Lately I have been asked many questions from back home and of course from those around me. I figured that this one was worth blogging about. And so the other night a great friend and teammate asked me this question: “How has your World Race experience affected your life?”
And so here’s my answer…
This year I finally started to walk the path I was created
to walk. That path is hand in hand with the Lord, not running and hiding from
him. Being in a relationship not based on emotion or right and wrong or even
regulations and traditions. I’m walking this path because I KNOW who I am in
the Kingdom of God. I have become that new creation as I’ve chosen to daily
renew my mind to the things the Lord has revealed to me. The deeper I pursue
the Lord, the deeper I find myself immersed in God’s GRAND LOVE STORY. God’s
love has been expressed through his son, Jesus Christ. And so I daily come
to the cross that he was nailed to and crucified on to lay my burdens before
God’s throne and accept Christ’s sacrifice for my sins and transgressions in my life. I
want to experience more and more of that divine love and only through Christ can
I do so. Through Christ I have discovered who I AM, but only because I realized who I AM NOT. The only way the Lord could have possibly done this work
in my life is because I acted on the cry of my heart and stepped out into the
unknown and took a risk. I took the risk of chasing whatever it was that was
greater than me “out there”. I sacrificed my comfort and future plans for that
chance that I would have a greater understanding of the Lord.
That’s it. That is my story this year. Sure I could tell you
about people being saved, churches being planted or the brokenness that I saw.
Those experiences were God’s way of teaching me and opening my eyes and using
me to share that story. Yes God has done miracles through me. Yes God has used
me to set captives free. Yes God has taken back more territory from Satan
deception and lies by using my mouth. These are all part of the GRAND LOVE
STORY. I can testify to these wonders, but they have nothing to do with me. I
am merely a servant of God. God didn’t need me to do HIS WORK. He has enough
people to have His will completed. Yet the fact of the matter is that he DID use me and that has changed my life!
And so I thank God once again for the opportunity to learn
about FREEDOM. I thank God for answering my heart’s cries and giving me the opportunity to experience His TRUTH. I strive to live everyday in His GRACE and His STRENGTH. That is how the World Race experience has affected my life!
Here’s a picture on top of Mount Tunari in Bolivia, South America. This was one of those steps in which I was challenged when looking beyond my own strength. A challenge that has come more times than I can remember and that will continue to come. The only difference between pre-race and now is that in humility I try to lay down my pride before I’m forced to!
