Before leaving for the Race I read countless blogs with the title: “Dear Future Racers”. I thought combined that they were all the handbooks I needed for this life. One of the main things I noticed they all said was that it is difficult to blog on the race. I thought to myself that that thought was absolutely impossible because I had so many blog ideas rolling around in my head before I even left to see the things that I’ve seen.
And then it happened. I am now on Month 3 of this thing call World Race and I have fallen into the trap of not blogging as often as I thought I would. I am sorry to my supporters that I haven’t kept you as up to date as either you or I would like to be. What I don’t apologize for is disconnecting from this whole blogging thing and engaging in this life the Lord is allowing me to live. There is a lot of world to see and a lot of people that need to hear about Jesus and that only happens if I look up from my computer screen for a moment’s time. With all that being said, how about a little update on life in Cambodia? Or Nepal? Or India? We shall see where my typing takes us.
“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
1Corinthians 15:58
At the very beginning of this race I asked the Lord what He wanted to teach me. Each month has been different but one thing has remained the same since day one and that is learning to be steadfast. Steadfast in the awesome adventure that this season is. Steadfast on the mundane, routine, boring days that this season is. If I have learned one thing from this race so far it’s this:
Not everyday is one for the history books
Gasp. You mean that not everyday will involve thousands of people being saved and throwing down their pimp money and their drugs and whatever other sin they are living in? No.
Trust me, I think everyone has expectations of a year long mission trip being miracles on miracles on miracles. And while I think that is absolutely possible it just isn’t the case.
In India we preached the gospel every single night and we lifted up prayers on behalf of the beautiful people in the villages. We saw one salvation that whole month. A lot of those days seemed mundane and routine and we were exhausted. It’s tempting to look back on that month and think that we missed something and then the Lord ever so gently reminds me that we had the opportunity to preach the gospel. We had the opportunity to lay our requests before Him on behalf of so many people that we met. That is in no way a mundane kind of thing.
In Nepal we did a few different ministries. I wish I could report to you that the ladies who we had the privilege of teaching English to fell down in repentance when we taught them cooking words. I wish I could tell you that the word “bowl” just pulled on their sin heart strings and they just couldn’t handle it any longer. But they didn’t. But you know who knows about Jesus now? The ladies we taught English. The street girls that pulled on my own heart strings and who I saw the day that we were leaving Nepal.
Now that we are in Cambodia what we have done so far is visit the “Top Tourist Destination in the World” which is Angkor Wat. We have helped organize things in a school that is opening in October for at risk girls. We have met countless strangers, most of which can’t speak much English. Maybe by the end of this month I will be able to report to you that the lady selling me a coke falls to her knees in repentance at the charades I play to ask for that coke. I have big expectations for this month. Expectations that the Lord is going to allow me to build relationships with some girls rescued from the abusive life they were forced to live. Expectations that I will glean from the wisdom of a woman who was bold enough to step out and start a Girl’s Shelter and a School for at risk girls. Expectations that the lady at the store down the street will know Jesus because of my love and joy that I bring when asking for a water even when we can’t fully converse.
While I have these expectations and hope and pray that we see salvations and miracles day after day after day, I know that the Lord is going to continue to teach me about this word STEADFAST. He is going to continue to teach me about being steadfast when I see the fruits of our labors and when I don’t.
This trip, I am coming to realize, is not only about the hell, fire and brimstone messages that bring people to repentance. I am learning that it is more about the relationships we are building and that in those mundane, routine days is where the greatest ministry can happen. I am learning to be steadfast when people fall to their knees in repentance and I am learning to be steadfast when they don’t.
We plant the seed, He makes it grow.
So, friends, take the time to talk to that lady in line at your mundane, routine grocery store visit. Go out of your way to make conversation with that coworker that you don’t really care for. If there is one thing that I have realized it’s this:
A smile and eye contact can make someone’s day and in those moments is where the greatest stories ever told are birthed.
Update on life: You can still support me over on the left side of this page. I am close to being fully funded but I am also having to buy things like toiletries and some food so that money is being stretched. My incredible teammate, Sam, is coming up on a deadline and would also love some support from you!! She is such an incredible teammate and the race wouldn’t be the same without her so click HERE
This month, after two months of close community with other teams, I am finally with only my team working at a Girl’s Shelter. For the safety of the girls that is the only information that I can give at this point. Cambodia is absolutely incredible and I am blown away at what the Lord is teaching me already. I cannot wait to see what more this month has for us! Thank you to everyone that has been following me and supporting me.
I would love to post pictures here but thanks to international wifi it’s tough to do that so be sure and follow my Instagram @KcTilly42 because pictures happen there pretty frequently. I would also love it if you subscribed and shared this blog to get all the updates here!
I know you’re all dying for an update on Tucker Tillman… we FaceTime every now and then and him and my dad are best friends. So far, so good I’d say.
