So why am I going on the World Race? How has God gotten me to this point in my life?
Let me give you a little bit of the back story:
Ever since I was really young, I wanted to be a world traveler. I thought it would be the best job in the world to get paid to go around from place to place, seeing all the cool sights from around the world and get to know all the different cultures, peoples, traditions, and foods from around the world.
Then, in junior high, I wanted to be a pastor, missionary or evangelist, someone like Billy Graham or Jim Elliot. I wanted to lead people to Christ, because I saw that as the most important thing in the world (and I still do!). Even at that young of an age, I got as engaged as I could, taking an evangelism training class through my church, leading a Bible study with friends at school, and reading up on and having conversations over some pretty intense theological stuff.
In high school, some people wanted me to think more “practically” in case I couldn’t get a job for the rest of my life in ministry, so I set my sights on psychology. I figured I could go into counseling someday as use that as a springboard into the missions field, helping people through their emotional problems while showing them hope in Christ.
This is where God broke into my life and started shaking stuff up. I had my own plans about what I thought I would do, but I’ve found that the closer I grow to God, the less I have any idea what my future holds and the more I have to trust Him in faith with my life.
In college, I got involved with the campus ministry InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and went to their Urbana Missions Conference in 2009. At that time, I was still looking for an organization to work for someday, wanting to do some sort of counseling in the missions field. But then, I came across one booth that had a really cool camping set up (I love camping!) that said they go to 11 countries in 11 months (The World Race). That sounded like everything I had always wanted to do: ministry around the world while camping out in different places. Yes!
I sat on the choice for a while, until one afternoon I woke up from a nap and just decided right then and there that I would get online and sign up. Within about a week I had an interview, and then began the long wait for a phone call to see if I was accepted. I did a lot of praying in that time, saying that if I was not accepted then this trip was not God’s plan for the next step of my life, but if I was accepted then this would a sign to remember what He has called me to. Sure enough, about a week later I got a call that I was accepted to the July 2012 Route 2 race!!!
This ministry trip is more than just a very exciting missions trip for me or just a break from my regular routine of life. I hope that this trip will be my launch into world missions. I have never known what country, people group, culture, etc. I wanted to work with: I have been interested in all areas at some point in time. I fully anticipate coming back changed in ways that I can’t even comprehend now but also having greater clarity in what type of ministry God would have me to do next.
I am so excited to be completely at His mercy for my life in serving Him in ministry wherever I go and whatever I do!
