I can’t do it any more.
I cannot read one more blog.
I have read blogs on packing, training camp, stories from the field, and yes I’ve even read an abundance of coming home blogs.
I’m done.
…
Don’t get me wrong, the power of the internet, to be able to blog and update friends and family regularly from the field with words, pictures and video, is an amazing thing. But I have overdosed on blogs.
One of the neat things about AIM is that they set up a blog for each missionary that participates in their Gap Year and World Race program. This is a great way for missionaries to keep up with people back home. It’s also a chance for them to express themselves and at the same time, through writing, process what is happening in their lives during this crazy time.
I began reading racer blogs about 5 or 6 years ago when I first heard about the World Race. I loved hearing the stories from the field and the amazing things the Lord was doing around the world.
Since becoming a racer myself, I have ready hundreds of blogs. In my mind, the best way for me to prepare for the race was to seek out wisdom and advice from previous racers- people who had already walked through this season. After all, wouldn’t they know best.
…
But then it hit me. What if all my blog reading and preparation was taking the place of the Lord on this journey?
What if my preparation for the race was hindering God’s preparation for the race?
I must admit, at first I didn’t understand what the Lord was saying to me. Why wouldn’t God want me to prepare? Surely he wants me to have the best sleeping pad. He wants me to be prepared for training camp and squad wars. Right?
Wrong. It’s about so much more than that.
By reading all these blogs was I was inadvertently building walls and creating unrealistic expectations about the Race. I was living through other’s experiences instead of letting the Lord guide me through my own experience.
So in an instance, I heard a subtle whisper in my spirit calling me to put down the blogs. To quit cold turkey.
I heard the same whisper call me to something more. He called me to an experience better than any I had read. He promised a team that would bless me beyond belief. He promised me the Race of a lifetime.
He even promised me a few good blog posts of my own.
Because despite the dependency I build on reading other’s blogs, it was in fact one of those very blogs that called me to the race.
So no, I don’t regret all the reading. I’m thankful. It has prepared me for training camp and the race.
Here’s to a blog free (well maybe not completely free) season. Here’s to letting the Lord guide, direct, and prepare me. Here’s to the Race.
