Most people, upon hearing what I’m doing, ask why? Mostly I think because they confuse the world race with that tv show the amazing race, but once we get passed that, they still ask why? How was I called to this? How do I know this is what God wants me to do? Aren’t I scared? Aren’t I worried? Well it all started awhile back when an old friend and mentor went on the world race. I had never heard of it before that, so I went online and looked at it. It was so intense. I was excited for her, but questioned her sanity. 11 months? In foreign countries? With people you don’t know? What if they don’t have bathrooms?! So, that was about as far as my interest went in it. But then this past October (2013) I got saved. Jesus came into my heart and I started really getting into the word and seeking God’s will for my life. I’d ask every day in my quiet time, “God, what am I supposed to do?”. Well in December of this past year (2013), I went on a cruise to the Bahamas. I’ve barely been out of the state of Florida and most certainly never been out of the country so it was all new to me. When we took a tour of the city our tour guide took us on a real tour. We got to see the real people in their real homes. Their everyday life. I had never seen anything like it. They had no running water in their homes, they sat on the street corners and watched the world go by, eyes lacking hope and spirits lacking joy. It broke my heart. When I got back, the world race popped back in my head. I cut my eyes up at God and said, wait…what? But…but what if they don’t have bathrooms? So I began to pray about it. After a few months of praying about it personally, I introduced the idea to my family and my pastor to begin to pray about it with me. A few weeks later I put in my application. I was all nerves of course because it is such a huge life changing thing. I had my interview, and a huge peace came over me. God took all of my nerves away because I knew this is what I am supposed to do. This is what God has called me to right now. There is no sense trying to run from it or be afraid of it, that kind of thinking might get me swallowed by a whale. So I’ve decided instead to run into it full force, to run straight into the will that the father has in store for my life. So am I afraid? Maybe in the way that children are afraid of the first day of school, or adults are at their first day of work. But I am so excited to work with my team to reach people who may otherwise never get to experience God’s love, to reach the least of these. So, when people ask me why in the world I am doing this, I tell them because God told me to.
