Today, I leave my family, friends, and home for almost a whole year.
I can't sleep. I'm totally wired. My pack is ready, and my heart is feeling a million emotions.
This past week has been wonderful. Last Sunday, my brother Stu preached on the importance of the secret place with God, and how Jesus went away to be with His Dad. At church, they prayed for me and commissioned me to go out on the Race. There was a really powerful time of prophetic impartation and joy restoration, and I can't wait to see what God begins to do with the words they spoke over me. That really set the tone for the week, and I had some really wonderful time with my ignite group, my downtown family, my old roommate Justin, and some of my oldest friends in the whole world. Then Thursday, the Bailers threw Justin and I a "See You Later" party, and Friday, my parents did the same. Both included great conversation with friends and wonderful prayer time. I went to my dear dear dear friends' wedding yesterday (congrats Danica and Colton! I love you guys!) and had one last church service (complete with an awesome sermon by Adam Walton and some powerful fire tunnels by Holy Spirit) this morning.
I can't tell you how blessed I am to have had this week. Everyone who played a part in it, THANK YOU! You have truly made my last pre-Race week one I will not forget.
I am in Washington DC with my family for one last night. Tomorrow, I meet up with the other team leaders and begin training. Eeek! It's real life. IT IS REAL LIFE.
I have about $8,000 in my world race account telling me that this is real life.
I have a team of 5 incredible people telling me that this is real life.
I have a friend named Amanda who called me today to tell me that this real life..
I have an incredible Heavenly Daddy who is telling me that this is real life.
I went back to read over my journey so far on this blog, and I found my first post, "Is this real life?"
Well, the answer is yes! As I read that post, I was blessed to be reminded of what God was teaching me at that time. I will end this post with some things I wrote back in January:
"Maybe it's okay. Maybe adventuring with God is okay. Maybe being responsible isn't the main thing. Maybe being obedient is the main thing.
World Race. July 2012. Ireland. Ukraine. Russia. Kenya. Tanzania. Mozambique. India. Nepal. Cambodia. Malaysia.
I'll leave you with this, my answer to the application question, "What is the Gospel in your own words?" The Lord wrote this with my fingers. I laughed as I read what He wrote. It represents a series of seasons with Him that I've walked through over the last year. It encouraged me and gave me a refreshed sense of purpose as I read back over it tonight, and I hope it does the same for you as I share it with you.
"The Gospel is the most incredible thing I've ever heard, and I don't think I get it yet. Recently, I've been realizing that it is scandalous, ridiculous, and outrageous. I have to sit back and soak it in when I realize that I am standing in the Righteousness of the Son of God by the Faith of the Son of God through the Death of the Son of God, and am living in, by, and through the Spirit of the Son of God. The Gospel is the message that I have been created for relationship but am bound for destruction by my sin. By faith I accept the paradigm-shattering reality of the Grace of God so that relationship could be restored, redeemed, and reveled in. God was pleased to bruise His Son so that we could live in His love. The Gospel is that I was co-crucified, co-buried, and co-resurrected with Christ. That counts for something. I am a part of a royal priesthood and I can enter the Holy of Holies; why? because He dwells in my body, entwining me with Himself until I can't tell the difference anymore (because there's more of Him and less of me). I am a Son with an inheritance and have a Kingdom to establish. Out of me flows rivers of Living Water and the world is full of thirsty people who keep turning to broken cisterns. The Gospel is the power of God unto Salvation. The Gospel is the preaching of the Cross of Christ (the ultimate unifier and ultimate divider). The Gospel isn't Love, Peace, or Joy, those things are the fruits of it. The Gospel is the reality of the Cross and the freedom it brings (from sin, from the law, and from death). The Gospel leads to persecution, because it is so uncomfortable to religion, so external from the human experience, and so simple that it confounds the wise. But it reveals Life itself. The Gospel is not life anymore than the Bible or the Church is life. Jesus, Papa, and Holy Spirit are life. The Gospel is the revelation of trinity God, His love, grace, and power. The Bible records this revelation, and (ideally) the Church re-presents this and lives it out."
So I go.
See you next year!
