Our Team.

Phillip

Hi guys, I’m Phillip. I am excited to be sharing this blog with you all. I really hope that through this platform and the things I will be writing about, that we can connect and relate to one another. I try to write everything as honestly as possible, because the truth is what sets us free. We are all broken and all fighting unseen battles, so why hide it? Why not share with and strengthen one another. I love the verse in Proverbs 27, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another” (v17).

A few things about me are that I love dogs (I have a beautiful fox red Labrador called Parker), the highlight of my year is travelling to Egypt every summer and that I have a very random bucket list (e.g. things like take a barbering course and spend a night in a jungle).

Rachel

About me, just those two words bother me. Me. Who is me? I’ve struggled with this question a lot growing up, who am I? Who is Rachel? Rachel is my name, but who is she? The identity issue of who you perceive yourself to be and who people say you are has been a battle I’ve been fighting with myself a long time. Until that day. The day He called me by my name.“Come, my Beloved”. The day I finally realised I am a daughter of a King.

It’s a hard thing to do, to rewire your brain into thinking that you're special and beautiful, that you do have a purpose; especially in a world which constantly tells you otherwise. But, with the constant reminder of His promises and predestined truths, I believe we can tap into a life so much sweeter and more beautiful than we can ever imagine. You are ROYALTY, you are a Son/Daughter of the Highest King! So, my hope for this blog is to find out who I am in who He is! To experience Him through all of my senses and actions and to invite you guys to explore this journey with me!

I’m not quite sure how I’m meant to describe myself in an ‘about me’ as I said I’m still figuring it out, so below I have listed a few likes and dislikes that may help you guys get to know me a little bit better! I like Disney, I like Korean dramas, Korean food, Korean everything, I like Photography, I like to go on long walks with my wellies and get really muddy, I like to read books about dragons and magic powers and things that don’t exist, I like to paint, I don’t like to trip but it occasionally does happen 😂🤷🏽‍♀️. I don’t like spiders, I don’t like horror movies (I will have nightmares for weeks), I hate squidgy/slimy textured foods for example mushrooms. I don’t really want to end this at mushrooms so I have a mug collection and a mild addiction to Tom and Jerry.

Miret

This won’t be news to many: I am completely and utterly captivated by art. I couldn’t tell you how I draw or paint, but I can tell who I got it from, God. I’ve always felt this innate fire in me that this is my calling. Even when I wanted to give it up or quit and do something traditional (shoutout to the medics), there was an undeniable feeling that I was burying my talent (Matthew 25:14). Art is God’s gift to me and how I understand and hear him most clearly. Like an unopened paint tube that doesn’t know what the artist will do with them or what story He will tell through the picture that He paints - God uses vulnerable people, people that are soft like paint, so that He can make them ready to be used for His glory. 

My life is somewhat like a collage, very random but cohesive. So, here’s a few other things that I love. I’m attracted to laughter, long walks, have one of the biggest sweet tooths you will ever come across, passionate about baking and may or may not be completely obsessed with Egypt.

You probably won’t hear much from me working behind the scenes, but you might bump into me at your local gallery. I hope you love wandertowonder as much as I do. 

Anthony H

“Anthony, how do you have the personality of a 5- and 95-year-old at the same time?!” – Uni housemate ~2019

Unserious and light-hearted but maybe a bit too eager for a DMC on life and the state of the world at times. Quiet and reserved to some, more confident and outgoing to others. Likely a bit awkward at big gatherings with new people but happy to attempt to cut shapes at your birthday or wedding. Cartoons and crime documentaries. Old Hip-Hop and hymns (alright Kanye). Sometimes memes. Sometimes iconography. Navigating life at the intersection of faith and culture’s mixed messages can be confusing, but I’m learning that God’s often found in people and places I’d never expect to find Him in my life.

For someone who was often told they wanted to grow up too quickly when they were younger, I can safely say the start of adulthood has been the journey of trying to become childlike again (pray my hairline becomes childlike again too). To be simple, to live fully and presently with God and those around me, not just because it’s nice to have people around but because I need community. I need people to take me out of myself and return me to Him.

