This is the story of how I was called to go on the World Race. Some of you may think this is strange, or crazy, or I'm just plain nuts and that's fine, but I know that I'm not crazy. I believe I was called by God to do this years before I even heard about the World Race. We all know that God can use anything to speak to us…dreams, visions, songs, our friends, and sometimes even complete randomness like when someone just comes up to you and says " I felt like I was supposed to tell you this" and it was really something that you needed to hear. When this happens our minds automatically tell us its just coincidence, when really it's God trying to send us a message.
For years I kept seeing the numbers 11:11 everywhere in this exact order…one one one one. I would go to bed around 9:00, wake up from a dead sleep, and look at my digital clock at exactly 11:11 night after night. I would be waliking through my kitchen and suddenly stop, and look at the clock on my coffee maker which is about five hours off and see 11:11. I would see it on EVERYTHING! Receipts that totaled $11.11, cereal box barcodes, part numbers, even filling my gas tank at exactly 11.11 Gallons. It got to the point where I was almost angry when I saw those numbers. This was pretty much a daily thing for almost 3 years and then it suddenly stopped for about 6 months. I noticed that I wasn't seeing it anymore and I wondered why….
About a month ago I was talking with a friend who encourged me to look into mission work and to check out what I could get involved in. A while later I got online and typed in mission trips. The first link on the web page was the World Race, so being the curious person I am…I clicked it. What do you know…the first words my eyes see are 11 Countries in 11 Months. This got my attention immediately! At that moment I thought it was just a coincidence, but after a day of thinking about it I decided that this couldnt be another random happening. So I applied and did my phone interview and was told i would be informed in 7 days if I was accepted or not. Over these 7 days I prayed that God would give confirmation that this is what he wanted me to do…and He did. I got home from work to a message on my answering machine from Adventures in Missions letting me know that they were ready to let me know if I was accepted or not. The message gets done playing and as I begin to walk away I hear my answering machine say.." Message recieved at 11:11 am" That stopped me dead in my tracks….what are the chances of this woman from Adventures calling ME at exactly 11:11 am?! I believe that God has used these numbers to get my attention. If I wouldnt have seen them for those three years, I wouldnt be sitting here typing this blog right now and I wouldn't be heading on the greatest adventure of my life!
Thank you for reading! I hope that maybe I've helped you realize that God can speak to us through anything, even something as simple as numbers. Has he been speaking to you? I'm sure he has and my prayer is that you will see what he is telling you today.
Blessings!
-Andy Hennig
