You should go on the World Race.
I’m serious. If you’ve ever looked at photos on Instagram of people on the race or read blogs or met people who’ve gone on it and thought, “oh, that sounds like something I might want to do”, you should do it. Or if you know someone who might want to do something like this, you should tell them to go. The deadline for 2020-2021 Gap Year routes is coming up soon, and I’m sure there’s at least one high school senior or college student reading this who’s still unsure about what they’re doing in the fall. If that’s you, I think you should go on the World Race.
I just started month eight of my race, and so far this has been the craziest, weirdest, hardest, most fun, and most amazing experience of my life. And I can think of so many reasons that you should do this too, but I’ll try to keep it short enough that you actually keep reading. So here are my top five reasons, in no particular order:
Reason number one: This is the best community you could ask for.
Whether or not you have a good community back home, the one you will find on the World Race will probably be different from anything you’ve experienced before. And before you brush this off by saying, “sure, you’re community might be great, but mine will be a totally different group of people!”, let me tell you why this community is so amazing. The World Race is very intentional about creating a healthy community, and they give each squad (the group of people you do this thing with) plenty of tools to do that. Feedback, the act of encouraging and calling each other higher, and maintaining healthy boundaries, are just a couple of examples. And of course, Christ is always kept at the center. Also, most people who are willing to leave home and raise the money to go are going to be willing and excited to create deep and meaningful relationships within the squad. All this adds up to some of the best friendships you could ask for, that will hopefully last long after the race.
Reason number two: You’ll go deeper in your relationship with Christ.
This is a given, right? Well, kind of. I went into the race knowing it was going to help me go deeper in my faith, but I had absolutely no idea what that was actually going to look like. Not only is your walk with the Lord prioritized on the race, but you’ll be surrounded by mentors and leaders who are constantly pointing you back to the Father, and you’ll get countless teachings and lessons to help you go deeper with your faith.
Reason number three: You’ll have some crazy cool stories to tell your grandkids.
“I lived in a tent for two months”, “I bungee jumped in Costa Rica”, and “I took dance classes with a school that danced with Justin Beiber” are a few I’m already excited to tell my grandkids. Whatever stories you end up with, your grandchildren are definitely going to think that you were pretty cool when you were eighteen.
Reason number four: It will most definitely push you out of your comfort zone.
In one way or another, the race will push you outside of your comfort zone. Even if leaving home for nine months to live in a different country excites you and doesn’t scare you. Anyone who knows me could tell you I was more than comfortable moving to another country, but things like evangelism, dance ministry, and living with thirty other people have definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone and have helped me grow so much. God will find some way to make you uncomfortable and teach you how to rely on Him.
Reason number five: You won’t recognize yourself by the end of it.
You won’t. I still have two more months left on the race, but I know that month one Kenzie wouldn’t recognize me now at all. I’ve grown so much, and so have all my squadmates. There’s so much to learn about God, yourself, and the world around you while on the race. Obviously, you have to make the choice to make the most of your time here. But if you do, you’ll come out of it so much different than you came in, in all of the best ways.
AND a bonus reason: You don’t have to be perfect to go.
I had to add this last one is for anyone who thinks they aren’t good enough to go on a mission trip. I’ve been there. But God doesn’t use perfect people (and perfect people don’t exist). A lot of us went into the race thinking we had to put on a front of being a perfect Christian to be here. But we soon realized that we weren’t perfect, and neither was anyone else. We’re all broken, we all have struggles, we all have parts of ourselves we don’t like. But those things we think are broken or ugly, are probably the things He will use the most. So don’t let it stop you from doing the things He’s calling you to.
There you have it! Five (actually six) reasons you should go on the World Race. (Disclaimer: I wrote this about the World Race: Gap Year program because that’s the one I’m on. If you’re older, I’m sure the 11 in 11 program is pretty cool too.)
Don’t forget to subscribe to this blog for more stories from on the race to get you hyped to go and see what it is like! I’m so excited for what God has in store for all of you!
God Bless!
