42 days. I will be on US soil in 42 days. Is that even possible?
A year ago today, the World Race was the reality of my upcoming future. Indeed, I was only days away from meeting my fellow Y-Squad mates at Training Camp in Tennessee.
Today, the World Race is my present. We have traveled through more than 10 countries (14, if you include Qatar, Poland, Hungary, and Hong Kong) in the past 10 months, we have served alongside dozens of ministries and hundreds of people, witnessed miracles, learned more about our identity as sons and daughters of God, and grown in ways that we probably will not fully grasp for years to come. We have exactly five weeks of ministry left (one in Romania, four in Moldova) before we meet together for our final debrief in Bucharest, Romania. And then on June 26th, we will board a plane and fly back to the US.
With all that we have seen and done, it is hard to believe that in 42 days, the World Race will be a memory of my past. But then I am faced with another reality: In 42 days, the next part of my race will begin.
Truth be told, the thought of what lies beyond the World Race is completely baffling. I’m tired. VERY tired. Not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, too. The World Race has indeed been rewarding, but there are days I honestly can’t wait to be finished. I still have no idea what I will do when I get home, except at least a week of sleep. And a few weeks of my Dad’s much-missed cooking. And countless hours of much-missed laughter with my Mom.
The other day, as I was thinking more about reaching the finish line of the World Race, the Lord gave me the following picture (and yes, these are my feeble attempts at drawing what He showed me):
God then reminded me of Hebrews 12:1-2, a passage that has sustained me through much of the World Race: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
I felt like God was challenging me to “throw off everything that hinders…” including my tiredness. I felt like He was cheering me on, along with all of heaven, shouting, “Keep going! Keep going!” And suddenly, I realized that it’s not about finishing the World Race, but it is about pressing on in this glorious race called “Life.”
Yes, life can be challenging and downright exhausting at times. But in the picture the Lord gave me, I suddenly saw something I’ve never seen before: Beyond the finish line, I saw golden streets and glorious mountains. I saw a place of complete restoration and peace. I saw Jesus, who has already completed this race, seated in rest and joy beside His Heavenly Father. And I felt Him say that He would sustain me and give me everything I need until the end of not only the World Race, but also until the very end of this race called Life.
I might not know exactly what I am doing in 42 days. But I can run this present race with renewed hope, knowing that the same God who promises rest beyond this Race is giving me everything I need to press on today. And so I run.
“Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14)
