How did the World Race change my life? Man, what a crazy question to ask myself. It would be much easier and quicker to list the few ways that my life looks the same as it did before I entered into this crazy journey. That’s not the question though, so I will give this a shot.
If I had to sum up the change in me that began on my race back in July 2014 in one word, it would be “leadership.” This word probably seems generic to a lot of you. I know on my race a lot of the people I traveled the world with had been leading small groups, worship, bible studies, campus ministries, youth groups, and a great number of other discipleship group gatherings for their entire lives. Leadership was a word that had been spoken over them by pastors, mentors, parents, and friends. For me that was not the case.
I guess I should start off by sharing a little of my background. I did go to church as a child and attended a youth group when I was in high school. Some of the things a lot of my squad mates lived out in their lives were what was expected of me too, but that’s not the road that I took. Instead, I chose a very different, very destructive path and fell into the very dark world of drug addiction and drug dealing. For almost two decades, I lived with the sole motivation of keeping myself high and getting what I wanted no matter who got hurt in the process. I was basically what the world would call a “total scumbag”, “drain on society”, or “leach”. Praise God that’s not what he would call me though. He still called me “son”.
Long story short, without going into too much detail, about a year before the race God intervened and saved me from myself and the demons I had given permission to reign over my life. In a heartbeat, he transformed me from a suicidal, heroin addicted, depressed, anxious, demonized shell of a person into someone who no longer even thinks or cares about drugs, who wants to live, who loves him, who has purpose and a desire to see his kingdom reign on every corner of this earth.
When I launched the next July, I was set free, I was on fire, and was ready to meet people around the world who needed to hear about Jesus. The problem was I had no confidence in myself or my identity as a son of God. Because the people I was traveling with had been believers much longer and most of them hadn’t led nearly as crazy of lives as I had, I didn’t believe that I had any right to speak into them at all, much less be a leader in such a community. How could an ex-junkie and ex-criminal possibly have anything to offer to people he perceived as much holier, professional Christians?
Turns out my perception was wrong.
These people I raised up on this huge pedestal were actually just people not too different from me. They had their own hurts and wounds. They had made their own mistakes. They had fallen short of the glory in their own ways, and a lot of them were struggling through secrets and shame. Somehow, I was the person who a lot of them came to to confess these things and to ask for advice and I was actually able to call them out of their shame and back toward the Tree Of Life. This was shocking to me. Throughout my race I became someone who people trusted and I grew in confidence more and more through that. By the end of month 8 I was asked to be a team leader and when I came off the field I was asked to be an alumni squad leader for another squad. I spent the next year in leadership over a squad that traveled over almost the whole continent of Asia. I spent the first five months traveling with them and then discipled them from home the rest of the time. I can’t even begin to explain how strange it was to be leading missionaries around the world when I had been dealing dope and getting high just two years before.
Now I am attending G42 Leadership Academy in Spain where I’m being discipled by men of God who have been living their entire lives for the advancement of the kingdom. These men have founded ministries, businesses, and churches that have made an exponential impact in the world. The World Race was the catalyst for me actually stepping into my identity and my inheritance. Before the race I loved God because of the miracle he had done in my life. Now I am able to fully accept how much he loves me. I was born to be loved by him. I am worthy to be a contributing member of his kingdom. I am not too damaged to make an impact not only on the world, but on the people right in front of me. I am a leader and he is building me an army to fight the darkness and break down strongholds. The world will change because I know who I am. That’s how the World Race changed my life.
Sent from my iPad
