Hey there! Welcome to my first official blog post! It’s crazy to think the fact that this is the first post of many, and that soon I will be writing these from the opposite side of the world! If I’m being honest, I’ve thought about this post for a long time, wondering what I would say. I decided this morning that I’d simply (or not so simply) like to tell you what God has been doing in my heart over the past two months, and talk about how I see Him preparing me for the Race!
“His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” Lamentations 3: 22-23
These words have become more true to me than ever before and each word seems to have a little more meaning. For the past two months my thoughts have been largely about what the World Race is going to be like. Curiosity has gotten the best of me, and I have watched way too many videos and read way too many blogs. I have been pretty overwhelmed with all the different experiences I’ve read about. There are stories of laughter and tears, miracles and ordinary days. All of my original expectations are constantly being swayed by what I’ve been reading and seeing. Every morning I wake up with a different emotion, mostly concerning the World Race. I’ve woken up with an ache in my stomach from nervousness to leave and to be challenged, pushed, and changed. I’ve been so afraid of the unknown: who I’ll be traveling with, what kind of situations I’ll encounter, what challenges I will face, and how I’ll deal with them. I’ve woken up, not able to accept that I still have to wait 10 more months until I finally get to experience amazing cultures and to witness God move in ways I’ve never seen before. My excitement is beyond words. I’ve woken up with a feeling that my Launch date will take forever to come or that those 9 months won’t meet my expectations. I’m fearful it will be so different from what I’m dreaming of, that I’ll change my mind by month 2 and want to come home. But with every emotion I wake up to, the Lord greets me with a smile and proves His faithfulness to me. When I listen (I don’t always), He tells me that I don’t have to be nervous and that He is dying to take my anxieties and give me rest instead. He reassures me that this time of preparation is important and that He wants to use it for His glory. He promises He’ll show me great and hidden things, blowing all of my expectations out of the water. He promises to be faithful to me.
So what am I learning? God is faithful and all I have to do pay attention to what’s going on in this moment, and let the Lord take care of the rest of it. I have no need for worry, and doubts have no place in my life. If I am always rushing towards the next thing in life, every “next thing” will blur together in worry and discontentment. God is making all things new and making me new. He has promised to continue to carry out good works in me and complete what He has started. I want to realize that. I want to see God moving now and I am praying for contentment with where I am now.
I want to give you a quick update with where I’m at with fundraising! I have been absolutely amazed at the generosity of my community! God has taken all my doubts about raising so much money and has provided me with so many great gifts. As of right now, I have just under $1600, which is about %10 of all that I need! With monthly donations included, I have about %20 of the total cost raised!! I’m so encouraged by those numbers, and my fear of scrambling to raise the money up until the last day is fading! God is so good and once again has proven his faithfulness to me! So I want to thank those of you who have given to me, it has been an incredible testimony to the provision the Lord has blessed me with!
As I wrap this up, I just want to share with you the prayer that has been on my heart, and ask you to join me in petitioning the Lord on my behalf. I have been asking the Lord to reveal the beauty of Himself to me, to strengthen my faith to believe all that He has told me, and most importantly I have been asking to hear from the Lord. I have a desire to hear His voice and follow His call, and I want to believe that He speaks to me in a personal and powerful way.
If you’ve read this whole post, thank you! Thank you for caring and for investing in me. I am so grateful for your support and partnership in this, I really can’t do it alone! I would love to talk with you and hear where you are at, and what is going on in your life! I promise I won’t talk this much in a real conversation 😉
Have the best day ever!
Kate
