if you ever end up doing the race, supporting someone in the race, or heard that someone did the race, you’ll probably ask/get asked the question, “what did the race teach you? how did the race change your life?” well, let me just clarify right now that there will never be strong enough words to explain the race. the countless stories, the smiles, the laughs & tears, the exhaustion, the joy, and the strongest one being, the love.
on september 2nd 2020, i started the race. i headed to Gainesville and met the most amazing people that you’d ever have the opportunity of meeting & living with. i learned that community looks like giving and taking. that you need to invest in them in order to get invested in. they fill your cup. your community is full of people who love you just like Jesus would. they push you, they’re with you- they’re on your team. i learned what it looks like to become a community member. one that loves without fault. a community member that cheers one on and is a shoulder to cry on. community is so, so important. i never knew the importance of community until i entered this one. the race has taught me that community is love. they’re your corner. they’re your people. and not just now, but forever. everyday i thank Jesus for these people and all of the joy they bring into my life!
sacrifice. sacrificing your time, money, patience, sleep, freedom, wants, & yourself for those around you. when you want to go to sleep but the 7 other people in your room are laughing and are annoying you, you just have to roll it with it. when you have bread every single day for breakfast for 6 weeks straight and you just want regular food, you just have to deal with it and be grateful for what you have. when your friend runs out of money and they need your help, you lend it to them. there are countless examples of how the race stripped me from my comfort and made me sacrifice the things i thought i loved most. i learned what i valued most and what i idols i needed the Lord to knock down for me. it was hard, but so beautiful.
i learned that miracles are real. when i was coming to guatemala, i didn’t know that my heart could be any more full than it already was. i had loved ecuador with everything i had. every day, every night, and every moment in between. the people, the places, and just the sheer beauty in it. i didn’t want to leave.
but then hopping on the plane just 2 days after i had fallen through the roof, and was healed 20 minutes after arriving at the base in guatemala, something in me had changed. i was excited. i was ready. my physical body was healed, yes, but more importantly, my spirit was healing. i was becoming new without even knowing it. the Lord showed up in some mighty ways, and this was only the beginning.
starting my ministry with OneWay Community, was one of the greatest blessings i’ve ever received from the Lord. i met the sweetest children, the most amazing OneWay members, and i saw the Lord more than i ever have before. i gained new best friends, new inside jokes, and an immeasurable amount of love in my heart. i learned that the Lord’s timing is perfect, and that He knows what makes you happiest. if you didn’t know, before the race i was going to become an elementary education teacher. i love children, education, and traveling, and the Lord gave me just that 🙂 He was so generous to let me teach the sweetest souls here in guatemala. i seriously think they taught me more than i could ever teach them. for a month and a 1/2, i was the happiest i had been on the race. He is a personal Father and He just knows how to romance you. He knows what i love, and so He placed me with this ministry :)?? my heart expanded 3 times its original size, and i’m sitting here smiling at all of the memories i got the opportunity to have during this time here. children are miracles. healings are miracles. guatemalans are miracles. laughs are miracles. i witnessed so many miracles on the race. miracles are real.
i learned so, so much about God. i don’t even know where to begin with this one.
God is a personal God. He wants to know you. He wants to know everything about you. He wants you to talk to Him and commune with Him. He wants you to know His love and who He is. we were made because He loves us. He wants us. He wants YOU. on the race i was taught that shame isn’t a character of the Lord. mistakes are made, because we’re human. He still loves you, no matter what you do. He will never leave or forsake you. i learned to put my trust in Him and not in other humans. humans are mere flowers. they will disappoint you, and they will die. but our Father doesn’t die. He keeps on living. He is THE rock. i learned to praise God. i learned how important it is that you carve that time out with Him. i learned that He is so, so deep. we will never understand how deep He is and how deep His love is for us…. and it keeps going on and on and on. God is so much bigger than i’ve ever even imagined Him to be.
there really isn’t enough time or plainly enough words to explain the race. there have been so many ups and downs throughout this last year that it’s really hard to put into words. there just isn’t any way to explain.
the race has taught me so much. i recommend it to anyone who wants to be stretched, changed, loved, different, and who wants to dig deeper into who the Lord is. it’s amazing. over this past year i’ve felt so loved, seen, and cared for. it’s hard to write out that this is actually ending, but every good story must come to an end (except the one with Jesus ya know?;))
thank you for reading. thank you for sticking with me this past year. thank you for the donations and for the constant prayer. thank you for supporting me and loving me so deeply. you all mean the world to me, and i couldn’t have done this without you. see you all in 7 days! best wishes, always.
love, briana
