In 48 hours, I will be boarding a plane to Washington, D.C. (where we'll get prepared for a few days, then off to Bulgaria) 48 hours! This trip that I've been discussing, lamenting, worrying over, planning for, anticipating . . . it's finally here!
The friend send-off has been completed, both of my churches (South Bay Agape Christian Church and Ark Ministries) have prayed over me, my apartment has been cleaned out, all vaccinations are complete and I'm the proud owner of a million prescriptions for every disease possible. Whew!
I am excited. So, so, so excited to be finally embarking on this journey with Jesus. And G squad. And Team Hebron. But mostly Jesus.
I am so thankful that I did not go on the January 2012 route as I had originally planned. I am so thankful that God stopped me in my busybody tracks and told me what He wanted. I am so thankful for every person who has come alongside me financially, spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically.
There is no way I could have administrated my leaving so well, the fingerprints of Jesus have been all over it from beginning to end. I want to share a few testimonies on what the Lord has done:
-My family has had time to heal. When we first started discussing the World Race, so many issues sprung to the surface that I had been avoiding for years (it's easy to run from family when you don't live with them anymore). However, we were committed to each other and our relationships, and the Lord has done so much healing in our midst. God has taught us so much about trusting and relying solely on Him. My parents' hearts changed from being against this trip to being my biggest supporters. There's no way I could have argued my point home or fought them into submission, it was definitely 100% God who humbled all of our hearts and showed us that the World Race is His plan for me.
There were stretches of time where every time I came home to see my parents it ended in yelling matches and conflict about who God really is, what He really wants, and how to best serve Him (Christmas 2011 will now be infamous in the Young household). However, through struggle comes intimacy, and that time of intense conflict allowed us to really bare our souls to each other and show that we were willing to fight for our relationships. God spoke to me a lot about how loving is a choice, relationships are a choice. And loving my family is a choice I gladly will make again and again. It has been such a blessing to go through this entire preparation experience with my family, and I am so thankful to have them covering me, pouring into me, and fighting for me. I know Jesus' heart is for families, for families to be whole and healthy no matter what the outside circumstances look like.
California, I will miss you so.
-Work was redeemed. There were times I was the typical, Dilbert-reading disgruntled worker, and in those times it was easy to cry out to God, "What am I accomplishing here?" It would have been easy to leave the workplace then and write the entire experience off in exchange for ministry. However, God wouldn't let me! He taught me that the workplace is a mission field as well, albeit one with more boundaries (which in my opinion are completely healthy and needed). He gave me a heart for loving my co-workers, for calling out life and destiny in them. He also taught me about discipline in continuing to work, to show up every day and do my 110% best even though I knew I was leaving. When I didn't want to give it my all, the Lord would remind me, "Who do you really work for? For your boss, or for Me? Finish well for Me, not for yourself or for anyone else." It was for the sake of glorifying Him that I desired to finish well.
-Work was put in order. I was promoted in March, something I was really praying would happen before I left. My work insurance covered my super expensive anti-malarial medication (Malarone generic, for you future Racers reading this. It's supposed to be the best out of the 3 anti-malarial options, but $10/pill without insurance). I was able to overlap with the person taking over my position to transition her. My bosses (and really all my co-workers!) were so kind when I told them I was leaving for missions. SO kind. Their generosity in sending me off really blessed me, and the Lord really left the door wide open for me to return. Whether I do or not, is completely unknown pending what Jesus speaks to me about this year, but the fact that everything administrative lined up so perfectly has been such a humbling blessing. God really does take care of everything better than I could orchestrate for myself!
-The Lord has taught me to be faithful. This past year has been full of ups and downs but Jesus finally said, "Enough!" I've been learning what walking with Jesus is like daily, what having a real, life-breathing relationship with Him is like. No more emotion-driven highs or impulsive decisions, no more straddling the line between the world and Jesus. I've made my decision to follow Him, and He's been teaching me what it looks like on a daily, consistent basis. It is so good! It is so sweet! I'm not a child anymore, stumbling all over the place and not knowing which way is up. Instead, I'm a woman of God, walking confidently in my inheritance as a daughter and heading towards heaven.
To everyone who has walked alongside me in this season, thank you! Thank you for your prayers, your blessings, your words of affirmation and life! I will represent you well, I will run the race with perseverance. Together we will feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the sick, bring hope to the hopeless, and more! There are boundless opportunities to bring life and joy and healing, and I am honored to be the poor, yielded vessel that Jesus works through.
With that, I'm off to Washington, D.C.!
My new home/bed.
