Alicia

sometimes God places people in our life, even if only for a short time, and they change our worlds forever + for the better. Leaving you and the world better all because you knew them.

in june of 2012 i met someone like that and my life has not been the same since. meet Alicia. she is 23 years old, fearless, beautiful, in love with Jesus, and she is a miracle in every form of the word. i met alicia in the London airport on our way to Uganda. she was one of the sweetest spirits to ever cross my path and i instantly adored her (along with the rest of the team) Alicia and i were making our very first trip to Uganda and our excitement couldn't quite be contained. i remember our excited conversations like it was yesterday. we took too many selfies and paced that airport like it was our job. we just couldn't wait. we arrived in Uganda and Alicia fell head over heels in love. she was a natural. she loved every baby that came her way and because of her being a registered nurse, she helped even more. i chose to be Alicia's assistant during the trip. basically when we would set up a medical table Alicia would run the show and i would stand back in awe and help her with whatever she said was needed.

Alicia's heart was with a baby named Rita and i saw just how beautifully passionate she was. Alicia spent an entire day showing love to a tiny, dirty little girl in a village. she fed her granola bars out of bag, changed her into a shirt that was clean, kissed her, loved her and was truly Jesus. everyone knew that Rita was Alicia's baby.

i loved my time with her in uganda and i loved seeing her fall in love. there's nothing like seeing someone realize where God wants them for their life. it's magical and beautiful.

when we left uganda Alicia was on absolute fire for Jesus and the people of Uganda. She knew she would move back to Uganda. she knew that this was where God had called her. i was in awe of her. Alicia returned to Uganda quite a few times and moved there for almost 5 months.

This morning Alicia went to be with Jesus.

i am completely heartbroken by this. longing to hear her laugh again or to talk about our babies and sneak photos. i miss her so much. i'll miss our talks over Facebook and texts, i'll miss her laughing at me drinking mountain dew at 6am, i'll miss cafe javas, i'll miss walking dirt roads with her, i'll miss loving babies without her, and i'll just miss her.

Alicia was one of the most beautiful people i have ever met. she was fearless and brave and she served Jesus with her whole heart. i'm thankful that she is now whole and pain free in the arms of Jesus. I cannot even imagine the welcome home party that heaven is having for her right now. I'm sure it is beautiful and she is glowing as she always did.

Alicia was a world changer. despite having CF she served others with everything in her. she loved every single person she came into contact with. people knew Him through Alicia's love. she was a warrior and i'm thankful that i was privileged to know her, even if only for a short time.

i can't wait to dance around an african drum in grass skirts with you again. i can't wait to see your smiling face and hug you. i hold on to the promise that i will see you again and oh, how excited i am for that day.

Uganda will never, ever be the same without you, Alicia.

and in the beautiful words of Alicia herself,

If God can transform my life and send me to Uganda, He can do anything. I encourage you to surrender your life to Jesus. If He has put a call on your life have faith in him to help you fulfill it. He will give you the strength and He will never leave you or forsake you. God does not call the equipped, he equips the called. There is overwhelming peace in knowing you are doing what God wants you to. No matter how hard it might be, He will give you the strength to endure.

"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:13

please lift up Alicia's family and friends in the coming days as they deal with such a great loss.