I landed in Knoxville,TN on June 30, 2017 at 2:00pm. I was greeted by my family and my sweet friend, Rachel Hortman.
Things I knew:
This was my first time on American soil in nine months.
I was looking forward to cheese-its and chick-fil-a
I was happy to see my people (and my dog)
The World Race was ending
I said goodbye to the people I had been living life with for the past nine months
America feels strange (last time I was here, Obama was president. My, how things have changed!)
Things I didn’t know:
What to do with my gear
What to do with all of the souvenir clothing that I swore I would wear back in the states
How my relationships with people were going to look now
How Jesus is going to use this next season
So, in the midst of all of this chaos, what did I do?
I put away the packing cubes and my backpack. I hung up the Soccer jersey I bought in Ecuador and the punjabi I got in India. I enjoyed the company of my friends and family. But I struggled. I struggled to ask myself and face the question, ‘what on earth just happened?’ I was scared to even ask it because I knew that I was unaware of the answer. But, in due time, not having the answer got exhausting, confusing, and plain old frustrating. I felt like I was just coasting through life. Keeping myself just busy enough to be distracted and to not deal with what was really happening: culture shock. I didn’t know how to live in American culture anymore. Having adapted to three other countries and their customs this year, I wondered why this one was so different, so much harder. I found that it was because in those other countries, I wanted to adapt. I wanted to assimilate and dig deep into their culture and customs so that I could point the people to Jesus more effectively. But here, I looked at American culture and my heart was broken. I saw mansions and my heart hurt because I was reminded of the mud huts that I had seen just a few weeks prior. I saw my own closet and was confused as to why on earth I needed that many items of clothing. But the good thing is, Jesus does not call us to adapt to this world. He calls us to be IN the world, not OF the world. He calls us to stay and love when pride tells us to run the other direction. So, I stayed. I finally rested and asked the Lord the true questions that plagued my spirit and tugged at my heart, “What on earth just happened? Who am I now?” So I started by remembering. This looked like going through old photos, crying my eyes out during worship at Project Searchlight, and most of all, thanking Jesus for blessing me with the past nine months. I thought about who I met and where I had been. I remembered dancing in the living room of my Portoviejo apartment with my team. I thought about the team times where I laughed until my stomach hurt because of little games (ex. the chin thing @ Zeta’s) or Dylly’s loud farting. I thought about singing songs with my students in India and watching them fall in love with the game “giant rock, paper, scissors’. I looked back on my days at Ebenezer orphanage in Zambia, playing and worshiping with kids singing at the top of their lungs ‘I HAVE DECIDED TO FOLLOW JESUS NO TURNING BACK NO TURNING BACK BACK BACK’. I thought about planning camps and teaching ballet to my sweet Cheyenne. I remembered dancing to Taylor Swift in the kitchen with Shannon while cooking dinner. My heart was being healed by these memories and looking at them with a grateful heart. So that answered the first question: What on earth just happened? The second one, “Who am I now?” came in waves. It took reading letters and phone calls with old teammates. I didn’t get my question answered fully until I allowed Jesus to answer for me. He said that I am HIS beloved daughter. That I am someone who carries pieces of His heart that no one else can. That I am a woman of peace, joy, love, and wisdom. And He commissioned me to share these things with the people He puts in my path. After all, thats why He gave me those gifts. These questions are still being answered. They get answered everyday as I am growing and learning more about who my sweet Jesus is and who He has created me to be.
Throughout the world race and continuing on now, He has allowed me to see more and more sides of Him. He has called me closer to His heart. He has shown me His face in the eyes of the young and the old alike. He has redeemed pieces of me that I didn’t know existed. He has given me confidence, not in myself, but in Him. He has shown me my heart and allowed me to invite Him into it. He has shown me how to love the world around me (then and now) because of His presence in it. He has shown me His beauty in both Victoria Falls and the Great Smoky Mountains. But most of all, He has blessed me beyond belief. I will forever look back on this season of exponential growth and kingdom bringing and be thankful for the standard it has set for my life.
