Hey Guys!
My name is Marie Violette and I am from Atlanta, Georgia. So, if you are reading this I guess you already know that The Lord is about to take me on the wildest adventure of my life, The World Race Gap Year. In September of 2015, I will be leaving my comfort zone of the last 19 years and will be starting a 9 month journey to be the hands and feet of Jesus. That’s right people, you are reading the blog of an almost missionary.
When I first announced this to my family and friends a lot of them asked me why? Why would I get up and leave in the middle of working towards my degree? Why would I go live in three third world countries when I’m only 19 and barely know what will happen a month from now or better yet, a week from now? And I guess I would like to clarify that.
I grew up in a christian home. I went to church on Sundays and we prayed before every meal and before bed. I never had to worry about anything because everything was pretty much handed to me. Then about two weeks before my freshman year of high school I found out some news that really rocked my world; my parents were getting divorced. It was one of those things that I never saw coming. It was one of those moments where it felt like my life went from 0-90 MPH, hit the wall, and exploded right in front of me.
So, life went on and I got farther into high school. My sophomore year I transitioned out of private school into public school and wasn’t really sure of who I was or how I fit in. I still went to church and read my bible, but if I was truly being honest my faith was really lukewarm. I was doing those things trying to be a “good christian”, not because I WANTED to. I think there’s a huge difference between doing something because we truly want to and doing something because we feel we have to fulfill the image of the facade we put up.
The closer I came to graduating high school, the more I started thinking about what I wanted to do with my life. I knew I wanted to help people for sure, so I began thinking about careers that centered around people. Finally, I decided I wanted to be a doctor. What I loved about it was that doctors give people second chances. They mend them back together when their bodies can no longer go on living with the damage that occurred in their lives. So, I decided to be a surgeon. I thought that if I could heal someone else and give THEM a second chance then that was worth it.
I graduated high school in May of 2013 and started college as a Biochemistry Major, praying to God that He would open the right door for me. Well, to my surprise He answered my prayer, but not in the way I expected. The day after I graduated I got hired in an orthodontic office. This wasn’t something I personally applied for, yet was recemmended for and if I was being honest I wasn’t too sure I wanted it, but The Lord changed my heart and I decided to go with it. That was the first time The Lord taught me that He is OKAY with changing my plans. Over the course of the next year, that job opened doors for me I never saw coming. I was only suppose to work there over the summer and yet it’s November 2014 and I’m still there every week. That job blessed me more than I could ever imagine, but a few months ago The Lord tugged on my heart again and told me there was something more He had in mind. So, long story short, I applied for The World Race Gap Year.
So, why am I going? I am going because I don’t want to just have lukewarm faith. I want to fully and completely follow Him with wreck-less abandon. I want His plans for my life to come before my own. I want Him to change my heart and mind and mold them to fit what He authored my story to be before I was even a mere thought in my parents’ minds. I would rather live knowing what happens then always wonder ‘What if?’ I am going to figure out who I am in HIM.
Going from Medicine to Dentistry to Missions, here I am at the beginning of the next chapter of my life, excited, anxious, nervous, in wonder of what is to come. After all of this time, after the ups and downs, I am ready to be BRAVE.
LoveLoveLove, Marie
“Then I heard the voice of The Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here I am. Send me!'”
{Isaiah 6:8, NIV}
