Adios Uyuni, Hola Trujillo… Time is flying by! - Explore Archived World Race Alumni Blogs

Is it just me or is August flying by? How can it possibly be August 17th already? How? They do say time flies when you are having fun… and I have to say the last month and a half has been A LOT of FUN! Well, Uyuni was FREEZING but AMAZING and now I’m at the warm beach in Trujillo… but don’t get me wrong, it has NOT been fun in the way of no responsibilities, no work and all play! It has been quite the opposite in fact. It has been a month and a half of hard work- physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually…. God has been WORKING ON ME! He is doing the kind of work that hurts from the inside out but heals, replenishes, restores and renews ALL at the same time! He is drawing me closer to Him through His Word (The Bible), through the girls on my team who continuously speak love and life into me, my squad leaders, ALL of F Squad and every day in so many ways through ministry, books, and even Harry Potter… Yes, I said Harry Potter. When my squad mates found out I had never read the books or watched the movies and immediately treated me like an alien I thought it probably wouldn’t hurt to see what the fuss is all about… so I got them from another girl’s computer, thanks Alicia!, and before bed at night I’ve worked my way through the six of the movies (don’t judge!) and I totally see the metaphor of good versus evil, God versus the devil, and how we all must fight our sin and flesh every single day to live in the freedom that ONLY Christ can bring.

I used to think that so many people who weren’t Christians seemed to have their life together… They looked good, spoke well, worked hard, lived well… but now I know none of those things show people’s hearts and minds… what is really going on under the surface… the insecurities, the hurts, the sins, the pains… the brokenness. We all have it. Every single one of us. We just learn how to manage it, to maintain it, to not feel it, or to hide it all together… I even thought when I came on the World Race that surely most of the 43 of us on our squad were probably near perfect Christians who were raised in nearly perfect homes and didn’t sin too much… I was sure I was probably one of the worst, with many sins I regret. But soon we all started sharing our stories… the devastations that sin caused in our homes, to our families, to us personally, and it was very apparent none of us were blameless, none of us were without sin, none of us had been spared from this broken world… and it became clear to me that Jesus Christ REALLY died on the Cross for EVERYONE… and like Louie Giglio says, for all the wrongs we’ve done and all the wrongs that have been done to us… Christ died for it all.

We are all perpetrators… we have all sinned and we all put Jesus on that Cross… but we have also all been stolen of our innocence by the sins of others or of just our fleshly desires and the devil himself…

We ALL need Jesus. We need Him to save us from our sins and we need Him to rescue us from our brokenness that sin brings… to restore us back to life, to renew our hearts and minds, and to free us from all that sin leaves in its wake…. shame, guilt, regret, and brokenness. I know I’ve had all those things… and I’ve desperately needed the LOVE of a Savior, the ONE and ONLY person who died to right our wrongs and heal our hearts… To make us new again… to give us a new identity, one of worth, of unconditional love, of acceptance, of a life of purpose, freedom, security, peace…. that is what Jesus is giving me every day… it isn’t always easy but it is FUN to be SET FREE in exactly WHO I AM IN CHRIST… cherished, love, complete, lacking nothing… I don’t NEED people to tell me I’m good enough, I don’t NEED a drink, a man, a lot of friends or money or clothes or a specific number on a scale…. but because I am free… because I am already, I can have balance in what I eat and drink and do with my body… I can love myself when I already feel loved… I can love others without trying to prove I’m worthy enough to be loved, I can accept people just the way they are because I am accepted just the way I am… I can serve others because God serves me daily with unconditional love, mercy and grace… I can forgive because I am forgiven… it is a truly amazing and endless cycle of freedom… and it is only in Christ, and I am only beginning this journey… I know it will continue more and more the rest of this month and the rest of this year and the rest of my life!

God is teaching me a lot about myself that isn’t easy to see, but I can because He loves me exactly as I am, where I am… but He isn’t going to leave me here, He isn’t finished with me yet!

He is teaching me to let go of the things that comfort me and instead get comfortable being uncomfortable… that means stop running to people to make me feel better about myself, stop running to carbs or sweets or wine or men…. stop keeping myself so busy I don’t have to think about what I need to be thinking about and instead sit with the Lord in STILLNESS and let Him work on my heart, mind, and spirit. He is teaching me to stop trying so hard to be so strong and let Him be my strength. He is teaching me discipline… inside of sleeping in I am up bright and early meeting with Him, and after I meet with Him I’m working out most days. I’m also practicing my guitar 30 minutes a day and doing crunches and pushups every day. I am really pushing past my comfort zones mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually and relationally DAILY because I WANT to change… I WANT to be more like Him… I want to live in Freedom and Peace and I want to love others like Him (Jesus Christ) and I want to live the life He has for me… not the lies the devil speaks day after day after day that we get so used to hearing we believe them as our own…. And THAT is WHY we need a Savior, why we need Jesus… because there is an enemy who is after us… he comes to kill, steal, and destroy our lives, our happiness, our future, our self worth, our hopes, our dreams…. everything. We need Jesus to speak truth into our lives… to combat the evil one… to give us peace, love, grace, mercy and the best relationship we could ever ask or hope for…. and it can ONLY come through Jesus, every single day….

I PRAY EVERY SINGLE DAY THAT ALL MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS WHO DO NOT KNOW THIS LOVE, PEACE, REDEMPTION AND FREEDOM will realize it’s not about religion… it’s not about rules… it is about a relationship with the Creator of the Universe who loves more deeply than we could ever comprehend… it is about freedom. It is about peace. It is about love. It is about living the life you were made to live… It is about adventure. It is like nothing else the world has to offer and I get to experience it in 11 countries, in 11 months, in different languages, customs, traditions… and as Annastasia’s shirt says and the Bible says…. Love needs no translation! God is real to every nation, every people, every language… and the more the world knows about God, the more the world knows about Love… because God IS Love.

If any of my friends who are not Christians have any questions please don’t hesitate, I would LOVE to share more, but I hope you see it more and more through my life and love that shines from Christ’s love for me! And now some pictures of Peru so far! Love you all!!!!

This is what 40+ people who travel 30 hours without stopping on a bus look like!