Hey everyone! I just want to start out by telling you a little bit about the World Race and why I decided to join!
The World Race is an 11 month Christian mission trip to 11 different countries. My team and I will travel to Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, and Malaysia. We will serve the community in multiple ways through sharing the gospel. We’ll work with the youth through sports ministry as well as vacation Bible school and tutoring, plant churches, work in orphanages, and do disaster relief. For the past year, I’ve felt called back to missions and I finally stopped making excuses and listened to the Lord!!
Jumping into the decision process brought me to some tough questions. Here are some of the most common questions I’ve received so far: WHY are you leaving your career to do this?! Are you SURE this is the right decision at this point in your life?? How are you going to financially afford it?
My answer to each of these questions is honestly trust in the Lord. Through trust, I started to find the answers. I felt called to do the race a few months ago and time and time again, I’ve learned to listen to his call.
YES I have asked myself these same questions. I was terrified and scared to take that leap of faith with uncertainty lingering in the back of my mind. I realized I had to turn those questions into fuel for my faith. I had to ask the hard questions and seek out the answers. Allow me to address the biggest one, WHY do I even want to do the race??
My love for ministry has developed throughout my life. I went on my first mission trip to the Pittsburgh Project in sixth grade. From there, I went onto international mission trips in high school; twice to Nicaragua and once to the Dominican Republic. On each mission trip, I saw a flood of love and gratitude poured out in the name of Jesus. People from different backgrounds and cultures came together as one body to worship. Testimonies were told that tugged at my soul. My sense of belonging was at its strongest. I remember thinking I could do missionary work for the rest of my life but then societies standards started to creep in.
On each mission trip, I realized how much I love working with kids. So I should be a teacher, right?
I went to Greensboro College in North Carolina and graduated with a degree in Elementary Education. Throughout college, I turned my back on God completely. I stopped going to church, I got into some very self-destructive relationships, and I felt as though I lost my place in the world. Once upon a time I’d had a fire for the Lord, but the flame was extinguished with a wave of sin. Summer of 2017 hit hard. Events in my life led to some pretty heavy anxiety and depression. I knew things in my life had to change. I knew I needed God in the most real way.
I wish I could say the change was instant. But I am extremely thankful that the Lord was so patient with me. He not only helped, but he was still there after each time I pushed him away. I spent six months in therapy to workout the events that brought me to the anxious and depressed state. Ultimately, it was the Lord who brought me out of it; I’m thankful he sent the vessels he did. Today I still deal with anxiety but it is so much different than what it was a year and a half ago. I’ve learned coping mechanisms and most importantly, the power of prayer.
Currently, I am teaching in Thailand. Here, I developed a whole new meaning of the word trust. I came to Thailand not knowing anyone or a church to attend. God was undeniably good and extremely faithful. He brought me the most amazing church family in the most unexplainable way. Worlds away and I feel like my relationship with the Lord is the strongest it’s ever been. The fire was lit once again and I refuse to let the flame go out. I wasn’t introduced to the race until I came to Thailand. Although I felt a little lost when I arrived here, I’ve come to find out that I’m exactly where God planned me to be.
SO all of this is what led me to the race. My strength comes solely from the creator. From reading His word and spending time in prayer, I realized the worth He’s given me. God led me back to that call I had years ago. The call to missions.
Finally, I want to address the financial question. I will need financial support in order to make this possible. ANY AMOUNT counts and I sincerely appreciate your decision to join me on this journey. The fundraising amount I need in order to be fully funded by August is $19, 900. I will be doing fundraisers online and in my community that you can participate in if possible! If you would like to donate now, you can simply click the donate button on my blog! I ask that you would prayerfully consider making a donation or just pray for me as I take this leap of faith in trusting God. Thank you all so much and I hope to answer any more questions you may have through my future posts!
God Bless,
Anna Duckstein
