Yes, you heard it right! I am officially a participant in the World Race. It’s all a little bit surreal. I’m kind of FREAKING OUT!!! On this blog, you will be able to read all about my journey over the next year and a half – from fundraising, to spiritual struggles and triumphs, to time on the field – as well as learn about the places and people I will be visiting and ministering to with my World Race team!
WAIT, WHAT IS THIS THING?
For those of you who don’t know what the World Race is, it is an 11-month-long mission trip to 11 different countries, as well as a discipleship program, which basically means it is geared toward spreading the gospel among the nations while helping its participants gain a better understanding of Christ’s calling on their lives. This means that I will be spending next year with people I do not know, in places I have never been, doing things I have never done – all in the name of Jesus. I’M PUMPED!!!!
WHEN/WHERE?
From the beginning of January 2019 until the end of November 2019, my team and I will be journeying to West Africa (Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Togo), Southeast Asia (Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines), and South America (Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru). Over the next 6 months, I will be sharing more with you about these places, as well as how you can pray for these countries. These are countries with beautiful landscapes and cultures, but beyond the surface there is brokenness. These are places where the people face unthinkable suffering – things like national statuses of “ultra-poverty” (living on less than 50 cents a day), substandard healthcare, sex trafficking, genital mutilation, cult/voodoo activity – the list goes on… I will be posting more specifics on each country, but please be praying for the people in them, for their suffering, as well as my world race team. Pray that the Lord will prepare us – their hearts, and ours, for what He wants to do over the next 11 months.
WHY?
Why did I apply for the world race, you ask? Let me take you back to January 1st. At the beginning of this year, I chose a word. The word was simplify. I really didn’t understand what these things meant when I chose them. I said, “2017 was such a busy year! I need to simplify in 2018!” Simplify was such a pretty, idealistic-sounding word. It made me think it must mean my life would be calm, quiet, relaxing – like a pastel painting of a serene lake. (SPOILER: I was wrong.) I didn’t really take into account that God’s will for my life might not just be resting comfortably, drinking tea, and reading on the beach. I also didn’t really take into account my sinful tendency of doing things in my own strength and keeping busy at all times and never resting at all and driving myself crazy because I didn’t just sit down and REST IN JESUS *deep breath*
So, godly desires (stepping out of my introvert-bubble and creating relationships with other believers, giving my time to friends, spending time in the Word) combined with my idolatry of busyness-disguised-as-productivity (staying up until 10PM to clean my entire kitchen, etc.), made the first few months of the year pretty exhausting. God revealed to me in March what was going on in my heart – I was keeping busy to keep comfortable. Sounds, weird, I know. But money in the bank, weight loss, and a clean house are comforts.
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21, ESV)
What do I treasure? What do I want to treasure?
Too often, I treasure fleeting things. Vapor.
Too often, I treasure my time and my money.
Too often, I treasure myself…
I want to treasure Christ.
I want to treasure people.
That is it. That is what is worth treasuring. These are the things that will continue on into eternity: the Lord and the human soul.
Lord, let me treasure nothing else!
It is so easy to fear anything that could even possibly threaten my comfort. I had a firm grasp on my time and my money all my life. I made excuses for not giving generously to others. And yet, amazingly, since I was saved nearly 3 years ago, the Lord has been teaching and showing me how fleeting earthly things are. As an unbeliever, I lived so entrenched in myself, so concerned about what was going on in my life, that my ability to have genuine compassion for others was often nonexistent. I began with asking for the Lord to give me compassion for others and to destroy the kingdoms I build for myself. And man, has He been at work! The fact that I am sitting here, writing this blog post and preparing for this trip, is nothing short of amazing!
When I heard about the World Race, I was scrolling through Facebook. I clicked on the link but I didn’t expect much from it. I kind of went into it thinking, “I probably can’t do this.” And yet, the more I read, the more that thought changed.
“I can’t do this” became “Will I choose to do this?”
“I won’t be able to afford it” became “The Lord will provide.”
“Maybe I should start with a shorter missions trip” became “This is it.”
And “Should I go?” became “Go.”
Like the flip of a switch in my heart, the decision was made. While reading over the beliefs of Adventures in Missions, the expectations of Racers, the mission of the World Race, I just kept thinking, “He’s been preparing me for this. All this time, the Lord has been preparing me for this.” It started a long time ago, even before I became a believer, and has been continuing even this year in that one word: Simplify. Seek the kingdom of God above all else. In my own heart, and in the world.
For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” (Romans 10:13-15)
So, why the World Race?
Because I want to simplify. I want to see the gospel spread to all nations. I want to lay treasures in heaven. I want to treasure people more than I treasure myself, and I want to treasure Christ above all else. I want to be humbled, to be vulnerable, to love deeply and sacrificially. I want to see God’s kingdom grow. I want to see lives changed and make a lasting difference. I want to be pushed out of my comfort zone in a way I never have before. The longer I am a believer, the more I ache for a deep faith that will glorify God, and the more I want to love the lost and the hurting of this world. I want to grow in faith and fellowship, and I want to give others the hope I have been given. By providing physical help and spiritual help, I want to show Christ’s love to the hurting and the broken. I may not understand their suffering, but I know the One who does. I cannot save them, but I know the One who can.
“I want to care more than some think is wise, to risk more than some think is safe, to dream more than some think is practical, and expect more than some think is possible…I was called not to comfort or success, but to obedience. There is no joy outside of loving Jesus and serving Him.” -Karen Watson
HOW?
This can only be answered by the Lord. Without God’s provision, this trip will be impossible. The funds I will need just to be able to go on the trip at all equals $18,700 – this is not including passports/visas, backpacking gear, plane tickets to and from training camp/the launch site, which will end up being probably another approximately $2,000. While I am confident the Lord will provide, I am expecting fundraising to be a long, arduous journey. Please be praying for provision, strength, and faith – for me, and my fellow racers. Pray God will provide all we need before and during the trip. And that we will see true change and true acts of love and faith along the way. If you feel led to give, have questions, or just want to learn more, please feel free to contact me!
***PRAYER REQUEST***
I would also like to ask you to please be praying for me to view this trip, from my time before launch, to time on the field, to my return home, through the lens of the gospel. Pray that I would acknowledge the very real fears that arise when committing to a trip like this – and then introduce them to my all-powerful God. Pray I would constantly put Christ’s grace before me so that I can stand fearlessly and say with Paul, “I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” I am praying the same for all of you, fellow Racers and otherwise.
