Why the World Race?
A lot of you are probably wondering two things:
– Why global missions?
– Why The World Race?
First, I’ll share with you the process of God cultivating in me the call to global missions, and what it may look like moving forward. Then, I will dive into the decision process of choosing the World Race over many other programs that would send you abroad for mission.
A lot of people have the same thought when it pertains to global missions, “Why go when there are people here?” The question is simple and valid, but, so is the answer. First, I believe we are called to both here and there. “Go therefore and make disciples…” Pretty simple, right? Go. I believe we are all called to “go” but some people are called to just go a little further than others. Whether the call is to go down the road, across the country, or across the world, the word “go” remains the same. Having a passion for the people across the world doesn’t mean we are discounting someone that lives across your own city, God calls different people to different places to make His word known.
There are a few distinct times over the past few years that I have seen God put a passion for reaching the unreached on my heart. The first was on a domestic trip to Wisconsin, which isn’t unreached, but is more unreached that many other states in America. There, I got to assist and support a local church in the area. The next was a trip to India, one of the most unreached countries in the world. Then there was a trip to Germany, where I interacted with Muslim background refugees coming from many parts of the unreached world. Last, I went to Turkey, where God revealed to me a need for His word where it has not reached yet. I was visiting and prayer walking on top of Mount Camlica in Istanbul, Turkey. This mountain is famous for overlooking the divide of Istanbul from the Asian and the European side. I was looking over the European side when I was given a statistic that startled me. They pointed out and said, for however millions of people that live within that portion of the city, there is just one Christian laborer. One person, millions of unreached people. God then put a word on my heart: “When he (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to the disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few, therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’” (Mathew 9:36-37). I then prayed that prayer, for God to send more laborers into the harvest, but I also prayed and asked if I was one that he was wanting to send. Over the next few months, I explored that calling and God put a few different options in front of me. One of them was the World Race.
At this point I have already decided that I would leave to further cultivate the calling God put on my heart. First, I got in contact with an organization close to where I live about going back to Germany and doing similar work that I did there, just for 2 or more. years. Another serious contender was going back to Istanbul, possibly to pursue a masters in the future, for 2 years. Finally, God put the World Race in front of me as well. A few of the things I was juggling was timespan, cost, and location. Above all that, I wanted to lean on what God was leading me towards. With the first two options, I would be allowed to invest in a specific area for a longer period of time, which makes a ton of sense. With the World Race, it felt like it was just a bunch of short term trips piled on top of each other. However, when I dug deeper into it, it actually allows you to dive deeper into a relationship with God through living on mission while also learning how to be more dependent on the Holy Spirit all across the world, and in the specific route I was considering, through the 10/40 window.
Over the next few months, God continued to reveal things to me not only about the World Race, but about what He wanted for me. As I continued to lean in, it became more clear that I was being led to the World Race. It became clear that He wanted me to work with people in the unreached parts of the World. It became clear that He wanted to expand my horizons about what He is doing all over the world. It became clear that He wanted to use this to bring me in deeper relationship with Him. Ultimately, it was finally clear which path He wanted me to take for this next season of life to accomplish these things, and many more.
I don’t know all the reasons why God led me specifically to the World Race and the Expedition route, but I am confident that it was the right decision. I know for sure that God will use this to grow me in ways I never thought possible.
