Closely watched trains - Explore Archived World Race Alumni Blogs

Location: A train heading South East towards the Capital city Bucharest.

Head out the window, staring off into the Romanian hilly countryside, the cool wind on my face, the sun setting behind me; this train just keeps rolling on. These trains take you to places where you want to go, and away from where you want to be. I constantly feel like my heart is in both drive and reverse. Each month isn’t just hello and goodbye, staying then leaving, it’s more than that. These past 4 months I have been leaving pieces of my heart, like clothing caught on branches in the woods, hoping I can find my way back to these places.

Location: A train heading West towards Debrecen, Hungary.

Jo Linda and I boarded the train to Debrecen because two years ago on a bus ride back from Ramallah, Palestine I met my friend Ahmad. He was home for the summer from med school in Hungary and my friend Morgan and I would spend the next 6 weeks building a relationship with him and sharing the love of Jesus. When I found out that Oradea was only a few short hours away from Debrecen by train, I knew that this as another opportunity to share the Gospel.

Praying the whole way that God would provide an opportunity to tell him about Jesus, we arrived in Debrecen just in time to make dinner at his house. He had invited his friend Sonia who was Pakistani over as well and we all talked and cooked together in the kitchen. Once we sat down to eat, to my surprise Sonia started asking me about Christianity and what we believe (I had told that we were on a missions trip for 11 months to 11 different countries), so for the whole dinner we discussed the differences between Christianity and Islam.

We could discuss religion all night, but that’s not what I came there to do. So I started sharing my testimony. I shared about the night I got saved, where I heard God audibly speak to me and tell me I needed to make a decision –that I could choose to live for the world, worshiping the creation instead of the creator, or I could choose to live for him..but if I chose to live for him, it was going to cost me my life..complete surrender. She was amazed at the fact that God spoke to me, and I told her that God speaks to me all the time, He speaks to everyone who is in a relationship with him. One main difference between Islam and Christianity, is that in Islam God doesn’t speak to his children. I went on to tell about when we were in El Salvador that God used my team and I to heal a woman’s back, and also my teammate prayed over a woman who could barely see and her eyesight was fully restored to her. I told stories about the power of God, the love of Jesus, and how the Holy Spirit showed up time and time again on the World Race. All the while Ahmad was quietly listening, and I knew that the wheels in his mind were turning.

We left the next morning fully encouraged that the work that God began with Ahmad, and now his friend Sonia, would one day be brought to completion. That it isn’t just coincidence or chance that our paths crossed two years ago on a bus, and then reconnected again in Europe two years later. God has a plan for Ahmad’s life, and I don’t know when he’ll come to know Jesus and I don’t know how, but I know that God is able.

In just a few short days I will be heading into month 5 of the World Race! Through YOU God has already provided so much and enough to get me this far, but my final deadline is quickly approaching. I still need $3,226 by July 1st to stay on the field. If you would like donate click the "Support me financially" tab below my picture. Thank you!

Mariah and I overlooking the city of Oradea, Romania