The World Race transformed me into a new kind of person. A kind of person that likes to read. Not only do I read my Bible every single day, but I've also been reading these amazing things people call books.
I used to read throughout the summers, usually when at the beach, but then lost the interest to read probably right around the time I got my first cell phone. But I brought a Kindle on the race in hopes of rekindling my desire to read and learn.
It was a slow start, but in the past three months I've read five books. And I've learned so much! Who knew. This last book I read was definitely the most challenging in terms of what it made me think about. It's called The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, and by the title you can tell it's about finding the purpose God has called you to.
And that's where the challenging thinking comes in. I knew we all have a purpose that God has called us to, but to really sit down and think about that purpose has made me a little crazy. I never realized how many things I really want to accomplish in my lifetime.
The book talks about finding your purpose and looking at five things to narrow down your search of your life's purpose: Spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences. If I made a list of all these things for myself I would have over twenty possible paths for my life. Not really much help in the narrowing down department.
And I literally almost had a breakdown after reading this book last week. I felt more confused than ever on what God wanted my purpose to be. I had about 20 million (give or take) possible careers, trips, places to live, big life decisions, all running through my head at the same time. What if I choose the wrong path? How do I decide what's next for my life when there's so many amazing opportunities?
But then I was reminded that when we start to feel weak or confused or scared, God is gently telling us to depend on him even more. I thankfully don't have to make any big decisions on my own. And by giving God the control of ALL my future plans, takes a lot of pressure and anxiety away.
One of the biggest lessons I've learned from this book though is that God is way more interested in what you are than what you do. God is more pleased that we have good character and strong faith than a good career and strong income. While I was busy trying to plan out every detail of the next two years of my life, I was missing opportunities to grow in where God has placed me right now.
We are called to be human beings, not human doings.
Wherever we are, whatever situation we're in, whoever is around us, is where our focus and attention should be. When we stop planning out our future, we can enjoy the life God has for us today. So for now, my future is just “the future.” No career planning, no apartment searching, no travel scheduling.
I only have three months left of this crazy adventure and then it's gone. I'll never be surrounded by these same 50 people who have been with me every step of this journey. So farewell future, hello to today.
