Hello!
My name is Colt Wakefield; I am 20 years old and I live in Omaha, Nebraska! I am a Sophomore at the University of Nebraska at Omaha without a decided major.
My life is a mess… but in a good way. I love randomness and schedules are my downfall. I am very active and enjoy many different sports and activities such as wrestling, ultimate frisbee, rock climbing, crossfit, hunting, football, woodworking, eating, drinking coffee, and camping!
If you do not know me already and are just now learning about me you will find quickly that I am very personable and filled with joy. This is because I have so much in my life that fills me with joy. And in the words of Julie Andrews, “These are a few of my favorite things…”
Worship.
Every life is a song worthy to be sung to the Father and this is our purpose as humans in His image! (I know that sounds super cliche but I don’t really care!) I try to tell myself this every day and let me tell ya it has filled me with so much joy and purpose that I cannot understand it. I used to view worship as the 10-20 minutes of singing that you do before church and while that is worship, it is only a small aspect of what worship truly implies.
How Louie Giglio puts it is that Worship is our response, both personal and corporate, to God for who He is, and what He has done; expressed in and by the things we say and the way we live.
I have been constantly reminded of this over the past year and it really hit me hard this last summer when I went to Pretoria, South Africa for two weeks. In short what it did to me was reveal what our proper posture before the Ruler of the Universe needs to look like (but more on that later).
Family.
I love my family. Both through the blood in my veins and the redeeming blood of Jesus.
My mother and father are both amazing in such different ways. My mother is super creative and is a huge dork. She has never played anything cool and is the most fun person to be out in public with. My father of the other hand is Mr. Cool. He is charming, funny, and can carry on a conversation with anybody for hours and make them feel like old friends. I am the perfect mix of these two in that I am very personable with strangers and old friends alike, and I am a huge dork while doing it.
I have an older brother named Clay who is six years older than me and is a youth pastor at my home church in Blair, Nebraska. He has been married for six years to his wife Rachel and they have two kids, Zoe who is three and Cohen who is one. The way that I describe my brother to those who don’t know him is that he is me with more responsibility. He is one of my best friends and actually led me to accept Christ into my heart when I was in seventh grade.
I have an older sister Madison who is three years older than me and is an art teacher in Bennington, Nebraska. Seeing her go on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic while she was in high school was the reason that I wanted to go on my first mission trip. She has such a heart for children and that is probably the reason that she can deal with me so well!
The community that I currently have within my church is a hard one to beat. My friends are always pushing me and each other to fully pursue and trust God with heart abandoned. I currently live with one of my best friends, Jake Peterson, who was the first friend that I had when I got saved. He has been by my side my entire walk with Christ even when I was a terrible friend to him. God chose to use Jake in His pursuit of my life and I thank Him daily for it.
The leaders that God has placed in my life are amazing and have a strong desire to see me dive into the Word everyday and especially when I am faced with a problem. These leaders and my friends are what pushed me to step out in my faith and to go on the World Race. I love them all very much.
Coffee.
Not Starbucks. Good coffee.
Missions.
Finally, my favorite thing is the mission that the Christ has led me to through the Spirit. Specifically world missions where the poor and powerless will be given a purpose to fulfill and strive toward. A purpose given by the Father. More specifically I am called to help those who cannot defend themselves and those who have been affected by or are still stuck in sex trafficking.
My mission trip through CityLight Church to South Africa last summer is what fully cultivated this desire for the world to hear the voice and to know the love of Jesus Christ. I had been on three mission trips prior where the Spirit called me to go to the world but after returning from each trip my drive to fulfill that calling slowly faded. But not this time. The voice of the Spirit was heard loud and clear through the people I met in South Africa, their testimonies, my trip leaders, and the brothers and sisters that I shared this experience with.
And that is pretty much it!
I see myself one day doing full-time missions and I believe that God has called me to the World Race to better prepare me for that.
Please be praying not only for me but for all of my fellow racers as we embark on this journey together. Pray that our hearts will be aligned with the mission of Jesus. Pray that God will provide the funds for each of us. Most of all pray that the name of Jesus Christ is glorified higher than any other.
More to come later,
Colt Wakefield
