Have you ever felt like you spend the majority of your time in front of a computer screen?
If you're anything like me, then there is a decent chance this is the case. With a plethora of social media sources, entertainment sites like Netflix and Hulu, and all the news and shopping a person could ever want online, it becomes easy to get lost in a sea of screen-fed information, dulling out what's happening in the rest of the world.
I share this with you for two reasons:
1. Confession: I don't like directing my time in these ways much anymore; I am worn down by social media sources and the variety of ways I manage to waste my time in front of a computer screen. This is why, back in September-November of this year that I deactivated my Facebook and put my computer into storage. And guess what: the fully EXPECTED happened. My ears, and eyes, and heart were opened up to spending time investing in a relationship with my beautiful Creator.
What happened during this technolgy haitus? Simply put, God wakened me to new insights, as He is so often wonderful at doing. I had been planning on thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in the summer/fall, but I felt at times a nagging question: "Chip. Why do you want to hike the AT? You could be using that time so much more effectively by serving abroad in a missions capacity." And so God called me to the World Race. And it was beautiful. And I was excited. I felt that my life had a direction again, a clear purpose, instead of wandering aimlessly for whatever life would bring me next.
But once I was accepted to the World Race, I realized that I would need to blog and to reactivate my Facebook and be involved in that social sphere again. EEK. I really didn't want to, but I knew that it would be important.
2. Challenge: What could God say to you if you took these distractions away? I am sure that faithfully sacrificing that time for Him would be of benefit, 10-fold. Imagine, if you will, the LIFE that He might breathe into you, the PLANS He might share with you, the JOY EVERLASTING that the Holy Spirit might grow in you if you invested this time in a relationship with Him.
I'm not saying that you should be like me and hermit yourself away from these often beneficial media sources. It is for each of us to decide what is appropriate in making room for God's love to invade into our lives. So what I AM asking is for you to consider taking some of the time in front of a computer and put that time in with God, sharing your heart with Him and seeking His in turn. You might be amazed in the freedom you would find by this.
Now I know this next part will contradict what I just said, but meh, i contradict myself sometimes….whoops.
Even though it is a struggle for me to return to these sources, I commit to being more involved in them. And thus I want to ask you to keep in touch with me by email, through Facebook, and through this blog. Because I want to share my heart with you, to be in this journey with you, my supporters. Because you are as much an integral part of the World Race as my physical presence abroad will be.
Yes, it will be my feet on the ground, but I hope that you will pray for me, because your spirit will be with me and I will take the lessons you have taught me and the time you spent investing in me, and share them with those that God puts in my path on this venture. And God wants to use you as an instrument in His kingdom out in the world, even where you are now.
So please, pray about supporting me financially and in prayer (redundant, I know) so that you can be a part of this amazing journey with me. I have $15,500 to raise for this, and though it is often a scary number to me, I would be grateful for any donations. No donation is too small. I am sure that God will do great things through this mission venture, and that He can use you as part of it, to change the world, to give unreached people a chance of knowing God and having an INDESCRIBABLY BEAUTIFUL relationship with Him.
If you feel called to support me, you can donate by clicking the "Support Me" link on the left side of this page, or by writing a check to:
Adventures In Missions,
P.O. Box 534470
Atlanta, GA 30353-4470
(on the check memo line, include "The World Race-Chip Carnes")
As always, I am grateful for your time and prayers.
