If you supported me in ANY way for the World Race over the last two years (prayer, donations, trivia night, tshirts, necklaces, etc.) then this letter is for YOU!
In the last eight months, with your support, I traveled with an organization called Adventures in Missions on the World Race. As you are most likely aware of by now, I have returned home early. Due to covid-19, all world racers were sent home as a safety precaution. I landed back on American soil on Wednesday March 18, cutting my month in Thailand a few days short and completely cutting out my three months I was supposed to spend in Ecuador, Peru, Chile, and Argentina in South America.
Despite the race being cut short, I still got to live the most exciting, emotional, hardest, and challenging time of my life in Africa and Asia. I wholeheartedly believe the Lord knew this was going to happen before I had even committed to this route. I still ended up traveling to eleven different countries (counting layover spots in Qatar, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates) literally being the hands and feet of Jesus. It was nothing like any mission trip I have ever been on—it was way more than that. I got to dive whole-heartedly into relationships with locals, acclimate to new cultures, learn different languages, and navigate a foreign land on my own/with my team. Some months I didn’t even have an organization, church, or ministry to meet up with before entering—these were called Ask The Lord months.
Holy moly, the Lord took me on a crazy adventure! I experienced spiritual warfare like never before, witnessed miraculous healings before my very own eyes, watched people break free of the darkness and give their lives to God, and saw people of underrepresented populations become empowered for the very first time. I got to preach at churches, teach English in schools, sing and dance with children, do manual labor, and tell people about the Lord’s faithfulness and love for them. Friendships were made with people that will last a lifetime. I also personally experienced a lot of growth. I see life with a whole new light, and I am not the same girl who got on a plane in Atlanta, GA back in August 2019.
There are so, so many stories I would love to share with you but definitely not enough space to do so in this letter. So for now, I’ll just share some of my favorite pictures from each month below! I enjoy talking about my time on the World Race, and it is actually really helpful for me to verbally process it all so if there are any stories you would like to hear about or questions you have for me, PLEASE reach out to me! I can be reached at my cell number (217-972-8561), by email ([email protected]), or on Facebook messenger.
The Lord used you to play a part in the journey that He allowed me to go on. All of us acted in obedience for the Kingdom, and so many lives were changed in such a short period of time. Thank you, thank you, thank you from the depths of my heart for supporting me and believing in me and also for the work you are doing whether you recognize it or not!
With love,
Haley Vaughan
