18 months ago God called me to go on the World Race through a whirlwind of events. For those of you who weren’t with me yet at that part of the journey, here’s the bullet points of the beginning of my current way of life:
-2 years ago God woke up my heart with its love for Japan and said that I was finally allowed to GO!
-June arrived and no doors had yet opened until seemingly randomly I landed on a webpage showing the All Asia route on this mysterious trip called the World Race that included JAPAN and 10 other cool looking countries. I had 2 days to apply and I stayed up all night filling out the application and online interview.
-I did the phone interview within a couple days and realized how absolutely crazy this whole thing sounded. I questioned every aspect of my story and whether they would let me in.
-A week later my Beloved Gma suddenly gets sick and passes away. We were very close and her passing was a big reality check. I didn’t lose hope so much as question the method. I KNEW I was supposed to go in the fall but hadn’t heard back from AIM.
-I still asked for time off from work for the duration of training camp. I figured if all else failed I would take off Saturday and Monday call in saying my plans fell through, taking whatever hours they’d give me.
-2 days before training camp Andrew, an admittance rep, called me congratulating me on becoming a Racer and began asking me about January routes. I explained to him that God had called me to Japan and I was only interested in the All Asia route. Andrew heard my heart and over the course of 2 hours brought my case higher and higher up the ladder.
-At the end he had 3 questions for me: 1. Did I have a current passport? Yes (I got one a few months prior in preparation) 2. Did I have money to cover the first deposit? Yes! (God had called me to save all I could for the 3 years prior which perfectly covered that first deposit AND all my gear.) and 3. Could I get to Gainesville, GA in exactly 2 days for training camp? YES!
-That afternoon I filled out all the paperwork to take with me. That evening I read all the blogs and suggestions I could to get an idea as to what I should get. The next morning I went to REI and walked around the entire store with an incredibly helpful and (thank God) knowledge salesman. (I spent more that morning than I’ve ever spent in any one place other than a hospital.) That evening I packed and repacked my new camping gear until I somehow got it all to fit. And the next morning I drove off for GA and a future I had no way to possibly conceive, praying and crying the whole way that this was real and I wasn’t crazy.
And the rest is history.
Since then I’ve learned that God has called me to other countries besides Japan like Nepal, China, Vietnam and shockingly America. I’ve learned that his dreams for me are much larger and my inheritance much grander than I ever could have imagined.
And I’ve learned that my story is not how I perceive, even now, but that it has been hand crafted by him and he is slowly and beautifully revealing it to me.
I did get to go to Japan, the land of my heart and dreams. And while I was there God showed me a lot about why I was there by myself (to show that he was enough and I was enough). But he also told me I would not come back for a long while. He assured me that the plans he had for me were too big for me to walk alone and that he would bring people to come alongside me for the vision he would soon give.
Then he sent me on a strange Google scavenger hunt where I stumbled across “Bethel Cleveland” and their “Bethel School for Supernatural Ministries (BSSM).” Oddly I had less than 2 weeks to apply.
I hope you see where this is going. 🙂
I sent in the application as soon as I got home and told all my family that it was too similar to my experience the previous year to be a coincidence. God was obviously attacking my tendency to over plan and teaching me to spontaneously and completely trust his timing.
Having been home for 2 weeks and there being only a week til school started I told my parents I would pack up my car, go to Cincinnati (where I’m originally from- my parents live in Iowa) to see friends, and so long as I got accepted would drive up to Cleveland from there. I figured I would just come home if I was wrong.
Just a day later I got a call from BSSM and had the easiest interview of my entire life. The admittance woman thought I was amazing and looked forward to meeting me.
I drove down to Cincinnati about a day later praying God would provide and that I wasn’t crazy.
From the moment I said “yes” to him God has opened every needed door and completely and utterly provided for me. He connected me with a temporary dwelling to rest and process the last year while transitioning into this new season. He has provided through various means for me to eat and have gas for my car and even have a shower and heat! He has paid for my tuition and connected me with a network to begin working with computers of all things. (Those of you who know about my technology woes on the Race should find this very humorous!)
And tomorrow I am moving to an area of Cleveland called Slavic Village where God has drawn my heart from the very night I arrived in Cleveland.
I am happy to be moving into the next phase of what he has called me to here while sad to be leaving the home I’ve had for what feels like much longer than 2 months (which is twice as long as I’ve lived in any country this past year!)
God’s hand has been on every part of this journey as I learn so much about my identity as his daughter and how to rest and receive the inheritance I have already been given. He is so faithful as he leads my every step and goes before me, challenging me to walk in the authority and purpose he has placed within me.
Every day has become so simple yet so full! I am continually being stretched and challenged. I am always striving to love more and to connect with whoever is placed along my path. I am learning to really live in my own skin and to continue believing through action and interceding with boldness, not allowing doubt to hinder or hold me back.
I have become such a completely different person than who I was 18 months ago and yet I have never felt so much like myself.
I am finally beginning to think of this way of life as “normal” rather than crazy. And I am finally beginning to find the trust and intimacy I have been craving from Abba.
So much feels different and yet so much is the same.
I’m finding that the end of one journey and the beginning of another are really the same thing.
And though I’m not quite half way through this current season that is drastically though beautifully different than my previous one, I find even more how adventurous life can be when lived saying “yes” to the one who loves to go with us wherever we’re sent.
