“It must be nice to be one of those people who are understanding and flexible,” I think as I throw a brick through the window of the Whataburger that was “out of spicy ketchup”.
Most people who really know me know that I am usually just one small deviation from my plan away from going absolutely crazy. For example, say my friends and I are driving to the movie theater, but we’re going to be a little late so they decide to skip the movie and go to dinner instead. Nope, that’s completely unacceptable. “But AnnaGrace,” they would say, “you didn’t even want to see this movie. We had to drag you to come!” Irrelevant. We made a plan, and we have to stick to it. Plans are plans, and that’s the end of it. I’m a strange mixture of Obsessive Planner and Impulsive Weirdo. I… make plans impulsively? This isn’t a great quality, I’ll admit, but it’s because of this quality that so many of my friends and family were probably surprised that I didn’t totally snap when I found out about the changes to my World Race route.
About a week ago, I found out that instead of going to Greece, a country I was very excited about, we would be going to Albania. Albania was actually on my original route back when I was accepted in January, but I didn’t have much time to get excited about it before it was switched to Greece. It wasn’t long before I started really researching and falling in love with the countries on my route, and Greece was one of the most exciting countries because I actually had an idea of what I might be doing there with the Syrian Refugee Crisis going on. When I found out about the change, I had a very minor freak out. Just the night before, I had ordered 200 business cards with my information and all of the countries I was going on. I had also been selling Adopt-A-Country cards, and many people had adopted and been excited about Greece. Although I was pretty disappointed, I had to come to terms with the fact that routes change all the time. From what I’ve heard, many racers end up going on an almost completely different route. I guess this calls for an attitude change on my part, and a quick one too because on Sunday I found out that another country has changed. I will be going to Zimbabwe instead of Botswana. I’m just going to stop ordering things with the names of my countries on it now.
I’ll add this not-so-go-with-the-flow quality of mine to the list of things I hope the Lord will change about me while I’m on the field. Of course, I don’t expect to come home from this 11-month-long trip perfect, but I do expect to come home changed.
As of right now, I have about $6,500 in funds, which means I reached my first goal of $5,000 by September 23th by $1,500 and 2 months early! I wish I could go to each and every person who has donated, prayed for me, or bought something from me a huge hug… and that’s a big deal, because I’m not a hugger. In the recent past, I’ve felt very discouraged about fundraising, but now I feel so much peace about it. He is a good father.
Lastly, I have some exciting news! I’ve found out that I am officially launching on January 7th/8th. It’s insane. That said, for those of you hoping to be in the know, here are a few exciting dates coming up!
August 31 – I move out of my apartment and into my friends moms place. She is sweetly allowing me to stay with her during September and October to save on rent!
September 3 – My best friend Jayna’s wedding! This has nothing to do with the World Race, I’m just super stoked for her.
September 23 – My $5,000 fundraising deadline, which I have already hit!
October 18 – I arrive in Georgia for training camp and FINALLY meet my team!!
October 31 – I will be staying with my sisters in Jacksonville for a couple of weeks after training camp
December 16 – My $10,000 fundraining deadline. Only about $3,500 to go!
January 7/8 – LAUNCH! I’ll be leaving for India first.
January 24 – I’ll be spending my 23rd birthday in India. Whoa!
February 28 – My $13,000 fundraising deadline.
April 30 – I’ll hopefully be fully funded!
How can you help?
First and foremost, prayer. This whole thing will be one of the most challenging and scary things I’ve ever done. Just pray that the Lord keeps my squad and me safe, and that He prepares our hearts, minds, and bodies during these months leading to our launch. Also, pray for our fundraising efforts and that people receive us well.
As I’ve mentioned, I have the daunting task of raising $17,017 to cover my living and travel costs while I’m away, and there are several ways to help me in this. You can donate to my trip as a one-time gift or as monthly donations, allowing you to choose the amount and beginning and end date. If you would like to do this, please make checks payable to Adventures in Missions P.O. Box 742570, Atlanta, GA 30374-2570. Make sure to specify that you would like the donation to go to AnnaGrace Mercer or your donation will not be sent to my account. If you would prefer to make a donation online, you may do so by clicking the “Support Me” link on the left side of the page and complete your donation as instructed. Keep in mind, though, that a 5% credit card fee will be taken out of the donation for credit card processing. Also know that these donations are not refundable.
I am selling bracelets for Threads of Hope, and you can get one (or a bunch!) by contacting me on Facebook, through email, or calling or texting me. They’re absolutely gorgeous handmade bracelets, and half of the proceeds go towards helping at risk families in the Philippines.
I am moving out of my apartment at the end of August and moving in with my best friends mom to save on rent during my last couple of months in Branson, so I need to get rid of everything! If you’re in need of furniture, decor, kitchen supplies, etc. please contact me!
Another way to help me is, if you’re in need of calligraphy work (hello SNU brides!) I would love to do that for you, as well as any design or photography work you may need.
Lastly, share this! You can never have too much prayer and support!
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If you have any questions, or just want to talk about my trip with me over coffee, I would love to hear from you! You can call or text me at 832-622-3174, or you can email me at [email protected], or message me on Facebook.
