Why am I going on the World Race?
It’s a pretty important and big question.
I suppose there are a lot of different reasons ranging from I want to travel to I want to share God’s love with people. But what I find most interesting about the fact that I’m going on this trip isn’t why I’m going, but how it happened.
Honestly back at the beginning of this school year I had no idea I would end up here, in this place, writing this blog post. I thought I would go back to school and go to classes and get one year closer to graduating with a degree of some kind, which would help me get a job somewhere in the “real world”. Little did I know God had bigger plans.
I’ve always wanted to travel (I even have an entire notebook dedicated just as a checklist for all the places in the world I want to visit), but I always thought I would go after college when I had money or I’d move overseas for a job or something. Missions never really crossed my mind… until about two or three years ago. Two years ago I had started my freshman year of college in upstate New York. Long story short I didn’t stay there for long. When I came home I had no idea what I was going to do. My dad suggested going traveling but I brushed him off saying that it didn’t make sense. The following year I repeated my freshman year at a new school in my home state of Maine. Let’s just say it was pretty rough. At the end of the year I began researching other alternatives besides returning in the fall. And so mission trips were on the list.
I don’t remember all the different things I looked at but I’m assuming I filled out the quiz on the World Race website because I received an email shortly after. Looking at the info in the email I thought “no way 11 months! That’s so long!” and quickly deleted it. A few months passed and then at the end of August, beginning of September right as school was starting I get another email. This struck me as odd but again I didn’t think much beyond that and again deleted the email. Then in October I received another email. For some reason I can’t explain I stopped and took notice this time. I read through the email, looked at the website, and then began thinking “what would it be like if I did this?”. I deliberated for awhile on whether or not I should apply then finally took the leap and went for it. Probably a week later I was accepted and then committed to going!
Even as I write this it all still seems pretty surreal. I can’t believe that in just a few short months I will be leaving to go on this amazing journey!
So to answer the question: Why am I going on the World Race? I suppose the only answer I can really give is because this seems to be where God wants me. If I tried to come up with a different answer it just wouldn’t make sense. I’m from small-town, rural Maine, I generally dislike change, I’m an introvert, and I’ve only been out of the country once. Looking at this list with my human mind I would consider myself to be one of the last people who should be going on this trip, but you know what’s amazing? The way our god uses people who think they are unprepared, ill-equipped, and unable to perform the task He sets before them! God is able to do anything and He is able to use anyone. So the reason I am going on the World Race is because I want to trust God completely with my life and be willing to go wherever He leads me. Even if it’s halfway around the world.
