Before I left the states to go on this mission trip, I had a few extra days of training in Atlanta. During that time, we were all given a gift. A gift we have carried and traveled the world with. You may have noticed it many of my pictures.
On the night of parent launch, the last day I saw my family before leaving, I was given a necklace. Every racer heading out onto the mission field received a necklace with a key on it. On the key, a word was imprinted. The person who made the keys specifically prayed over each key by name and printed on the key the word the Lord placed on his heart for us.
Many people I know choose a word or phrase for the year that they feel the Lord wants them to learn more about. This seemed like the same kind of concept except I didn’t get to choose the word. It was given to me.
Many of the words seemed very inspirational. Words like soar, Phil 4:13, free, believe, and kind were what my squadmates would be sporting for the year. Mine said bloom. (Yes, bloom. Like a freaking flower!) I was so confused. What was I supposed to do with that? I had always chosen my own words for the year and they were always something I could understand. Words like surrender and brave that come with directions on how to apply them. Be brave? Easy! I’ll do the things that scare me. Surrender? I will try and release my controlling nature. Bloom? I’m not a flower! How am I supposed to bloom?
These keys come with instructions too:
The mission of Keys for the Journey is to see spiritual growth that unlocks Kingdom in yourself and others. It is about purposefully and prayerfully choosing a word and wearing this tangible reminder of what you are journeying towards.
“You cannot give away what you do not have.” As a result, we encourage you to hold onto your key until you believe you have gained more understanding and ownership of the word. For it is when we own something, that we have full authority to hand it off to someone else. Seek the Lord, pay attention, and find someone who could use encouragement from your word. Then, pass your key onto them so they may journey with it!”
So not only do I have to figure out what this key means, but I then have to find someone who needs to learn what I learn from it and give it to them. Great…
Problem number 1: I have no idea what bloom means for me and my spiritual journey.
Problem number 2: Most of the time, the language barrier would make it very hard to translate what I would be giving them and what they are supposed to do with it.
Problem number 3: How do you know who and when to give it away?
I placed the necklace around my neck and walked away that night with more questions than anything else.
I journeyed with it. I wore it when I was able to, usually not giving it much thought. I, at some point, understood that flowers must grow before they can bloom, but that was all I had gotten about the word. Months go by and I start to see my teammates giving their keys away. I start to believe that I will have this key until I get back to the states. I believe that I won’t ever fully understand what in the world this thing is supposed to teach me. I wear this key around my neck and travel to 7 countries on 3 different continents. At this point it has become part of my wardrobe and I have almost forgotten its purpose completely.
It was in Penang, Malaysia at PenHOP during a session being taught by missionaries from the states about honor that God reveled everything to me. I was right that I had to grow before I could bloom, but what God had for me was so much more than just that simple statement. As I was listening to testimonies from the team about their journeys I realized what exactly God was needing me to see. To be able to bloom I had to grow, but to be able to grow I had to be planted.
In life I believe that there are two choices. That is what most of my tattoos are about. You can either believe in God or not. You can choose to see the good in people or the bad. You can choose light or darkness. Who you are is dependent on the choices you make. God used this key to show me that the same can be said for troubles. I can choose to let the weight of the world bury me, or I can choose to be planted. All the things that the world shovels onto my shoulders like dirt can be used. I can look at the dirt covering me as a grave or as fuel to grow and… You guessed it! Bloom.
“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”
James 1:2-4 NLT
God directed me right to this verse. This super popular verse that is sometimes the butt of Christian’s jokes is where my answer lied the whole time. God wanted me to choose to lean into my struggles. To choose to see them as joy for the growth they were providing.
These past few months I have regretfully not updated you guys that often or that fully. I have been experiencing intense amounts of growth. I was embodying the words of this verse long before I knew it. In the past few months, I have not only accepted my struggles but I have faced them head-on knowing the outcome of following the Lord’s prompting was always worth it in the end. From making these choices, I have grown into the person God has always wanted me to be. I see with His eyes. I love with His heart. I am not afraid of who the Lord calls me to be or the reaction of people around me because of His calling. That is what the Lord wanted me to learn from “bloom.” He wanted me to learn how to choose growth no matter the circumstances. Problem number 1 solved.
The crazy thing was, the moment I realized what the dang word meant, I was also prompted to give it away at the same time. One of the missionaries was a young girl who was walking through finding her identity and learning who God was calling her to be. I knew immediately that I was supposed to give this key to her. Her name is Becka and she is from Minnesota. That means problems 2 and 3 were solved too. I was able to explain to Becka exactly what the key was and what she was supposed to do with it. I gave it away with full knowledge that it was with someone who would know and honor what the purpose of the key was.
These last few months have been crazy. I have painted a mural, lost my wallet, relied on my teammates to help support me financially, walked into hard conversations, chosen to love even when I’m hurt, and so much more. I have so much to share and will hopefully do better at inviting you all along in that journey. I am so thankful to everyone who has partnered with me in this journey. Whether it was through donation or prayer, I have felt so incredibly blessed by my community and want to make sure you all know how much I appreciate your support of me. Until next time!
-Melissa
