After a weekend of playing phone tag with Emily, my mobilizer, I finally received the call that officially accepted me into the World Race. “Really? I’m so excited!” was all I could manage to say after a long day of student teaching. I immediately chastised myself for sounding so awkward and immediately thought, What if they take back their offer? Thankfully, Emily continued talking about the next few steps in the process. Whew, dodged a bullet there. Monday, was not the start of this journey. Neither was the day that I accidentally hit the apply button on the October 2017 Route 2 page (yes, it was an accident). God has been shaping me for the next year since my childhood.
I was raised in the Church of the Nazarene and was told many times that it was my duty to go out into the world and be a disciple for God. My youth group had many service opportunities. In 2005, my sister travelled to Mississippi to aid Hurricane Katrina victims. I remember thinking that I wanted to be just like her and serve others in any way I can.
In 2014, I had my first chance to leave the United States on a service learning trip through my university. I was armed with my Bible and my determination to go and make new believers in Christ. What I found was the opposite. The majority of the country identifies as Christian and showed a deeper conviction than I had in my 18 years of living. I was expecting to be the light for Christ, but I was shown the purest of lights.
In 2016, I went with a group of students from my university to Thailand. This time, I decided to take in the culture, adapt as much as I could, and learn from the people. We spent a few days in Bangkok sweating, sightseeing, sweating, learning about Buddhism, and more sweating. At night, we visited two red light districts. We had spent weeks preparing ourselves for the shock that would overtake us by watching documentaries and listening to testimonies from other students who went on the trip. We all had a mental check list of what we thought we would feel. However, I took that check list, wadded it up, and threw it out the window; the feelings were indescribable. I stared darkness in the face those nights. All I wanted to do was run away. The crushing weight of the reality hit me: I was allowed to leave the darkness and embrace the light, but those women did not know how to.
When I spoke to my friends about possible applying for the World Race, I was received by, “Are you crazy?” The expectation for my life in the next year was to receive a teaching license and find a teaching position at a high school. Whoops. While paying off loans and not making money for a year are concerns, I feel that God was calling me to a higher purpose. I do love teaching (even though the kids can be knuckleheads sometimes), but I believe God is telling me that teaching is for a later season in my life. I want to head into the darkness to find the oppressed and persecuted.
The World Race will be a part of my journey, and I hope it can be a part of yours, too. I ask for your prayers and thoughts as I tackle these next few months! If you feel like God is telling you to join me financially in this journey, you can donate (even $1 will help) by clicking the link above.
