About ME: The SIX Big Questions.
Hello everyone, my name is Caleb Leppert, I will turn 22 in March 2017, and I am attempting to tell you about myself. I will answer the following six questions: Where? Who? When? What? Why? How? One thing to know about me is that I am a visual learner, therefore I am including tons of pictures to help describe me, but first here is a picture of me.
First of all to understand me you need to know the environments that make me, me. There are two environments that shape my way of thinking. First, I live in a small Midwest town in South Dakota called Rapid City. Rapid City is the second largest city in SD with a metro population of 150,000. I have lived in Rapid since preschool. Rapid is the gateway to the Black Hills which is home to Mount Rushmore and is a major tourism destination. Rapid is also home to the most unpredictable weather in the USA, from year to year (http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/which-city-has-the-most-unpredictable-weather/). Here is a video and some pictures of what my “backyard” looks like.
Second, I attend a small “science and technology” college called South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. SD Mines is mostly an engineering college where 80% of the students are male, and the best way to spread information is by taping a poster to the sidewalk. Yes, I fit the Midwestern and Engineer stereotypes.
There are four different subcategories that I will answer: Family, Friends, Hobbies and Interests, and Personality.
Family
I am the oldest child of Dave and Tina Leppert, and I have two younger sisters, Hannah and Megan. My Dad is a civil engineer and my Mom is a nurse. Hannah attends SD Mines with me and Megan is still in high school. One of the biggest challenges while I am gone is that I will miss Megan’s Senior year (including her graduation). Our family loves to go camping in the Black Hills with church friends. We also love to take camping road trips to places like Yellowstone Nat’l Park, Glacier Nat’l Park, the Grand Canyon, and many other places.
Friends
Growing up in the same town allows me to build long-lasting friendships. I have a lot of friends from my time in Youth Group, my years at Rapid City Christian School, and from SD Mines. So I asked my friends to describe me in three words, here are their answers.
Here are a couple pictures of my friends.
Hobbies and Interests
I have a lot of hobbies and interests, so here is a list.
- Disc Golf or Frolf
- League of Legends
- Reading (Sci-fi and mystery, here are some of my favorites: Lord of the Rings, John Carter of Mars, Ender’s Game Series, and Patrick Bowers Series.)
- Graphic Design
- Legos
- Rubik’s Cube
- Board/Card Games (Settlers of Catan with Cities and Knights is the best.)
- the Denver Broncos
- Hockey – the Rapid City Rush and the Chicago Blackhawks
Personality
I self-identify as INTJ, but I am really an ISTJ, borderline ESTJ. But really I am a strong Thinker and Judger and college has taught me to be a Senser and as far as being an Introvert versus an Extrovert, I am both depending on the circumstances. When you first meet me I will probably be an Introvert, but I was my high school’s mascot so maybe I am an Extrovert. Here is a quote that describes how I think and a picture of me as my school’s mascot – Comet Man (We are the Rapid City Christian Comets). I am also very competitive especially at board/card games.
I am currently finishing up my senior year at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, one semester to go. I will be graduating in May 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. College is a full-time job for me, but I have picked-up a part-time job to help raise funds for my journey around the world. I am involved with the leadership team for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at SD Mines. My role is planning our large groups nights called Catalyst. At Catalyst we follow a four part rotation called the WAVE. Here is a banner I created for IV, a picture of SD Mines’ campus and our InterVarsity group.
Okay, I know “When am I?” is not a very good question to answer, but I had to keep the theme going. So the real question is, “When was I saved?” I am very blessed to have been raised in a Christian home where I accepted that Jesus Christ as my Savior from a very young age like 4-5 years old. I was educated in Christian schools most of my life, however during high school I started to realize that I need to live out my faith as my own and not as an extension of my parents.
The turning point was during our Senior Mission Trip to Chicago with Adventures in Missions, where I was challenged to “Ask the Lord”. This experience first opened my eyes to how Christianity outside of my little bubble of Rapid City. Nevertheless I wasn’t completely committed to living out my life as a child of God, in fact I entered college being burnt out from serving student body at RCCS (Rapid City Christian School) on my own, without the help of God. During the first couple years of college I just participated in InterVarsity events; I wasn’t heavily involved. Then during a missional spring break trip to Milwaukee my Christianity bubble was shattered again, when I realized that we all worship the same God. We as people of all races, ethnicities are all loved by the same God. During this time I felt like I was in a time of waiting for God to work, I read my Bible from time to time, and participated in IV and church events, but God wasn’t my number one priority. I continued to struggle with what direction God wanted to take me, but I was knew that God had a plan even if I didn’t know what it was. Last spring during a leadership event I realized that I had to put God first no matter what, that is the mindset that I have had during the last couple months at school.
One of the biggest challenges I faced during college was not getting an internship in my career field even though I had excellent grades. Looking back on the last couple of years I realize that God was keeping me from getting an internship in my career field, as He had a better plan. He was slowly working on my heart, preparing me to be ready for His plan to go on the World Race. Here is a picture of my classmates during our mission trip to Chicago.
Why am I? going on the World Race?
During the Retreat of Silence at IV’s Fall Conference, God told me not too close the door to missions. Over the next couple of weeks the Lord continued to speak to me about going on the World Race. He spoke to me through the Bible and through songs on a local Christian Radio Station. Then two weeks later during IV’s Cross Training I attended a track called “Praying for a Change”, the first lesson was about listening and knowing the voice of the Lord. This was the final confirmation to me that God had spoken to me about going into missions particularly the World Race. God had finally given me a direction in my life and I felt free and overjoyed. I am excited to see how God is going to move me on the World Race.
How to Pray for Me?
First pray for the following concerns I have. My biggest concern will be the food I will be eating. As a child I was a picky eater, as I grow older I still avoid certain foods, however I am getting better about trying new foods. Another concern I have would be being away from my family for an entire year, as I have not had any experience leaving home. The last I have is flying, not a fear of flying but the lack of experience navigating terminals.
Second pray for the necessary funds. I have a lot of fundraising to do, but pray that I won’t worry about the money and pray for open hearts of everyone who gives to God’s mission.
Third pray for boldness for myself and my team. Pray that we would have the strength and courage to spread the love of God to everyone we come into contact with. Amen.
