. 

to save us. redeem us. bring us to life. 

and everyone. everyone. ALL of us. 

should be loving each other no matter what this world defines us as.

or where we were born. live. work. 

how often we eat. shower. wash our clothes. 

we are HIS. && HE is ours. 

He looks at our hearts. 

and loves them purely.

"God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace He has poured out on us who belong to His dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son and forgave our sins. He has showered His kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding." 
> Ephesians one verses five through seven.






I have 3 weeks left. 
so many emotions. I don't even know what to be feeling. 
maybe its a good thing. 
>>> I will explain in my next post why I am leaving and where I am going. dont worry I am still going to be a midwife : ) 

Prayer request for my Grandma Elsie as she is in her last few weeks or days here on this earth. My mom and dad are by her side which I am so thankful for. I am so grateful that I was able to be with her last July to celebrate her life. She is a fighter. and I hold this close to my heart. Her life is one that was lived with color. She loved those all around her. She laughed. gardened. inspected bombs. always desired to be a secretary for some politician. She is an amazing mother, wife, grandmother, sister, aunt, great grandmother. I love her desire to bring people together, throwing parties full of games. Who can churn milk into ice cream or milk a fake cow the fastest. This world will miss her but Heaven is gaining one sassy angel : ) 



Thank you.
In Christ's Love, 
a love so pure & flawless.
Emily Elizabeth.

WARRIORS of the night.

there is a world known.
but unacknowledged.
a world of filth.
but few desiring to go in an clean it. 
a world where men dominate. 
and girls forgetting their worth by the second. 

   |||   T H E   S E X  T R A D E   ||| 

a trade that satan uses to steal lives, kill dreams & destroy families. 

but Jesus came to recapture, give new life & proclaim hearts of His beloved. 

the women I met.
the stories I heard.
the emptiness I saw. 
the brokenness I felt. 

Lord sweep every red light district like a 
              T I D A L  W A V E. 
knock your daughters off their feet. 
saturate their hearts. 
bring new life.
new direction.
new dreams.
new opportunities.
heal their wounds that run so deep.
be the { perfect Father } that You are to them. 
restore. revive. renew.

refill their lives with worth && purpose. 

their words are stuck in my heart. 
"I hate my job"
"Why are you doing this for me?" 
"My family doesn't know I am here"
"My children live in the province, I miss them"
"I am exhausted"
"I love to cook" 
"all I do is work from 6pm-4am, go home sleep, eat & wash. That is my life" 
"2,500 pesos for a night is how much a man pays for only a little time."
"I went to year 3 of college but then didn't have enough money to finish so I came here to work"
"My favorite color is pink"
"thank you for loving me even though I am dirty"
"I have only been here for 3 months" 
"We have a choice to say no to any customer but we will get in trouble if we do"




We celebrated their lives by throwing a Christmas party.
A time they could come. 
Eat, laugh & and just be.

Over 170 girls & ladyboys came.

their smiles were genuine. 
their hearts were at rest. 
they were free for a split second to be loved the right way. 

To see all these hearts gathered together in a church. 
one with no roof. 
{ maybe that is symbolic in some way. }
no judgement.
just L O V E . 

there are so many pictures seared into my mind. 

this one I will NEVER be able to forget. 

Walking Street. The mile and a half,
bars to your left && right.
over 15,000 girls stand on stages here.

I witnessed it three times.

a man, 

throwing bills of 20 pesos down to the girls on the stage. 

as they all screamed, jumped and dove for them. 

20 pesos. 

about 50 cents. 

as the man, throwing up his hands.

like he is doing something great.

that he should be worshiped. 

the girls counting their bills.

and sticking them in their bras. 

that moment they were not girls.

that moment they were not humans.

that moment they were deemed worthless by his actions. 

like a flock of birds fighting after a little piece of bread to satisfy their stomachs. 

Oh Jesus, convict the hearts of your sons. 
realign their hearts and minds on how a woman is to be treated.
to be loved. desired. pursued with purity. 
the way you do.

STOP this supply and demand circle. 

we should NEVER be bought for our bodies. 

we can take as many girls away from the bars. < supply

but the men will always find another heart to break down. < demand

we need help on both ends. 

to work together. 

to end it. 

Oh Jesus you are sending a revival into this world. 
one day at a time.
things are changing.
new generations are rising up and going out.
proclaiming your love.
showing your love. 
accepting people as they are. 
for their pasts. 
loving purely.

Jesus did't proclaim the Gospel everywhere He went.
the Gospel was shown through His love. 
His words.
His healing. 

sometimes it is just enough to look into the girls eyes that are consumed with pain 

and let her see 

the freedom of Jesus in yours. 

It is not my job to save. 
It is my job to love. 
So that Jesus can swoop in and redeem. 


In Christ's Love
Emily Elizabeth

more to come about the week I spent in manila.... this is all my heart could process right now.
{{ thank you for praying & supporting me here in the Philippines. My time is coming to an end quicker then I imagined. I thank God for allowing people to see into others lives over here through my experiences. I am ready to finish my studies so I can go back out into the world and be with my sisters.