Some of the advice they have given us about re-entry is to grieve and mourn for what is ending, but to rejoice about what is coming. So I'm doing a little series on re-entry. This is part 1 of 3. Enjoy!
Top 10 Things I'm Going to Miss About the Race
10. The Simplicity
Life on the Race is simple in so many ways. We don't have a lot of possessions. We don't have a million things to juggle around and fit into our schedules. The days can't be micro-planned down to each 5 minutes. We get up & face whatever the day might bring– flexibility has been key this year. We don't get our hearts set on anything, and I do mean anything, until it has been confirmed 27x and is going to start in the next 5 minutes. (And even then, we're a bit wary!) We've learned not to sweat the small stuff. We can get by with little and are joyful about it. There is something beautiful to this way of life.
9. The Feedback
I would be lying if I said that I had looked forward to feedback all year. Your team gets together, sits in a circle, and you go around and both encourage & challenge each other to be better. Sometimes we get off track and sometimes we talk in circles and beat around the bush and it takes 3 hours. I don't love that. But I do love the idea of feedback. Yes, I do want to be encouraged in my strengths and challenged to look more like Christ. I relish being in an environment where people love me enough to come up to me and tell me either of those things. Tremendous amounts of growth come from being rebuked, and I am thankful that I have had people the whole year who have lovingly called out my shortcomings and pointed me towards the Cross.
8. The Freedom
And no, I definitely don't mean freedom in the sense that you are thinking. Don't forget that I haven't been able to go anywhere without having someone chained to my hip at all times. I'm talking about spiritual freedom. Freedom that comes when you realize that God truly loves you for who you are– no matter what you've ever done or will ever do. There is a huge freedom that comes with knowing that the price has been paid by the blood of Jesus– and that's it. No striving. No performing. Just be His child.
7. The Community
I truly believe that we were created to live in community. No, not quite like we do on the Race, but I do think that living in this type of community is just as important for a certain season of life. We learn to die to ourselves (with either a good attitude or bad) all the freakin' time. We share things we don't want to. We let other people use all of the hot water. We learn to act with grace when someone brings us our iPod that they accidentally dropped and shattered or our nice shirt that now has spaghetti sauce down the front. We haven't mastered these things by any stretch, but have continued to grow in them each day.
6. The Ministry Opportunities
My heart was made for the mission field. From my first step on Ugandan soil, I knew. I was made for this. God fashioned my heart so that it comes alive in a way that I never knew possible when serving abroad. I can't get enough of it. This year has provided me with a broader look at missions and given me a lot more insight into what I'd like to pursue one day. Our serving opportunities have been across the board– teaching English, pouring concrete, yardwork, youth groups, planting potatoes, discipleship with teenagers, pre-schools, orphanages, Bible schools, relational ministry through working at a cafe, pregnancy centers, and a whole bunch of stuff in between.. I am so thankful for the different ways I have been used as the hands and feet of Jesus. What a priviledge!
5. The Different Cultures
It's no secret. I love to travel. (Aren't you shocked?!) Although travel days can be long and stressful and sometimes moving from country to country can feel like "the norm," I have never been able to completely shake the sense of awe I get each time we enter a new place. Even if it's just for a few moments, I get a little bit giddy over the fact that this IS my life! I love learning the new cultural norms, habits, and lifestyles of those around the world. I definitely don't always love abiding by them, but I love soaking up as much of the people and culture as I possibly can.
4. The Ever-Expanding View of How God Works
This gets me every time. Yes, I know that God is God.. He is never-changing. He is the same God in the United States as He is in Moldova and Swaziland and India and The Philippines. But, oh! How differently He chooses to work. I've often wondered why, and seem to come back to somewhat of the same conclusion– people around the world give God different amounts of space to work. Some let Him move and work freely. In other places, you can feel the oppression and heaviness of people who are not open to the Lord. I've learned so much about His love, His power, and His presence over the past 11 months. Some from ministries, some from other Racers, and some from contacts or people along the way. I never cease to be amazed as I listen to stories of His glory being revealed around the world.
3. The Adventure
There is seldom a boring day on the Race. From running to help deliver a baby, pouring concrete for 14 hours, or having to leave a city early because of riots, you simply never know what you're going to get. We are always on our toes. Expecting nothing, but ready for anything. There are seldom schedules or routines, and even when there are, they are rarely followed. Each day brings a sense of newness and adventure. Moving to an entirely new country each month starts the extreme newness and adventure over at its peak each time. I'm thinking life at home is going to seem pretty boring for a while after this.
2. The Kids
Another non-secret– I love kids. It doesn't matter age, race, gender, tribe, ethnicity, cultural background– I absolutely adore kids. I feel the most at home with a baby in my arms or being treated like a human jungle gym by 4 year olds or talking with a 12-year old. In a lot of countries, kids are constantly roaming the streets, many times just outside our gate. I need only to walk outside to be surrounded by little hands and little feet that cling to me. They want to play, they want to be held, they want to be loved.
1. The Racers
Last October, I rolled into training camp more than a little wary of the whole situation and journey in front of me. I met 40-something people who I was to spend the next year of my life with, traveling the world and spreading the love and hope of Jesus. I left in January with a big group of aquaintances, wishing for the best, but I'll be honest– expecting the worst. Now, 11 months later, these people have become my family. We have seen each at the highest of highs and very lowest of lows. We have walked together through so much– breakups, the deaths of family & friends, missing neices and nephews being born, finding out a loved one has cancer. We have held hands and walked through the storms together. This year has been what it's been in large part to the people it's been with.
So here's to you, The World Race, for taking 2012 and making it a monumental shifting point in my life.
–Coming next: Part 2: Top 10 Things America Has to Offer Me
