HI FRIENDS!! I’m Callie Harmon and I’m an 18-year-old freshman at Baylor University!! (Sic ‘Em!!!) I’m about to embark on the journey of a lifetime, leaving the comforts of America for nine months to live in Albania, The Philippines, and South Africa! Okay, I know… it sounds crazy that I would just pack up and leave when I have so many opportunities here, but I promise its only a LITTLE bit crazy. So here we go… in short, (we may have to redefine short after this) here’s my story.
Fact: as Christians, we are to give to God what we know of ourselves.
Fact: I have learned so much about myself recently.
Fact: as a daughter of the King, it is not only my duty, but my joy to submit my everything to God-not just things I have recently learned, not just my time, emotions, or resources-but EVERYTHING. I cannot compartmentalize my faith, for my identity as a Christian should permeate every part of my life. That being said, if I am called, if I am burdened, I will go-all of me belongs to God anyway.
This past semester was my first in college and my first at Baylor University. As the semester began and I delved into my coursework, I began to doubt and question everything I have ever “known”. My junior year of high school, I submitted my everything to God-no holding back-and He was faithful in revealing to me what I felt was my calling in life, medical missions, and leading me to my new home at Baylor. If this was His plan, why would the voices in my head questioning my every move not stop? So, there I found myself, completely broken down, wondering how I went from the girl who seemingly had it all together to the girl in the stairwell, begging God for peace, for affirmation, for answers… for ANYTHING. During this season, I was constantly reminded of Matthew 7:7, which says:
“Ask, and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find;
knock, and it will be opened to you.” (ESV)
For so long, I had been asking “how”. How could this happen to me? How could I be in so much turmoil even though I was consistently in the word and surrounding myself with fellow believers? Through prayer I asked, and God, who is so faithful to His children, gave me clarity. Instead of asking God “how”, I began to ask Him “why”. Why would I feel so unsettled? Since His will for my life is good and sovereign, I became more and more comfortable with the fact that God can lead me places I could have never imagined out of this unsettling season. This knowledge called me to lean on God like never before. Being broken brought me to fully realize that my life will never be fulfilled without God; as Lamentations 2:24 says, “The Lord is my portion”-He is enough. I learned to rest in His peace and draw my strength from Him. As I began to truly understand the characteristics of God by leaning on Him completely, I began to study His faithfulness, our faith, and what it truly means to be a Christian. It became acutely aware to me that while our faith is vital-it is, after all, “by grace through faith” that we are saved-faith isn’t the only component of our Christian walk. I cannot stress enough the importance of truly believing and fostering our faith through spending time in the Word, in prayer, and in fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, but this past semester, I truly began to understand the importance of works. It is true that without faith, works are dead, but if we are truly faithful and believe that His word is inherently true, we should believe that faithfulness is only a portion of our duty as Christians. God calls us to “go therefore and make disciples”, so why do we not obey? If God is truly sovereign like we believe, why do we also believe it to be acceptable to pick and choose which of His commandments to obey? When did our convenience and comfort replace God’s commandments as the central element of our faith? I cannot simply ignore this element of my relationship with God along with the majority of the modern, western church. I have a desire to stop just being faithful and start being radically faithful. I cannot continue to live a comfortable, content life when God has not only commanded me, but is calling me, to do so much more for His kingdom. How could I possibly continue to lead a life of comfort with the knowledge that there are people who have never experienced God’s indescribable joy, love, peace, and strength? So that brings me to where I am now. I learned about the World Race through a friend at Baylor and then furthered my knowledge via the website and blogs. As I began to read more about the WR Gap Year, I began to feel led like I never have before. The World Race dominated my thoughts, my prayers, and my conversations. Not only do I feel the Lord leading me to obey His commandments and love people the way He loves me through WR Gap Year, but what an opportunity to experience God in ways I could have never imagined, to see His power at work, to explore His creations, and to discover the way in which He wants to use me.
For as long as I can remember, I have been burdened to share God’s love with those who have never felt it, His word to those who have never heard it, His presence to those who have never sensed it. He has called all of us to be active with our faith-He did not save us so that we could sit still and keep this gift to ourselves!!! In the parable of the lost sheep, it is the Shepherd that comes to the rescue-not another sheep. This being said, it is always by and through Jesus that the lost are found; we know that God does not give up on His children. We are utterly and completely incapable of accomplishing anything worthwhile without God. His power will inevitably rule and His kingdom will inevitably reign, and we are simply the means by which he chooses to do so. How lucky am I that the sole purpose of each day for these upcoming nine months is to be the hands and feet of Christ???? (the answer is pretty freaking lucky)
I’m all about adventures, and boy am I in for the adventure of a lifetime!! I will be living out of a backpack for nine months (this is really an issue for a chronic over-packer) with people I have never met (I don’t count meeting over the internet) in countries and cultures vastly different from anything I have ever seen or experienced. As much as I believe that God calls people to go, I firmly believe that he also calls people to send. That being said, as I embark on this crazy journey, there are a few ways you can help me. The first is through prayer. Come alongside me in prayer for my team, that we would have the strength to do His work, and that He would move in mysterious and powerful ways in and through us. Pray that the Lord would break my heart for those who need Him, lifting Him higher, so that He would become greater, and I would become less (John 3:30). Pray for me, that the Lord would be shaping me into the woman, and fearless follower, that He has called me to be. Pray for open hearts and minds of all those that we may encounter throughout these nine months. Pray for safety. Pray that, above all, the words “Your kingdom come, Your will be done” would ring true; that through Him, this group of young adults can start a wave that will change lives and impact these specific regions of the world forever.
The second way you can support me is financially. It may seem insane, but despite the close to $14,000 that it will take to send me, the funds have been the least of my concerns. Time and time again it has proven to be true that when God calls us to step out in obedience, He is faithful to provide. I ask that you would prayerfully consider embarking with me on this journey! If you feel that God is leading you to support me, you can just click on the “support me” tab to make a donation; any amount helps!! Finally, you can subscribe to this blog! I cannot wait to share my experiences from the field with everyone!
If you read all of that, thank you-you’re a trooper because that was extremely long. I can’t wait to see all that God has in store!
With love,
Callie 🙂
“I have one desire now – to live a life of reckless abandon for the Lord, putting all my energy and strength into it.”
-Elisabeth Elliot, Through Gates of Splendor