While I haven’t written much since GCSE English (with the exception of the Notes app), I’ve always benefited from people sharing their stories. We’re all drawn to stories because we’ve all got one; however unremarkable and un-blogworthy they may seem. Christ is writing something infinitely beautiful in every one of us, restoring us to His Image with every step we take with Him, even if we don’t realise it yet. For all the brokenness, messiness, and cycles of lost and found which that process of restoration brings, I take comfort in remembering that anyone searching with a pure and whole heart will be reunited with Him again, for He tells us: “You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)

Antony A

Last time I wrote something like this was when I wrote my personal statement for university applications, I hope this isn’t as horrific to read as that was. I googled how to write an “about me” page and my research outlined the following questions:

What do I enjoy? - I enjoy walking around large supermarkets with a quarter filled trolley, throwing tantrums in my bedroom and watching 4K videos of lions. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0CC8PwxsXw)

What can readers expect? - I think my first blog post gives more insight into my hopes and reasons for joining, but to be perfectly honest, I don’t really know what I’m expecting to write…

This is probably the worst about me page ever written but I am satisfied because I think I achieved the goal of this being an improvement from my personal statement.

Michael

Despite my love for music, it was always painful carrying the idea that a gift from Him had no place inside His house. It took me my whole life to understand this was not the case, that prayer can be more than just words. Inasmuch as David prayed with his words, he praised with his psaltery and harp and it gives me joy knowing that his conversations with Him had melody. I pray I can do the same one day and I feel honoured to have been asked to write, with the help of some friends, the theme song for Wander to Wonder. I cannot wait to learn from this group and follow into this journey of searching for Christ in a foreign land we’ve mistakenly called “home”.

A bit about me, I spend way too much time on YouTube. You’ll catch me either watching Jordan Peterson videos or tik tok challenges, there’s no inbetween. Oh and Brooklyn 99 all the way.

Miriam

Hi there! My name is Miriam.

I’m excited we're sharing this platform with you. I believe many of us face the same inner experiences, only camouflaged by a different set of circumstances. In today’s world, we often find that vulnerability can be twisted into a weakness; Wander to Wonder was birthed to do the opposite.

Some things about me - I enjoy reading fiction novels, discussing world events, and only recently discovered how much I like to paint. I love indie coffee shops. People who know me can tell you how much I'm passionate about (or obsessed with lol) pistachio sauce.

I pray the transparency you find in this space can become a haven of encouragement and refreshment to you.

Monica

Hi! My name is Monica. I'm most happy doing something artistic, whether that be drawing, photography or writing. If I'm not abseiling down a building or planning my next adventure, I'll probably be watching Disney+ with a cup of tea. I feel most connected to God when I'm surrounded by nature, particularly around bodies of water and forests.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

I'm really excited to start this journey of raw and authentic conversations with you. I'm passionate about Wander to Wonder because we all have similar spiritual experiences that we speak to one person about or to no one at all. Either way, we become taken aback when we hear that someone else has had a similar walk with Christ, in both the difficult and the joyous and everything in between. I think that's owed to a lack of space for that conversation to happen. So, my prayer is that through sharing my candid and vulnerable explorations of a typical Christian life, we will find one another in the same shoes, and in turn, we can learn from each other. This is very much a two-way exchange, so please feel free to message me and let's have a chat :). I can't wait to hear from you.

Miriam

I have answered the question of about me almost 2743 times in the past 6 months, trying to perfect and manufacture it to keep job recruiters happy. As I tell recruiters "about me”, I realised that I missed the most important part...Christ in me. Now I know the phrase of “there’s a time and a place”, but lately, I think we use it too much. As even a wanderer knows it’s true identity, I pray this platform reveals the WHO inside us that truly matters.

So, here we go. My name is Miriam, I am a child of God, eternally loved and made worthy by His blood. Growing up, I always loved making things, literally anything! (from dysfunctional kites to shoebox instruments). 4 years ago, when I came to the above truth, I knew God had greater plans than shoebox instruments. So today, my desire is to knit the love of Christ into anything and everything I do, creatively showing you His wonder through art, music, poetry, words, stories and so much more.

I also…suffer from Egyptian/Turkish series addiction (pray for me), have an uncontrollable fear of slugs (don’t use that against me) and I LOVE learning and trying new things (this is such a job seeker phrase but heyho very true).

Wander to Wander is a platform which I am not worthy of but a place where I desire to show you just a snippet of the love lavished on me by Him, that’s also available to you.

"What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived" -- the things God has prepared for those who love him (1 Cor 2:9). May we return to our true wander-hood and look forward to the incomprehensible wonders prepared for us.