Hey guys!

My name is Shawndell St John and I’m so excited to co-lead the Spring 2012 Nicaragua Passport trip!  Let me tell you a little bit about myself:

I was born 22 years ago to amazing parents Steve and Deby St John, who were not Christians at the time but who I saw come to Christ in my childhood.  I have 3 younger sisters: Justine, Savannah and Rachel, and we were all homeschooled together from 1^st grade to Senior year of High school (though I did attend a Christian school for Kindergarten… We all know that is what really counts).  As the oldest, I was of course the bossiest, but none of my sisters listened to me anyways.

I grew up in the church, very much the smart-aleck who answered all the questions in Bible trivia.  I thought I had everything figured out.  Then, I went on the World Race with P Squad in July of 2010 and my life has never recovered since.  Since then, God has done so much in my life to destroy all of the boxes in which I thought I had life figured out.  On the Race God taught me about what it looks like to truly be me, without needing the approval of others, and that my relationship with God doesn’t have any expectations or rules except to seek HIM with all of my heart.

To continue the process of renovating my life to more reflect Christ, when I returned to the States at the end of May of this year I moved to Gainesville, GA, to participate in a 6 month apprenticeship with Adventures in Missions.  I’m currently working in the Admissions department mobilizing World Race squads…  Meaning I get to walk with them before they even hit the field, answering all of their questions about passports and vaccinations and fundraising.  I am to World Racers what Stacey Povian is to Passport participants. :)

Who am I?  I’m still figuring that out to, so here is a short list of things about me… Cause I like lists.

·         I LOVE music, I almost always have a song in my head and if there is music on, I’m singing along.

·         I’m an outgoing introvert… I like spending time with people, until the introvert in me says: “I can’t take it anymore!”

·         Speed-reader to the max.

·         I am an artist, and I love having the opportunity to express myself in painting, no need to impress anybody.

·         I’m a dish-washer, not a meal-cooker.

·         Ice cream is my favorite food.

·         I’m not graceful at all, I fall walking UP the stairs.

·         I tend to be very competitive, which is rather detrimental in physical activities due to my lack of gracefulness (see above comment about falling up stairs).

·         Bright colors make me very happy.

·         I am startled very easily, so no jumping out of dark corners at me!

·         God is teaching me that I am loved and accepted as his daughter…. I don’t need to seek the approval of others.

·         One of my favorite scriptures is Romans 12:1: “ I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice: holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

So that is a little bit about me!  I would love to get to know you guys so please shoot me a message, my email is shawndellstjohn@adventures.org.  God bless!