So the race has finished. I am home and headed back to finish university in two weeks.
It is the end.
The end of living out of a pack.
The end of doing life with 52 brother and sisters.
The end of building relationships to just be torn away 30 days later.
The end of sleeping in train stations, bus stations, airports, dirt floors, and churches.
The end of a life transforming 11 month adventure…
Is it through? Ya, it’s the end of the World Race.
BUT is it the end of a life transforming adventure?
HELL NO.
Excuse my language. I just want to be abundantly clear. All those things are coming to a close, but those things were only tools to something so much bigger that occurred over this year.
And for me to believe and to allow you to believe that my transformation by an 11 month adventure ended seventeen days ago would be a total misrepresentation of this whole process.
The truth is that this is only the beginning of the adventure. The 11 months were just the beginning to my life being transformed.
If that isn’t clear enough let me put it this way:
I have recognized how the World Race has helped me come alive.
BUT the World Race was ONLY an INSTRUMENT that God used. GOD is the reason for why I have been transformed… NOT THE RACE.
To understand what I am talking about I need to explain why I use the words “come alive”. I write this instead of writing; transformation, grow, or any other word you could think to replace it, because its is the ONLY way for me to describe this year.
This realization happened when I was asked to put a sermon together for a Ukrainian church. I was drawn to the story of the women at the well and so I started to base my sermon off that.
Quick overview: Jesus goes to small town in Samaria. He goes to the well. A woman is there. Jesus asked for a drink. She is confused because He is a Jew and she is a Samaritan (Jews and samaritans don’t like each other).
So this is where I’ll pick up the story with some dialogue:
Jesus: “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”
Woman: “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?
Jesus: “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. And have eternal life
Woman: “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”
If I went on in the story you would find out that the woman had 4 husbands and was on number 5. She was looking to be satisfied. It never was enough. And when Jesus told her about the living water you could see it. Imagine the look on her face. Eyes big. Thinking, “I want that. I want my thirst to be quenched.” Yes give me that, I want to be satisfied.”
In that moment I was brought back to my decision to do the race. I felt God saying, “I have more for you. Something that will satisfy.” I felt like I was the woman, without hesitation, I said, “yes!.”
I think a lot of us would say yes to being satisfied, to experience life to the fullest.
The thing is, do we know what it means when we say yes to the father?
Do we know what we are giving up?
Control.
The one thing we hate to lose, the one thing that we think we need to feel safe and secure. But when we say yes, it’s us personally choosing to submit to Him and giving up control.
For me I knew that saying yes to the race I would be giving up control. And the thing is I thought it was a one time thing. I thought ok I said yes to the race. I’m giving up control. Boom done.
I came into the race thinking i did all i needed to do and God was just going to do the rest and it would be a cake walk…
Thinking that brought me to almost quitting in the first three months because nothing was what I WANTED it to be. What I discovered is if we want to live into the full life God has in-store for us we have to be willing to go through a hard and painful process, a process of laying down what we want, what we see as successful, what we think is the right way, and choose in EVERY moment to trust that God’s way is better.
I won’t lie to you, it has sucked. It was hard. And THIS YEAR HAS TAKEN SO MUCH FROM ME.
It has taken a girlfriend. It has taken soccer. It has taken me away from friends back home. It has taken away graduating with my friends and possibly great job opportunities. It has stripped me of all that I was — everything that I found/saw myself in.
BUT in losing so much I HAVE GAINED IT BACK AND SO MUCH MORE.
I feel more alive this year than I’ve ever felt before.
I think C.S. Lewis captures this same idea much better then me in this quote from “Mere Christianity”…
“Give me all of you!!! I don’t want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want YOU!!! ALL OF YOU!!! I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man or woman, but to KILL IT! No half measures will do. I don’t want to only prune a branch here and a branch there; rather I want the whole tree out! Hand it over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them all over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self—in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you myself, my will, shall become your will. My heart shall become your heart. and you shall come ALIVE”
Now, you may read this and think this only happened because I traveled the world…
But I know the truth.
The truth is I have come alive because I have recognized the GREATEST ADVENTURE we could go on in this life is saying YES to the Father.
When we say yes we begin to travel on a windy road that we are finally NOT TRYING TO NAVIGATE, but, actually TAKING THE TIME to SEE, all that is around, and all that He has GIVEN us.
And saying yes, takes you into the unknown, and the unknown, is the root of every adrenaline rush.
Whether you believe in Jesus or not, I think the statement holds some truth, no matter what your theology is.
“The promise is the process.” My mentor said that to me and we weren’t talking about the race we were talking about life. It’s not an easy process. It’s not a pretty process. But He promises IT’S GOOD.
So believe me when I say this is not the end. And I pray God awakens this in you, that your adventure is out there and it is closer than you think. You just need to be willing to say yes.
There is an end though, the end is…
The end of my identity found in women, sports, and what i can do for people.
The end of people pleasing.
The end of fearing freedom.
The end of being a passive man.
The end of being performance driven.
The end of believing I am not enough.
The end of my life searching for the right answers and the right way…
And the beginning to coming alive.
