Many of you may have been wondering why I’ve wanted to do the World Race. In fact, you may still be wondering. The reality is, I’ve often wondered myself, often gotten caught up in the swirling chaos of support raising, impending change, getting all my ducks in a row before I leave. It’s easy to forget the “calling” behind the mission sometimes, especially when life feels a bit crazy. So this post is for you, and it’s also for me. Here are 3 reasons why I’m going on the World Race:
1. Because God knew that I wanted to go.
Before you think I’m insane for thinking God does what I ask him to do (lol), allow me to explain. We serve a God who knows us. He knows who we are on a deep, authentic level-a level that’s proven to be difficult for even people to reach.
“Lord, you have examined me
and know all about me. You know when I sit down and when I get up.
You know my thoughts before I think them.
You know where I go and where I lie down.
You know everything I do.
Lord, even before I say a word,
you already know it.
You are all around me—in front and in back—
and have put your hand on me.
Your knowledge is amazing to me;
it is more than I can understand.”
Psalm 139:1-6
Since I was 16 years old, my heart has been on missions. In college, my thoughts began to take shape into passions – – Travel. People. Languages. My constant question is: what do I do with these things? I strive to live my life with them in mind, but the Lord knows more than me (no matter how many times I believe otherwise). All that to say, I am completely certain God brought the World Race to my attention, paved the way for this new life experience. Knew my heart and my plan before I did. And I think that’s pretty cool.
2. Because I love people.
You know those passions I just mentioned? I remember in college, countless people would ask, “What are you passionate about?!” It was usually followed by some form of encouragement along the lines of, “Follow your passions! Pursue your goals!” Yada yada yada. OK. I was a Linguistics major with a minor in Spanish. Languages are cool, right? (if you answer ‘No’ we might not get along well….) But friends, linguistics is not my passion. I don’t even know if I like the word “passion”. But what I do know is that I think people are really stinking cool. People are the most interesting subjects I know, and I want my life to be about serving and loving people well. That’s the kind of person I want to be. The kind of person I try to be every single day.
To me, the World Race is a prime opportunity to learn about, learn from, and love on people. People who are very different than I am. Different life experiences, cultures, stories. Honestly stoked about it.
3. Because of the Gospel.
If we adopt a mindset of loving people, I would hope that we would also genuinely want what’s best for them. And if we believe that the redemptive love of Christ is what’s best, then there’s only one thing we can do.
“Go into the world and preach the Gospel to all creation.”
Mark 16:15
Sharing the Gospel takes many forms. And you don’t have to go on an 11 month, 11 country mission trip to do so. We need people to share the Gospel in our cities, our neighborhoods, our workplaces. May our actions and words reflect Christ’s love on our lives to everyone we encounter. But here’s the deal: there are so many people on this planet who have never even heard the name of Jesus. That needs to change, and I feel called to be an agent of that change.
So I’m going to go. And I’m grateful for the opportunity to get to go, for the privilege of being able to set other things aside so I can do this. I’m glad to have you here too, walking alongside me in this journey. It’s not an easy one, but I have no doubt it’s good.
love & peace,
K
