Welcome to my blog!
I am probably going to be starting this blog thing out a little bit untraditionally, and rather than explain all of the reasons I feel called to do the race (which there are many), I also want to share some of the reasons I’ve been afraid of doing the Race. Needless to say, coming to the conclusion and decision to actually pursue this has been a long journey of push/pull, prayer, conversations, and being called out on tough things.
The World Race drew me in instantly when I heard about it – adventure, ministry, travel, community, and loving people all in one package deal, SOLD. I’ve been highly considering pursuing the World Race for a couple years now, and I’ve continually been drawn to the mission of the World Race. The timing has finally come together where it makes the most sense to go in January 2019, which is exciting. I have graduated college, and currently I’m finishing up a year at a job as a Mentor at a Therapeutic Boarding School called Shelterwood Academy. I’ve gotten to use this year to learn so much more about ministry, how God loves people, and how in turn I can love people. It’s been an exciting, challenging (very challenging), and unique year. Now, this job is coming to an end and I am off to the next journey. I guess transitions have always been tough for me to think about, that means leaving people who know my heart and who I love here at Shelterwood, it means I’m heading back home where I haven’t lived for 5 years now, it means stepping into this process of fundraising and preparing for leaving the country (boy!). It’s a lot, and really its quite frightening.
Thats where the title of this first blog comes in. So, in thinking about transitioning out of Shelterwood and on to the next journey these past couple months I have been letting fear win. I got to the point where I was feeling entirely disconnected from anything World Race related, I had lost the fire I had in my heart originally for going on this mission, I was overwhelmed and terrified to make any steps. Yeah, I am probably put a little behind because I kept letting fear win. Over and over. I began justifying these fears and looking at other options, I put off sending out support letters because I was convinced $18,000 couldn’t be raised, I was not responding to my squads messages because I was already so disconnected, therefore not engaging was the option I thought best. Fearful of letting people down, fearful of not having the funds, fearful of missing out, you get the point – fear was winning for a while.
With all of that said, the Lord has been faithful in this season of fear and doubt. He has continually been fighting for my thoughts to be His, and He has kept telling me to trust Him in this. He has placed people in my life who have spoke into the World Race and who have called me out on the fear I was letting bind me in many areas. There have been sweet conversations and broken chains amidst this season also. My eyes have been open to the power I was giving fear, and now I am ready to KICK FEAR IN THE DANG FACE. I am ready to own up to the fact that by my own strength and by my own standards of course this is terrifying, but by God’s strength and His power this is all totally possible and totally gonna happen.
So, welcome to this journey of kicking fear in the face with me. I am so very excited to watch how God uses these next few months of preparation for the World Race for His glory. Y’all, I get to tell people about Jesus all around the world and I could not be more pumped for that. 11 in 11, here we go!
