Hi friends!
Welcome back! I’m excited to share with you what God has been doing in my life recently and tell you what I’ve been learning through it all.
My hope for this blog is that I will be honest with you and let you know what is really happening in my life! So in these next few paragraphs I hope that’s what you see: honesty.
These past couple of months have been extremely challenging for me. Winter break has given me way too much down time and not enough to do. I have not left my house much, and staying in the same place for too long has opened the door for a lot of lies and attacks from the devil. Yet through this challenging season, God has continued to prove Himself faithful, providing for me in the midst of this weird chunk of time. At the end of 2016, I reflected on the last year and realized how much I had learned! I don’t hold a strong opinion on new year’s resolutions, but I did decide that I wanted to continue to learn new things and grow in understanding of the Lord and of what His plan is for me. So with that said, here are the 11 things I have learned in the first 11 days of 2017:
1) I am created for community. I have always *felt* like an introvert but something I am learning is that days and days alone and by myself is not what God has called me to and that will not satisfy or bring life to my heart.
2) God has a purpose for me. He has called me to action, to a life of doing things and going places all in His name. To sit at home all day is not fulfilling that purpose and will not bring His heart or my heart joy.
3) God has created each person as their own individual, and their needs, passions, and talents are specific and unique to them.
4) Sometimes my mind races, I think too much, and I overanalyze. This may be better than not thinking at all and becoming passive, but God has asked me to cast all my anxieties on Him and let Him be in total control of my life. His brain is way smarter than mine.
5) Family is so important. God has given me a place to belong and these next 9 months give me a huge opportunity to love and cherish them. They will always be my favorite people even from the other side of the world.
6) I am prideful. I will always be arrogant, but the Lord has asked me to die to myself and live for Him. I am learning that I will never stop learning how to lay down my pride.
7) God provides! I am absolutely floored and astonished by the generosity of the people in my life. God is anointing me to go on this crazy journey and He is building my faith through this fundraising process.
8) I need to be more generous. Going through a process like raising $15000 has shown me how much of a need I have for others’ generosity. I am so challenged to support others that need financial support because of a decision to follow and chase the Lord’s purpose for them.
9) The best friendships are made in an environment that focused on trusting and pursuing the Lord. I have been surrounded with new teammates that have brought so much joy to my heart, and I know that they will continue to spur me on in my walk with Christ. I ask that you would be praying for the teammates I’ve been blessed with, that God would grow our friendships and protect us throughout this whole journey.
10) I need to stop thinking about the World Race. Not completely (and believe me when I say I don’t think I could no matter how hard I tried). But I want to treasure the moments that are passing by right now. I will miss these more than anything else next year, and, honestly, life will never be the same after the Race. This is a special and unique time that God can use to do amazing things.
11) Your support matters! The more I pray about, dream about, and prepare for this, the more I realize that I need so much prayer and support from you! I can not do this on my own! So thank you to all of you that have supported me both in your encouraging words and in your generous financial support. Thank you for lifting me up to The King of the world, asking Him to protect me, grow me, and care for me. (If you are inspired to support me financially, please scroll up to my picture and click the “donate” button next to it. It would mean the world to me.)
Thanks for sticking through all that! I know it was long, and it means so much to me that you would be invested enough in me to spend time reading about what’s on my mind. I know I still have 9 months until I leave, but I would absolutely love to spend time with you and hear what God is doing in your life! I hope you are able to rejoice for all that God has done today.
Love you all,
Kate
