Good question. While most seniors are preparing for college or the workforce, I’ve decided to take a radical, nine-month journey in faith, leaving the world I know, to grow in my walk with the Lord and minister to others.
Ever since I became a Christ-follower, I’ve really felt a call to Africa to share the love of God the Father with the fatherless. So many children in that continent have lost their parents to disease, war, and famine, causing many to live on the streets or orphanages and making them vulnerable to the sex trade. Growing up in a single-parent home and spending several years in foster care, I never knew the love of a father. Until I was adopted at the age of ten, I never experienced a man who actually loved and cared about me unconditionally. These kids in Africa don’t know how it feels to hear a father say, “I love you, son”. My deepest desire is to share with them that there is a Father who says that every day and will never stop loving them.
Not having a loving earthly father for the first ten years of my life affected me more than anyone would realize. For years I tried my best to find acceptance from anyone. I did things and acted a certain way just to be accepted. For a long long time, in fact, up to last year, I really struggled with just being me. I felt like I had to put on a mask around others and I think that a lot of fatherless kids also struggle with this. I want to share my story with these kids and introduce them to Jesus and to a heavenly Father, who wants to adopt them as royal sons and daughters and will help them remove the mask. Believe me, when they can take off that mask and feel God’s acceptance, then they’ll really experience the love that God has always had for them
Another reason for going on the World Race is rooted in a trial I went through in 2018. If you haven’t read the “About Me” section located on the left side of this page, let me recap briefly. Last year I had a massive stroke that completely wrecked my “great” plans for my future. (Notice the two “my”s. It was all about me and what I wanted to do.) I completely lost the ability to use or feel my entire right side, plus my ability to speak.
My plans to become a police officer like my dad or go into the Navy like my oldest brother were destroyed that day. I went through intense therapy and struggled daily to form one word or move a finger. Eventually, I got most of my function back, but I have lingering weakness and trip up on my words sometimes. With my career plans gutted, I didn’t know what to look forward to…Basically, I lost my direction.
Although I struggled with these new realities, God didn’t give up on me. With His help, I battled back. As for the future, I knew that I didn’t want to go to college right now, and I was sure that I wanted to use my story to help encourage others and lead them to Jesus. Therefore, I wanted to do something radical for my God. I prayed for direction and God responded saying, “Use the gifts I have given you.” Well, I knew that I had a gift of teaching and relating to kids, so I began looking for a place to use that gift. Later, my heart turned toward missions and I stumbled onto the World Race web site. I knew right then that it was the perfect organization for me.
So that was a complicated answer to an easy question. I’m so excited to take this journey to further God’s kingdom! Will you please pray for me as I prepare for my adventure? By the way, my trip route includes the countries of eSwatini, Ethiopia and Cambodia. Stay tuned for more info on the ministry opportunities I’ll have in these countries.
Thank you for reading my post and please come back to read more! Be sure to comment below and, if you’d like to follow along, please subscribe to my blog, so you can keep up with me before and after I launch on the race. The subscribe button is on the left side of the page.
In Christ,
Dalton
