I have wanted a tattoo for years now, the designs have changed over time but I have always wanted to be cool enough to finally get one. I always had a bit of commitment phobia when it came to the idea of a tattoo; in the moment they sound really cool, but will I like it 60 years from now? I could never say yes to a design because I could never assure myself that I would like the design even a year from then, let alone when I was 75. But on my 25th birthday that changed. I had a design that I knew was important enough to me to have on my body for the rest of my life. Now you may be asking yourself at this point why this is more important than spending a year of my life sharing the gospel, let me tell you.
My tattoo is really simple, but deeply important to me. On my left inner forearm I have the words Proclaim Freedom to the Captives. This phrase is part of Isaiah 61:1-2, and these verses in Isaiah are my life verses. They are the verses that God has clearly spoken over my life, and are the verses that I strive to live out everyday. Isaiah so brilliantly states in these verses “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor…” This is the very thing that God has told me to do, everywhere, everyday. It doesn’t matter my job or location at the moment, through my whole life this is what I am supposed to do.
The World Race is an amazing opportunity, but it’s not everything. I have already traveled all over the world, and I have been involved in different ministries for years. The World Race will not be the best year of my life. I am only 25 years old. I have had 25 other years where God has moved and worked in my life; where he has stretched me and used me. I hope to have at least 50 more years of life. So to define my whole life by one experience seems silly to me. Now please hear me, I could not be more excited to step out in faith over the next year on this journey and it will be an experience that will shape and mold me. I am positive that I will cherish the next year for the rest of my life, but I will not choose to define my life by it. I will however choose to define my life by my tattoo.
I choose to define my life by proclaiming freedom to the captives. Captives aren’t just somewhere else in the world. They are my neighbors, my friends, and even my family. Wherever I am in my life, no matter what I am doing, I want to define my life by proclaiming freedom that only comes through Jesus Christ. I want to share the amazing power of the Gospel with each person that I come in contact with, even if it’s just a well-timed smile. When I am 85 years old in a nursing home I hope to be sharing the freedom that comes through Jesus with everyone I come in contact with, just as much as I hope to do that over the next year of my life on the World Race.
As I step into this journey with the World Race I know it will impact me in ways that I cannot even imagine right now, but it won’t be the thing that defines me, or be the best year of my life. I choose to be defined by God and what he has called me to for a lifetime, proclaiming freedom to the captives. That is why I have it on my arm so I see it everyday. The Race is but a small part of a bigger picture. I could have put the World Race logo on my arm, but that is not what God has called me to, he has called me to proclaim freedom to the captives. And I for one cannot wait to see how I get to do that over the next year.
