Adventures WorldRace SethBarnes Sponsorship Giving

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We were asked to write a blog about how we were called to this mission trip. Here is my story…

This should be short and sweet considering it was only a short time ago the mission trip was even a tiny planted seed in my head at first. 

It all started Mid June of this year. I was painting for a lady (my friend now, Megan) who was going on a mission trip to Africa for 10 days. I distinctly remember saying, “good for you, SO not for me!”

On my fairly regular daily walks/jogs… I was talking to God and I said, “God. You have to do something with me and do it fast.” I don’t usually tell God what to do… but I was in such a rut I was crying out for Him to take over. Take Control. I was getting sick of myself.

Well, in no time I was having a conversation over facebook with my friend Kyle Crimi who was in his last month of the world race 07. He said, “Rach, you should do it”… I made a comment of “yeh, right…” to him. But in my MIND I thought…. Maybe I should?

MAYBE I SHOULD…? You have got to be kidding me! WHAT?

Rachel… you have never done a mission trip, you don’t even like camping…. How do you expect to do this…? ha!

This was the seed that was planted and took root in my heart.

So I thought about it and prayed about it… come 4th of July… I couldn’t get it out of my system. I went walking more and praying and this time I told God, “If you want me to do this you have to infuse my heart with a desire to go.” And this image came to mind of a knife dipped in passion and stabbed into my heart. I said, “this is what it is going to take, because I don’t want to do this God, it’s not ME.”
 
And do you know what He said…?                       

(I laugh now) 

      

“EXACTLY Rachel. It’s NOT about YOU.”

I realized it’s not about me, it’s about what God wants to, or needs to do through me.

I considered the world race and loved ones told me that I should try shorter term ones to “see if I like it” and again it came up… it’s not about ME. I looked into short ones anyway with no real luck… I was kinda dragging my feet with it until…

I went to church and we had a speaker there by the name of Tony Compolo. Tony has done mission work all over the world. He talked about consumerism and how societies children are being raised to want more, more, more stuff, money etc…. he said to write our name on a piece of paper and put either that we wanted to sponsor a child or work with his organization regarding mission work for a year. He asked… “Do you have a year to give?” I asked myself… and the answer was “YES” I knew from that night on my heart was set and I was in a full speed pursuit of the World Race.

So I applied… was accepted… and things keep rolling from here. Raising money… talking to people… trying to allow my heart preparation for the year to come.

This is leagues out of my comfort zone. But for the first time in my life I feel such a peace that I am exactly where I need to be and open to the possibility that God Is.

Ambassador of  

The apostle Paul declared that we are “Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20). Successful ambassadors represent Jesus Christ to others on their home turf – whether that’s a local football field or the soil or a far-off land.

When God called Paul to be His ambassador to the Gentiles, Paul gave up his right to his own homeland and set off on lonely and dangerous journeys to places like Ephesus, Athens and Rome. Despite the hardships, Paul never looked back. That doesn’t mean his native Isreal. He loved his nation (Romans 10-11) But God put a bigger love in his heart – a love for all of God’s people. That’s what happens to us when we follow God’s calling. One country is not enough for us any longer because He puts the world in ourhearts.