One of the most common questions I have gotten this past year is, “what are you doing after graduation?” A few months ago, I’m proud to say that I finally have the official answer to that question. For the next year, starting in October, I will be going with a group of about thirty other Christians to spread the love and Word of God to people in 11 countries in four different continents. I’ll be answering each of the questions in the title and please, feel free to leave questions in the comments below.
What is the World Race?
The World Race is a missionary track put on by a non-profit called Adventures in Missions (AIM). AIM is a christian missions organization that sets up different programs, like the World Race, all over the world. They organize, lead, and manage these programs from beginning to end to ensure all goals are met throughout the length of each program.
Specifically, the World Race is designed to be an 11 month journey to share the love of Jesus and serve people from around the world.
How are we going to achieve this goal on the World Race?
This mission is obtained through work like building schools, housing, and orphanages, living in community with the people in these countries, and serving them in whatever physical needs they might need the same way that Jesus did throughout his life. Simply put, we are there to serve the people.
Who goes on the World Race?
The World Race accepts christian men and women of any denomination between the ages of 21 and 35 to join in their mission. My specific team is from all parts of the United States. I have not had the pleasure of meeting them in person, and will not until mid-August, but we are a group of about 30 Christians that will spend 11 months fulfilling the mission of spreading the love of Christ and serving others around the world.
When do we go on the World Race?
The World Race has multiple leave dates and different tracks within each leave date. Racers (as those that go on the World Race are called) choose their own leave date months and the track of their choice within each leave date months. Other leave dates are in June, August October, and January.
The route that I chose will be leaving in the first few days of October 2019. We will spend one month in each country with a total of 11 months serving worldwide. This means that we depart in early October 2019 and return early September 2020.
Where does the World Race go?
As mentioned briefly in the previous section, all routes are different for the World Race. Some will spend most their time in a certain continent, whereas others will see up to four different continents. However, all we see 11 countries throughout the 11 month span.
The route that I chose is Route 3 for the October 2019 leave period. We will be visiting the following countries in the order I list them: (South America:) Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, (Africa:) Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, (Asia:) India, Nepal, (Europe:) Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania. So, in October ’19 we’ll be in Colombia, November ’19 in Ecuador, December ’19 in Peru, so on, and so forth.
Why the World Race?
I struggled with this question during my research of different ministry programs. Ultimately, I asked God for guidance and listened to his answer. The research I did of the program and the conversations I had with friends and family made me hear loud and clear that this was meant to be my first step after graduation. The World Race allows the opportunity for Christians of incredibly diverse backgrounds to come together to share the truth that Jesus’ sacrifice has given all of us the opportunity to be justified in God’s eyes and be forgiven for any and all past, present, and future sins (Romans 3:23-26 paraphrased).
There are countless other ways to spread your faith and share it with others. That is a truth that cannot be argued. However, the World Race is where God is calling me. This is what he is requesting of me for the next year. Isaiah 43:1-6 is an excerpt of God telling the people of Israel (God’s chosen people) that they are redeemed by Him. He encourages them not to worry for He is with them. And, He reassures them that He loves them. Verse 6 starts the idea that God calls all his sons and daughters from “afar” or far off lands. Then verse 7 caps it all off with “everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” With the sacrifice of Jesus, Christians now hold the title of God’s chosen people. This declaration of being “created for my (God’s) glory” now falls on us as well!
So, with that I say, the Creator of the Universe calls me to this program, and who am I to refuse his call?
