gotcha. 🙂
I am going on the race and I couldn’t be more excited or anxious, but I wanted to do a post about all the things I did not say yes to this adventure for. It’s super important to me that you know my heart behind this decision.
I am not going because I am:
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Having an identity crisis – I think it is the ultimate paradox that when we truly come to know Jesus, we yearn for Him more than we did before. That is what’s happening with me and this trip. I know who I am in Christ, but I am not (nor will I ever be) done learning about myself or the character of the Lord. I believe He opened this unimaginable door for me to learn more about His heart and play a part in creating sustainable change in some of the darkest parts of the world.
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Avoiding a big girl job – I am two weeks from college graduation. This means getting asked, “What are you going to do next?” approximately 27 times a day. If you’re in that same position, you know what I’m talking about… Everyone means so well and don’t get me wrong, I feel so cared about when I get asked that, but through and through, my heart has longed for international missions for quite some time now. I am not running away from responsibility and 401(k)s, but running toward a long-time dream that I believe the Lord has prepared for this time in my life.
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A millennial with wanderlust – I love new places. I love immersing myself in new sights and new food and new cultures. Nothing wrong with that at all. In fact, I plan to go on many trips in my lifetime where I get to just enjoy myself and God’s creation. He wants that for us. But you should know that this isn’t me taking a vacation for a year. This is more. This is much, much more. For me, the World Race does mean newness and excitement, but also sadness, fear, uncomfortability, confusion, brokenness, and feeling the weight of need. It doesn’t seem fair or right that I get to know Jesus when others don’t; That I have a bible and can read it anytime I want, or that I get to walk around and approach the world, knowing the Lord’s sweet healing will be with me always. I am going because there are people who don’t know.
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Looking for a husband – It’s a weird world when suddenly you’re looking around like, ‘wow, ok, all my friends are married.’ I’m at the age where a common reaction to this trip is, “Oh, when you come back, you’ll be married!” I definitely want to get married one day and I never put limits on the Lord, but I can assure you, that is not a priority to me while I’m focusing on this trip (although all you friends with babies better call me to babysit!). It was an easy choice for me and I would do it again.
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Unfulfilled with my life at home – As mentioned in an earlier blog post, this is definitely not the case. I love my life at home so much. Home means beautiful, important souls that mean the world to me, boundless opportunities, and many passion projects that I get very excited about. I have a very colorful, joy-filled home life. I will cry a lot of tears when I have to leave it for a little while.
There ya have it! Thank you so much for reading. I hope this provided some clarity about my trip. Please keep me and my team in your prayers. And as always, please let me know if you have any questions, advice, or comments!
with hugs, kier
