Missions in South Africa

Hello Friends, it’s been a really long while. How quickly time does pass!

In the past 2 years I have been in the onboarding process to join an engineering non-profit organization called Engineering Ministries International (EMI). In part, this is why I started this whole blog! I wanted a record of my journey to this very moment, & here I am. My very first blog post was on a volunteer trip with EMI! As of April of 2021, they officially asked me to become permanent staff and I will be moving to South Africa within the next couple of weeks. I’d like to answer a few questions…….

1) How did I get involved with EMI and why?

2) What exactly is EMI?

3) How can you partner with me as I go serve in South Africa?

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Summer of 2011 I spent two months in a mountain village in Peru for a summer mission trip. As I built relationships with the locals, I was given opportunities to teach English at the schools, lead bible studies, and simply partake in the villager’s way of life. I loved working with a focus on evangelism and immersing myself in a culture that was not my own. After that summer in Peru, I was convinced I wanted to do full-time ministry.

I volunteered for my first trip with EMI India in 2017 for the design of a new seminary college. I fell in love with the God-centric work atmosphere and approach to all EMI projects. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I virtually led the design for the wastewater system of a new all-girls school in Tunduru, Tanzania. Approximately only 28% of girls complete any form of formal schooling in Tanzania. Projects like these provide facilities and resources that will empower young girls with the completion of their education.  

EMI provides professionals with the unique opportunity to serve people worldwide through the design of hospitals, schools, water systems, and many other facilities. Each year, EMI completes more than 100 development projects, all serving the poor and proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These services are discounted to the ministries who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford them. To do this, the staff with EMI do not collect a salary but are responsible for raising support in order to make the essential work of EMI possible. I’m currently at the tail-end of my support raising efforts and I’m so grateful for God’s provision thus far.

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I’d love to invite you to partner with the work we are doing globally by joining us with your prayers or with a tax-deductible financial contribution by visiting https://emiworld.org/tatiana-sanchez

If you’d like to pray with me, please pray for more professionals to join our team of engineers and architects, and so that I could reach 100% of my financial goal. As I get closer to my departure date, I still need about 40% of my monthly support, so your contribution would be immensely appreciated. You can also sign up for newsletters to stay up-to-date on projects at the bottom of the webpage, regardless of your ability to contribute. I’d love to connect!

Thank you so much for those who have taken the time to read my post in the past couple of years. I hope I can share some more as I adventure in South Africa.

May your day be graciously adventurous,

Tati ❤

P.S. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

The Beauty of a Woman

Have you ever felt like you had the ability to captivate? Like in some strange way you were chosen and unique? Because I have. I believe every child does. Even more so, every little girl.

I’ve been reading the book Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery to a Woman’s Soul by John and and Stasi Eldredge. I’m only a few pages in, but as I read I realize that what’s being described in the book is precisely what I felt as a little girl, and in many ways still feel and desire today.

The book shares an anecdote of a little girl who would ask with a beaming smile, “Would you like to hear my song?…She was a little girl in her glory, unashamed in her desire to delight and be delighted in….When we are young, we want to be precious to someone- especially Daddy. As we grow older, the desire matures into a longing to be pursued, desired, wanted as a woman.”

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I’m an aunt to 4 beautiful, heart-melting little girls ages 5, 3, 2 and 1. Their grace, gentleness, kindness and affection resonate within my soul. Whenever I get the chance, I just hold them tightly and its therapy to my inner most being. Their existence is healing. I see in them this desire for adventure and as for anyone really, the desire to be loved.

I believe there is this innate desire within us that in someway, somehow we’ve impacted a soul. We entered a room and were remembered. We left a desire to be fought for and pursued. While we live in an age where these feelings may be put to shame because we are meant to be independent women, for many of us these desires are very much alive.

I do not believe we become less than in our womanhood simply because we desire to love and be loved, and more than that pursued. As we carry these desires, we also carry grace, strength and beauty. We have a distinct ability to nurture and to soften even the hearts of stone. We have the unique capacity to connect our thoughts with our emotions.

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When posed with questions about the presumed male preference in the Bible an apologist explained the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the very fragment that holds the entirety of the Christian faith. Without the resurrection, our faith would be in vain. “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” (1 Corin. 15:14) “If then, women were the less preferred gender why in heaven’s name would Jesus reveal Himself to a woman after the resurrection and have the entire gospel entrusted to her (Mary Magdelene).”

Truly, an awe-inspiring thought that reminds us the hidden, gentle strength within a woman.

So, to all my readers but especially to you, woman, I want to remind you today that your desires to be loved and pursued are valid, and while you carry these desires you still stand in the strength and glory that God has bestowed on you.

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I pray your gentleness calms a storm.

I pray your warmth transforms a house into a home.

I pray your nurturing builds kind men and women for our future generations.

I pray your heart is filled with love and a sense of adventure for life.

I pray you are pursued and fought for as our Father in Heaven as already done through Jesus Christ, because He found you worthy. Worthy enough to entrust the gospel onto your kind first.

May your day be graciously adventurous,

Tati ❤

The Presence of God

Can the presence of God change us? Can it truly permeate our humanity and invite us into the divine?

In Exodus 34:29-35 we read of the encounter that Moses had with the Lord in Mount Sinai.

Walk in Love + 5 Easy Ways to Advocate for Racial Justice

Our hearts are heavy right now. Our nation is in distress. Some of us may feel uncomfortable. Others empowered. Some are filled with hate. Others are moving in love. Some remain silent. Others have found the courage to speak. Some are angry. Others unmoved. Whatever we may be feeling, the fact of the matter is, racism is still prevalent and amidst the tragic circumstances, we now have the opportunity to engage in something greater than ourselves. We have the opportunity to demonstrate love to our neighbors by mourning with them, praying with them, walking with them, kneeling with them.

Still Wonderful

May 1st, 2020. 10 years ago today I became a born-again Christian. A decade ago.

Can I be honest?

This past year has tested me in many ways. I feel like I’ve had more questions than answers. More doubt than faith.

But I’ve held on. By His grace alone, I’ve held on.

I often tend to shut down my feelings by comparing them. I remind myself that people are going through much tougher situations. Sometimes I feel pathetic to feel. I hate to feel. And while reminding yourself that others are in worse situations can be a good practice for gratitude, it also seems to be ideal for making your feelings less than.