Hi everyone! This will be my last blog of the World Race. It is, as the title suggests, 11 things I have learned these past 11 months. It’s a mix of serious and funny; Enjoy!
1. I’m an extrovert
Apparently I’m the only one who didn’t know this about me. I gravitate towards people, whether we are in conversation or not, because I like company. I’ve really not had the chance to be wholly and truly alone this past year. I have be with at least one other person when I go into town or on a walk, I live (typically share a room) with at least 6 other people, and have spent four months on the Race living with 13-18 other people. This might be the biggest adjustment in coming home. As hard as it is, I love walking out of a room into another room full of people. Being alone may be harder than I think.
2. It’s good to be still
One of the first lessons I learned on the World Race is that being still is GOOD. Taking the time to ask God specific questions means you will get specific direction (usually). Taking the time to get your heart aligned with the Spirit will allow you to act out of the spirit, not out of the flesh.
3. I am worth at least 450 cows
In Africa, it’s not uncommon to be proposed to by a number of men. I think I was proposed to by a kumbie driver (equivalent to a taxi driver), a dude sitting on the side of the road, a guy driving past yelling out his window, and many more occasions. You also don’t get proposed to by a man on one knee with a ring in a box, you get offered cows. The best proposal I received was in eSwatini (previously known as Swaziland) when a man offered me 450 cows to be his wife! I had to say no because I didn’t have enough room in my pack:/
4. Action and Truth go hand in hand
Prior to the Race starting, I was nervous about the prospect of evangelism and sharing the Gospel because I didn’t feel equip. I have long since discarded that mindset because I know that the Lord will use the knowledge that I do have of the Gospel to speak to the person he wants to hear it. Along side knowing that, I have been tossed in the deep end countless times this year. Anything from “Go share and explain a verse to that person” to “Were doing home visits today!” Needless to say, I have had ample time to share and become comfortable with sharing the Gospel. But I have learned that it’s not all about sharing who Jesus was; it’s about being who Jesus is. It’s about building relationships, loving the difficult people, seeing the unseen, extending grace when its hard, the list goes on. Truth without action is just beautifully scripted words, and action without truth is just living out of the flesh.
5. Language is fascinating and confusing
Language is hard and traveling constantly means learning different languages and dialects. I have learned (on a very very very basic level) Spanish, Sign Language, Afrikans, Tsonga, Zulu, Sesotho, SiSwait, Malay, Khmer, Thai, Bahasa, Sudanese, and Tagalong. While English is commonly spoke in some of the bigger cities, these other languages are what is used in the rural areas. By the time we hit country #4 we were out of Central America and in Africa, which means it took me about a month to stop saying “Buenas Dias” and “Muchos Gracias” to everyone in Lesotho. Fast-forward six months to Indonesia and you get a mix of a bit of it all.
6. A smile brings people together
While language is hard to decipher, facial expressions are not. I tried many times to converse with people and vise versa, and it just didn’t work. We would just look at each other, bust out laughing, and share a smile together. We had no clue what the other was saying, but in that moment, we were in it together, and there’s something so special about that.
7. People will still sit with you when you have lice
I had the unfortunate pleasure of getting lice twice on the race. Once in Panama because I hugged every child I saw, and once in eSwatini because I don’t think I got all of the nits out of my hair the first time. I had a constant rotation of amazing friends who would pick nits out of my hair and risk getting lice to lie next to me to watch a movie.
8. Worship is a universal language
I have been to many different countries, seen many different cultures, and experienced many different churches, but worship is the one thing that remains the same. People sing, dance, and dream together, praising the Lord for all He has done, is doing, and will do. Differences dissipate when people come together in worship. And even if the language is different, the heart and passion is the same, which makes room for the Spirit to MOVE.
9. If you get the chance to dance on an airplane, do it
On our flight from Indonesia to the Philippines, we took AirAsia, which I would equate to SouthWest or JetBlue, so its no Ethidad, but its much better than Spirit. The airline was celebrating ten years of something (I didn’t pay much attention at first) and the flight attendants come over the speaker to announce that we’re playing trivia. The squad gets hype and wins two out of the three questions asked. Mel was the winner of the final question and the attendants ask her to dance. She immediately says yes and then asks if her friends can join. AirAsia then BUMPS some Bruno Mars while 35,000ft in the air and asks us all to get in the aisle and dance. 10/10 flight.
10. Get friends who will puff you up, but also challenge you to grow
I have made some life long friends this past year. They are some seriously amazing women who live their life to further the Kingdom. They constantly puff me up, meaning that they affirm the ways that I walk in the spirit, interact with people, and do ministry (and sometimes just tell me I’m pretty). But they also call me higher, meaning they see when I’m walking out of the flesh and challenge me to walk in the spirit. They want the absolute best for me and aren’t afraid to say the hard thing to help me grow. I will be forever thankful for their friendship, wisdom, encouragement, and love for me.
11. This is not my mountaintop.
This experience has been one of the most radical, exciting, exhausting, challenging, and amazing that I have had. I have learned so much about myself, community, God, and cultures/people around the world. But, this isn’t “it” for me, this isn’t my mountaintop. As long as I continue running towards the Lord, I keep running towards a new mountaintop. Sure, I’ll experience many valleys, probably more than I’m expecting, and more that I want to think about, but even when those feel like the worst thing that’s ever happened to me (because, lets face it, I’m dramatic) I’ll know that the best is yet to come.
There are so many lessons, both fun and serious, that I have learned these past 11 months. Some people have asked me if I’m different after being gone for so long…the answer to that is yes. I have grown more into the woman that God has called me to be, I am more confident in my self and in my faith, I love people well, I listen when someone needs a friend, I extend grace before truth. I have seen and experienced so many incredible things that I cant even begin to type out, but I hope I get the chance to tell you all about it. So thank you to everyone who has supported me, prayed for me, or followed along on my journey. I will be in America in 10 days and I am so excited to see where this next season of life takes me.
