One of my favorite stories in the Bible is when the woman came to Jesus with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume. This perfume was worth more than an entire year’s wage and she used it to anoint Jesus. At the sound of the disciples’ scolding questions, Jesus spoke up and said, “leave her alone, she has done a beautiful thing to me. Wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”
You see, the power of a story is immeasurable. The act of anointing Jesus, of giving all she had to Him, will be remembered forever. This story would be told wherever the Gospel is preached. When I read this, I see and hear the importance of a story.
If you are around me for very long you will realize that I love to tell stories. If you don’t believe me, ask me about my athlete years, my luck with vehicles or my time in ministry so far and you will quickly understand that I have a few stories and I love to tell them.
It is in the story that we see how a person can get from one place to another. It is in the story that we see the changes that happen over the year. It is in the story that we can see what the Lord has done.
Mine really starts with summer camp about two months before I started college. I had never had the “camp experience” until that summer. You see, my pastor attended Gardner-Webb with Clayton King back in the day. So, they decided that we would attend Clayton’s summer camp that year: Crossroads Summer Camp. My pastor’s wife took our youth group (aka me and my cousin, Karli) to this camp located on Gardner-Webb University’s campus. The irony of this is that I would be attending Gardner-Webb starting in the fall of that year and would experience immeasurably more than I could ask or imagine in my years at this small-town college.
My cousin and I like to attempt to be crafty (sometimes with success, other times not so much) so we spent a lot of time in the creative portion of camp. One of our camp counselors (shout out to Lauren!) encouraged us to pick a piece of paper out of this jar to get an idea for our painting. I drew out a small crumpled piece of paper that said, “Hosea 2:14-15.” Confused, I glanced around and then looked up the verse. It said,
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor (trouble) a door of hope.”
I am by no means an artist, but I went ahead and painted something representing this verse. Me and my seventeen-year-old-self had no idea what hope and encouragement this would give me throughout the next four years. This verse would get me through many “wildernesses” in my time at college: the regular stresses of school, the funerals of eight (loved ones, friends and coaches) and a hip surgery at age 19 to name a few. But in those valleys of trouble, the Lord gave me so much hope.
Camp that summer was the start of this wrestling match with the Lord about my calling to ministry. It was there that I heard Him call my name for the first time. I fought hard. Hands gripping the armrests of the chair I was sitting on in the Lutz-Yelton Convocation Center on Gardner-Webb’s campus, I refused to take that step. Surely to goodness I was not really supposed to be in ministry.
And yet, here we are, four years after painting this picture and the Lord is leading me into the wilderness. 11 countries in 11 months. It honestly doesn’t even seem real! But the Lord has called me to go and I could not be more excited about it! The Lord is and will do so much on this journey and I’m so happy that this story is far from over!
How Can You Get Involved?
Pray. Pray. Pray.
Pray for my team and I as we are preparing to go.
Give.
A big part of the World Race is raising the funds to go. So, if you feel inclined to give, you can do so by clicking “Donate!” near the top of the screen.
Follow This Blog!
There’s a link on the left side of the screen that says, “Follow Me.” I will be posting on this blog regularly as I prepare for The World Race and as I am on the field. I can’t wait to share this journey with you!
Until next time,
Peace and Blessings!
