Wanting to try a new and different number, I decided to ask one of my family members to write something unspecific yet specific for me. Something from their perspective of a step on this walk that I have begun. My dad took up my offer on this task to write “whatever he wanted to”, as I told him. I’m beyond proud to call him my dad, someone to look up to as a man of God. Through the way he follows the Lord, respects and honors others, points me back to Christ in any situation no matter how good or bad, and so much more. Thank you for your support in every decision I make.
It’s been almost 8 months (Which is how long Carter has left on the field) – but I remember it like it was yesterday! Carter came in the front door on a Sunday night after a weekend winter camp at a Young Life property, Carolina Point. I was sitting on the couch watching TV, and Carter stopped in the foyer to talk to me for a minute after I asked about his weekend. His response was the normal…
“It was great, I had a good time.”
Typical 17 year old boy (now 18). He walked up a few stairs and stopped and looked back at me and said,
“Dad, I might take a gap year”.
I had never heard of a gap year so my response was simply,
“You’re not taking a gap year”.
He then walked up another couple of steps and said,
“I want to do something called The World Race”.
I laughed and said,
“Carter, I promise you I’m not going to pay for you to race around the world”.
He looked at me and said,
“Dad, google it”,
and he continued on up to his room.
My thought was that this was something similar to the Amazing Race (which I had applied for a few years earlier) and there was NO WAY I would have supported that. So I grabbed my phone and typed in “World Race Gap Year”. As I started reading about this, tears started streaming down my face! I couldn’t think of anything else I’d rather Carter go do the next year than this!! My daughter, my wife, and I have been on numerous mission trips, but Carter had never been able to go on one with us.
I’m here to tell you that God had His hand all over this. I started researching about the World Race Gap Year. One of the first things I noticed that there was a mandatory training camp July 10-20. Well, his sister was getting married on July 14th, so there was no way he could do this. I called the 800 number for AIM and a very nice young lady answered the phone. I wanted to find out where the training camp was…. I figured something called Adventures in Missions would be in Colorado, Arizona, or California, and there would be no way we could fly him back and forth for his sister’s wedding. So I asked the question…. “Where is the training camp?” She responded “Gainesville Georgia”. We live less than an hour and a half from there! I then proceeded to ask if there would be any way at all if he’s accepted that he would be able to leave training camp and come home for his sister’s wedding and then drive back to Gainesville. She said she knew someone in charge of the training camp and would call them and ask if that would be ok and then call me back. She promptly called me back and said that it would be ok for him to do that! God was again showing me that this was what he wanted for Carter!
Now fast forward after all the gear purchases, fundraising, and everything else that comes along with this “Adventure” and Carter has been in Ecuador for one month serving God, serving others, and learning a lot about himself.
My favorite scripture has always been Isaiah 40:28-31 which says
“The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of all the Earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of His understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary and will walk and not faint.”
This is my prayer for Carter, and all of the other World Racers. You are going to face many obstacles, you’re going to be tired, you’re going to be frustrated, you’re going to be weak, and sometimes you will feel powerless. But remember, always trust in the Lord, and you will soar like an eagle! We all love you and are so proud of what you are doing for His Kingdom!
