Hey there!
I’m so stoked to be able to share my heart and share what God is doing in my life with you– “you” being the curious reader reading my FIRST blog post!! How ever we know each other or don’t, I appreciate you taking the time to read about all the exciting things going on in my world! For those of you who don’t know, instead of traditionally going to college right after high school, I will be taking a gap year to go on a nine month long mission trip through an organization called World Race: Gap Year.
So, there may be questions you are seeking answers to such as: “why the world race?” “why not college right away?” “what is she actually doing for nine months?”…etc. My goal is to hopefully answer those questions and maybe some others! I want to be as real and honest with what is happening, how I’m feeling, and what God is doing in my life.
To be clear, I will eventually be going to college which is a completely different BLESSING in itself that God has given me. When I return from the Race the plan is to attend MidAmerica Nazarene University and play basketball. I’m not sure what I will be majoring in, so I’m praying the Lord will help me out in that decision while I’m on the Race. I am so grateful to be able to defer a year to pursue what God is calling me to do, and I’m very excited to return to an awesome opportunity to continue doing what I love to do–playing basketball.
Ever since I was a young girl, God has placed a desire on my heart to travel the world and do missions. I remember being in church and hearing missionaries share testimonies of miracles God did and being so overwhelmed I would shed a few tears. I would think how crazy it would be if I could be fortunate enough to go do that someday. And now, here I am, being presented with the opportunity to go and do just that!! I’m feeling very blessed and nervous for the exact same reasons, and any other emotion you can think of, I’m probably feeling it. I could think of so many reasons why it wouldn’t be a good idea for me to go on the Race, but I always come back to how BIG of a God I serve, and how He is never failing and always faithful to my every need. He has called me to this, so I can be confident in the fact that He will see me through it as I obey Him.
So, as for the next year of my life, God has called me out of what’s normal and comfortable, and He’s asked me to take a huge leap and trust Him. I think it’s kind of crazy because, for the past four years of my life, the word “trust” has been a major focus for me and my relationship with God. In little things and a little bit bigger things, God has asked me to trust Him and rely on Him to take care of me, and now He is asking me to trust Him in making this even bigger decision to do the World Race. And, boy, I am ALL in! For nine months I will be living in three different countries: South Africa, Ecuador, and Cambodia. I am not entirely sure on the specifics of what I will be doing while in each country, but I do know that God is going to show up and do wonders in so many lives, places, and ways. I don’t want to put a limit on what God can do, so I’m leaving my expectations wide open and leaving room for God to do His thing.
With all that being said, I cannot do this alone. I NEED your help. I’m asking that you would partner with me in prayer as I begin fundraising and preparing for my trip! Prayer is a powerful tool we have been given, and I am going to need a lot of it! There is much to be done, and I’d love to chat with you about it! You could leave a comment or contact me, either way I’d love to talk to you all about what God is doing in my life. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey God is taking me on, and subscribe to my blog if you want to keep doing so! I appreciate you!!
I hope you have a fabulous day!!(:
-Arielle
