LCU was the greatest tool that God used in setting me on course, planting my roots in Him, and providing the most treasured memories that I will keep with me always.
I came to LCU two separate times as I followed my family from Las Vegas to the Midwest. Both times were gifts that shaped and prepared me for life as a missionary and Executive Director of a non-profit in Romania, Forget Me Not Ministries. The first time I came (’99-’00), God began to challenge me in the plans that I had set up for my life and I was confronted in releasing those plans and allowing him to set the course for my life. When I returned to LCU, (’03-’04) I had accepted that God was calling me into missions and changed my degree; ready to soak up all I could during my time of preparation.
When I share with others about LCU and encourage others to embark on their own journey there, I find the 3 things that I am most passionate about in recollecting my time there are the following:
- The biblical knowledge and methods that are taught, allowing you to carry and apply these skills for life.
- The amazing professors that pour into you, invest in you, and continue to be a part of your life even after you leave. One of my mission professors, Mike Nichols, even came to visit me in Romania to encourage me. I am grateful for how committed and invested the LCU leaders are in the lives of the students.
- The incredible friends that you meet at LCU as you are introduced during a time of life when you are being shaped daily, learning and growing together, and there to cheer each other on and pick each other up when needed. The friends you make at LCU are ones that stay a part of your life and continue to cheer you on.
All that I learned during my time at LCU has prepared me for my life on the field here in Romania. In 2003, I decided to head to Romania as part of my LCU six-month internship to allow God to either open or close doors on a country I had a burden on my heart for years. In 2004 I then moved to Romania indefinitely and began my journey towards working with the Roma gypsies (the outcasts of Romania and Europe) and eventually setting up Forget Me Not Ministries in 2006. I adopted my daughter (Izabella) in Romania and am in the process of adopting my son (Izaiah). My daughter now has hopes to one day attend LCU as she has heard my stories, my brother’s stories (Nate Ross, LCC ’05) and my dad’s stories (George Ross, LCC ’76).
Today, we work in a Roma village of around 3,000 on the outskirts of town in Northwest Romania near the Hungarian border as we strive to educate, equip, and empower at-risk Roma gypsies to prevent abandonment, abuse, trafficking, and child marriages. For more information, you can click here. LCU students have come to join us on trips throughout the years and have been a beautiful extension of God’s love and grace as well as LCU’s warmth and comradery.
I will forever be thankful for the lifelong gifts LCU has given me, and the knowledge that will continue to guide my faith through all seasons of life.