When I tell people that I am abandoning my family, friends, and schooling for 9 months to do the World Race, the usual response is “why?”. Well there are a lot of things that have led me to where I am today, but let me explain the last 6 or 7 months of my life to you. In March I went on my first mission trip to the Dominican Republic, to a small village named “La Lista” with my church Faith Community Church, and Lakeview Community Church as well. In that time, God was not only working in the hearts of the Dominican people through me, but they were changing my heart as well. We see pictures of starving children, unclean water, and poor living conditions, but it is nothing like spending a week with the people who have dealt with it all their life. I found it easy to bond with the people there, my three years of high school Spanish actually came in handy. Over the course of a week, we installed water filters in many of the homes that were there, and the people were ecstatic. At the end of the week, I even got a chance to give my testimony to the entire community of La Lista. By the time I left the Dominican Republic, (I know this sounds cheesy) it felt like I left a piece of me there. after a few days of being back, I had a verse constantly ringing in my head, Phillipians 3:8 – “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ”. I felt the passion that God had given me for missions, and I talked to my youth pastor about possible careers and opportunities to be a missionary. When we talked about it, I decided I really wasn’t ready to abandon the comfort of America. As graduation got closer, my friend Jared Celosse told me about something he was doing called the World Race. He explained it to me and I thought it was the coolest thing I’ve ever heard. I told him I was jealous that he was able to do such a thing, and that it simply just isn’t possible for me to raise enough money to go on the World Race. Shortly after, I graduated high school!! I was so excited to start the next chapter of my life. Over the summer I went to my last church camp since I had recently graduated. One of the speakers was really good, and she ended up reading the verse Philippians 3:8, and I immediately had chills go through my body. I decided then and there that I was going to do some kind of long term missions, I just wasn’t sure what yet. When I got back from church camp I got the verse Philippians 3:8 tattooed on me shortly after, and I felt God calling me to the World Race. I talked with my parents about it, and they are worried about me of course, but they agreed with what I said: God will provide if it’s his plan for me to be on this trip. I know that God was trying to get through to me, and he finally did. I’m ready to leave everything and do what his will is for my life, and right now I know he wants me on the World Race.
