The World Race is more than a mission trip. It is designed to grow us as individuals in our faith an in our character. It has discipleship incorporated into it (through debriefs and DTS lessons). Over the course of these past 2 years with Adventures in Missions, I have grown more than I ever thought possible. This year has been probably the hardest season of growth for me in a long time, but I know it is forming aspects of my character that will launch me into this next season of life.
Over the past 8 months on World Race America, I have had the honor of doing life with some pretty amazing people— my teammates, the Blaze Trailers. We have had a lot of ups and downs this year and more than a few curveballs thrown our way. We have had to cancel ministry assignments, had a few teammates leave the field, and dove head first into healing some deep wounds in our lives. But wow. I am loving who I am becoming, and I love who I see my teammates becoming as well. And you know what? I’d like to share about it with you, dear reader!
In no particular order, here is how I have seen my teammates grow over the course of this year:
Susan
- Susan is very bold; she is a fighter through and through. She stands up for what she believes in and does not waver. I’ve always loved how honest Susan is; she says what she means and means what she says. She is dependable, and you can always trust that she will “tell you like it is.” She also has an amazing gift in the prophetic and words of wisdom.
- Over the course of the year, I have seen her press in to the Lord during the most difficult times. She is relentlessly faithful to Him, even when He calls her to step out of her comfort zone. She has been led to speak very BOLD prophetic words over people we have met while evangelizing. The Lord has even led her to share very vulnerable aspects about her story in her blogs. Most of all, when Susan cries out her heart’s prayer to the Lord, I have seen her cry herself into submission to His will. She really exhibits the phrase “not my will but Yours be done, Lord.”
Bridget
- Bridget is a sweet girl who is learning to dance before the Lord in a new way. She is someone that has most recently begun to choose honesty and vulnerability more than ever before. She also has a very unique approach on life and on communication. It is very different than my own, and we’ve been learning to find the beauty even in the differences! In addition to that, she is also an evangelist who speaks boldly about who she has discovered the Lord to be— a personal friend to her.
- Bridget has been growing a lot in discovering the beautiful truths that the Lord speaks over us in love. This year as a whole has been a difficult one, and she has been battling some lies that she had been believing about herself. But the beautiful thing is that she has been learning to replace them with the truths of the Lord! Our war is not against flesh and blood but against the powers of darkness (Ephesians 6 for context). Bridget has learned to recognize that the Lord longs to speak life and restoration over her circumstances and over her past (rather than condemnation).
Morgan
- Morgan is a very quirky and fun person to be around. She is a praying, journaling, worshiping warrior for the Kingdom with a heart for the deaf community and spreading the Gospel to unreached people groups. Morgan is also a goofball! Pretty much right off the bat at Training Camp 2019, we became close friends. We joke that we share the same two remaining brain cells— we can pull off pranks on our other teammates without even discussing it beforehand.
- I have seen Morgan grow a lot in administration and several other gifts over the past couple of months. She is our logistics coordinator (much to her original dismay). She used to say that she wasn’t great at logistics or finances, but the Lord has been redeeming this so much! I can’t imagine anyone else being in this position; she really does steward it well! In addition to that, I have also seen how Morgan has grown in expressing herself (even when it is difficult to do so, such as in conflict resolution). She has grow so much in intentionality, choosing to live in freedom as a victor rather than as a victim of circumstances.
Jacob
- Jacob is a pure soul and a free spirit. He goes wherever the wind takes him— almost literally! My team and I always joke that we have no idea where Jacob is or where he is going… but it’s really not even a joke! He is very Spirit-led and go-with-the-flow. And all of this is really saying something as he has only been a born again believer for a little over a year! It just goes to show how much the Lord can do in a person over the course of the year. And wooooo, boy! The Lord did quite a number! Jacob is a passionate evangelist who spares no expense chasing after “the one.”
- Jacob has really grown a lot in his intentionality concerning the team this year. He is the only true introvert on the team. The first few months, he was often found hiding out, spending quality time with the Lord. While that was all good, we didn’t really get to know him as teammates for a little while. But he has really been so much more intentional with getting to know us, especially over the last couple of months. It is such a beautiful thing when people share more aspects of their hearts with you. It makes life all the more beautiful and colorful!
Andrew
- As for me, I have grown a lot in the hard truth that life is not all about me. It’s about love, which by definition in 1 Corinthians 13, is NOT self-seeking. I have learned that even when life is hard, you can still find beauty in the people and circumstances around you… and truly EVERYONE is worth fighting for.
We still have a little less than 4 months left on the field this year, and I am very curious to see what else the Lord will do in our lives from now until then. This year has been a hard one for us all (as individuals, as a team, and as a whole nation, honestly). But what I’ve learned is that the difficult, refining season of our lives can often times be the most fruitful and powerful season if we learn to press into Jesus and grow in dependence to Him. And praise God, we are not the type of people that just throw in the towel! We all keep fighting. We keep on blazing trails.
In all things, be blessed!
AG
