So, as of yesterday, I am unofficially officially funded which means I have all the funds, but they have just not completely processed through on my page.
This. Is. Unreal.
A little over a year ago, I started praying about the World Race. It kept coming up in random ways, and I couldn’t ignore it anymore. I began to pray about whether I should actually go or not. Well, one day sitting in church next to my best friend Kim, I was praying during worship about whether to go. Without me actually changing my train of thought, the Lord changed my prayer to not asking whether I should go or not, but I started praying for my parent’s to have open hearts when I told them this news. I looked at Kim and told her I am going on the World Race.
The next week I was home in Georgia and decided to tell my Mom first about my now planned trip. I told her the news, and she pretty much ignored it. Once I made her talk about it, her first question was “Well, how much does that cost?” I told her $16,257 and she responded with a shocked look and a good ol, “That’s a lot of money.” I knew this was a lot of money, however, I also knew the Lord was calling me to go on this trip.
Fast forward a few months, and I’m not quite wanting to go on this trip anymore. I absolutely loved Colorado, why would I want to move? I had great friends, why would I want to leave? Basically, I started justifying and making every excuse I could for why I shouldn’t go. I had sweet friends donate before I even offically posted anywhere that I was going, which was confirmation to me that I was meant to go, but that didn’t stop me from doubting. It was right after Christmas, and I had all but decided not to go, the last step was just to call AIM and let them know I wasn’t coming.
Well, on December 31st, I had a friend text me and ask if she could go ahead and donate because she wanted to get it in before the end of the year. I told her sure and then for some reason decided to put up a last minute facebook post saying I was going and anybody who wanted to donate could for a nice tax deduction. I honestly did not expect to get any money besides what my friend was going to donate.
Since the money takes a few days to process, I didn’t check it for about a week. When I finally decided to check it, I refreshed the page at least 3 times. I could not believe what I saw, $3150 raised in ONE day. The Lord spoke to me and spoke loud that I was supposed to be on the World Race. After this, I saw the money pour in from people from all over…family, friends, people I would never expect.
The Lord showed up over and over again. I easily made my training camp deadline, but then had to hit $10,000 by the time I left. I did not reach this goal super fast. My mom called me one day and asked what my Plan B was going to be if I didn’t make it…I told her God. He had provided before, and I had no doubt He would provide again because He made it clear I was going on The World Race.
Within the last few weeks of me being at my parent’s house in Georgia, I was given the privilege of speaking at my grandmother’s Sunday School class as well as my home church. Little did I know, the Lord was going to bless me so much at these places. Within the last week I was home, I received so many donations, I am still struggling to write all the thank you notes before I leave…what an awesome problem!!!
Months ago, I prayed to the Lord that on September 6th, I would be fully funded. It was the day I was supposed to arrive at Launch, and I wanted nothing more than to not have to worry about raising money on the race. As of Sunday, I was about $1000 short, so I didn’t have much hope. However the Lord worked once again and provided the EXACT amount I needed to be fully funded that same day. God is so good.
Thank you supporters for getting me to this point! Thank you for those who donated a year ago and literally yesterday. Thank you to those who have prayed for me over the last year and have promised to continue praying over the next year. Thank you to those who provided gear for me whether it was a backpack bought two years ago, a sleeping bag, a tent, or a camera delivered yesterday. Thank you to my sister, Lauren, who came up with a brilliant idea of selling bracelets. Thank you to my grandmother who donated so much and also helped in so many other ways. Thank you to my Mom and Dad for being excited with me, for telling people about the race, and for all the hard work you both put in to help me get to this point. I honestly could not have done it without you both!! Just thank you so much to everyone, I wish I could put into words what yall mean to me and what it means to have yall on my support team as I head out in two days!!! I love yall and cannot wait to keep you updated and tell you all the stories when I get back.
Thank you to the Lord for calling me to this and then absolutely providing every step of the way! Now, let’s get this journey started!!! Uganda in 2 days.
