These words, “thank you,” are words that I learned a lot about this year. They are not just proper manners but words that glorify the Father. When we say “Thank You” we proclaim that He is good. He is wisdom. He is trustworthy. He is sovereign. It gives us a heart of worship reverting back to Him the truth that all things are from Him, through Him, and to Him.
I can thank Him for the gift that was called the world race. I can thank Him for choosing a race for me that was better than what I could choose for myself. For my squad and team community that called me out and up. For the miles walked and minutes waited. For God using me when I didn’t feel like being a missionary. For the seeds planted and fruit I won’t see until heaven. I can thank Him for the hosts we did life with and the people we met that God chose because they simply said “yes.” For the incredibly hot Cambodia and freezing cold South Africa. For the “no sleep for anybody” roosters in Panama and the ants that invaded my tent in Laos. I can thank Him for the times of elementary kids passionately praying with boldness and conviction in Nicaragua, seeing miracles of healing in Honduras, teaching kids “Jesus Loves Me” in Thailand, worshipping with 7 different nations in the room in Cambodia, or sharing my testimony with my basketball team in Botswana. I can thank Jesus that He is the most fun person I’ve ever met when I volcano boarded in Nicaragua, watched my teammate sing karaoke shamelessly to a bunch of confused Hondurans, rode elephants in Thailand, floated down a river in Laos, or went on a safari in South Africa. I can thank Him for the laugh my head off times when I proclaimed, “Praise the Lord!” in an all Muslim country of Malaysia or when I almost died turning on my motorbike onto the wrong side of the road in Thailand or when my teammate pooped his pants on an overnight bus in Laos. I thank God that His Kingdom is bigger than the USA and He’s waking hearts all around the world. I thank God for it all.
And I thank God especially for you. Thank you for the prayers that went up on behalf of my team and I. Thank you for your financial investment not just for me but also for His Kingdom. Thank you for following my journey with excitement and interest.
You may be thinking, what’s next? Nothing really changes besides the location. I will continue to live on mission for His Kingdom. I will most likely be going to Bangkok, Thailand to work with the youth at a church where the lead pastor is a close family friend. In the meantime, I am enjoying being with my loved ones again.
Our last squad picture before we left
