How did I end up on this crazy adventure?
I ask myself this question at least 5 times a day. As I'm talking about fundraising or just sharing about the race with someone, it dawns on me that a few weeks ago, I had no idea that this is how I was going to spend the next year of my life.
Honestly, a few weeks ago, I was at a loss for what I was supposed to do after graduation.
But to look back at how God brought me to this place is one of the most beautiful things I have ever experienced. I don't even know where I should start telling the story. Every tiny detail of my life led me here. If I shared all of them, we would be here all day. I'll divulge the most recent part of the story. If you want to know more of the back story, that is going to require a phone call or a coffee date.
This spring was my last semester of college. Ecstatic is not even a strong enough word for how excited I was to finish school. But, starting the semester, I had no idea what I was going to do after graduation. So, like any good Type A person, I made a list. I wrote down anything and everything I have ever thought about doing after college. It included, but not limited to, going back to NYC, teaching/coaching, owning my own business, and church planting. I was obviously all over the place. Not surprisingly at all, as time went by, things started getting crossed off that list. Either God would explicitly shut a door on an opportunity or my passion for one of them would dwindle. All I knew is that I was running out of options.
While all of this me trying to figure out my life stuff was going on, there was work, school, and relationships I was focused on. Not to say that I wasn't focused on what God wanted, because I was interested in that more than anything, but he used the normal day-to-day things to reveal himself to me.
One night at work (around the end of February), I was talking to parent of a child at basketball practice, and he started speaking so much wisdom into my life that I didn't want that night to be over. To summarize, we talked about Christ giving up his rights for us, how there are a lot of things I could do after college that look 'godly' that aren't necessarily what God wants, and about the story of the Israelites spying out the promised land in Numbers 13 and 14. I went home that night and wrote down everything I could remember about that conversation.
Number 13 and 14 was going to become a theme in my life. A frustrating, I don't know what God is trying to say, theme.
I had NEVER heard a message on Numbers 13 and 14, nor had I ever had a conversation with someone about it. I had skimmed the passage before, at the most.
A few weeks later after having that conversation, the pastor at my church spoke on Numbers 13 and 14. At that point, I was thinking, 'Okay God, I see you.' But really, I had no idea what was going on. I was still trying to figure out what he was trying to say from the first time I heard about it. That day I cried, a lot. Not because I was sad or angry, but because I knew God was trying to do something and I couldn't hear him.
A few weeks passed, and you guessed it, God wasn't finished talking to me. I went on a Sunday morning to my previous church to celebrate an event I had been a part of. Here I am, all excited and giddy about being there, and the pastor comes up and starts talking about Numbers 13 and 14. I'm not really sure what I looked like at that moment, but I could probably guess that I was wide-eyed with my jaw dropped. I was giving myself a pep-talk to stay calm and collected, but on the inside I was freaking out. I listened to the message hoping that it was going to be the moment where I finally understood what God was doing, but it wasn't.
So, here I am at the end of April, more confused than I was in January.
A week or so passed. My best friend was getting married and finals were coming so time was flying. Somewhere in this craziness I saw something about the World Race online. My first thoughts were, 'that would be cool one day', and that is exactly what I told my mom the next day as we were sending out my graduation announcements. The next few days, I couldn't stop thinking about the race. It started to change from something I would do in the future to something I desired to do as soon as possible.
I have this thing about me where if I get passionate about something, there really isn't anything that is going to stop me except for God saying no. I got PASSIONATE about the race. So, in typical Lesley fashion, I decided to apply. I sat down to my computer on April 24th, opened the World Race app, and then God whispered to me to slow down. I stopped what I was doing, took a deep breath, and spent some time talking Jesus. I started praying and all of a sudden God slapped me with Numbers 13 and 14.
*this is the point where if you haven't read the passage, you should do it. It is good stuff .*
It was THE moment I had been waiting on. I hurried to read the passage again as quickly as I could. I sat there awestruck as God sweetly told me what He had been trying to tell me since February.
He was holding on to the race for me all along. It was MY promised land.
And all those things that had gotten marked off the list, those were MY giants that were standing in the way. He had taken care of them and He told me he was going to take care of the rest of them that I would face on this journey.
Here is what I wrote in my journal right before I started filling out the application…
"So today is the day I'll look back on if I decide to do the race. I read countless blogs, dreaming of what it would be like to be in their shoes. What if God is calling me to travel for 11 months all in His name? Go to 11 countries to live in community with the lost and the forgotten? I feel so inadequate. It is a silly feeling considering I am the daughter of the Creator who can speak universes into existence."
That was exactly a month ago.
I can't believe that this is what I get to call my life.
-LD
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I will not be able to continue on this journey without support from friends and family. I must raise $15,500 to go on the race. If you would like to join me on this adventure, you can do so by clicking the "support me" link the left side of the page.
