It has been exactly 514 days since I have been back on American soil. Some days that number seems like it was another lifetime ago, and then other days it feels like it was yesterday. Regardless of the feeling… the reality is that my life now is back in the States, specifically in Midlothian, Texas.
I am not going to lie, this season has been bittersweet. There has been this ongoing tension/pull for me on how to remember the Race yet not live in the past. How do I look back and recall everything the Lord had done in my life and in the lives around me, yet be fully present to what He has called me to do right now, faithfully. For most of this season, I will admit… I have missed a lot of God’s sweetness in my everyday life because I was so caught up and focused on the past… focused on what my life looked like and felt like while on the Race. Thankfully, God is much bigger and better than that. He didn’t just leave me there… longing for something that once was. He actively kept turning my face and is continuing to turn my face to Him. I can’t run my race well when my focus is whats behind me. So the last 514 days has been this continual wrestle with the Lord on what it looks like, daily, to keep my gaze on Him. To remember the Race in one aspect, but to be hopeful for what is to come in the other. There is a healthy balance of the two, and that’s what I am trying to figure out. But at the end of the day, if I believe His Kingdom is always advancing… I have to look ahead, and not behind. I have to be fully present, and go faithfully to where He calls.
So my yes, right now, is to an Executive Assistant job at Stonegate Church. To faithfully show up and give 100% to the task at hand, while trusting the Lord with my workload. Knowing I can close my laptop at the end of the day leaving the rest of my “to-do” list in the hands of a God that doesn’t slumber. He cares far more than I do, even on my best day. He doesn’t need me to do ministry, He just joyfully chooses me to partner with Him and be apart. It looks like being a coworker who celebrates others achievements and successes above my own. It is raising my hand, and asking for help when I can’t do it on my own… knowing that weakness is the way. My yes is to a bunch of senior girls. It looks like faithfully showing up and pointing them to Christ. It looks like having hard conversations with them when they are caught up in worldly matters. It looks like listening (a lot) and reminding them of the truths and promises proclaimed over them by our God. My yes is to a community that the Lord has plopped me down into after the Race. It is showing up, being vulnerable, and 100% known. It is running to the tension in love by owning my own mistakes and giving grace. It is not running away when things get hard, but choosing to stay at the table. My yes, right now, is being a disciplined daughter who delights in Jesus daily. Who makes it a priority to meet with my Father, knowing everything begins from here. To be the best Executive Assistant, coworker, small group leader, friend… I have to abide in Jesus. That is the most important, and that is the yes that never changes… no matter what season of life.
I am learning what it looks like to have eyes for the glory in the mundane of life, because I truly believe there is glory to behold in the everyday things of life. Constantly asking the Lord to show me, remind me, and refocus my gaze. I want to be a woman who is quick to obey, always having a yes in my spirit when it comes to the things of God.
So with great humbleness I am thrilled to share with you my next trip abroad. From March 7th-14th (spring break), I will be apart of a small group taking a little over 30 students to the north region of Brazil. We have the amazing opportunity to engage the 30,000 unreached people groups in the Amazon River Basin with the good news of Jesus. We are partnering with Amazon Outreach, an evangelical missions organization based out of Dallas, TX. Our efforts will be best served through medical and dental needs, as well as kids ministry and relational evangelism. We are expectant that God will multiply the Gospel in this region all while speaking and working directly in our own hearts through the process.
Will you prayerfully consider partnering with me on this journey? One way is financially. The cost of the trip is $2,895, which is due February 7th. All donations are tax-deductible and you can donate online by my personalized fundraising link through Managed Missions: https://ao.managedmissions.com/MyTrip/caitlincarpenter1
Another way to come along side me in this journey is through prayer. I believe that prayer is not just to equip us for greater works, but prayer itself is the greater work! Please pray that God would prepare the way for what He wants to do through us in Brazil. Pray for God to soften the hearts of people to hear the good news of Jesus, some for the very first time. Please pray that we would have boldness and courage to share the Gospel with those God puts in our paths. That salvation would wash over dead souls. Pray for strength to do the work ahead, with excellence. Pray that the Lord would use this trip to speak loudly to the students we are taking. Pray that the 30,000 unreached people groups would go down, because God was gracious in saving souls for eternity.
I look forward to this next yes to God in my journey. I can’t wait to share with you the stories of how God spoke to my heart, the things He accomplished in the hearts of the students, and the hearts of the beautiful Amazonian people when I return!
Going because they haven’t heard the Name of Jesus!
Oh, and I really am living on a boat for a week… in a hammock. Mark that off my bucket list.
