Reality Check:
Today marks 99 days until I leave..
Training camp for the world race is in two weeks.
I have 70% of my funding goal to still complete.
I will be jobless in 7 days.
I bought a 65 liter pack.
From this point, there is no turning back.
This is where it all starts, isn’t it? I mean, I just quit my job for this!
…Or will it be when I get 50% funded? Or when I actually leave in January?
…was it when I got my acceptance call?
…Did it start when I chose a route and applied to the race?
…It could have started when I first stepped into Ukraine 7 years ago, and fell in love with those people….Or was it when I walked hand-in-hand with an orphan down the road in Africa?
I’m not sure when it all started, but I know that there is no turning back. And I have no desire to do so.
Friends, family and even strangers have been so supportive and encouraging in my decision to go on the World Race….it’s been the most humbling journey already. I am so appreciative of all the prayers, donations and pep talks! I am in awe that this dream is becoming a reality.
I am human and I struggle with the pressures of the world. But why is it so hard for me to follow Jesus and keep the cross before me? I am reminded of the children’s song that says; “I have decided to follow Jesus. The world behind me, the cross before me. No turning back…”
I fail. I turn back.
What keeps me going is the GRACE And HOPE I see everyday, dispite my failures. I am not a special or a “good” Christian for spending a year on the mission field. My life has been a mess of failing and turning back. But grace, and Jesus keep me me going. I believe I have been called to go on this trip because I have a heart for the world. I am going to show citizens around the world love, kindness, and joy. Dispite their financial status or upbringing, their life does matter and there is a FATHER out there seeking them. GRACE AND HOPE can be found Through HIM.
Someone once said “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” I don’t know exactly when and where I took my first step, but today, I am blindly joyfully taking another. I still have support I need to raise, I still need to find another job for the next two months, I still need gear for the race….
But I’m not turning back.
