India has my heart. There is just something about this place that I have fallen in love with. Maybe it’s the people, maybe it’s the food :), maybe it’s the natural beauty, or maybe it’s their hunger for the Lord. I’ve been to Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, and Malaysia, but this is
the first country that I’ve actually seen people in severe need. Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of people in need in the other countries, but nothing like this. Maybe it’s the slums I see everywhere, or the lack of clean water, or all of the orphans, or the way it seems like people just live in fear and darkness. I don’t know, but I feel like I don’t ever want to leave here. I feel like there is so much I could be doing here… I just don’t know where I would start. 1 month doesn’t feel like enough time.
The race isn’t just about doing ministry and service work in each country, it’s about growing in the knowledge of what it is really like out here in this lost world. These people are in such a need of a hope. Just feeding them won’t be enough. Just giving them clothes won’t be enough. Just giving them shelter won’t be enough. If they don’t have Jesus, they can never be fully satisfied. They need food for their spirit, they need to know that they have protection from their savior, they need to know that God provides everything they can need in this world, and that they have a hope for eternity. I have been exposed to many religions in the past 4 months. Many people live in bondage to rituals, in fear of their gods, and in depression because there is no hope in what they believe. In one religion in particular, it is believed that women don’t even get to go to heaven… no matter how ‘good’ they were! Talk about having no hope!
Well, that's what we're here for. They don’t call the gospel of Jesus the ‘Good News’ for nothing:
Our God offers us all hope, but most of all, He loves all of us, no matter what. I don’t know about you, but that’s the kind of God I want to worship. There is nothing I have to do to gain my salvation except believe and live for Him! It’s a win-win! They go hand-in-hand… when you believe what God did for you when He sacrificed his Son for our sins, and you start living for Him and following His word… life just get’s BETTER. You start living by faith instead of fear. You start thanking God for all of the things he has blessed you with, instead of complaining about what you don’t have. You start realizing how much He Loves you, and nothing is more fulfilling… you stop looking for fulfillment in other things. You start to worship the creator, instead of the creation. It just makes sense… Jesus said: “Love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor as yourself.” If you really think about that… what if we ALL just did THAT? Wouldn’t every other commandment be kept? Like.. “Do Not Steal.” Okay, well if we loved someone, would we steal from them? The list goes on and on. God did not make these rules for us to condemn us if we didn’t follow them… He made them for us so our lives would be better!
These past 4 months have totally wrecked me and taught me so much about life. It’s not 
important what we gain on this earth. Of course it will make us happy for a little while, but it will never fulfill us. I would rather sleep on the floor of an orphanage in India surrounded by children who are in desperate need of love than in my big comfy bed all by myself. I want to spend my days walking down a dusty road in Cambodia, gathering children to come learn English for free so they can have a better future, instead of working just to make money so I can have more things. I want to walk around a community of Aboriginal people in Australia, who have an average life span of 30 years because of depression, suicide, and drug abuse, sharing the hope of Jesus, instead of walking on a tread mill for an hour so I can look ‘good’ to other people. I will never be able to go back to life as I know it. The questions I used to try to find the answers for were: “How can I make more money?” “What else can I buy for my apartment so I can be entertained?” “How can I be happier?” In just 4 short months, I find myself thinking and praying these things now: “How can I help these people?” “God, what are you calling me to do after the race?” “How can I make my life count in building the Kingdom of God?”
One day, when I stand before God, I want to hear Him say “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”
