Dear Family and Friends
The Last couple years of my life, I’ve really have been seeking God’s plan for my life and what He would have me do. There have been victories but also some defeats in this season of waiting.
I think that’s where the Lord does His greatest work in us is in the confusing and hard times in our lives. During this time I have experienced incredible personal growth and spiritual growth with Christ. Last January I enrolled in a class at my church called “Perspectives” in my time in Perspectives I learned more about God’s heart and plan for the nations and through out the weeks God gave me a heart for the deepest and darkest most unreached corners of the earth.
After the conclusion of the class, I spent some time asking God what he would have me do and where He would have me go. Through prayer and discipleship I really started asking the Lord His plan for my life.
Late in June I found out about an opportunity called the World Race where I would travel the globe to 11 different countries in an 11 month period of time. Just the prospect of it excited me. So I went home and researched it and I knew immediately God was calling me to trust Him and I decided to go on and sign up for the trip. Through an application process and a phone interview in mid July and after more waiting they finally selected me as one of the missionaries to be sent out.
Things I will be doing on this trip will vary greatly and considering every month I will be moving into another community and another country. Every day on the World Race will look a little different. Some days will be packed full with construction, street evangelism, and discipleship, vacation bible school, building relationships with orphans, or praying for the sick at a hospital. Some days could be slower where we will shop for groceries and cook for each other or prayer walk around the community.
I am going into this journey with great expectations and trusting the Lord to do great and mighty things in and through me and my teammates, I’m also really looking forward to seeing how God changes me in the process. This is by far the biggest leap of faith I have ever taken, I’m praying that the Lord would honor my faith and sacrifice.
You may be wondering why I’m doing this; my number one reason is to go and have a part in reaching the nations of Jesus Christ and to see if God is really calling me full time to the Mission Field overseas somewhere.
The countries I will serve in are as follows:
South Africa, Mozambique, Swaziland, India, Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Moldova, and Romania
Here’s where you come in, and an exciting opportunity to partner with me as I take this 11 month journey, My World Race can’t happen unless a few things happen: Support from my friends and family.
1) Prayer: I need prayer warriors who are committed to praying for me throughout my trip and preparation. This trip will be hard and life changing all at the same time, and continual prayers for me, my team and our ministries will be continually needed. If you are willing to become a prayer warrior please let me know, so I can keep you informed on the prayer requests that arise.
2) Financially: I need people to financially support me: The entire trip will cost close to $20,000, which will cover all my travel expenses, insurance, health care, and gear. I know that $20,000 is a lot to raise, but I strongly believe that it is possible. I know God wouldn’t have let me come this far only to let me fail in finding funding, I will be doing as much as I can to provide for my trip, including fundraisers and talking to organizations and companies around the area, but I know that won’t cover everything and I hope you will prayerfully consider donating to my trip if you can, every penny counts. My goal is to have $15,500 in my support account by January 1st so that when I am on the field I can focus on what God has planned for my trip rather than worry about gaining more financial support. My first deadline is October 1st, with $6,500 in my support account.
If you would like to partner with me financially, the easiest ways include:
• CHECKS: Can be written to Adventures in Missions, with my name on the memo line, and mailed to Adventures in Missions, PO Box 534470, Atlanta, GA 30353-4470. If you choose to donate by mail please include the enclosed response card, which tells AIM who the donations are going to and who is receiving the receipt.
• ONLILNE: If you would rather make an online donation you can visit my blog: kirkblade.theworldrace.org and click on the “Support Me” link on the left side of the page.
Adventures in Missions are a non-profit, 501(c) (3) organization and donations are tax-deductible.
Throughout my journey, I will be blogging and I invite you to follow along with me, see what I see, learn what I learn, and experience what I experience. To stay informed please and follow my blog kirkblade.theworldrace.org
If you have any questions at all please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for considering partnering with me, I truly appreciate it. I am super excited to see what God has in store for me in the upcoming year and sincerely hope you will follow this amazing journey God has lined up for me.
Blessings
