I’ve never been one for cliff jumping. Standing on the edge of a cliff, it would take me a few moments (or more) of convincing before I’d jump. And, if we were standing together, I’d kindly offer to let you go first. I tend to be cautious by nature and I’m hesitant to jump in when the waters seem murky and the path unknown. However, with the World Race, my usual cautious nature has been replaced with an unexplainable peace from the Lord.
You see, I first heard about the race four years ago and immediately wanted to go. But the Lord said to wait. So I waited. And then last August as I was looking at the upcoming August 2017 routes, I heard that whisper from the Lord saying, “It’s time.” Since I’ve been accepted, the Lord has confirmed the race for me time and time again. Even to the smallest detail of our squad color being purple—which, if you know me, you know is my absolute favorite color.
Preparing for the race feels like preparing to jump off a really big cliff—one that I have no familiarity with. As I’m working my way up to the cliff, people have been asking me all kinds of questions about what life is going to look like once I jump. Questions like:
“So, what are you going to be doing?” – I don’t know.
“What ministries are you going to be working with?” – No idea.
“Where exactly are you going?” – Let me just run through my list of 14 countries.
“Where exactly are you going to be in Kazakhstan?” – Absolutely no idea.
And sometimes I get questions like these:
“Are you nervous?” – Honestly, I’m not. The Lord has given me so much peace.
“Are you going to miss your family?” – Of course.
And my absolute favorite: “What are you going to do after the race?” – Well, I haven’t even left yet. Maybe I should do that first.
These are all valid questions. Leaving for 11 months and not knowing exactly where you are going or what you are going to do can be unnerving. But, even though I don’t know the answers, it’s okay, and I am okay with that. Why? Because I can tell you without a doubt that this is the Lord’s next step for me.
Multiple times throughout Scripture, God calls His people to new seasons without giving them the full picture. God called Noah to build an ark to protect himself and his family from the flood. Noah had never even seen rain before, but because he trusted God, he built an ark. God called Abram to leave his land and go to a new land. Abram followed without knowing all the details. And when Jesus came on the scene, he said to some fishermen, “Follow me.” And you know what those guys did? They followed Jesus.
Following Jesus is risky and hard and sometimes not at all what we would expect. But when we decide that Jesus is worth it, we realize that there is no risk too risky and no challenge too challenging for our Lord and Savior. No matter what lies ahead of this cliff, Jesus is worth it.
So here I am. The time has soon come for me to say goodbye to friends and family and begin this new journey. Saying goodbye will not be easy, but I am thankful for my strong community of prayer warriors holding the ropes for me back home. I don’t know what lies ahead, but I do know this: God has called me to this season and I will follow. Despite the murky waters and the unclear path below this cliff, I am diving in head first.
