Three weeks ago my flight landed in good ol’ DFW airport. I was finally home. After 11 long, beautiful months I was home. I didn’t know what to expect. I had heard that re-entry can be difficult. I honestly didn’t take too much notice in that though. I love my home, why would it be difficult? That’s what I thought to myself. Well I’m writing this blog to future World Race alumni. These are some of the things that I have struggled with. I’ll try to offer things that have helped me deal with them if I’ve found something (no guarantees that I have).
- Loneliness- Going into the race I had just graduated from university. I came home to Dallas, 3 hours from my school. So my closest friends aren’t anywhere near me. Not to mention, while I was gone, they continued living life with me being in it, so they are not used to having me around. This can lead to being left out on occasion. So I have struggled just feeling completely alone. It’s hard going from constantly being attached to the hip to five people to almost never being around people (I work alone at my job too). I miss all my fellow racers. Some of us joke about just setting up a little commune for our squad. I think the phrase we would use is “half jk”. One thing that has helped me is to reach out to people I haven’t seen or talked to in a long time; friends from high school that I haven’t seen in five years. It has slightly helped. Still a struggle. My biggest suggestion is CALL YOUR SQUAD! Talk to them. Vent to them. Lay out your struggles with them. That’s what they are there for (of course also be willing to listen). You spent a year building this community, don’t let it just dwindle away.
- Being misunderstood- No one truly understands what you’ve been through this year besides the ones you were with. No one will understand the gravity of the things you saw. No one will understand the relationships you formed. No one will understand the change that God has done in your life (to qualify those sentences, some will understand aspects of your year, but a majority won’t). It can get frustrating at times. My life is now on a completely different path than it was before I left for the race. My family does not get it. So it’s been hard communicating with them in regards to me wanting my life to revolve around God. Grace. That’s the one word I will use that will help you if you feel this way. Show tons of grace. Do your best to not get frustrated. Continue praying to God and just taking your frustrations to Him, asking Him to help those around you understand.
- Being Judgmental- This year a lot of convictions arose in me that were not there before. These were my personal convictions. But being home, it has occasionally been hard to be around those who don’t have the same. I find myself having to work to not judge people and to just accept where they are right now. It is not my place to judge, but just to love. God did nothing short of a miracle in getting me where I am today and through fervent prayer, He can do the same for those around you. I can only work on myself and do what I believe is glorifying God.
- Feedback- We spent a year perfecting feedback. We learned to say the hard thing because they needed to be said. We encouraged our peers. We gave them timely criticism for their betterment. It became natural (for the most part). You would think it would flow right into everyday life back home right? Wrong! It’s not easy. For one, not everyone around you is chasing God, which is a complete turnaround from the race. We can give people feedback all we want, which we believe to be biblically sound, but if the person we’re talking to doesn’t believe the Bible to be God’s Word, then it could turn out to be useless. We can’t just give feedback to everyone anymore. Some people won’t want it. Some people will. We have to discern that. We have to be willing to let things go. In your Christian community give feedback. It is necessary. But outside of that, be wise before you lay it on someone.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but just a few of the things I am currently struggling with. Some others include patience, restlessness, confusion, etc. The list goes on and on. One thing I can say is that wherever you are right now is where God wants you. God uses everything for good. The struggles will make us stronger.
“Don’t hate the points of pain, it may be the Master Surgeon cutting something out”
– Matt Chandler