In the song ‘Do It Again’ by Elevation Worship, there is a line that says “I’ve seen you move. You move the mountains and I believe that you will do it again. You made a way when there was no way and I believe I’ll see you do it again.” I’ve seen the Lord move mountains. I believe that I will see Him do it again whether it is here, or outside of the states. He does move. He will move. If you open your hands, heart, and eyes, you just might to see a glimpse of God’s glory. I know I have. My life is forever changed because of it.
Whats next?
When I left for the race I had a plan. I was going to Campbell University beginning in the fall of 2017. I was going to study International Relations with the hopes of doing international missions one day. Oh how the Lord loves to change our plans and dreams to match His!
Beginning this fall (really, next week. Wow!) I will be living in Greenville, NC! I am going to begin school at Pitt Community College and then transfer to a University after a semester or two. Hopefully I’ll be transferring to ECU. But, no promises, the Lord loves to change plans, remember? I will be studying social work. All of this started when, in November of 2016, I got a text from Bailey Cooper that said “I need a roommate next year, come live with me.” I brushed it off and held tight to my Campbell dreams. Then, a thought popped in my head, ‘Wait, what if I actually did that?’ Thus beginning a season of prayer for the future and lots of pros and cons lists. I have such peace about living in Greenville with my bestie and I look forward to this adventure!
Lets Get Together!
I love talking about the world race. Like seriously, I think I could talk about it for hours. So, if you want to know more about my experience, let me know! I would love to grab a cup of coffee and talk about Jesus (just a few of my favorite things!). You can email me at [email protected], call me if you have my number, or message me on Facebook!
Special Thanks
This is my last blog as a World Racer. Wow. I never thought this would happen! I am now an alumni of the World Race: Gap Year. I have so many people to thank for helping me along this journey. (I sound like I won a grammy or something)
I mean obviously Jesus. If he weren’t a part of my life I would probably be sitting on my couch eating cheese-its and watching Netflix all day. (If you’re doing that, open a bible and read about Jesus. He is awesome. You wont regret it. If you don’t have a bible, let me know. I have a few and can afford to give you one.)
My lovely donors! You people have changed my life and have changed the kingdom. Because of your donation, I have been able to meet some of the most amazing people and see some of the most amazing corners of God’s earth. I got see see people dedicate their lives to Jesus. I got to see the sick get healed, the hungry get fed, and the orphans find a heavenly father who loves them. The words ‘thank you’ don’t have the depth it would take to convey my gratitude.
My family and friends. You guys have been so supportive and encouraging. The messages of love and the FaceTime dates have meant so much to me. Thanks for being gracious when it comes to time differences, I know 6am is not a reasonable hour to have a chat, so thank you. I promise I will not call that early now that I am in your time zone.
The prayer warriors! To the people who have been praying for this journey, thank you. You guys are world changers. Through intercession, you have blessed me. I can’t thank you enough for your love, time, and energy.
My Gap J Family. On the hard days, you guys were by my side. When I needed encouragement, there was always a loving note to be read or a dairy milk bar to be eaten. You guys have have shown me parts of Jesus that I didn’t know existed. You have changed my standard for friendship. Thanks for loving me, putting up with me, and always reminding me to get my booty in the river. Thanks for being the Hlim le lawm takin to my lam der der ka ta.
To Samantha Kirby. Thanks for saying YES to Gap J and for giving us your all. I am a better person for it. Your freedom brought something incredible out in Gap J. It has been an honor!
Tom and May, you guys always knew how topper out wisdom and how to love us super well. You were Jesus to us in more ways than bringing american candy to debriefs.
Eryn, you are a girl after my own heart. Thanks for being weird with me and being an awesome prankster. You were a comforter to me when it was most needed. I am so thankful.
Kacie, thanks for teaching kids in India how to be kind with means Dyl, or at least trying to. Thanks for loving Avatar and walking in freedom like I’ve never seen. Once you told me “Anna, you’re gonna bring out the weird in me.” and Kacie, Ive gotta tell ya, you bring out the weird in me too. I cant wait to visit your coffee shop and see the piano in its rightful home.
All the Love,
Anna Prevatte
