It has been awhile since my last blog post, and with things started to get less crazy, I can now zone in on fundraising and things of the sort for the World Race.
I have just arrived back from Europe for the past two weeks. I went with my parents to visit my brother in Germany where he lives with his wife and 8 month old daughter and works for the Air Force. We went throughout Germany, to the Netherlands, Belgium, and to Rome, Italy. I had been so excited for this trip for the past few months, all reasons that had nothing to do with God or His kingdom. But of course, God used it. NOTHING is never without purpose and this trip proved that yet again. God showed me so many things that I was not expecting on this trip.
I expected to gain some experience on international travel, having a language barrier, and small things like that, but God showed me so much more in comparison to the Race.
He showed me that it is not about the experience so much as it is about the people. Over the course of the past several months since I had been accepted onto the Race, I had been fighting the temptations of looking at the Race as something to be accomplished, something to put on my spiritual resume, an experience that will “Yes be for God, but the things I will see and do!” As if I was already checking out of the future 11 month trip and just wanting to get it done so I could come back with the cool stories, long hair, and 11 countries on my passport. God quickly showed me my prideful and self-centered mindset. What does this have to with my recent trip to Europe? I adopted that same selfish mindset to this trip and I quickly realized when I was out there that the sight seeing, Rome, the history, all of the things commonly bragged about when people travel and tell you what they “saw” absolutely paled in comparison to the people I encountered.
There was Sam, a Sri Lankan friend of my brother’s that escaped death and persecution from his home country for being a Christian. His testimony absolutely rocked me and put my own “suffering” and trials into perspective. There was Sirile, a gay neighbor who lived next to my brother, that showed us french hospitality, was quite hilarious and so easy to love. My brother shared that he was going through a breakup with his partner of 14 years and because of that they have had several conversations about Christ in which my brother got to pray over him. There was a British mother and daughter having dinner next to us in Rome, that shared many laughs with us and gave me inspiration to talk in a British accent the rest of the trip. There was a Belgian waiter who sat down with us at lunch and played with my brother’s daughter. There was a small Netherlands pub that welcomed us in to watch the world cup game of Netherlands and Spain that was so tightly packed, full of orange, and country pride. There was an instance on a drive back home where a car was completely stopped in the middle of the road with the driver laying in the street. He was going into Insulin shock. This divine appointment gave the opportunity for me and my dad to pray over him as he was convulsing and for my brother to speak the language so he could get an ambulance there just in time. None of these encounters with people were life altering for them or even gospel centered but it showed me what really mattered. To love God and to love others. Not my own resume. Overall there was countless encounters with people that finally set in stone that the World Race is and was never about the countries I will go to and even more importantly, it was never about me. Yes, God wants me to take in the vast general revelation that I will get to experience. The mountains, the beaches, the forests, the cities, all of it displays the glory of God and should put me in a place of worship. But that is only a taste, what He is really after on this trip is the hearts of His people in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Japan, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Swaziland, Zimbabwe/Botswana, and South Africa. Looking back on this recent trip, I am so fortunate that God taught me this before I ever go on the World Race. So as I prepare for this trip I am praying for a continued change from my own pride to a molding of His heart and mine.
P.S Obviously being on this trip for the past two weeks, I have not been able to fundraise the way I wanted to but have felt so blessed that already 50% has come in. God has totally been doing it. Not as if it was ever totally on me, but yet again, I am reminded of God’s faithfulness and providence.
