Here it is guys. My official invite, in somewhat proper letter formatting, to invite you into this journey with me. I can’t tell you enough how much I’ve already been humbled by this journey. I am overwhelmed to realize how many people have helped me to become who I am and have encouraged me, spoken truth into me, and enabled me to say yes to the journey God has for me. He has surrounded me with such incredible community. I really do know some of the best people out there. I am also overwhelmed to realize how much I will continue to rely on that community.
Dear loved ones,
Over the last couple years I have experienced incredible amounts of learning, growth and adventure and so much of that has been possible only because of people like you investing your time, love, support, and gifts in me – so thank you! The growth hasn’t been comfortable, but I am so excited about where it has taken me. I am so excited to be writing you to tell you that the adventures that I’ve had have been preparing me for adventures ahead, and to invite you to join me in the next steps of this journey.
Here’s a quick recap of what’s been going on and where I’m at: I am in the middle of my final year of undergrad at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho. Two summers ago I went with NNU on a Mission to Port-au-Prince where I worked at an orphanage for children with disabilities. The following school year, some of that mission team and I spent the year fundraising for a new water system for them. I returned last summer with NNU for a similar trip. We are currently working towards starting a non-profit to continue our support of this orphanage. This October I completed my fourth and final soccer season with NNU. These experiences and the people I have shared them with have been incredible catalysts of growth and vessels through which God has spoken into my life. I will graduate this May with a degree in biology.
Instead of diving headfirst into the adventure of graduate school, I will be departing for an entirely different adventure. In August, I will embark on the World Race, an 11-month mission trip through Adventures In Missions, during which I will visit 11 different countries. I will spend one month in each of the following countries: Serbia, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
My team and I will minister to those in the areas we visit in a myriad of ways. This might be through preaching, teaching English, visiting orphanages or hospitals, putting on sports camps, building schools or churches, working with women trapped in sex trafficking, and so many other ways in which I’m not even aware of yet. In all that we do, we will seek to tangibly bring the love of Christ. We will learn; we will grow; we will be uncomfortable; we will experience God and His Kingdom in ways we never expected.
As I prepare for this journey ahead, I am constantly humbled by the grace that has brought me to this point, the love of others that has shaped me, and the examples that have been set for me. Thank you for being those things to me. I am also continually humbled to realize that I still need your love, support, and example. I have seen God work in my life in so many ways through all of you, and I pray that he continues to do so in this next phase. I ask that you would partner with me as I follow God in this adventure He’s put on my heart.
There are a few ways in which you can do that. The first is through prayer – prayers for spiritual preparation, a right and humble heart, provision, and eyes to see what He wants me to see, a mind to learn what He wants me to learn, and hands to serve where He wants me to serve. Second, you can follow my journey by subscribing to my blog, mccreanirider.theworldrace.org (but if you’re reading this, you already found my blog. Give yourself a high five or something!). This will be my primary means of updating while I’m gone and as I prepare. I want to, in every way possible, share this experience with you. I also highly recommend checking it out as there are already a few posts that give a little more insight into my heart regarding the Race and all that it entails. Finally, you can support me financially. This trip requires that I raise nearly $17,000 to cover nearly all of my expenses for the year. If you wish to partner with me in this way, I have included details on how exactly to do that, as well as my fundraising card.
I cannot emphasize enough how much I have been blessed by your love and support to this point. I pray that your participation in this adventure will be as much a blessing to you as it is to me. If you have any questions, I would love to answer them. Please don’t be strangers!
Blessings,
(insert ugly e-signature thing here)
And now, the ever not exciting, but super necessary, donation nitty gritties!
Donation Details:
- Checks should be made payable to Adventures in Missions and sent to PO BOX 742570, Atlanta, GA 30374.
- Checks should also be accompanied by a Fundraising Card, which you’ll find in the envelope I sent you if this letter came to you in an envelope. If I didn’t send this to you in an envelope, it can be printed out here. https://www.adventures.org/valkyrie/mystuff/mobilization/documents/support_card.asp?FirstName=McCrea&LastName=Nirider&PreferredFirstName=McCrea&Account_Type_Id=1&Appeal_Id=NIRIDERMCCREA&AccountType=World%20Race
If you didn’t get a hard copy of this letter and you would like to, send me an email at [email protected] with your mailing address and I’ll get one to you. I love getting mail and I’d love to send you some!
- There’s a “Support Me” button at the top of this blog. If you click it, it will take you to a place where you can donate online.
4. You can choose to do a one time donation or a monthly donation. Monthly donations won’t be added to my total until the money actually comes in. That is to say, monthly donations that are pledged for future months don’t count toward fundraising deadlines.
5. There is no gift too big or too small. Well. Gifts that are large will make me blush and again feel like I’m a vending machine being fed a wrinkly dollar, but I’m learning to accept love and gifts with grace. It’s harder than I thought. But really. There are no gifts too small. What I spent on the americano and marionberry corn muffin that I’m enjoying while I write this is as much or more than I might spend on a whole day on the race. Feeding me for a day is no small gift.
Finally, all donations are tax deductible (yay!) and any donations that exceed my fundraising goal will be allocated to other needs as Adventures in Missions sees fit.
Asking for support isn’t easy for me. I want to think I can do it alone. I can’t. At all. I’m learning. I am being stretched and blessed in this process. I really really pray that your partnership with me would bless you even more than it blesses me, that together we would learn and and grow and find out even more about how great God really is.
